As a PILMMA member, you already know the importance of having a Detailed Marketing Plan designed to increase your firm’s exposure and contact with potential ideal clients. You know the importance of driving traffic to your firm via SEO/ Google reviews, and the like, including strategies that also encompass Grass Roots and Referral Marketing as well. You probably employ a variety of tactics carefully designed to help you maximize your firm’s literal and digital visibility and top of mind awareness with potential clients. It’s exciting to think of all the different ways in which you can attempt to reach those ideal clients in today’s world. In fact, when Ken was growing his law firms he leveraged 32 specific marketing tactics as part of his legal marketing plan, and even more are available given today’s Internet Explosion and Social Media Obsessions. (that is a topic for another article…)
Since there is no one singular Silver Bullet for propelling your firm to Market Dominance, (and any vendor who promises such should be viewed just a tad critically…) having a Marketing Plan which includes a variety of grassroots and digital efforts is critical. However, your plan should not be a random smorgasbord. All of your marketing efforts should be streamlined, designed to disseminate your firm’s USP, to attract and nurture your firm’s Ideal Client and to draw them into your Marketing Funnel. Otherwise, it’s like throwing a bucket of seeds up in the air and hoping crops will grow, rather than systematically planting those seeds in fertile and plowed soil and then nurturing the field of seedlings with irrigation, fertilizer, etc.
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You may be very familiar with the concept of a Marketing Funnel, or you may have never considered the concept. (We certainly weren’t taught Marketing 101 in law school, were we?) Ken and I are currently working on a new Digital Online Marketing Book and have a chapter devoted to the Digital Marketing Funnel. Since I’m currently in the editing phase of the book, I was reminded of this foundational marketing concept and how it helps to streamline and focus marketing efforts to increase the likelihood that ideal potential clients become real clients, and that you experience success from your advertising and marketing dollars.
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The traditional Marketing Funnel formula was actually coined in the early 1900’s, with the acronym AIDAA, which stands for Awareness, Interest, Desire, Action, Advocacy. (I like to modify the acronyms to AIDCR, for Attract, Interest, Decision, Convert, Raving Fan) Either way, the Marketing Funnel concept recognizes the mental processes, or stages that occur for a potential consumer to move from knowing nothing about your firm to
becoming a loyal and referring client.
Every consumer who makes a purchasing decision for goods or services starts with little to no knowledge of the goods or service in question. First they must become aware that your firm exists. Fortunately, as discussed above, you have a variety of online and off-line marketing tactics at your disposal to get your firm and its message out. This initial awareness is the point at which the prospect is drawn into your firm’s funnel. Then, through your firm’s engaging educational marketing the potential client’s interest is piqued, and they begin to wonder if or how your firm can help THEM. You are providing the educational reports, the e-books, the Q & A videos, etc. that address the issues/fears that keep them up at night. You have nurturing email drip campaigns to keep your firm on their minds and to show your expertise and commitment, once they have raised their hand and called your office or given you their email address. You provide answers to their questions; You showcase your firm’s commitment to the community through the local programs/events/teams you sponsor, etc. If they are moving through your firm’s funnel properly, these potential clients become engaged with and begin to trust your firm enough to make the Decision to Hire you; You have Converted them from potential clients to real clients because they know, like and trust you and your firm. Lastly, if you have provided excellent client service and employ various marketing tactics like newsletters, social media posts, client advisory boards, etc., you can ensure top of the mind awareness and these clients begin referring their friends and family to your firm. Through your concerted and purposeful marketing tactics, you have successfully moved them through your firm’s Marketing Funnel from potential client to Raving and Referring Fan.
Studies have shown that realistically it takes the average consumer between 7 and 32 “touches” with a new product or service before they are willing to take Action and purchase or hire. That being said, your firm’s Marketing Funnel is ideal for helping you provide the necessary touches that can move your prospective client through the mental processes needed to make that important hiring decision. Through engaging content you can hone in on their pressure points or the fear factors that often-times motivate purchasing or hiring decisions. You can create reports, e-books, videos, blogs, newsletters, etc., that address what keeps your potential client up at night.
You can provide the solutions and answers through your use of engaging content shared in a variety of digital and non-digital platforms. Once you have a potential client’s attention, encourage them to learn more by calling your office or providing you their email address. Your systematic educational marketing strategies can move them from a prospect to a lead and from there, you can convert them to client and raving fan. Unfortunately, far too many firms drop the ball by failing to create systematic marketing strategies designed to “touch” or nurture prospective clients who may have called the office or raised their hand by clicking on a call-to-action button but have not yet made that all important hiring decision. You must not miss the opportunity to bring these potential clients into your firm’s funnel.
If they are not yet ready to make a hiring decision, continue to engage them so they can continue the research process.
- Follow up with a phone call offering to answer their questions.
- Assuming you have captured their email information you can place them into an automated email drip campaign using software like MailChimp. Provide some helpful information but place the power in the potential client’s hands and let them reach out to you for more information.
- If you have not heard from them within a certain time, send another educational email, newsletter, link to a Q&A, etc.
- If you have their address, send them one of your books (if you don’t have a book or two at this stage of the marketing game, call our office to find out if your market is available). Reaching out to these potential clients who have already raised their hand and providing them with helpful, relevant educational content is not solicitation or hard sell harassment.
Too many lawyers are wasting their advertising dollars and missing opportunities and revenue by giving up too soon, when some simple but intentional subsequent marketing strategies could easily result in Converting these clients.
Here’s the bottom line: You are already spending time and effort trying to promote and market your firm. Don’t give up too soon. Don’t drop the ball by failing to take the necessary steps to provide important nurturing follow-up marketing campaigns that can move those undecided potential clients successfully through your firm’s marketing funnel.
