Every lawyer is asking it, how to market a law firm? It’s not unexpected. You are experts in the field of legal counsel, not marketing. However, that doesn’t excuse you of your ignorance.
So, if you are one who is in need of marketing your law firm, it is time to start learning how. Keep in mind though, it is not something you can read overnight. Instead, it is a constant effort that involves practice and risk.
Yes, it can get intimidating. Even scary for some. That’s why most people don’t get to reach the farther parts of the road, but instead stop midway. Some even don’t start at all. They just gamble that they would be fine without marketing. However, that’s never the case.
This article makes sure you don’t have to get lost and frustrated. It will break down everything in simple easy to understand steps and tips. So, you don’t end up finding yourself giving up and putting your entire law firm in jeopardy.
Table of Contents
1. First Step on How to Market a Law Firm is Building Your Brand
The very first step in every law firm marketing approach is making sure that there is something worth marketing. You can’t market your law firm if it doesn’t have any value. Do you have a website? Does it look and function as best as it could be? How about your credentials, photos, and everything else?
Before anything else, you need to make sure that you make your law firm marketable. For example, invest on a web developer for a great website. You can then start marketing one aspect of your entire law firm.
It is no easy task to create a brand. Generally, it is a vague practice. There are a lot of things to create and grow such as:
- Social media pages
- Google review and other rating websites
- Your specialization
- Written content
- Credentials
- Visual content (personal photos, website graphics, logo)
You can never perfect everything. It is important to keep that in mind. Instead, you just need to start, at least you have something to market.
Differentiate Brand from Image
A brand is what you manifest. It isn’t just about how you show yourself, but what you are committed to as well. If your brand is about being a tough lawyer, then you should manifest that in the services you provide.
Image, on the other hand, is simply concentrating on how you appeal yourself to your market. You simply care about how you look and how to introduce your services.
What’s more important, brand or image? While the former is harder since it requires staying true to what you market, it is also more effective. It will bring in repeat clients as opposed to the latter.
2. How to Market a Law Firm: Show Credibility and Authority
If there is one thing that your clients are interested in the most, it is how credible your services are. Remember that you provide legal counsel. A client cannot leave you anytime when they are not satisfied. That would jeopardize their case.
As a result, they want to ensure that you are what they need. Choosing the right lawyer is very crucial so you must make sure that none of their questions are left unanswered.
What you want to do is make your credentials readily accessible. Since that is what your potential clients are always looking for, don’t make it difficult and serve it on a silver platter.
Put everything on the landing page, the very first thing your visitors are going to see. Include the following.
- Where you graduated
- Work experience (include everything, even internship)
- Specialization
- Major cases won
- Client Testimonials
Every single one will support your credibility as a lawyer fit for the needs of your potential clients. Even those who checked your website randomly will start to seriously consider your services. That’s how strong proving credibility on first impression is on your law firm marketing strategy.
3. How to Market a Law Firm? Work on Your SEO!
Everybody is on the internet, making it all the more important to invest on it. One thing you will want to keep your eyes on is SEO.
SEO is no walk in the park. To say the least, it is difficult. Search engine algorithms are constantly changing and prior strategies that were categorized as spam have been taken down. It is always a constant pursuit of knowing what affects search engine results.
However, if you do it right, it can be the most rewarding thing. Remember, the more you get seen, the more visitors you get. And visitors translate to potential clients.
The importance of SEO is highlighted by what people generally want today. According to a survey, 97% get their answers from Google instead of the yellow pages. So, if you lag behind search engine result rankings, you are losing a huge potential market.
4. Paid Ads Bring You a Long Way
Again, everything is on the internet, making it more logical to move all marketing strategies on it. That includes paid ads.
While it is commonly believed that traditional paid ads are no longer effective, online ones are quite different. You just have to know the type of paid ads you are getting into.
Your Top Choice: Google Ads
What makes Google advertisements great is that they don’t necessarily show it to people unsolicited. Instead, if someone searches for something and it is related to what you have to offer, you come out on top of the results. You don’t end up being an obstructive ad unlike traditional advertisements.
Another great thing to look at is how Google allows you to track and monitor your performance. You are not left blind asking how you are doing. Instead, you get to see it all, literally everything, from number of clicks to engagements.
With all the data, you get a better understanding on how to market a law firm. Is it time to pull the plug? What should you improve on? How should you implement your next campaign?
Facebook and Instagram Ads for Targeted Audiences
As a law firm, your clients are going to be people within the area. You can’t expect those who are from a different city to reach out to you. This gives you an idea on where you should be concentrating your efforts on.
Put in more efforts on online marketing that engages people who are more likely going to be your clients. One that would allow it is Facebook and Instagram is no different.
You get the opportunity to choose how far your ads are going to reach. You can limit it to people within your city. So, you only end up paying for ads that gets seen by those who can potentially become your clients.
5. Follow up with Newsletters and Email Marketing
Not everybody who is scouring the internet is in the market for a lawyer. They could be just looking for one in advance just in case. So, they didn’t go over your credentials thoroughly and then moved on.
That’s one potential client lost. You don’t’ want any more of that because when you put them together, you’d be surprised how many there are. It’s definitely a huge revenue lost.
However, they are not a lost cause. Instead, they just need a little more persuasion. You do that by connecting personally with them by reaching out through their emails.
You get their contacts through limited offers on your website. When you do, you send them newsletters and enact email marketing strategies. You show them what’s new and all that you are doing that they are missing.
With every email they read, that brings their favor closer to you. You gradually earn their trust and interest. Before long, your contact number is in their phones in preparation for the day that they will need you. That can be sooner or later, but you know you’ve earned yourself some clients.
6. Grow Blogs and Articles
Never underestimate the power of blogs and articles. If anything, you should give it a lot of attention. As a matter of fact, more people would rather learn about a brand through an article where their questions are answered, instead of a real ad. Specifically, 70% of them.
What does that mean? Content marketing is a crucial aspect in online marketing and skipping it is a huge potential market lost.
In the world of law, there are a lot of things you can talk about. Create articles about tips on legal counsel, the different types of charges, and so on.
There are a lot of people looking for answers and you being the one giving that to them, turns you as their first pick for a law firm. That is one great way on how to market a law firm.
7. Referral Marketing Campaigns
Somebody knows somebody who needs a lawyer. It has always been like that. The question is, how do you make sure that an acquaintance points at you when they know somebody who needs a lawyer?
What you do is you reward the person who recommended you. It can be through a discount or a freebie, anything that is small but will get their attention.
There are different ways to implement a referral marketing campaign. You can have people send in a case they know and it will be you who will market yourself to them.
Another would be partnering with a different lawyer who specializes in a completely different field. When they receive an inquiry that is more fit to you, they will pass on the client. In turn, you will do the same for them.
When you have a lot of people marketing for you, it is much easier to put your name and services out there. The best part is that it doesn’t come with a regular marketing bill. You only have to spend when you actually get a client and that really isn’t much of an expense by then.
How to Conduct Marketing for a Law Firm is Difficult
If you’ve gone through every point in this article, then you might have thought to yourself that it sure is a lot to remember. It is not something you can internalize in just one go.
All of these are still concepts, you still need to put them into practice. Those can be a whole new different story with accompanying challenges.
So, without a doubt, how to market a law firm is exhausting. However, it is one crucial part of your business that is rewarding when you are able to stick to it to the end. As they say, it is only the beginning that’s difficult.
In the event that you don’t have the time for all of these, you can still opt for an easier choice. Approach the best digital marketing agency and get them to either assist or do everything for you. If you are sure that it is what’s best for you, contact us today for a free strategy consultation.
