MARKETING FOR LAWYERS Dwain Fagerlund, J.D., The Lawyers Consultant Analysis: Internal and External To use your time, money and energy wisely, you will want to focus your efforts toward a specific audience that has the potential of using your services. First, you should do an internal audit of your own practice: 1. 2. 3. 4. Where do you get most of your work? Who is your top referral source? What type of clients do you want to work for? Who is your ideal client?
Once you understand what you have and what you really want, you will need to do research and analysis outside the walls of the firm. Since law firms do not operate in isolation, you need to study the market: 1. What type of work is available? 2. What kinds of rates can be charged? 3. Who are your competitors? 4. What separates you from your competitors? 5. Are there any niche areas that are unexploited? Involvement in your prospective client’s industry is important to establishing credibility: If we want our asset to be valuable on the marketplace, we have to consider what our clients define as value. This means being sufficiently well informed and experienced to stay current on industry developments, converse with the client about industry-specific issues, being able to offer your professional counsel in a way that does not require the client to do any “mental translation” of generalities or terminology into his or her specific situation. For example, I have learned that the (seemingly “lowlevel”) tasks of diligently reading my clients’ industry trade magazines, newsletters, trade association materials, every single month without fail, has made
me a better professional in their eyes. It has made me, in their judgment, substantively more valuable to them. Sometimes reading these materials (or attending their trade association meetings) doesn’t feel like a “professional development” activity, but I have to remind myself that, in the clients’ eyes, my asset is not defined as just my technical skill. For them, my asset is valuable if I have technical skill and the ability to apply it in a customized way to their situation.1 Many company clients are willing to consider switching firms: 1. 2. 3. Only 5% of companies are very satisfied with their law firms. Only 6.9% of companies would not consider changing firms. Fifty-one percent (51%) of companies state that their lawyers lack skill in “understanding our industry.”2
These statistics suggest that there are opportunities to be exploited if you are willing to do a little trolling. Build a Network of Relationships Marketing is not an option for firms anymore. Many attorneys attempt to opt out of marketing because they don’t like “schmoozing” and don’t want the image of a peddler (not that there is anything wrong with that). The awkwardness and discomfort of marketing can be avoided, however, if you simply think about what type of information that you desire when shopping for a qualified professional. How do you select a doctor, dentist or accountant? Potential clients want trustworthy information about the attorneys that they will hire. The blizzard of information thrust at us via mail, internet, email, and television makes it difficult to sort out the good from the bad. That is why “the key to success is not what you know, but who you know.” People make important decisions based upon
1 2
Maister, Managing the Professional Service Firm, p. 148 (1993). McKenna, “Strategy Innovation” (Edge International 2001).
2
relationships and referrals. They want to do business with people that they know, like and trust.3 Networking or rainmaking is not about developing a slick sales pitch and handing out business cards. It is simply the cultivation of mutually beneficial relationships.4 When meeting new people, most lawyers feel that they must do most of the talking to impress the prospect. To the contrary, the goal should be to come across as a good listener, trustworthy and credible. Most people love to talk about themselves. Open-ended questions such as: “How did you get started in your line of business?” or “What do you enjoy most about what you do?” will usually get the ball rolling.5 To demonstrate your good faith, ask them what type of customers they are looking for.6 Here’s why: With this one question, you’re accomplishing two things. First, you’re continuing to establish yourself as being different from other lawyers, who often only seem to want to know, “How can you help me?” Instead, you are letting people know that your interest is in helping them….[N]othing builds trust and credibility with prospects or potential referral sources more than actually referring business to them whenever possible.7 Using this strategy, you have the beginnings of a mutually beneficial new business relationship with someone who might need your services or who might recommend you to someone else that they know. If the person is not involved in the business world, simply ask about hobbies, families or worthy causes in which they are involved. At the end of the conversation, you may not have discussed your practice or thrust a business card upon them. So what? If they liked you, they will pay attention to your next communication. They will probably just throw your card away when they empty out their pockets later. Rather, ask them for their
3
Burg, “The Art of Feel-Good Rainmaking”, Law Practice: The Business of Practicing Law, Vol. 31, No. 7 (ABA October 2005). 4 Id. at p. 43. 5 Id. at p. 44. 6 Id. 7 Id.
3
business card. contact later.
It shows interest and you can make a follow up
If you are at a public gathering when you meet a new prospect or potential referral source, introduce him or her to other people at the gathering that you know – describing what each does for a living in a positive fashion. This is an immediate gift and will give them the impression that you are a “center of influence.”8 While this strategy takes away the cheesy, sleezy feel of soliciting new contacts, to be successful in converting these new relationships into new business takes some work. Fortunately, most other lawyers are lazy when it comes to networking, and therefore, your systematic efforts will give you a competitive advantage. To crack a new legal market requires a plan and follow through. Once you have identified who and where your potential clients and referral sources are, you have to find reasons to place yourself in settings where you can have a conversation. Every community has a calendar of events involving the Chamber of Commerce, Service and Social Clubs, Sports boosters, the Arts, Charities, Colleges and Schools, Professional organizations, Industry / Trade Groups, Nonprofits, Churches and Local Government. Hire someone to research the membership of these organizations. Look for connections. At least once a month, put one of these events in your schedule and be diligent about attending. Word-of-mouth is often the best system to develop exposure. Think of those occasions when you were looking for a job, an apartment, or a doctor when the lead came from a “friend-of-a-friend”. The key is to get out there. Once you have made initial contact with prospects and referral sources, you must promptly follow up with a letter or phone call to establish your identity in their minds. Make a short list of the best candidates and invite them to a lunch meeting, sporting event or other event that would provide them with a positive experience. Before actually having lunch with them, however, do your homework. Find out everything you can about their business and interests so that you can show proper interest and carry on a meaningful conversation.
8
Id.
4
For your plan to be successful you have to commit yourself to three core values. You must learn to be: 1) Realistic, 2) Disciplined, and 3) Patient. Not every prospect or referral source is going to result in a valuable new client. Networking is like dating -- the people who are most successful in obtaining dates are those willing to ask a lot of prospects. Many requests will be turned down. Rather than being discouraged, network builders take satisfaction in simply developing a large pool of prospects. A contact that is made today might bear fruit months or even years down the road. Don’t let your expectations become unrealistically high. To visualize a network of contacts, think of a spiderweb. It is a complex net designed to funnel information to the center. Although complex, it has clear pathways for the spider to get around. If it gets torn, the spider immediately repairs it. The “sticky” is the level of familiarity that you create by being a good listener and following up with a letter. Your job is to build the structure one piece at a time. In practice, however, we really don’t want to “trap” new clients. Rather, we want to convince them that we can provide value to their business. The mindset is to create a mutually beneficial relationship. In science, mutually beneficial relationships are referred to as “symbiotic.” Think of the plover and the crocodile:
In this relationship, the bird is well known for preying on parasites that feed on crocodiles which are potentially harmful for the animal. To that end, the crocodile openly invites the bird to hunt on his body, even going so far as to open the jaws to allow the bird enter the mouth safely to hunt. For the bird's part, this relationship not only is a ready source of food, but a safe one considering that few predator species would dare strike at the bird at such close proximity to its host.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Symbiosis In relation to the attorney / client relationship, the goal is to generate client satisfaction in exchange for a reliable source of fee revenue. The big question is: How does one go about developing such relationships? Since networking is not second nature to many people, discipline can be achieved by simply scheduling opportunities for contact on a regular basis. Staff can assist in organizing a system for prompt and
5
regular follow up. Look for opportunities to communicate with current and prospective clients outside of the law office. Even small gestures such as birthday, get well and sympathy cards communicate the sense that you care about their well-being. If you can send some business their way, that is even better. Patience is perhaps the most difficult. My former partner told me that his first malpractice case came from a friend of a satisfied client he had assisted 20 years prior. Twenty years might be a bit long to wait, however, two or three years is not unusual. It takes time and frequent contacts for prospective clients and referral sources to develop the level of familiarity and trust necessary to pick up the phone. Remember: People do business with friends. The competition is lazy. Make a Plan For those who would like to find more interesting and profitable work, the following is a sample list of business development activities.9 Associates 1-3 Years A. Learn one’s practice B. Join bar group / section C. Assist a partner in preparing for a marketing event, such as drafting an article or preparing materials for a speaking event, e.g., a seminar, speech D. Draft newsletter article Associates 4-6 Years A. Participate in an industry or community organization; join a committee B. Assume a leadership position in a bar group / section C. Co-author an article; deliver part of a speaking event D. Attend one annual business / industry function E. Manage production of one newsletter edition
9
The Lawyers Competitive Edge: The Journal of Law Office Economics and Management, “What’s Size Got to Do With Success?” by Christine S. Filip, Vol. 7, No. 1 (January 2005).
6
Giving structure to this process creates expectations and develops marketing skills. Not all associates will become big rainmakers; however, “fewer will become developers without a roadmap.”10 Once individualized plans are established for associates and mentors assigned to monitor progress, the firm should consider increasing business development at the partner level as well. Partner A. Leadership in two bar group or business / industry organizations, e.g., 2 committee leaderships B. 4 speaking engagements per year C. Attend 2 annual industry / organization functions D. Final review of newsletter edition; write 2 articles / year E. Perform client interviews with each key client annually Senior Partner A. General counsel or presidency of one or more organizations B. Host one industry conference annually C. Attend 3 annual industry / organization functions D. Provide an interview with an industry or community leader for the newsletter E. Provide expert commentary for the media The key to business development is building relationships with potential clients. Studies have shown that a potential client needs to be exposed to you (articles, presentations, ads, etc.) at least 10 times in order to remember your name. This requires an organized plan to ensure that you are following through.
Dwain Fagerlund, J.D. THE LAWYERS CONSULTANT
CONSULTING AND MEDIATION SERVICES
510 County Road 71 Crookston, MN 56716 (218) 281-4000 FAX (218) 470-2005 dwain@lawyersconsultant.com
10
Id. at p. 3.
7