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	<title>Law Business Revolution Blog &#187; Law Firm Marketing</title>
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		<title>How to Be the Indispensable Advisor Your Clients Love</title>
		<link>http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/08/20/how-to-be-the-indispensable-advisor-your-clients-love/</link>
		<comments>http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/08/20/how-to-be-the-indispensable-advisor-your-clients-love/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 20 Aug 2010 20:38:39 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Alexis</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Becoming the Lawyer You Love]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Client Attraction]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Client Engagment Strategies]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Client Service Strategies]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Growing Your Law Practice]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Law Firm Marketing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Personal Family Lawyer Program]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Setting Up Your Law Practice]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/?p=318</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[If you want to be loved by your clients, command higher fees, and become absolutely indispensable, it all comes down to this&#8230;
You have to stop seeing yourself as a litigator or transactional lawyer.  Litigation leaves clients miserable and legal documents on their own are virtually worthless.
When my father-in-law died, after spending a few thousand dollars [...]


Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/08/20/how-lawyers-screw-themselves-and-their-clients/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: How Lawyers Screw Themselves and Their Clients'>How Lawyers Screw Themselves and Their Clients</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/08/20/stop-answering-your-phone-and-feel-the-love/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Stop Answering Your Phone and Feel the Love'>Stop Answering Your Phone and Feel the Love</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/08/20/love-sweet-love-for-lawyers/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Love, Sweet Love for Lawyers'>Love, Sweet Love for Lawyers</a></li>
</ol>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>If you want to be loved by your clients, command higher fees, and become absolutely indispensable, it all comes down to this&#8230;</p>
<p>You have to stop seeing yourself as a litigator or transactional lawyer.  Litigation leaves clients miserable and legal documents on their own are virtually worthless.</p>
<p>When my father-in-law died, after spending a few thousand dollars on a set of estate planning documents with his personal lawyer, I thought that lawyer must have committed malpractice because the documents didn’t work.</p>
<p>Why didn’t they work?</p>
<p>Because the lawyer completed the transaction (legal docs) for my father-in-law and never followed up with my father-in-law to make sure his assets were owned properly or that he’s legal documents stayed up to date with the changes in his life.</p>
<p>Divorce lawyers finalize their client’s divorces and never make sure their estate planning documents are updated.</p>
<p>Business lawyers put in place LLCs and S-Corporations and never make sure share certificates are issued, agreements are put in place with vendors or team members, or that the client has the right insurance in place.</p>
<p>Are we really helping our clients when we see them as a transaction, a case, or a matter?</p>
<p>No, we aren’t offering anything more than our clients would get if they went online.</p>
<p>So my question for you is what will you do when they realize they don’t need you?  Or has it already begun?</p>
<p>Please don’t tell me that you’ll deal with this by decreasing your costs and becoming a virtual law office providing unbundled legal services as seems to be the trend these days – that’s a recipe for failure unless you do it so that you are creating a killer experience for your clients that they cannot simply replicate by going online and doing it themselves.</p>
<p>So many lawyers are trying to compete with online companies providing “buy them as you need them” document preparation services.  But unbundled legal services, deep discounts and doing nothing but turning out reams of paper do nothing to build relationships with your clients.</p>
<p>It’s a one shot deal at best and doesn’t provide an ongoing revenue stream for your business.  That’s a recipe for misery and a Going Out Of Business sign (as many law businesses, even large ones, are learning).</p>
<p>As I learned in building my own practice to more than $1 million in revenue, the best way to keep your clients coming to you (and referring their friends and family) are to follow these 5 tips:</p>
<p>1.    Give away the legal documents for free. Yes, free. You’re not selling the paper – you’re selling the client YOU, your energy, your counsel, your advice.  Clients call lawyers because they need help. They want you to take care of them, to love them, to make it easy for them.  The documents are merely the by-product of the relationship.</p>
<p>2.    Give away free legal documents on your website to generate leads you can then build a relationship with and convert into lifetime counseling clients. As an example, we do this at <a href="http://click.icptrack.com/icp/relay.php?r=-1&amp;msgid=0&amp;act=11111&amp;c=666470&amp;destination=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.kidsprotectionplan.com%2F" target="_blank">http://www.KidsProtectionPlan.com</a> where we let people name guardians for their kids for free because we know that many of those people will need a fully counseled estate plan once we develop a relationship with them.</p>
<p>3.    Narrow your niche.  Stop trying to serve everyone who calls or walks in your door.  It devalues your service and who you are.  Decide who you love to serve and who you do your best work for and build your business around deeply serving these most perfect clients.</p>
<p>4.    Create a billing structure that encourages your clients to communicate with you without fear of the cost. Most of the time, clients don’t want to talk to you because they know they’ll get a big fat bill at the end of the month.  This can keep them from telling you about significant changes in their lives or businesses.</p>
<p>5.    Learn to love your clients again.  Stop seeing them as cases, transactions, and matters and return to the reason you went to law school.  Connect at a heart level, whether you do it virtually or in-person.  In this new economy, it’s the only path to your success.</p>


<p>Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/08/20/how-lawyers-screw-themselves-and-their-clients/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: How Lawyers Screw Themselves and Their Clients'>How Lawyers Screw Themselves and Their Clients</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/08/20/stop-answering-your-phone-and-feel-the-love/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Stop Answering Your Phone and Feel the Love'>Stop Answering Your Phone and Feel the Love</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/08/20/love-sweet-love-for-lawyers/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Love, Sweet Love for Lawyers'>Love, Sweet Love for Lawyers</a></li>
</ol></p>]]></content:encoded>
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		</item>
		<item>
		<title>How Lawyers Screw Themselves and Their Clients</title>
		<link>http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/08/20/how-lawyers-screw-themselves-and-their-clients/</link>
		<comments>http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/08/20/how-lawyers-screw-themselves-and-their-clients/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 20 Aug 2010 20:28:39 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Alexis</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Becoming the Lawyer You Love]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Client Attraction]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Growing Your Law Practice]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Law Firm Marketing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Living Outside the Box]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Personal Family Lawyer Program]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Setting Up Your Law Practice]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Starting Your Own Law Firm]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/?p=311</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I&#8217;ve been having some very interesting conversations with well-known lawyers throughout our industry about the future &#8211; where we&#8217;re going and what lawyers need to do to be prepared.
I&#8217;ll be interviewing several of them who I believe have the answers for you as part of a telesummit I&#8217;m hosting in September.
In the meantime, I want [...]


Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/08/20/how-to-be-the-indispensable-advisor-your-clients-love/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: How to Be the Indispensable Advisor Your Clients Love'>How to Be the Indispensable Advisor Your Clients Love</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/29/a-little-creativity-a-lot-more-clients/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: A little creativity = a lot more clients!'>A little creativity = a lot more clients!</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/08/20/love-sweet-love-for-lawyers/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Love, Sweet Love for Lawyers'>Love, Sweet Love for Lawyers</a></li>
</ol>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>I&#8217;ve been having some very interesting conversations with well-known lawyers throughout our industry about the future &#8211; where we&#8217;re going and what lawyers need to do to be prepared.</p>
<p>I&#8217;ll be interviewing several of them who I believe have the answers for you as part of a telesummit I&#8217;m hosting in September.</p>
<p>In the meantime, I want to make sure you don&#8217;t have to wait to see how you may be putting yourself and your clients at risk so you can do something about it now.</p>
<p>If you are still seeing yourself as a transactional lawyer or a litigator, you are likely screwing yourself and your clients.</p>
<p>You are neither of these things and it&#8217;s time to stop thinking of yourself in this way.</p>
<p>If you see yourself as a litigator, every case that comes in is ripe for litigation.  That is NOT what is best for your clients.</p>
<p>In some cases, litigation may be appropriate, but in my experience litigation almost always means that even if someone wins, they lose.</p>
<p>If you see yourself as a transactional lawyer, you probably don&#8217;t have any sort of a real relationship with your clients. They are a transaction, a matter, a one and done.</p>
<p>That&#8217;s the old, outdated model that will put you out of business.</p>
<p>It incentives conflict escalation and a constant focus on the next new retainer.</p>
<p>It&#8217;s time for lawyers to begin seeing their clients not as cases or transactions or matters, but as people with a lifetime of issues they need resolved.</p>
<p>It&#8217;s time for you to become the trusted advisor for your clients &#8211; the person they turn to for objective guidance about hard decisions in their lives and businesses.</p>
<p>To do this, you need to start seeing yourself differently and help your clients do the same.</p>
<p>When you successfully make this transition from transactional lawyer/litigator to counselor, you will stop leaving money on the table and start knowing  you are really making a difference for your clients.</p>
<p>Isn&#8217;t that what you really want?</p>
<p>It&#8217;s certainly what your clients want and it&#8217;s only a  matter of time before they no longer need you.</p>
<p>Are you ready to really do it?  More to come soon.</p>


<p>Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/08/20/how-to-be-the-indispensable-advisor-your-clients-love/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: How to Be the Indispensable Advisor Your Clients Love'>How to Be the Indispensable Advisor Your Clients Love</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/29/a-little-creativity-a-lot-more-clients/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: A little creativity = a lot more clients!'>A little creativity = a lot more clients!</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/08/20/love-sweet-love-for-lawyers/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Love, Sweet Love for Lawyers'>Love, Sweet Love for Lawyers</a></li>
</ol></p>]]></content:encoded>
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		<title>3 Sure-Fire Ways to Increase Revenue Without Increasing Overhead</title>
		<link>http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/08/20/3-sure-fire-ways-to-increase-revenue-without-increasing-overhead/</link>
		<comments>http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/08/20/3-sure-fire-ways-to-increase-revenue-without-increasing-overhead/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 20 Aug 2010 20:08:55 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Alexis</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Becoming the Lawyer You Love]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Client Attraction]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Client Engagment Strategies]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Client Service Strategies]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Growing Your Law Practice]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Law Firm Marketing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Law Practice Managment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Personal Family Lawyer Program]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Referral Sources]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/?p=301</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The financial success of your business depends on your profit &#8211; the amount you keep at the end of the day after paying all your expenses.
In the beginning of your business, you are pretty much entirely focused on revenue because you are already spending as little as you possibly can.
Once you&#8217;ve got revenue going, you&#8217;ll [...]


Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/07/four-easy-ways-to-recession-proof-and-grow-your-law-firm/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Four Easy Ways To Recession Proof (and Grow!) Your Law Firm'>Four Easy Ways To Recession Proof (and Grow!) Your Law Firm</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/14/more-streams-of-revenue-for-you/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: More Streams of Revenue For You'>More Streams of Revenue For You</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/08/20/how-to-be-the-indispensable-advisor-your-clients-love/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: How to Be the Indispensable Advisor Your Clients Love'>How to Be the Indispensable Advisor Your Clients Love</a></li>
</ol>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>The financial success of your business depends on your profit &#8211; the amount you keep at the end of the day after paying all your expenses.</p>
<p>In the beginning of your business, you are pretty much entirely focused on revenue because you are already spending as little as you possibly can.</p>
<p>Once you&#8217;ve got revenue going, you&#8217;ll start to notice that your expenses slowly start to creep up.</p>
<p>And it might feel like for every dollar of revenue you bring in, you add another two dollars of expenses.</p>
<p>That is not a winning proposition.</p>
<p>So, today I’m going to share with you three sure-fire ways to increase your revenue without adding any more overhead.</p>
<p><strong>Way #1: Engage More Prospects<br />
</strong><br />
One of your biggest expenses is very likely to be marketing.  You are either spending a lot of money on it or a lot of time on it or both.  If you are marketing and not engaging at least 75% of the prospects calling your office, you are losing a whole lot of profit because getting your phone to ring is where all the cost is.</p>
<p>You&#8217;ll increase your revenue without increasing overhead if you just start hearing yes from more prospects.</p>
<p><strong>Way #2:  Offer More (Expensive) Services to Your Clients<br />
</strong><br />
You can add more revenue to your office without adding any additional overhead by offering those clients who do say yes additional complementary services.</p>
<p>I did this with the Kids Protection Plan  &#8211; adding a more comprehensive form of planning for parents with minor children at home added $1,000 to my fees.</p>
<p>And then I found other services I could provide that my clients wanted and were happy to pay me for.</p>
<p>Once I figured this out, I was collecting an additional $1,000-$3,000 on each engagement with no additional overhead.</p>
<p><strong>Way #3:  Get More Referrals<br />
</strong><br />
Every time one of my clients sent me a client, I was increasing my revenue without adding any overhead.</p>
<p>So, I built systems into my office that resulted in more referrals.</p>
<p>I always made sure my clients knew how valuable referrals were to me because I worked that into my client engagement process.  I developed a system in which I could comfortably ask for the referral without feeling strange.  And I was always publicly thankful for all referrals &#8211; whether they turned into clients or not &#8211; by acknowledging the referrer with thanks in my monthly newsletter.</p>
<p>Try one or all three of these and let me know how much additional revenue you make without increasing your overhead.</p>
<p align="center">


<p>Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/07/four-easy-ways-to-recession-proof-and-grow-your-law-firm/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Four Easy Ways To Recession Proof (and Grow!) Your Law Firm'>Four Easy Ways To Recession Proof (and Grow!) Your Law Firm</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/14/more-streams-of-revenue-for-you/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: More Streams of Revenue For You'>More Streams of Revenue For You</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/08/20/how-to-be-the-indispensable-advisor-your-clients-love/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: How to Be the Indispensable Advisor Your Clients Love'>How to Be the Indispensable Advisor Your Clients Love</a></li>
</ol></p>]]></content:encoded>
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		<title>Need More Business, Quickly?</title>
		<link>http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/04/12/need-more-business-quickly/</link>
		<comments>http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/04/12/need-more-business-quickly/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 12 Apr 2010 12:18:01 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Alexis</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Client Attraction]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Growing Your Law Practice]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Law Firm Marketing]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/?p=284</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Last week I wrote about how to avoid going out of business. If you missed it, you can read the full thing here.
A few lawyers wrote me back and said that they didn’t know what kind of massive action to take. So, I want to give you a little action plan to see results happen [...]


Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/29/are-you-maximizing-the-opportunities-from-your-speaking-engagements/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Are You Maximizing the Opportunities From Your Speaking Engagements?'>Are You Maximizing the Opportunities From Your Speaking Engagements?</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/29/5-key-strategies-in-setting-up-your-local-marketing-mastermind-collaborative/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: 5 Key Strategies in Setting Up Your Local Marketing Mastermind Collaborative'>5 Key Strategies in Setting Up Your Local Marketing Mastermind Collaborative</a></li>
</ol>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><img class="alignleft size-full wp-image-285" title="frustrated_businessman" src="http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/frustrated_businessman.jpg" alt="frustrated_businessman" width="150" height="224" />Last week I wrote about how to avoid going out of business. If you missed it, you can <a href="http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/04/05/in-danger-of-going-out-of-business/">read the full thing here</a>.</p>
<p>A few lawyers wrote me back and said that they didn’t know what kind of massive action to take. So, I want to give you a little action plan to see results happen immediately.</p>
<p>If you are a decent speaker, it’s time for you to get on the phone and start telling everyone you know that you are available to come out and speak to their group.</p>
<p>If you are not seeing enough clients and do not have the money to do paid marketing, you must take control of the situation and get yourself out there and speaking. And don’t sit back and wait for the speaking engagements to show up or rely only on someone else to book them for you.</p>
<p>Do not just try one thing, see if it works, and then try another. Do everything. All at once.</p>
<p>When I was building my practice, I was on the phone constantly lining up speaking engagements. Eventually, I had someone else do that for me, but not in the beginning. In the beginning (when I didn’t have any money) I did it myself. After hours, before hours, during hours. I busted my butt to make sure I did what was necessary to get me in front of the people I needed to speak to about my services.</p>
<p>So, if you are struggling, ask yourself … am I doing everything I can to get myself out there speaking to as many people as possible for free? Am I on the phone in every free minute of my day with local groups in my community such as:</p>
<p>* Church groups<br />
* Daycares<br />
* Preschools<br />
* Senior Centers<br />
* Private Schools<br />
* Public Schools<br />
* Moms Groups<br />
* CPA Groups<br />
* Real Estate Agents Offices<br />
* Title Officers<br />
* Mortgage Brokers<br />
* Chambers of Commerce<br />
* Community Centers<br />
* Rotary Clubs<br />
* Business groups</p>
<p>I could go on and on.</p>
<p>There was even one time I went out to speak to a group of women (I think it was some sort of an alumni group), which consisted of 4 little old ladies who would get together for coffee on a monthly basis.</p>
<p>I would show up anywhere they would let me come and speak. Sometimes it paid off, sometimes it didn’t.</p>
<p>But, here’s what I can tell you, the more I did, the more my phone rang and the more clients I got.</p>
<p>One of the Personal Family Lawyers who has been with me since 2007 just came back from taking a few months off to have her baby and she is booked all the way through April with 13 new client appointments in March and 21 speaking engagements between now and June. Why? Massive right action before she went out on leave to have her baby. You can do it too.</p>
<p>So if you are struggling, don’t just sit there and wait until you get pulled under the water hoping someone comes and rescues you; do something and do it now!</p>
<p>Next week I’m going to talk to you about the logistics of getting maximum results from your speaking engagements, but in the meantime, pick up the phone and get yourself booked in front of a group. We’ll pick up here next week.</p>


<p>Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/29/are-you-maximizing-the-opportunities-from-your-speaking-engagements/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Are You Maximizing the Opportunities From Your Speaking Engagements?'>Are You Maximizing the Opportunities From Your Speaking Engagements?</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/29/5-key-strategies-in-setting-up-your-local-marketing-mastermind-collaborative/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: 5 Key Strategies in Setting Up Your Local Marketing Mastermind Collaborative'>5 Key Strategies in Setting Up Your Local Marketing Mastermind Collaborative</a></li>
</ol></p>]]></content:encoded>
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		<title>3 Keys to Raising Your Fees In ANY Economy</title>
		<link>http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/03/05/3-keys-to-raising-your-fees-in-any-economy/</link>
		<comments>http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/03/05/3-keys-to-raising-your-fees-in-any-economy/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 05 Mar 2010 17:26:14 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Alexis</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Growing Your Law Practice]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Law Firm Marketing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Law Practice Managment]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/?p=260</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[If you&#8217;ve been reading my Law Business Revolution Briefing Memorandum for any amount of time, you&#8217;ll know that I&#8217;m NOT a fan of hourly billing or you selling yourself short in the name of a &#8220;sluggish economy&#8221; or for any other reason.
I just had a laser coaching session with a lawyer last week who told [...]


Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/15/its-not-the-economy-its-the-experience/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: It&#8217;s Not the Economy; It&#8217;s the Experience'>It&#8217;s Not the Economy; It&#8217;s the Experience</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/29/give-your-clients-the-red-carpet-treatment-to-succeed-in-this-economy/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Give Your Clients the Red Carpet Treatment to Succeed in This Economy'>Give Your Clients the Red Carpet Treatment to Succeed in This Economy</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/07/what-your-legal-fees-say-about-you-and-how-you-can-change-that/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: What Your Legal Fees Say About You&#8230;And How You Can Change That'>What Your Legal Fees Say About You&#8230;And How You Can Change That</a></li>
</ol>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><img class="alignleft size-full wp-image-261" title="raising prices" src="http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/raising-prices.gif" alt="raising prices" width="180" height="238" /></span>If you&#8217;ve been reading my Law Business Revolution Briefing Memorandum for any amount of time, you&#8217;ll know that I&#8217;m NOT a fan of hourly billing or you selling yourself short in the name of a &#8220;sluggish economy&#8221; or for any other reason.</p>
<p>I just had a laser coaching session with a lawyer last week who told me she didn&#8217;t want to build the kind of practice I had because she wanted to keep her fees low.  After talking with me though, she was able to see that not valuing the services she provides isn&#8217;t going to help her help more people, it&#8217;s going to run her into bankruptcy.</p>
<p>It&#8217;s heartbreaking to watch so many lawyers go out of business or not bring home enough bacon simply because they get trapped into thinking about their pricing the wrong way.</p>
<p>When you differentiate yourself based on price, you simply cannot provide value.  You end up competing on the wrong basis.</p>
<p>While price competitors have been in operation since beginning of time, it&#8217;s important to understand that if YOU want to build a sustainable, scalable and one day SALEable law business, a core foundational piece of that puzzle is that you are charging enough.</p>
<p>Is that possible in this economy?  Absolutely.</p>
<p>Let me shift your thinking outside the legal world and into the business world for a moment.  Stores that offer super low prices like Wal-Mart and Target are thriving in this economy.  So with that logic, you&#8217;d expect high-end stores like Nordstrom or Sacks 5th Avenue to be out of business right now&#8230;but they&#8217;re not.  In fact, Nordstrom&#8217;s profits more than doubled in the quarter ending Jan. 30 according to the WSJ.  Luxury cars like Mercedes and BMW also reported profits last year despite the fact that &#8220;no one has money to spend.&#8221;</p>
<p>And lawyers doing things the PFL Way are thriving, while charging much higher fees than their &#8220;competitors&#8221;. How can that be?<br />
It&#8217;s simple, really.  People DO have money to spend&#8230; you&#8217;re simply not doing a good enough job showing them that your law firm is the best place to spend it.</p>
<p>You see, it&#8217;s all about the value.  And I&#8217;d suspect that you are not clear enough on the value you provide to convey it to your prospects.</p>
<p>This isn&#8217;t &#8220;blind theory&#8221; or Alexis Martin Neely&#8217;s random thoughts on life either.  I&#8217;ve done it, our Personal Family Lawyers® and Creative Business Lawyers™ are DOING it and so are millions of other small business owners/ entrepreneurs in this country right now.</p>
<p>So how are they doing it?  Here are some things you can do right now:</p>
<p><strong>1. Stop Acting Like a Commodity.</strong></p>
<p>Your prospects have no way to know if you are the best lawyer for them.  To regular folks, all lawyers are the same.  So when you compete on price, you&#8217;ll get price shoppers galore who see you as just like everyone else.   But, you are not like all the other lawyers, are you?</p>
<p>So, what makes you different?  And how do you show that to the marketplace?  That&#8217;s what you need to focus on and show the world.</p>
<p><strong>2. Identify the Value of the Outcome You Provide.</strong></p>
<p>Why can Nordstrom&#8217;s charge higher prices for products found elsewhere (i.e. cars, purses, ties, shoes)?  It&#8217;s because of the VALUE they&#8217;ve attached to their brand (i.e. social prestige, enhanced customer service, increased self-esteem).   They&#8217;ve moved themselves out of the commodity market and into the heart, emotion and primal urges of their clients.   You need to do the same thing in your law firm.  Yes, Mr. Customer can get an estate plan for $399 or set up their LLC for $750 or a bankruptcy for $1125 down the street, but what are they NOT getting when they work with that other firm or even worse go online to do it themselves?</p>
<p><strong>3. Move Beyond the Billable Hour</strong></p>
<p>There are only so many hours in a day and you&#8217;ll reach an income plateau very quickly when you are billing by the hour. Not to mention that you have to start every month over at zero and there&#8217;s absolutely no stability in that.  No matter what practice area you are in (with the exception of contested matters), you can begin billing on a flat-fee/value basis.   If you&#8217;re scared to shift, just think of the VALUE your customers will experience having an attorney using flat fee billing.  They won&#8217;t be nickel and dimed for every phone call, email and fax that comes through the office.  They can communicate with you as they wish without fear and they can pick their price point of choice if you have membership options.  And believe me, people are willing to pay more for certainty every time.  It&#8217;s a win-win for them&#8211; and it&#8217;s very much a win-win for the health/sustainability of your law firm.</p>
<p>Remember this:  People still have money to spend&#8230; even in this economy.  And they NEED your services.  It&#8217;s up to you to convey the intrinsic value of working with you (even at a higher price point) to command the income level you want&#8230;and rightfully deserve&#8230;this year.</p>
<p>PS- If you serve small business owners and want more information after reading this article on how you can participate in our Creative Business Lawyer Program and serve the entrepreneurial/business owner market using flat-fee, membership-based billing and differentiate yourself from all the other business lawyers out there, mark your calendar for March 18th at 12pm PT/3pm ET.  More details coming soon!</p>


<p>Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/15/its-not-the-economy-its-the-experience/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: It&#8217;s Not the Economy; It&#8217;s the Experience'>It&#8217;s Not the Economy; It&#8217;s the Experience</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/29/give-your-clients-the-red-carpet-treatment-to-succeed-in-this-economy/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Give Your Clients the Red Carpet Treatment to Succeed in This Economy'>Give Your Clients the Red Carpet Treatment to Succeed in This Economy</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/07/what-your-legal-fees-say-about-you-and-how-you-can-change-that/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: What Your Legal Fees Say About You&#8230;And How You Can Change That'>What Your Legal Fees Say About You&#8230;And How You Can Change That</a></li>
</ol></p>]]></content:encoded>
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		<title>What DRIVES You?</title>
		<link>http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/03/05/what-drives-you/</link>
		<comments>http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/03/05/what-drives-you/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 05 Mar 2010 17:04:06 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Alexis</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Becoming the Lawyer You Love]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Coaching]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Eyes Wide Open]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Law Firm Marketing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Living Outside the Box]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/?p=249</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Every now and then, I like to move away from teaching about the legal marketing/ law practice aspects of running a small or solo law firm and dive into something that&#8217;s rarely talked about in the legal field&#8230;which is your mindset.
Because here&#8217;s the truth, I can give you all the legal marketing and practice management [...]


Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/07/why-did-you-go-to-law-school/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Why Did You Go to Law School?'>Why Did You Go to Law School?</a></li>
</ol>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><img class="alignleft size-full wp-image-250" title="business woman thinking" src="http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/business-woman-thinking.jpg" alt="business woman thinking" width="274" height="282" />Every now and then, I like to move away from teaching about the legal marketing/ law practice aspects of running a small or solo law firm and dive into something that&#8217;s rarely talked about in the legal field&#8230;which is your mindset.</p>
<p>Because here&#8217;s the truth, I can give you all the <a href="http://www.lawbusinessrevolution.com"><strong>legal marketing</strong></a> and practice management tips in the world, but if your head isn&#8217;t in the right place, you&#8217;ll find a way to sabotage your efforts.</p>
<p>Conversely, you can be the worst marketer or business person, but if you have the right mindset, you&#8217;ll eventually find success.</p>
<p>Today, I want to talk about DRIVE and how it relates to the success of your life/business right now.</p>
<p>Take a moment and consider the following:</p>
<p>1. What drives me?</p>
<p>2.  What is my purpose for being a lawyer?</p>
<p>3.  What is my purpose in life?</p>
<p>4.  Am I happy?</p>
<p>5.  Why did I go to law school?</p>
<p>6.  Am I making a difference in the world?</p>
<p>These can be hard questions to look at&#8230;.especially in times of economic hardship.  You may feel driven on pure survival.  And you may find yourself enduring gruesome hours and complete misery all in the name of making money.</p>
<p>You may even be compromising your time and sanity by taking legal work that you don&#8217;t WANT or LIKE to do-just to get by.</p>
<p>Ultimately though, these actions don&#8217;t lead to more money.  They lead to burnout, bitterness, depression, addictions and in extreme cases, suicide (which is sadly on the rise for lawyers these days).</p>
<p>There comes a point at which if you&#8217;re going to succeed in the business of law&#8230;.and in the business of life, you need to get very clear on what drives you, why you wanted to practice law in the first place and whether you are really living the life you want.</p>
<p>I recently had a call with Dan Pink, the New York Times best-selling author of Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, where we discussed this issue as it relates specifically to lawyers and the legal field.</p>
<p>What you may not know about Dan is that he&#8217;s got a JD from Yale.  But, he never used his law degree to practice because he realized early on that his &#8220;drive&#8221; and motivation was not to be a lawyer.</p>
<p>Going to law school was, for him, just the next logical step for a bright kid with a top-notch college degree and a lack of clarity about what else to do.</p>
<p>And there&#8217;s many lawyers out there who went to law school for the same reason and are now incredibly unhappy in the actual practice of law&#8230;..not because they aren&#8217;t smart&#8230;.but they aren&#8217;t aligned with that which drives them.  (This may even be you.)</p>
<p>Dan also acknowledged there&#8217;s another group of lawyers&#8230;.lawyers like me who went to law school with the DRIVE and purpose to really help people.   If that&#8217;s you, you&#8217;re driven by the idea of making a real difference in the world and using the power of your law degree to some chief and definite aim.</p>
<p>And there&#8217;s many of us in this group who have lost sight of that drive.  We take jobs in law firms that keep us stuck in the transactional rut or we get so desperate running a small or solo law firm that we take clients and cases that leave us miserable in practice.</p>
<p>If that&#8217;s you-I completely understand.  I was there.  It&#8217;s exactly what motivated me to leave the safety of my six-figure paycheck and set out to build my own law firm.  And it&#8217;s also what motivated me to master the skills and create the systems I now teach in the Personal Family Lawyer Program.</p>
<p>I wanted to make a real difference in my client&#8217;s lives and I knew the old, broken business model just didn&#8217;t leave enough room for that.  Not if I wanted to also enjoy my personal life.</p>
<p>Yes it was scary&#8230;..yes there were moments when I questioned my own sanity leaving the big check and investing hundreds of thousands of dollars reinventing the business model&#8230;.but I had to get aligned with what drives me or face years of unhappiness and little quality time with my kids.</p>
<p>What I can tell you is that when I made the decision to get aligned with what was really important to me in life and my practice, the money, freedom and success ultimately followed.</p>
<p>So take a moment today and think about what drives you.</p>
<p>Why did you go to law school and are you living that desire?  A great start is <a href="http://www.budurl.com/danpink10">downloading the call I did with Dan Pink</a> and force yourself to identify any disconnect in your own life. I&#8217;ll show you how to work through it in the weeks to come.</p>


<p>Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/07/why-did-you-go-to-law-school/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Why Did You Go to Law School?'>Why Did You Go to Law School?</a></li>
</ol></p>]]></content:encoded>
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		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
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		<title>5 Key Strategies in Setting Up Your Local Marketing Mastermind Collaborative</title>
		<link>http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/29/5-key-strategies-in-setting-up-your-local-marketing-mastermind-collaborative/</link>
		<comments>http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/29/5-key-strategies-in-setting-up-your-local-marketing-mastermind-collaborative/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 29 Jan 2010 19:55:44 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Alexis</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Client Attraction]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Direct Response Marketing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Law Firm Marketing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Living Outside the Box]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Local Marketing Collaborative]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/?p=242</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[So you&#8217;ve made  the decision to start a local marketing mastermind collaborative                   with the goal of increasing leads and slashing  marketing costs for your            [...]


Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/29/how-to-find-and-work-with-the-best-referral-sources-in-town/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: How to find&#8230; and work with the best referral sources in town'>How to find&#8230; and work with the best referral sources in town</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/05/law-firm-marketing-action-plan-how-to-get-more-referrals-in-2010/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Law Firm Marketing Action Plan: How to Get More Referrals in 2010'>Law Firm Marketing Action Plan: How to Get More Referrals in 2010</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/29/are-you-maximizing-the-opportunities-from-your-speaking-engagements-part-2/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Are You Maximizing the Opportunities From Your Speaking Engagements? Part 2'>Are You Maximizing the Opportunities From Your Speaking Engagements? Part 2</a></li>
</ol>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><span><span><span style="font-family: Century Gothic; font-size: normal;"><span><img class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-243" title="home_lunch-meeting" src="http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/home_lunch-meeting-199x300.jpg" alt="home_lunch-meeting" width="199" height="300" />So you&#8217;ve made  the decision to start a local marketing mastermind collaborative                   with the goal of increasing leads and slashing  marketing costs for your                   law firm. Great!</span></span></span></span></p>
<p>Now what?</p>
<p>Well for starters, you&#8217;ll need to invite a handful of  key professionals                   in town that serve the same target market as you. As  we discussed on my                   <a href="http://www.lawbusinessrevolution.com/coop/" target="_blank"> no-charge call last week </a> , you&#8217;ll need to go outside the box (and probably way  outside the list                   of people you already have in mind!) if you really  want to maximize the                   referral potential that starting a collaborative can  bring.</p>
<p>Then once you&#8217;ve gathered 4-12 key professionals with  the goal of forming                   a local marketing mastermind collaborative, there are  still 5 more key                   things you must do to ensure the group is set up  properly, stays on track                   and moves forward month to month&#8230;rather than  becoming a huge drain on                   your time.</p>
<p>Those steps are as follows:</p>
<p>1.                   <strong> Select a location </strong> &#8211; You&#8217;ll want to immediately choose a location where  your group can meet                   for each &#8220;mastermind&#8221; session.  While your office is  an obvious (and doable)                   choice, you may also want to consider meeting at a  restaurant for breakfast                   or lunch.  Your group needs to eat anyway and this  allows everyone to maximize                   their day and kill two birds with one stone.</p>
<p>2.                   <strong> Set up a system for reminding everyone in advance of  meetings </strong> -  Let&#8217;s face it&#8230;we&#8217;re all super busy and sending  reminders are key                   to making sure everyone shows up to your meetings.   Ideally, you&#8217;ll want                   to put a system in place so members of your  collaborative receive at least                   one email and one phone call 24-48 hours in advance of  each meeting.</p>
<p>3.                    <strong> Create a list-serv to keep in touch </strong> &#8211; You may want to set up a list serv where your group  can talk openly                   about marketing ideas and other concerns, rather than  playing email tag                   or having to wait until the next meeting to present  ideas. Two great (and                   free) resources for this are                   <a href="http://groups.google.com/?hl=sd&amp;pli=1" target="_blank"> Google groups </a> or                   <a href="http://www.groups.yahoo.com/mygroups" target="_blank"> Yahoo groups </a> .</p>
<p>4.                   <strong> Have an agenda for each meeting </strong> &#8211; Again, the people in your group are busy and so are  you. There&#8217;s no                   time to flounder around trying to decide what you  should, and should not                   cover each time you meet.  Instead prepare an agenda  in advance so the                   group can stay on task and move ahead with your  marketing goals.</p>
<p>5.                   <strong> Leave time for open communication </strong> &#8211; While it&#8217;s critical to have an agenda and stick to  it, you&#8217;ll also want                   to leave time in each meeting for the members to voice  their questions,                   concerns and areas they&#8217;re struggling with.  You&#8217;ll  then work through these                   issues as a group and tweak your marketing strategy  accordingly.</p>
<p>Finally, and most importantly, don&#8217;t get too attached  to your first group                   of local marketing mastermind collaborative members!   I&#8217;ve received quite                   a few emails from attorneys who are afraid to start a  collaborative simply                   because someone else may not be a good fit or not hold  up their end of                   the bargain.</p>
<p>Honestly, things like that will happen, but it&#8217;s no  big deal!  As I explained                   on my mastermind call and I&#8217;ll further teach at our                   <a href="http://www.lawbusinessrevolution.com/virtualevent" target="_blank"> virtual event </a> , if you start with small campaigns, you&#8217;ll naturally  learn who is&#8230;                   and who isn&#8217;t a good fit for the group. You can then  make adjustments accordingly                   until you form a cohesive marketing collaborative that  has the ability                   to tackle more advanced campaigns in the future.</p>
<p>The important thing is that you just get started!   Pick your professionals,                   implement the five steps above and start moving ahead  with your local marketing                   mastermind collaborative plans.</p>
<p>You&#8217;ll be thrilled with the results.</p>


<p>Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/29/how-to-find-and-work-with-the-best-referral-sources-in-town/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: How to find&#8230; and work with the best referral sources in town'>How to find&#8230; and work with the best referral sources in town</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/05/law-firm-marketing-action-plan-how-to-get-more-referrals-in-2010/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Law Firm Marketing Action Plan: How to Get More Referrals in 2010'>Law Firm Marketing Action Plan: How to Get More Referrals in 2010</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/29/are-you-maximizing-the-opportunities-from-your-speaking-engagements-part-2/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Are You Maximizing the Opportunities From Your Speaking Engagements? Part 2'>Are You Maximizing the Opportunities From Your Speaking Engagements? Part 2</a></li>
</ol></p>]]></content:encoded>
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		<title>The shocking results of our 2009 Legal Marketing/ Law Practice Survey</title>
		<link>http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/29/the-shocking-results-of-our-2009-legal-marketing-law-practice-survey/</link>
		<comments>http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/29/the-shocking-results-of-our-2009-legal-marketing-law-practice-survey/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 29 Jan 2010 19:48:06 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Alexis</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Becoming the Lawyer You Love]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Growing Your Law Practice]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Law Firm Marketing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Law Practice Managment]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/?p=234</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The results of our 2009 legal marketing/ law practice survey are in  and the responses are sadly indicative of our industry as a whole.
According to the results, you are frustrated and tired of begging for  business and struggling to turn a profit in your small and solo firms.   The statistics show 23% [...]


Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/07/looking-to-grow-your-law-practice-this-is-your-best-investment-in-any-economy/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Looking to grow your law practice? This is your best investment in any economy'>Looking to grow your law practice? This is your best investment in any economy</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/09/law-practice-managment-debate-is-2-days-a-week-really-possible/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Law Practice Managment Debate: Is 2 Days a Week Really Possible?'>Law Practice Managment Debate: Is 2 Days a Week Really Possible?</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/09/20-new-clients-with-no-legal-marketing-cost/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: 20 new clients with no legal marketing cost?'>20 new clients with no legal marketing cost?</a></li>
</ol>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><img class="size-medium wp-image-235 alignright" title="frustrated1" src="http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/frustrated1-282x300.jpg" alt="frustrated1" width="282" height="300" />The results of our 2009 legal marketing/ law practice survey are in  and the responses are sadly indicative of our industry as a whole.</p>
<p>According to the results, you are frustrated and tired of begging for  business and struggling to turn a profit in your small and solo firms.   The statistics show 23% of lawyers surveyed made under $50,000 last  year, while 40% of lawyers surveyed felt &#8220;very dissatisfied&#8221; with the  amount they made in 2009.</p>
<p>A large majority also expressed dissatisfaction with the amount of  time they wasted on tire kickers, price shoppers and clients who refused  to pay their full fee&#8230;and quite frankly, what you know you are worth.</p>
<p>That&#8217;s a hard pill to swallow, especially after spending up to six  figures               on your law degree.</p>
<p>The most unfortunate part, however, is how many of these lawyers                <strong> <em> did </em> </strong> do the right things in  marketing their practices last year.   99% of lawyers surveyed tried at  least one form of advanced marketing (if not many forms) and still  failed to see consistent results or good ROI from their efforts.  As you  can imagine, these attorneys were off the chart when it came to feeling  &#8220;very dissatisfied&#8221; with their marketing efforts and practice as a  whole.</p>
<p>But, here&#8217;s the important thing for you to know &#8230; the lawyers who  felt &#8220;very satisfied&#8221; with their marketing, practices and income last  year all had one thing in common:</p>
<p><strong> <em> They were not just relying on one source of business;  instead, they had an automated marketing system to consistently market  using a diverse set of strategies without fail-even (especially!) when  times got tough. </em> </strong></p>
<p>A good client attraction strategy is like having a diversified  investment portfolio.  When one sector bombs, your stock in an unrelated  sector shields you from huge loss.  The same holds true with your  marketing.  You want to have an integrated and coordinated marketing  system set up so that if one source temporarily dries up, it doesn&#8217;t  affect you.</p>
<p>I&#8217;m sure some of you are thinking, &#8220;Wow, that&#8217;s got to be expensive  &#8230;I can barely afford to run a nice big ad in the yellow pages, let  alone do all this marketing you&#8217;re talking about&#8221;.  The good news though  is that some of the best strategies are low-cost or even no-cost  provided you put in the time to set up the system to begin with.</p>
<p>The great news about a system though is that once it&#8217;s set up, it&#8217;s  good to go and will produce consistent, reliable and predictable results  for you on an ongoing basis.</p>
<p>So, what does an integrated, coordinated, automated system look  like?</p>
<p>I laid it out in detail on this call I hosted.  Listen to it                <strong> <a href="http://lifelivednow.audioacrobat.com/download/FinalCACC.mp3"> here </a> . </strong></p>
<p>And if you are ready to get your integrated, coordinated, automated  system in place for 2010 and beyond, join us for our <a href="http://www.lawbusinessrevolution.com/virtualevent"> 2-day virtual  event </a> . It will change everything for you. I guarantee it.</p>


<p>Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/07/looking-to-grow-your-law-practice-this-is-your-best-investment-in-any-economy/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Looking to grow your law practice? This is your best investment in any economy'>Looking to grow your law practice? This is your best investment in any economy</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/09/law-practice-managment-debate-is-2-days-a-week-really-possible/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Law Practice Managment Debate: Is 2 Days a Week Really Possible?'>Law Practice Managment Debate: Is 2 Days a Week Really Possible?</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/09/20-new-clients-with-no-legal-marketing-cost/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: 20 new clients with no legal marketing cost?'>20 new clients with no legal marketing cost?</a></li>
</ol></p>]]></content:encoded>
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		<title>Are You Maximizing the Opportunities From Your Speaking Engagements? Part 2</title>
		<link>http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/29/are-you-maximizing-the-opportunities-from-your-speaking-engagements-part-2/</link>
		<comments>http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/29/are-you-maximizing-the-opportunities-from-your-speaking-engagements-part-2/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 29 Jan 2010 19:35:18 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Alexis</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Client Attraction]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Client Engagment Strategies]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Direct Response Marketing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Law Firm Marketing]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/?p=231</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[
In last week’s Law Business Briefing Memorandum, we discussed  strategies you can implement before each live event to boost your  effectiveness and generate higher turnouts than ever before.
If you missed that article, I encourage you to read it here, but  essentially, you’ll want to start communicating with your prospects  before the [...]


Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/29/are-you-maximizing-the-opportunities-from-your-speaking-engagements/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Are You Maximizing the Opportunities From Your Speaking Engagements?'>Are You Maximizing the Opportunities From Your Speaking Engagements?</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/15/how-every-practicing-attorney-can-generate-income-through-speaking-engagements/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: How EVERY Practicing Attorney Can Generate Income Through Speaking Engagements'>How EVERY Practicing Attorney Can Generate Income Through Speaking Engagements</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/29/5-key-strategies-in-setting-up-your-local-marketing-mastermind-collaborative/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: 5 Key Strategies in Setting Up Your Local Marketing Mastermind Collaborative'>5 Key Strategies in Setting Up Your Local Marketing Mastermind Collaborative</a></li>
</ol>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><img class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-232" title="clipboard" src="http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/clipboard-150x150.gif" alt="clipboard" width="150" height="150" /></p>
<p>In last week’s Law Business Briefing Memorandum, we discussed  strategies you can implement before each live event to boost your  effectiveness and generate higher turnouts than ever before.</p>
<p>If you missed that article, I encourage you to read it here, but  essentially, you’ll want to start communicating with your prospects  before the event via the information collected on the registration form  and gather leads during the event by utilizing an opt-in form tied to a  free gift or offer.</p>
<p>Yet gathering leads is only half the battle in relationship-based  marketing. The second and arguably most important step in making the  most of your speaking engagements is to automate the follow-up process  to ensure no prospect is left behind and everyone receives consistent  communication from you and your firm.</p>
<p>You may have heard the saying, “the money is in the follow-up” and I  can vouch from personal experience this is true. So with that said, here  are four easy steps you can take after each live speaking event to  ensure money is in the follow-up for you as well:</p>
<p style="margin-left: 0.75in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span>1.<span> </span></span>After the event, compare the initial  registration list to the names of those who were in attendance.</p>
<p style="margin-left: 0.75in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span>2.<span> </span></span>From there, break those names down into  three categories: those who took your offer at the event, those who  attended but didn’t take your offer and those who registered but didn’t  attend—then create appropriate follow up sequences. The follow up  sequence should include multiple touches in various ways (email, phone,  snail mail) for the best effectiveness!</p>
<p style="margin-left: 0.75in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span>3.<span> </span></span>If the free gift you offered requires  fulfillment, strive to distribute your materials promptly while you are  still fresh in the prospect’s mind.</p>
<p style="margin-left: 0.75in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span>4.<span> </span></span>Always add all leads to your house list and  maintain consistent, friendly ongoing communication with them via both  email and direct mail.</p>
<p>As you can see, the hardest part of this maximization effort is  automating the follow-up process so you can contact your prospects long  after the event has taken place.</p>
<p><a href="http://budurl.com/nfs7">Infusion</a> is my personal  automation software of choice because it allows for segmented lists and  hence very specific follow-up campaigns designed to motivate prospects  and get them to say YES to your services if they didn’t already do so at  the live event.</p>
<p>But don’t let not having a good email marketing/ contact management  system stop you from getting started with this! Either <a href="http://budurl.com/nfs7">make a quick investment into a good CRM  like Infusion</a> (which is money VERY well spent on your part), or use  an excel spreadsheet or some good ole’ fashion tickler systems. Either  way—just get started.</p>
<p>So next time you have a speaking engagement, I encourage you to give  these steps a try and chart your results. And don’t forget to email me  at <a href="mailto:alexis@lawbusinessrevolution.com">alexis@lawbusinessrevolution.com</a> with your success stories!</p>
<p>PS- If you&#8217;re considering a CRM like Infusion, be sure to email  support@lawbusinessrevolution.com for further information on special  bonuses we&#8217;ve negotiated for members of the Law Business Revolution.  We&#8217;re always happy to help.</p>


<p>Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/29/are-you-maximizing-the-opportunities-from-your-speaking-engagements/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Are You Maximizing the Opportunities From Your Speaking Engagements?'>Are You Maximizing the Opportunities From Your Speaking Engagements?</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/15/how-every-practicing-attorney-can-generate-income-through-speaking-engagements/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: How EVERY Practicing Attorney Can Generate Income Through Speaking Engagements'>How EVERY Practicing Attorney Can Generate Income Through Speaking Engagements</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/29/5-key-strategies-in-setting-up-your-local-marketing-mastermind-collaborative/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: 5 Key Strategies in Setting Up Your Local Marketing Mastermind Collaborative'>5 Key Strategies in Setting Up Your Local Marketing Mastermind Collaborative</a></li>
</ol></p>]]></content:encoded>
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		<item>
		<title>Are You Maximizing the Opportunities From Your Speaking Engagements?</title>
		<link>http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/29/are-you-maximizing-the-opportunities-from-your-speaking-engagements/</link>
		<comments>http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/29/are-you-maximizing-the-opportunities-from-your-speaking-engagements/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 29 Jan 2010 19:28:54 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Alexis</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Client Attraction]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Growing Your Law Practice]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Law Firm Marketing]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/?p=228</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[If you enjoy speaking and are decent  up in front of a crowd, your marketing plan should include regular  speaking engagements from which you&#8217;ll be able to convert attendees into  clients.
Too many lawyers aren&#8217;t using speaking  at all to build their firms.  And the few of you who are, are often [...]


Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/29/are-you-maximizing-the-opportunities-from-your-speaking-engagements-part-2/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Are You Maximizing the Opportunities From Your Speaking Engagements? Part 2'>Are You Maximizing the Opportunities From Your Speaking Engagements? Part 2</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/15/how-every-practicing-attorney-can-generate-income-through-speaking-engagements/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: How EVERY Practicing Attorney Can Generate Income Through Speaking Engagements'>How EVERY Practicing Attorney Can Generate Income Through Speaking Engagements</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/08/20/the-key-to-more-client-referrals/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: The Key To More Client Referrals'>The Key To More Client Referrals</a></li>
</ol>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><img class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-229" title="speaking engagments" src="http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/speaking-engagments-300x199.jpg" alt="speaking engagments" width="300" height="199" />If you enjoy speaking and are decent  up in front of a crowd, your marketing plan should include regular  speaking engagements from which you&#8217;ll be able to convert attendees into  clients.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Too many lawyers aren&#8217;t using speaking  at all to build their firms.  And the few of you who are, are often  spinning your wheels spending a lot of time without a lot of return on  your investment.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 10pt;">That&#8217;s because there&#8217;s a lot more to  putting on a successful speaking engagement than just booking a venue  (or finding someone to host you) and writing out talking points.</p>
<p>On the flip side, when you know how to speak strategically, it&#8217;s a lot  easier than anything you are doing right now to market.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 10pt;">So what steps can you take to ensure  you&#8217;re truly making the most of your speaking opportunities?  Try the  following:</span></p>
<p><strong><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Before the event:</span></strong></p>
<ul type="disc">
<li style="margin-bottom: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Have       a special phone number or web page where people can register in       advance.  This is your first chance to capture contact information       and get a rough idea as to how many people will be in attendance.</span></li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">If       you&#8217;re collecting information by phone, be sure your team logs  everything      into your database or on a spreadsheet so you can  readily access the data      a few days before, and after the event.</span></li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Be       sure to let people registering for the event know you&#8217;ll send a  reminder      before the event and that they&#8217;ll begin to receive your  weekly email      newsletter as well.</span></li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Send       a friendly reminder of the event 24-48 hours in advance by email  and      strongly consider having someone in your office make a phone  call as well.</span></li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Strategize       the offer you&#8217;ll make during the speaking event (this does not  have to      mean you are selling something. Your offer can be for a  very high value      something, like an article, a report, or even an  appointment with you that      you give away.)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Collect      the contact  information of anyone who wants your free giveaway (this can      be  done as simply as having people hand you their cards if it is a       business event, or you can use a form you&#8217;ve created or even simple  index      cards).  These people are all leads who have raised their  hand to      tell you they may need your services down the road.</span></li>
</ul>
<p><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Of course, your fortune with these  fresh leads (or prospects if they&#8217;ve made an appointment to meet with  you) is in the follow up.  Next week, we&#8217;ll cover exactly how to follow  up to convert these leads and prospects into money in the bank.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 10pt;">In the meantime, you may want to check  out my most recent article on <a href="http://lawyerist.com/" target="_blank">lawyerist.com</a>. You can read it here:</span><a href="http://budurl.com/pc28">http://budurl.com/pc28</a></p>


<p>Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/29/are-you-maximizing-the-opportunities-from-your-speaking-engagements-part-2/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Are You Maximizing the Opportunities From Your Speaking Engagements? Part 2'>Are You Maximizing the Opportunities From Your Speaking Engagements? Part 2</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/01/15/how-every-practicing-attorney-can-generate-income-through-speaking-engagements/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: How EVERY Practicing Attorney Can Generate Income Through Speaking Engagements'>How EVERY Practicing Attorney Can Generate Income Through Speaking Engagements</a></li>
<li><a href='http://lawbusinessrevolution.com/blog/2010/08/20/the-key-to-more-client-referrals/' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: The Key To More Client Referrals'>The Key To More Client Referrals</a></li>
</ol></p>]]></content:encoded>
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