Do you have a marketing strategy for your firm?

Anyone in business who spends marketing dollars would like to know exactly where to spend the dollars in order to get the greatest return. Sales people come at you from every angle and each sales person has the “BEST” idea where you should spend your money, right? RIGHT!

2009 is a year where business men and women are wondering what it will take to be successful in 09. Times are changing and marketing avenues are changing right along with them. It once was true that all a law firm needed was a yellow page advertisement and they could count on getting a decent return on investment. Now that does not seem to be the case. As technology has changed everything else about business, it has also changed how people find businesses and how people research businesses they have been referred to. Like it or not the “First Impression” someone has of you and your firm is no longer what they see when they walk in the door. Your first impression is now your .COM.

Fortunately or unfortunately since the beginning of the .com craze the Internet has evolved into much more than simple web pages that hold information. Now the Internet is being used as a tool to drive customers to relevant businesses much faster. I know in my house I have more laptops than televisions and when I watch television I usually have a laptop within reach. When I want to know about somebody or something I simply type it into my search engine of choice and within seconds I have an impression that was given to me by what I have read. The impression could be accurate or it could be that I did not find anything at all which simply leaves me to continue searching until I do find a person or business I was searching for. Never once have I put down the laptop to go pull the yellow pages and get information.

When building a marketing strategy for your business it is important to look at what marketing avenues will give you the greatest return on investment. You don’t want to simply break even. The entire purpose of spending money for advertising is to make more money. Whether you choose billboards, Television, Internet Marketing, Yellow Pages, networking clubs or even business cards and social events, you had better spend your money wisely. Unfortunately it is not enough to ask another law firm what they are doing to get business. Every law firm is different. Every firm has different strengths and weaknesses, a different image and different goals. Since every law firm is different every marketing strategy should be as well.

One problem with attorneys and their business is they don’t have time for anything more than their work load. They don’t even have time to research which marketing avenue is best for them. All too often they shoot in the dark money for advertising that never provides a return. That is why several businesses are in business so they can do all the leg work for the law firm which allows the firm to continue doing what it does best and the agency or individual to do the rest. So how do you pick someone you can trust to spend your money and get you the best return? It really is quite simple, look at who has been successful getting more clients or better clients for other attorneys. It is required that an attorney takes some time and search for a marketing strategist who is familiar with the legal industry and who has success in helping other attorneys. If that time is not taken it could be a serious detriment to your business. In the Marines they use to always say “It is smart to be hard but hard to be smart” in other words don’t fly blindly into any aspect of business. Make the time to set up your law firm for success for years to come. Your Tulsa BAR can assist in making recommendations to help you with your strategy. Whether you take the time to do it yourself or find someone to do it for you, you had better have a plan. If you fail to plan you are basically planning to fail.