Market Masters Legal – TV Advertising Blog

“Everyone knows us.”

I shouldn’t be surprised when I hear this from an attorney at a well established firm that advertises heavily.  Yet, I almost always am.  Recently, I was told this by two of our licensees.  One was thinking that a 30% reduction in their advertising would not be a problem, and the other was saying that they could reallocate a portion of their budget to speculative strategies.  A few weeks after the cutback, the first attorney called me to express concern about dropping call numbers.  I reminded him about the reduction and he acknowledged that it was the likely cause of the downturn.

I have been told that the typical city/market experiences as much as a 20% annual turnover of population.  That 20% each year will not know you based on longevity or past marketing.  Even more important is the question as to what happens when a firm lessens its marketing position?  Inevitably, a competitor or competitors fill the vacuum that is created.  It can give them life where previously they were much less relevant.

Everyone does not know you, even if a lot do.  Stay strong and aggressive in your marketing using superior creative and proven strategies.  It will keep you on top.

Auto accident data is difficult to come by in a timely fashion.  Often what is available is a year old or more.  While it would be great to know how many cases one is currently getting out of the total potential “pie”, thus far this is information that eludes us.

One report, however, can provide an idea of how your market stacks up when it comes to overall driver safety.  Allstate recently released its “America’s Best Drivers Report™”.  The report uses Allstate’s claim data to rank the country’s 200 biggest cities based on frequency of car collisions to identify which cities have the safest drivers.

What is the safest city?  Fort Collins, CO.  Which city is more likely to have accidents than any other?  Washington, DC.  How does your city stack up?  Click to view the full 2010 report.

As with any data, results can be suggestive but are not necessarily conclusive.  The overall business of any individual law firm is the result of many factors, not the least of which is effective marketing.  Robust market conditions or soft, it is always best to be the one getting the first call.

Heading into Labor Day Weekend, I was trying to think of something appropriate to post.  Then I received a call from a prospective client interested in our TV campaigns for a specialized area, Wage Hour abuse cases.

Unfair labor practices have been around a very long time.  However, the suffering economy seems to have led to even more people being taken advantage of.   Hourly workers are required to work extra time without being compensated, or they are “promoted” to “management” to bypass overtime requirements. Two current Market Masters-Legal licensees began advertising for these cases earlier this year, with very strong results.  One of them told me that bigger companies are paying the fines/penalties whenever they are called to task, but have no intention of stopping what they are doing.  The savings outweigh the costs associated with the minority of people that will pursue claims against them.  In other words, there is no end to available cases/victims.

We have been advocating diversification in the types of cases being advertised for as a means to further grow practices.  Wage Hour abuse is an area that may be worth further exploration for you.  Let me know if you would like more information.

Have a safe and happy Labor Day Weekend.

In my very first blog post I described what I believe to be a common marketing mistake that law firms make.  That is asking the question “How did you hear about us?” when someone first contacts the firm.  I heard from a number of people who agreed, disagreed and/or wanted to know how to acquire this useful information.

To clarify my point, I did not say that one should never ask this question, but only that it should not be among the first ones that are asked.  So, when can you do it?  One licensee sent me this comment:

“I ask this specific question at the end of the first telephone contact with the client – after Intake has finished the intake and has passed the call through to me for further assessment and making an appointment- and also in my initial meeting with the client when I am signing them up.  Not the FIRST question…………And what usually ensues is a bit of a conversation with the new client about the many ways in which he/she has heard about our law firm.  Very often, one way they have heard about us is from another person.  Of course, they almost always say they are familiar with the TV ads……I find that the clients like being asked that question b/c it shows that I care about what the “thought process” was by which they ended up calling us.”

Excellent.

Establish rapport, cover their problems, make them feel like you will be taking care of them, and then ask the question in an “organic” way.  The information you receive in this fashion will be more accurate and valuable than hitting them with it up front.

Which  Approach To Lawyer Advertising Is Best?

Dignified or Memorable.

Dignified, by far, has been the approach of choice.  Lawyers on camera communicating how much they understand and care about those in need.  The belief is that this type of advertising will hit home with people in a way that will make them feel good about the firm and want to do business with them.  The problem with most ads in this category, in our opinion, is that they are weak at generating response and are easily forgotten.

There is a minority of attorneys who have chosen to take a more aggressive approach.  Hard hitting ads filled with visual and/or audio gimmicks that practically scream at the consumer. Most lawyers would not choose this strategy, and in fact abhor it.  While they lack dignity, they are memorable (even if it is for the wrong reasons).

There is a third choice.

Without question, the hardest thing to do is to consistently advertise in a way that is both memorable and dignified.  However, we believe it is the only way to maximize response among those currently in need of a lawyer, while building positive equity with the larger segment of the market at any given time that does not yet have the need.  Translation – more cases and better cases.  With Market Masters-Legal you do not have to choose one or the other.  You get both.

How did you hear about us?