Targeted Communication Strategies for Lawyers, Part I
You have a strong, well-established network and want to make sure your contacts will think of you when a question or legal issue arises. Your goal? To stay top-of-mind with your A-level connections. The following ideas represent communications best practices for lawyers who want to stay top-of-mind with their clients, contacts, and referral sources.
Blog
In my world the word blog is an action verb. You have knowledge and insights others don’t, therefore, you should blog. Let’s first dispel a myth. A good blog post should be right around 500 words. It can be a challenge for lawyers to realize they do not have the space for, nor would their readers have the interest in a law review-type article. Here is a simple format for you to use when you blog:
- Catchy title – short and sweet
- Short paragraph introducing the topic
- Short paragraph talking about how the topic affects readers
- Short paragraph on what action those impacted should take
- Short paragraph of conclusion tying everything together and reinforcing a call to action
Social Media: LinkedIn
One of the best ways to stay top-of-mind with your contacts is to comment on posts they make on LinkedIn, by congratulating them when they are promoted or have a work anniversary. A few other LinkedIn ideas include:
- Share your contacts’ posts with your network along with a positive note on why you are sharing
- Use the “Advanced” feature on LinkedIn to search for the titles of people you would like to meet. Search only first and second level contacts, then ask your connection for an introduction
- Review “People you may Know” on LinkedIn and connect with those you know; always include a personal note
- Use the message feature to reach out to someone you would like to meet for coffee
E-Communication
If you are in a small firm, you will need to subscribe to an e-mail service like Constant Contact or Mail Chimp. Subscriptions are based on the number of contacts you have and will likely cost $30 – $50 per month. Once you have a subscription:
- Draft a communication featuring recent news including awards you have won, articles published, presentations given, recent blog posts or client successes
- Make sure your website contains all of your valuable content, then link to it in the communication
- Both services above offer analytics so you can see how many people opened and clicked through to your website
Terrie Wheeler is available for a free 15-minute ‘Telephone Introduction’ to get to know you and discuss your personal goals. She is also available for a free 30-minute ‘Ask a Marketing Question!’ session, in which Terrie will chat with you about the marketing goals of your office or firm, and review your work experience, your target market, your niche and most importantly the goals you have for yourself and your practice. After the call, you will receive a follow-up email summarizing several immediate sales and marketing opportunities you can take advantage of immediately. Click here if you would like to schedule a session with Terrie!