Market Masters Legal – TV Advertising Blog

What do Harry Truman, the Korean War and $3000 Packards have to do with Auto cases today? They all have 1949 in common, the last year that deaths on US roads were as low as they were in 2010, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s report on traffic fatalities.

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An interesting perspective on the value of Forensic Economists in evaluating case values is offered by Jason Abraham of Market Masters-Legal licensee Hupy & Abraham in a recent edition of the Wisconsin Law Journal.

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Looking for a public service promotion that really works? Market Masters-Legal licensee Joe Bornstein recently launched another Arrive Alive campaign. This promotion has been embraced across the state and has proven to be of real value to the community and to the firm.

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Overall, Direct Mail is on the rise in 2011 according to a recent report. The automotive, retail and financial services industries are leading the way. Hard to know what this means to direct mail efforts by law firms, but it would not be all that surprising to see this increase as well. Market Masters-Legal offers full graphic design services to our licensees, and can design direct mail pieces that stand out.

“Keep It Simple Stupid” or “Make It Super Sophisticated”?

My latest travels took me to visit with our licensees in Columbia, SC.  Frankly, it was long overdue, but I was welcomed warmly and enjoyed their true southern hospitality.  One of the most important things they wanted to accomplish was for me to see, first hand, the primary potential client base from which they need to draw in order to be successful.   So, they loaded me into their car and took me to Pig On The Ridge, an annual barbecue competition that draws from all around.  It gave me an opportunity to see, meet and speak with many good people that comprise what they consider to be their target demographic.  The point of this (beyond enjoying barbecue and my first taste of boiled peanuts) was that we all can get caught up in trying to look and be as sophisticated as possible in what we say and do as law firms.  It is natural to want to be impressive.  However, our licensees in Columbia correctly recognize the critical importance of communicating to their clientele on their level in a manner that they will best receive it.

The late American journalist, H.L. Mencken once said, “Nobody ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American public.”  I suppose that his intention is open to debate.  But one interpretation can certainly be that keeping it simple and direct, while still being impactful, is never a bad strategy.  In fact, it is the best strategy.  Nothing puts you in a better position to do that than the TV commercials produced by Market Masters-Legal …Period.  How is that for simple and direct?

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.