Law Firm Marketing: Give Yourself the Gift of More Referrals This Holiday Season
The holidays provide an excellent opportunity for attorneys to rededicate themselves to cultivating referrals for the upcoming year. Interestingly, many attorneys fall short when it comes to cultivating referral sources as part of their law firm marketing efforts.
Below are six proven steps you can take in your law firm marketing and referral strategy to build a large referral base and to catalyze multiple, repeat referrals from each contact.
All are designed to keep your name and your reputation top of mind with your contacts and to reward and recognize them appropriately to encourage referrals short-term and long-term as part of your overall law firm marketing strategy.
1. Get Contacts Thinking Referral: Don’t assume your contacts are thinking about referrals for you. Let them know your practice relies on referrals and how much you would appreciate them passing your name along.
2. Immediate Appreciation: When a contact does refer you, call or send a thank-you note the very same day.
3. Reward: Within the next two days, send your referral source a small gift of appreciation like a gift card to Starbucks.
4. Recognition: Once you’ve successfully scheduled a meeting with the potential client, e-mail your referral source to let them know you have scheduled that meeting and that you will update them again.
5. Reward and Recognition 2: When the referral becomes a new client, send a “level 2 gift” to your referral source. A level 2 gift should be something your referral source will really value. However, be aware of dollar-amount gift limits your referrals are able to accept. Also, be sure to include a personal note that tells your referral source the positive outcome of their recommendation.
6. Stay Top of Mind: Even when your referral sources haven’t referred, stay top of mind. Send a note to your contacts 1-2 times per year to your entire contact list thanking them for past and future referrals. The holidays provide you with the perfect opportunity to get back in touch.
Implement these six simple steps, and you will see a sharp increase in referrals while adding to the positive reputation you strive for in your law firm marketing efforts.
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January 27-28, 2012 – Las Vegas, NV
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Thursday, December 8
12pm PT | 1pm MT | 2pm CT | 3pm ET
Thursday, December 15
11am PT | 12pm MT | 1pm CT | 2pm ET
Tuesday, December 20
1pm PT | 2pm MT | 3pm CT | 4pm ET
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