Tag: marketing

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Client Development

How Can I Help You?

A Gold Mastercard on top of some other cards. Photo by Pixabay at Pexels.

One day, quite a few years ago, I was out for lunch with a banker who I will call Neal. Neal was a commercial account manager at a large Canadian Bank. As I always did at such meetings, I asked Neal, “how can I help you?”  (For those of you who need a masterclass in networking, this is how you do it.  You don’t tell referral sources how great you are, how your firm provides better quality services at lower prices, and all of the usual boring stuff. You ask people, “how can I help you?”)

read more about a strange adventure in marketing “How Can I Help You?”
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Client Development

Pay For Play

A young man playing a pinball machine
Photo by Cottonbro at Pexels.

A friend of mine, who I will call Bill, was named as a Best Lawyer. Bill is a sole practitioner in a narrow specialty, and I am inclined to believe that having his peers vote him that award is meaningful. Unlike some of the multitude of lawyers in large firms who won similar awards, Bill did not have hundreds of colleagues to vote for him.

Unfortunately, you will not find Bill’s name in the online directory of Best Lawyers because he declined to pay the minimum fee of $1,595 per year (supposedly reduced from $1,850).

read more about paying to play in the legal profession “Pay For Play”
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Client Development

Being Brilliant is Over-Rated

Boy staring at chessboard.
Photo by Mart Production at Pexels.

Way back before the cell phone, we had a telephone in our reception area for clients to use. At the same time, my doctor had a sign in his reception area advising patients that the doctor’s phone was for his staff’s use and clients could use a payphone in the lobby. The difference? We lawyers had to market ourselves to find clients and then convince them to pay our bills. My doctor worked under a government health care system and did not have to worry about either of those things.

read more about what really matters to clients “Being Brilliant is Over-Rated”
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People I Met Practicing Law

Law Firm Primer For Articling Students and New Associates – Part Eight: The Chief Marketing Officer

People mingling at a bar.
Photo by Helena Lopes at Pixels.

Those of you who have been following this series know that I said that Part Seven was the final article in the series. It turns out that I lied.

The purpose of the series is to set out the questions which Articling Students and new Associates should figure out about their firms when deciding whether to stay there over the long-term.

This time it is about the Chief Marketing Officer (“CMO”).

read more about the chief marketing officer “Law Firm Primer For Articling Students and New Associates – Part Eight: The Chief Marketing Officer”
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Client Development

Hawkers and Hookers

Young people sitting in an audience and laughing.
Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko at Pexels.

In 1971, Xaviera Hollander published her first book titled, “The Happy Hooker: My Own Story.” It sold twenty million copies.

read more about what I learned from the Happy Hooker “Hawkers and Hookers”
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Client Development

Would You Rather Die or Give a Speech?

Officiant standing over coffin and holding a book.
Photo by Pavel Danilyuk at Pexels.

“According to most studies, people’s number one fear is public speaking. Number two is death. Death is number two. Does that sound right? This means to the average person, if you go to a funeral, you’re better off in the casket than doing the eulogy.”                   Jerry Seinfeld

Early in my career I spoke to a group of lawyers about opinion letters. I was awful. I read the entire presentation, which was chock full of technical details, and bored the audience to tears. To this day, if I close my eyes, I can still hear them snoring and crying at the same time.

read more about Tips for giving presentations “Would You Rather Die or Give a Speech?”
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Client Development

I Give this Post a Five Star Review

Frustrated man in front of a laptop.
Photo by Nicola Barts at Pexels.

I was a super-fantastic lawyer. Really, almost everyone says so.  And yet, there were a few clients who did not appreciate what I did for them or what it cost to have me do it.  Luckily for me, during most of my career Google Reviews were not much of a thing. And until they were, those few and far between ignorant and unappreciative ingrates who did not like me did not have much of a public forum for spreading their lies.

read more about dealing with Bad Reviews “I Give this Post a Five Star Review”
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Client Development

Call ME, Maybe!

Man wearing a headband and using the "call me" sign.
Photo by Brett Sayles at Pexels.

There once was a law firm which marketed itself as being a team of lawyers with deep expertise in different areas of the law who worked together seamlessly to deliver the best possible outcomes for the clients. Let’s call them “Super Team Lawyers.”

Super Team compensated its lawyers for bringing in business by awarding origination credits to the lawyer who introduced the client or referral source to the firm and paying them a percentage of their originating credits.

read more about client origination credits “Call ME, Maybe!”
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Client Development

The More Things Change, the More Lawyers Still Screw Up Marketing

A fully clothed skeleton sitting at a desk and typing at a computer.
Photo by Oussama Bergaou at Pexels.

“Either you follow-up or you fold-up.”  

Bernard Kelvin Clive

I recently observed a law firm doing some impressive online marketing. At the same time, to quote Shania Twain, when it came to the follow-up, “that [didn’t] impress me much.”

Here is my story:

I was doing a bit of research, hoping to find an answer to a legal question to solve a personal issue. I quickly came across a great website for a boutique firm which appeared to have all of the expertise that I need. Great articles, videos with a lawyer who has personality plus, and the offer of a free discovery session. Clearly this firm had the expertise that I required to solve my rather discreet problem.

read more about bad marketing follow-up “The More Things Change, the More Lawyers Still Screw Up Marketing”
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Client Development

Never Trust a Lawyer Who Doesn’t Make Mistakes

A sign which says, "Work Hard, Stay Humble."
Photo by Maddie Freddie at Pexels.

Back in the day, I would have an Associate join a client meeting with instructions to speak up if they thought I was getting something wrong. Of course, they would only do so occasionally because I was not wrong all that often. When they did, if their point was not so great, I would respectfully acknowledge it and move on, but if it was valuable, I would say so and say to the client something like, “that’s why I had her sit in.”

read more about being humble to win clients “Never Trust a Lawyer Who Doesn’t Make Mistakes”