Most of our clients hire us with the goal in mind of making their phone ring more often. Ultimately however, what our clients really care about is getting new clients that they can attribute directly to our marketing. As you might imagine, what’s critical in making that happen is measuring the amount of calls that a firm gets and even monitoring those calls to ensure that when the phone does ring, the lead is being handled as best possible.
While a lot employees want a script to stick to, because every person calling is different and behaves differently, there’s simply not a script for every situation. So what’s more important than having a script is having principles that are constantly being reinforced to your receptionists and staff that can apply to each every single call regardless of the individual.
Here are the ones we think are most important:
While phone scripts need to be flexible, here’s a sample script for your firm that will helps to illustrate how you can ensure you are making the most of each and every call you receive.
Receptionist: Thank you for calling {FIrm Name}, This is {Receptionist Name}, how can I help you?
Caller: Hi, my name is Suzy and I need to speak with an attorney.
Receptionist: Ok Suzy, just so I can make sure that I am sending you to the right person within the firm, can you tell me a little bit about what it is you’re needing help with?
Caller: Well I was in a car accident in Downtown Houston and my daughter has been seriously injured … I really need help from a lawyer because I don’t know how I’m going to pay my hospital bills …
Receptionist: [sympathetic, genuine] Suzy, I’m terribly sorry to hear that you are having to deal with that. Our lawyers are phenomenal at helping people who have experienced serious accidents. Do you mind if I put you in touch with one of our attorneys so they can get all the important information surrounding your case?
Caller: That would be fine.
Receptionist: Thank you. And just in case we get disconnected after I transfer you, what’s the best number for me to reach you at?
Caller: It’s 555-55555
Receptionist: Ok excellent, thank you for that. Now if you don’t mind holding, I’m going to try to put you in touch with Attorney Mark, he is one of the best attorneys in town when it comes to car accidents
[puts caller on brief hold, makes contact with attorney, gives brief description to attorney]
Receptionist: Ok Suzy, I am transferring you to Attorney Mark right now, I have shared with him what you told me and he would like to speak with you to learn a little more about your situation.
Caller: Thank you
[transfers call]
Career paths in the legal industry, like every many other industries are in a state of change. For ages, the the typical career path for lawyers went something like this;
In the last 2 decades a variety of factors are disrupting an industry that has been notoriously averse to change and creating an opportunity for entrepreneurial attorneys.
What are the catalysts for these changes? Here’s some big ones;
And while some lament the good ol’ days of grad school internships, yellow page ads, billboards and mahogany lined meeting rooms with leather bound books, many young (and some not so young) attorneys recognize what this opportunity before them is: the best time in history to start your own law firm.
You may be asking yourself, what credibility does this non-lawyer have that I should listen to him regarding career decisions I am making?
The answer is that I’ve ridden shotgun with a number of attorneys (and spoken with dozens more) who have successfully transitioned to running their own practice and seen first hand how they did it. There’s some common denominators to the ones who did it successfully and it’s a science to it that I am happy to share. Here’s the commonalities I have found;
I don’t mean to make a complex decision seem so simplistic in this article and I understand that it may come off that way. There’s obviously countless opportunities to get invaluable experience and tutelage/mentorship at an established firm. If that’s your career path, more power to you. What intention is for this article, for those attorneys thinking to take the entrepreneurial jump, is to demystify the barriers to entry to starting your own firm.
If you are one of those people looking to start your practice, we’d love to chat with you and answer whatever questions you may have. We work with firms big and small alike and we strive to be a true partner to all of clients. We even have some special pricing for solos starting out. So if you’re ready to chat, hit us up and we’ll schedule a call and share everything we know to help make your decision a bit easier.
Content marketing is a must for any business. Having an online presence is crucial to survive in a crowded marketplace and content marketing is one way to stand out in the crowd. When it comes to marketing for law firms, there is a big difference in strategy. Legal content marketing is unique in many ways. Here are a few examples.
Law Firms Are Expected to Be Experts
Legal content marketing is different, in that all content is expected to have some type of expertise. You can read similar articles all day long on other niches but when it comes to legal articles, people are there wanting to hear what an expert has to say. You cannot simply go to Elance and pay a freelancer a few dollars to create quality content for you.
If you are writing legal content for your blog, make sure that you are able to cite legal sources to support your contentions. This is not something that is done with most other niches. You want to make sure to cite sources as it shows you know what you are talking about and also brings quality and credibility to the content.
Another big part of legal content marketing involves becoming an authority in your market. When you write content as a guest blogger, you are establishing your legal brand. After you are able to post articles on high authority websites, people will begin to see you as an expert or the go-to person in the field.
Localization Should be the Focus of Legal Content Marketing
SEO is an important part of legal content marketing. Regardless if you are posting content on your blog or authoring on another site as an expert, you must make sure you focus on SEO for lawyers. This means that concentrating on your local market is the key to success.
If you are an attorney in the Los Angeles area, you do not want to optimize your content for a national audience or even for another city. Many people get this wrong. As a local business, you want to focus on the local market. People cannot purchase your products or services online. They must come to your office in person, which is why you need to optimize your content for people looking for you.
Other key differences are knowing when to use the correct terms, such as lawyer or law firm, in your content.
Search Engines Already Hate You
If you are a law firm, search engines are not your friend. There is so much spam content out there related to law firms that you must fight your way to the top. Legal content marketing is some of the most difficult to get ranked because of this.
Just check online to see the many law firms out there with spam content and clickbait. Their only purpose is to get visitors to their site, where hopefully they can convert them into paying clients. This is the opposite of what Google and other search engines want. They want you to provide quality content that not only attracts visitors but keeps their attention and provides valued information.
In order to help your content rank, it must be of great quality. While this is the same for all niches, law firms must stand out. The way to do that is to provide information that people want, or need, to read. We suggest creating how-to advice or writing articles that answer common legal questions. This is a great way to keep the readers’ attention and show the search engines you are there to provide valuable content, not serving up spam.
Final Thoughts
Yes, legal content marketing is unique. If you are looking to rank your law firm’s website, you must invest in quality. Provide expert advice, with information people want to read. Stay away from using clickbait or other black-hat methods to attract visitors and Google will likely grow to love you and rank you higher.
Looking for a quote for legal content marketing? Contact us for a free consultation.