Hungry? Why not take a client to lunch.

“Clients will tell everyone that not only did their lawyer listen to them for an entire hour without charging them, but also, you paid the bill,” said Reid Trautz, the director of the American Immigration Lawyers Association Practice and Professionalism Center in Washington D.C.
He suggested that lawyers schedule at least one marketing lunch per month.   

Trautz was among the headline speakers at the Oct. 29-31 Wisconsin Solo & Small Firms Conference at the Wisconsin Dells. His suggestions came during the program, “60 Best Practices in Marketing in 60 Minutes.”

During the same presentation, Dustin Cole, a law practice management consultant with Attorneys Master Class in Longview, Fla., stressed how important it is to make marketing a priority in tough economic.

“My view is, marketing is job one,” he said. “If the clients don’t show up, your skills don’t matter.”

In Trautz’ experience, clients place a high premium on convenience. Free parking, non-traditional office hours or making house calls are just a few of the ways to communicate that the client’s needs come first. Or consider putting client intake forms online, so the client can meet with you as soon as she steps through your office door.

You should also make sure your web site, has “take-aways,” such as a PDF file of “10 FAQs about divorce in Wisconsin. Trautz said that another possibility might be a link to a YouTube video featuring a recent speech before a community group or other organization on a relevant issue of Wisconsin law. Or maybe you want to create a video in your office, that’s more comfortable for you.

The panelists suggested one Internet-based free marketing tool:  a free ad in the Google Local Business Center. Not only is the price right, the ad also can be helpful with search engine optimization, or raising your rank in Google search results.

Jim Calloway, director of the Oklahoma Bar Association’s Management Assistance Program in Oklahoma City, offered another free means of boosting your Google page rank:  Sign up for Google Profiles. Unless your name is John Smith, or something equally common, when you Google your name, your profile should appear at the bottom of page one every time.

(Mostly) Low-tech Options

Calloway also put forth a number of other suggestions that don’t involve a computer.

For instance, he predicted that despite the huge role technology plays in most people’s lives, business cards will never disappear completely.

That means that every time you go somewhere where you might meet a prospective client or another lawyer who might refer you business, you need to have a handful of cards in your pocket, ready to give away. When you exchange cards with someone, give him or her two or even three, Calloway urged, to allow for pass-alongs.

“It’s a low-tech, low-cost option, but God, it works,” he said.

Once you get someone’s card, rather than stuffing it in a drawer, send him or her a quick letter or e-mail to solidify the business relationship.

You might also want to become a “clipping service” or sorts, to strengthen your professional ties. Calloway said that in smaller communities especially, it’s easy to discover a prospective client’s son quarterbacking the high school football team, or the like. Attach a clipped article from the local newspaper chronicling the son’s gridiron success with a brief note saying something like, “Congratulations. Thought you might want another copy.”

Another critical time to send a letter, according to Calloway, is when you’ve completed a representation. You want to thank the client for the business, state that the matter is completed and perhaps most importantly, ask her to refer future clients, noting that you and/or your law partners also practice in other areas of the law, including X, Y and Z.     

Branding your Firm

Nerino Petro, director of the Law Office Management Assistance Program of the State Bar of Wisconsin, urged every firm to focus on its “brand,” or what comes to mind when someone thinks of the firm.

Need to create your brand? Making a list of how you help your clients is a great way to start, said Petro. In fact, using the word “help,” or some variation of it, in your tagline is probably a wise idea.

That list can also help you create your “elevator resume,” Petro said, which is what you tell someone about your occupation when you first meet him or her. That description shouldn’t be any longer than what you can convey in a short elevator ride, about 15 words. And don’t just recite practice areas; say how you help others within those concentrations.