The Rainmaker Blog : Law Firm Marketing and Business Development : The Rainmaker Institute : Stephen Fairley : Professional Legal Marketing

Fear and negativity are pervasive everywhere you look these days.  I don’t know about you, but I’m getting really tired of it.  I’m tired of hearing how bad the economy is.  I’m tired of hearing how the government will save us.  I’m tired of hearing hyped up stories in the media that feed on fear.  I’m tired of hearing about how people are helpless and how there’s nothing you can do but huddle in your basement and wait out the storm.

I am on a personal crusade to promote a positive culture based on positive relationships and positive solutions.  No, I’m not sticking my head in the sand, but I do believe that if you only focus on negativity and fear that’s exactly what you will see and experience.  There are three dangers to allowing your life and your law firm to be driven by negativity and fear:

Fear Kills Your Creativity
Fear induces stress which lowers your innate ability to solve problems

Fear Kills Your Confidence
As business owners these are times when we need to act with confidence and clarity.  Fear will stifle your ability to think clearly and act decisively.

Fear Kills Your Competency
If you have ever had a manager who micromanaged your every action, you will recall that it undermined your feelings of competency.  When you allow fear to be a primary motivator, you will doubt your every decision.

Here are three ways you can replace fear and negativity with focus and positivity.

Focus On Being A Positive Person
Positive people attract other positive people.  When your attention is on being positive you will draw clients and referral sources to you who are also positive.  Stop hanging around people whose only concern in life is to bring everyone else down to their level.

Find people who are doing great things and moving in the right direction and get to know them.

Focus On Positive Solutions For Clients
People are looking for solutions that actually work in the real world.  As their attorney, you have a responsibility to provide them with positive solutions.  The more effective your solutions, the more attractive you will become to prospects, clients and referral sources.

Focus On Keeping Your Staff Positive
Everyone can use a little more encouragement and positive reinforcement these days.  Even though your firm may be going through a tough time economically, you can still emphasize what your staff did right and say thank you.

Another Source For Positive People And Positive Solutions

We have two exciting events coming up that I would like to call your attention to.  We have two Rainmaker Retreats, one in Los Angeles, November 13 & 14, and Las Vegas, December 4th & 5th. The Rainmaker is a 2-Day Marketing Boot Camp for small firm and solo practice attorneys that provides a wealth of information on how they can boost their revenues and increase the effectiveness of their law firm marketing strategies.

For more information on the Rainmaker Retreats, order one of our Preview DVDs which will give you a sneak preview of the information that will be shared during a Rainmaker Retreat.
 

• Email This
• Print
• Trackbacks
• Share Link

In the first two posts we have looked at the need for a written plan and steps that can be taken to build on that plan.  These tips conclude the thoughts.

Focus On the Right Goals
Whenever I have a coaching client that goes more than 2 weeks without achieving the goal they set in their coaching session I start asking questions to determine if this is a goal they really feel passionate about.  If there is not commitment to a particular goal, it will be very difficult for most people to devote time to accomplishing it.

How do you determine if the goals you have are “right” for you?

Ask yourself these 4 questions:

• Is this something I am passionate about?
• When I think about working on this goal am I energized or excited, or do I become stressed out, unmotivated, and apathetic?
• Is this the best way for me to achieve my long-term goals or is there a better, more effective way?
• Is my time better spent working on something else and should I delegate or outsource this?

Ask Yourself What Achieving Your Goals Will Get You

I call this “creating the vision.”  Too many attorneys work 60+ hours a week, live in a state of perpetual burnout, and seem one step away from leaving the field altogether.  One of the problems is that they fail to ask themselves what achieving their goal of financial success gets them.

If you land 50 new clients and your average client is worth $5,000, then that will be worth about $250,000 to you.  But what would you do with an extra $250,000?  What’s the vision you want to create?

Do you want to hire a business manager so you can take more time away from the office?  Go on that European vacation you’ve been talking about?  Spend more time with your family, friends and significant other?  Invest in real estate?  Pay off your house?

Think about your financial freedom.  It’s not enough to have a goal.  You need to focus on what you will do when you achieve that goal.  Before you commit time, energy and resources to a goal for marketing your law firm, make sure it is something you truly care about and that will make a noticeable difference in your practice, your life, your family and your future.

I was coaching an estate planning lawyer in New York City the other week and he honestly didn’t sound too motivated to build his practice. . . until I asked him to talk about what he would do with the extra money he made from the additional business.

He said, “Stephen, if I could make an extra $250,000 this year my wife and I would take that 3-week trip to Italy she’s been wanting for the last 10 years.  Plus I would buy a place closer to my office in downtown Manhattan so I wouldn’t have to spend an hour commuting every day each way and we could spend more time together.”

With that recognition, he was ready to move forward in a powerful way to start building his law practice.

Action Step:  Carve out 2 hours to write down 3 S.M.A.R.T. goals and what you will do with the extra revenues you create.

******************************************************************************
Ready to Take Your Law Practice to the Next Level?
Watch a Sneak Preview of a Rainmaker Retreat on this FREE DVD
Listen to what other attorneys say then join us and discover:

• Over 65 proven strategies to build a 7 figure law firm
• How to triple your referral sources in 90 days
• 10 techniques for dominating your competition online
• How to create a 6 month marketing plan
• How to transform your website into a client generating machine
• Ways to promote your law firm to 150,000 people for $200
• Using blogs and social media to build an internet empire
• How an attorney doubled his revenues in 12 months
• 7 proven ways to generate repeat business

Our Rainmaker Retreat schedule is:

Los Angeles - Friday, November 13 & Saturday, November 14
Las Vegas - Friday, December 4 & Saturday, December 5

The schedule for each retreat is Friday – Registration at 8:00, Retreat begins at 8:30, and breaks for the day at 5:30. Saturday begins with breakfast at 7:30  and the retreat runs from 8:00 – 2:00 p.m.

To register for a Rainmaker Retreat or for more information, please visit our website. 

• Email This
• Print
• Trackbacks
• Share Link

In our first tip, we looked at the necessity of having a written plan.   The remaining tips build on the foundation that a written plan provides.

 

Make Sure Your Goals are S.M.A.R.T. Goals

This is a well known acronym for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Results-oriented, and Timed.  A good goal needs to incorporate all of these criteria.  It is not sufficient to say “I want to be a millionaire lawyer.” That statement may be measurable, but does not include time frames; it does not lay out a specific game plan for how you will accomplish this goal.

 

An example of a SMART goal is: I want to meet in person with a minimum of 4 different potential referral sources every month for the next 6 months and ask them to send me business.”

 

Ask Someone to Hold You Accountable.

Accountability is key when it comes to keeping your marketing commitments.  Whether it’s your firm partner, an attorney in a different firm, or a law firm marketing consultant, set up a regular time to meet with someone you trust and who has your best interests at heart and request they keep you accountable.  Simply knowing that they will ask you about your progress every week can make a big difference to a lot of people.

 

Make Your Goals Smaller

While this may seem contradictory at first, we have found that sometimes setting a goal that’s so big it feels unreachable actually kills your motivation.  Break up your long-term goals into smaller ones that you can reach on a regular basis.

 

For example, gaining 50 new clients in the next 12 months may sound overwhelming, but this works out to about 1 per week.  If you know that you convert 50% of prospects that come to your legal practice then you only need 2 new people to walk in your door per week in order to achieve your goal.

 

While setting a goal of landing 50 new clients may feel overwhelming, by breaking it down into smaller, more actionable steps you can stay focused on achieving your goal.

****************************************************************************************************

There is still time to register for the Rainmaker Retreats coming this fall to a city near you. This 2 day marketing boot camp for attorneys is full of information that will boost your referrals and increase your bottom line. Some of the many valuable marketing tools you will learn at a Rainmaker Retreat include how to:

a. Create a written 90-day master marketing plan for your firm

b. Discover your Unique Competitive Advantage 

c. Improve your internet presence 

d. Outline either an article or produce a professional press release to submit online

e. Create a letter of introduction to potential Strategic Referral Partners

 

Our Rainmaker Retreat schedule is:

 

Orlando -Friday, October 23 & Saturday, October 24 

Los Angeles - Friday, November 13 & Saturday, November 14 

Las Vegas - Friday, December 4 & Saturday, December 5

 

The schedule for each retreat is Friday – Registration at 8:00, Retreat begins at 8:30, and breaks for the day at 5:30. Saturday begins with breakfast at 7:30  and the retreat runs from 8:00 – 2:00 p.m.

 

To register for a Rainmaker Retreat or for more information, please visit our website.

 

 

 

 

• Email This
• Print
• Trackbacks
• Share Link

Attorneys looking to boost their revenues and increase the effectiveness of their law firm marketing strategies are running out of time to sign up for the opportunity to attend the information-packed 2-day Law Firm Marketing Boot Camp for small law firms.  The Orlando Rainmaker Retreat will be held October 23^rd and 24^th at the Omni Orlando.

While the Rainmaker Retreat is chock-full of information that will allow you to generate more referrals and convert a higher percentage of those referrals into new clients, the schedule also allows you time to enjoy some of the unique features that each of these cities are famous for. Orlando is legendary for fabulous weather, the Disney complex, Universal Studios and other amusement parks that have sprouted up in one of the world’s premier destination cities. But Orlando also features a Restaurant Row with independently-owned world-class restaurants and live entertainment that is well worth your time. 

So, while you are at a Rainmaker Retreat learning how to build your business to the level that you dreamed it would be, you also have magnificent opportunities to unwind and take in the sights of this great American city. Downtown Orlando and Thornton Park are home to a lively club and house music scene and many of the clubs house internationally-known DJs and dance acts. International Drive and Pointe Orlando house some great restaurants and musical acts including B.B. King’s Blues Club.

To register for the Orlando Rainmaker Retreat, visit our website which offers testimonials from past attendees and more information on accommodations and the Rainmaker Retreat schedule.   

 ************************************************************************************************************

Ready to Take Your Law Practice to the Next Level?

Watch a Sneak Preview of a Rainmaker Retreat on this FREE DVD
Listen to what other attorneys say then join us and discover:

• Over 65 proven strategies to build a 7 figure law firm
• How to triple your referral sources in 90 days
• 10 techniques for dominating your competition online
• How to create a 6 month marketing plan
• How to transform your website into a client generating machine
• Ways to promote your law firm to 150,000 people for $200
• Using blogs and social media to build an internet empire
• How an attorney doubled his revenues in 12 months
• 7 proven ways to generate repeat business

Click here to request your copy of the free Rainmaker Retreat preview DVD.

• Email This
• Print
• Trackbacks
• Share Link

Contributed by:
Roy Richardson
Senior Copywriter and PR Expert
Roy@therainmakerinstitute.com


In the previous post, I offered some reasons why you should consider public relations as part of your marketing mix and some tips on selecting a PR professional. This post expands on those thoughts.

Ways to interact with the media

One of the very first steps in any good media relations campaign is identification of key media with whom you wish to develop a relationship. Target the publications that your prospective clients read. You probably don’t have the budget for a wide-ranging media campaign, so you need to have a good focus at the outset.

It is best to have a long-range time horizon and through the assistance of your public relations counsel, to develop a relationship as a “source.” Often this is done over a meal where a reporter has the opportunity to get to know you and ask questions to determine the areas where you may be useful to him/her. This is not about you placing a story, it is about establishing credibility with the reporter as: 1) someone knowledgeable about certain topics; 2) someone who can speak clearly and get to the point e.g. someone who is quotable: and 3) someone who is responsive to the needs and timetables of the media. To this end, your PR counsel and your office staff need to be very responsive to media requests. Do not let your assistant use the “He/she is in a meeting” with the media. Media often call with short deadlines, and unless you absolutely cannot be interrupted. If a reporter’s calls get “parked” and returned after the deadline, they will stop calling and go to someone who is more responsive.

These sourcing interviews allow you great latitude in what you can talk about, and sometimes it may not be something that you think is critical, but it is a story he/she is developing. As an example, a former client of mine is in the construction business and did a great deal of healthcare construction. We set up a sourcing interview with a healthcare writer at a major US daily newspaper. During that interview, a story idea was born that culminated a few months later with a story that was on the front page of the business section on a Sunday, which is the largest circulation day for newspapers. The story was adapted by a media organization and ran statewide in approximately 20 newspapers. We were given the first quote in the story, which is very important since news stories are edited from the bottom up. When the story ran on the wire service, our quote was the only one included in the story in the out-state papers. And it all began with a sourcing interview where we were pitching experts and a story idea took shape during the interview.

Once you have established a relationship with a reporter, occasionally contact him/her with stories you see that they can “localize” or that you can add to. National stories that can be brought to a local level, such as identity theft, foreclosure prevention, etc. that are big stories nationally can often be made “local” with the addition of some local experts. If you can line up two or three experts to refer to the reporter, you will have made yourself even more valuable. I had an attorney client who is an expert in automotive safety, and had worked for one of the regulatory bodies overseeing the auto industry. When new safety rules were proposed, we had him sit down with some auto writers for sourcing interviews. A story line developed and he supplied the reporter with other experts inside and outside the government to interview, and saved the reporter a tremendous amount of time in research. Little touches like that go a long way, and the next time something in that area came up, he was at the top of the list to be called when they needed a local expert.

Another method of working with the media is to develop a story idea, or “pitch” and present it to them. This can be something very broad, or very narrow, as in the case of new clean air regulations being proposed by the EPA. My client was an environmental attorney with extensive knowledge of clean air regulations. Our pitch was that, if the regulations went forward as proposed, they might bring back several unpopular programs including auto emissions testing. So we pitched it to the reporter, with some supporting evidence, so that he would be interested. He was interested and used the story as a lead in the business section with a photo of my client. Since the paper’s service area was heavily industrial, any new proposed clean air regulations would have a significant economic impact, which was the direction the story took. And my client was able to translate the impact into terms that business owners and employees could easily grasp.

*************************************************************************************

Becoming a Rainmaker: Business Building Strategies for Lawyers

Based on Stephen’s highly successful seminar series by the same name, this 3-audio CD program covers dozens of practical recommendations and step-by-step sales and marketing techniques for solo practitioners and small law firms.

Stephen has given this seminar to hundreds of lawyers at state and local bar associations, and is scheduled for many more in the upcoming months.

To order this valuable seminar, visit our website http://therainmakerinstitute.com/products.htm

• Email This
• Print
• Share Link

Contributed by:
Roy Richardson
Senior Copywriter and PR Expert
Roy@therainmakerinstitute.com


Despite the turmoil in the economy and the general economic slowdown, now is an excellent time for attorneys to develop a relationship with a public relations counselor who can help grow your business.  During tough economic times, one of the first budget categories to be scaled back is marketing and communications.  With the larger firms pulling back, this provides an excellent opportunity for smaller practices to stand out with well-placed stories and relationships with reporters covering beats important to you and your clients.

To be clear, public relations is a broad term that encompasses many areas of communications. It does not, in this article, include paid media such as print, electronic and digital advertising.  It will include several communications techniques including media relations, direct mail, and website media room management.

Working with the Media

One of the most difficult aspects of working with the media is that you do not control the final outcome of the piece.  With advertising, you can control all aspects of a piece – size, content, placement on page,  frequency and run date – but with “free” media you do not have that kind of control.  Attorneys often struggle with this because of their desire to tightly control messaging to avoid anything that may seem ambiguous, misleading or incorrect.  The reality is that you cannot control the message, and you have to accept that everything you want to say will not be included and occasionally some facts may be mixed up.  It is the nature of working with human communications.

Once you have decided to begin a program of working with the free media, I strongly suggest that you interview several firms specializing in professional services public relations.  Just as in law there are many areas of specialization; the same is true in public relations.  One great way to find firms is to ask your colleagues for referrals of PR pros they know.  Another option is to contact the local chapter of the Public Relations Society of America (www.prsa.org) and ask them for referrals of independent practitioners or firms specializing in professional services public relations.

It is important that the relationship between the PR practitioner and you, the client, be one where you can openly discuss ideas, markets to focus on, as well as areas to avoid.  Some things to consider are:

• Areas of your expertise – in which areas are you very knowledgeable?  Don’t fake it, but don’t limit yourself to areas where you consider yourself an “expert” either.  If you have knowledge, feel free to share it.  If you need to do a little research to feel comfortable, do it as well.  Just don’t try to pass yourself off as something you are not.  Reporters will quickly see through that and you will lose all credibility
   
• Your target audience – what kind of company/individuals are you trying to attract as clients?  If your clients are mostly corporations, small or large, then focus on business magazines.  If your targets are consumers, then more general news media would be an appropriate method to use.
   
• Your past cases – you will need client permission to discuss their cases, unless you do it in extremely general terms.  A good media hit is rarely worth irritating a client and referral source.

*************************************************************************************

Unsure about Attending a Rainmaker Retreat?

If you are still unsure about attending a Rainmaker Retreat, our 2-Day Marketing Boot Camp for Lawyers, Come and join one of our FREE Preview Calls on:

Wednesday October 7 at 4-5:00 p.m. PT/7-8:00 p.m. ET.

This free, one-hour call will give you a taste of what you will learn during a Rainmaker Retreat. Come and join the more than 6,000 attorneys from hundreds of law firms across the country have discovered how to generate more referrals and find new clients fast by applying our proven Rainmaker System.

Click here to register for a Preview Call.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks
• Share Link