1:2 “How Long Should Law Firm Marketing Take?”
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How long should marketing take to get new clients, (and how much should it cost)?
This is part 1 in a 2 part series. And the gloves are coming off. You need to hear this. Don’t ask me how I know… I just know.
I’m getting real here. I’ve cut the fluff… because I know understanding marketing better can make all the difference for you meeting new clients that really need your help today.
When I’m a speaker at conferences, the other vendors do not like it when I tell you exactly what to do behind the scenes!
I’ve literally been cornered, (by some dudes – it was scary to me) and told to “charge more” and “stop telling lawyers how to do this”…
Those kind of vendors want you in the dark, dazzled by the smoke and mirrors (which you won’t find here).
This is our platform where I always tell it like it is … so here goes:
How long should marketing take to get new clients?
This is a question I get asked pretty often, I won’t sugar coat this, and I’m answering as best I can. In the next video we’ll get to how much it should cost.
There isn’t any law firm I’ve met who doesn’t wish they could turn a marketing campaign on and like a magical faucet it would start sprinkling clients over their business like fairy dust!
Sometimes that kind of sparkle happens, but only for the lucky few.
In this video I’m outlining the kinds of law firms I’ve helped, so you can get an idea if you fit into one of these categories. And as this post suggests, I will outline how long it takes to get clients.
Here are the 3 categories I’m addressing today:
- Law firms who have never done advertising (and the public at large don’t know you)
- Law firms who have done a lot of advertising and want to do it differently or on another platform or a new way
- Law firms who are switching practice areas
1) How long does it take (to get clients) you’ve never done advertising?
Bottom line is that it’ll probably take you a year or two to really start singing along. Here’s what I mean:
Phase one: Spend a month or so gathering stats and researching first to see how many in your geographic area need your services.
Phase Two: Next you’ll want to create your approach, and strategy which takes a few weeks too.
Phase Three: In your case, I always recommend doing educational content marketing which means you’ll need to develop a lot of content that continuously reaches those who need your help in your geographic area. Creating this content can take a couple of months.
Phase Four: Once you’re ready to launch, you’ll want to test test test, check your data all the time to see where people do respond and where nothing is happening and move your budget accordingly. This phase will go on for a while until you get your budget as low as possible to bring in as many clients as possible in your geographic area.
2) How long does it take (to get clients) when you have done advertising?
So how long does marketing and advertising take when you’ve done a lot of advertising and want to do it differently or on another platform?
This is quicker usually I’d say a year or less. This is because you already know that your practice area works, people need your services, and they know you.
Phase one: Spend a month or so gathering stats and researching about the platform and how it works. For instance, lawyer ads can be rejected on Facebook when you’re using the same approach as TV. So you want to understand the platform and how it works. Also Google Ads, YouTube, Instagram and Facebook are pretty complex. You’ll want to spend a good amount of time learning them for yourself. The companies mostly offer expert advice, but in my experience this only gives the company more money and does nothing for your bottom line, so learn it yourself and go deep.
Phase Two: Next you’ll want to create your approach, and strategy which takes a few weeks too. In your case, you may have been doing TV and will want to continue whatever worked for your brand, but expand it for a platform that doesn’t have time constraints.
Phase Three: Create plenty of media that can work for at least a year so you can go back to practicing law.
Phase Four: Like with any other approach, once you’re ready to launch, you’ll want to test test test, check your data all the time to see where people respond. And again this phase will go on for a while until you get your budget as low as possible to bring in as many clients as possible in your geographic area.
3) Law firms switching practice areas
Now I’ll address law firms who want or need to switch practice areas. Maybe you’re working for another firm and want to jump out on your own.
You may need to do your marketing (on the side), spending weekends and evenings creating your strategy and media. This will take longer.
Keeping your eyes on the data can really help keep your spirits up during this process. Starting a whole new practice area is like starting a new business.
You’ll want to do all the same things I outlined in “Law firms who have never done advertising and the public at large doesn’t know you” section of this video.
Of course it’s doable, I’ve helped lawyers do this plenty of times, but it doesn’t happen over night.
WHERE SHOULD YOU START?
If you are thinking about marketing, one of the best places to start is with my online courses.
I’m not kidding. This is me, a successful law firm marketing director teaching you step by step from my own valuable experience.
Whether you want to do it yourself, or you just need to lay the groundwork for understanding what goes into it, I highly recommend checking out my courses.
I know (I REALLY KNOW…) This is the knowledge you need to build your practice and give those who need YOUR help – a fighting chance.
Go to MaryCaryU.com and get all of the tutorials… ** insert an authoritative voice (of which I don’t have…) Go… go now.
