Creating Your Marketing Strategy After COVID-19
COVID-19 (Coronavirus) is forcing lawyers all over the country to reimagine their law firm’s future. In that spirit, we want to share a marketing worksheet designed to help lawyers create a clear vision for their law firm’s future.
COVID-19 (Coronavirus) is forcing lawyers all over the country to reimagine their law firm’s future. Already, we have seen hundred, if not thousands, of lawyers show resilience in the face of these novel challenges. They are adopting new technology, creating new systems, developing new practice areas and finding ways to serve others even when they can’t be in the same room.
In that spirit, we want to share a marketing worksheet designed to help lawyers create a clear vision for their law firm’s future.
To access our law firm marketing worksheet, simply click the link below to access the PDF:
ACCESS THE LAW FIRM MARKETING WORKSHEET
We created this marketing worksheet a few weeks ago for a marketing workshop we facilitated at Atlanta Legal Tech. The worksheet encouraged participants to think about their goals, their strengths, their weakness and their overall mission - information critical to the formation of a strong marketing plan.
Below is a breakdown of the six sections you’ll find on the worksheet. We encourage you to take an hour, two hours or even an afternoon to think through the questions posed in the worksheet, and use them to formulate a marketing plan that is responsive to our changing business environment.
Before designing your marketing strategy, let's take a look at your current annual collections and current clients numbers.That will be our starting point. Then, let’s look at your goals. Where do you see yourself in 1 year, 3 years and 5 years? The marketing worksheet will ask you to list your revenue goals, desired new client numbers and vision for the future.
Whether you look at your goals every day, or are writing them out for the first time, it is always important to tie your marketing strategy to specific business objectives.
Can you describe your market and ideal client? A lot of lawyers can’t. In fact, we commonly hear from lawyers that an ideal client is “a paying client.”
While we want to make sure we’re getting paid, finding clients and cases that a good fit for your law firm’s strengths and culture is critical to your long-term success (and mental health).
In our worksheet, you’ll be asked about demographic information about your ideal client, such as where they live and income/education levels. But we encourage you to think beyond demographics. Where do they like to shop? Are they parents? What recreational activities do they enjoy?
By identifying who your ideal client is, you can begin to form a clear plan of action to reach them.
Branding is more than a logo; it’s what you stand for. We believe that at the heart of every successful law firm is a strong, clear mission that is both outward and inward focused.
Not sure where to start? Ask yourself questions like:
Now is a time to reevaluate the community needs that your law firm serves. It’s often in the most challenging times when your purpose becomes clear. That purpose is your brand. Wear it proudly!
Whatever your strengths may be, there is always a way to incorporate them into your marketing plan.
Going beyond your marketing prowess, there are other strengths that can help your overall marketing strategy. For instance, you may have a rock-solid intake process that makes conversion easy and painless for your clients. You may have internal systems that deliver the best client experience possible.
If you are looking at marketing your firm for the first time, or are reevaluating your current marketing strategy in the face of COVID-19, identifying and leveraging your strengths is the perfect place to start.
Let’s face it - we all have limitations. As we all deal with the COVID-19 crisis, those limitations are now more apparent than ever.
Money, time, resources, skill - these are all constraints that every lawyer must deal with when looking at their marketing goals. Though it may not be fun, coming face-to-face with your weaknesses will help you identify opportunities for improvement as well as creative marketing strategies to overcome them.
We’re not afraid to say it, the best leads come from referrals. That is why it is so important to create a marketing plan that also focuses on protecting those referrals from your competitors.
When is the last time you did an accounting of your referrals and where they came from? By identifying your best referral sources, you can develop a marketing plan that helps you stay top of mind with your referrals sources, and presents you as a top choice to referrals who come to your door.
Once you have completed the worksheet, now is the time to formulate your plan. We have listed strategic steps you can take on the last page. Of course, if you have any questions, we encourage you to schedule a free marketing consult with us.
We recognize that COVID-19 presents a lot of challenges for law firms, and we want to be here as a resource. Now is the time for lawyers to step up, innovate and show leadership in their communities. If there is anything we can help you with during this time, please let us know.
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