Count The Cost Of Creating Before You Start Building: Funding Your Marketing Plan

We know from extensive research that it takes at the very least seven to ten meaningful touches to move someone through the sales process to get them to the point where they are ready to buy from you.

If your marketing plan only has enough steam in it to produce five meaningful touches, it will be as if you had never touched them at all.

5 touches aren't enough to break through past all of the marketing efforts made by other attorneys vying for your potential client's time and money... including your biggest competitors.   

Don't let those clients slip through your fingers by short changing your own marketing efforts.  Which brings us to the question - How much is enough to invest in your marketing efforts?   There are several questions to consider before you get your answer: 

• What practice area are you in? Some practice areas require significantly more time and money to market (litigation and personal injury to mention two).

• What are your profit margins? The larger your margins, the more you can invest on marketing and new business development. Some practice areas have bigger profit margins (litigation) while others are notoriously lower (residential real estate).

• What are your annual revenues? It is not unusual for successful law firms to spend between 15 percent and 40 percent of their annual revenues on marketing.

• Are you targeting other businesses or individual consumers? Anytime you are marketing directly to consumers, your marketing budget must be bigger because of the intense competition for consumer's pocketbooks.

• What are the size of your competitors? Obviously, trying to take market share from Wal-mart as opposed to a beauty salon would require a much bigger marketing budget. Analyze your competition; what marketing materials do they put out?   How are they positioning their firm?

• How sophisticated are your competitors when it comes to marketing? Typical companies in service-based industries and professional services (like law firms) are a lot less sophisticated than other industries.

• How much time can you devote toward your marketing plan? The more time you can devote, the less money you have to spend. For example, if you use direct marketing, and  are able to follow up with a phone call, you spend less on mailing costs. 

• Are you marketing directly to the end user or through a referral source? Marketing to the end user of your services is more difficult than working through an established marketing channel like a referral source.

• How long is the typical marketing-cycle? How long does it take a prospective client to make a decision after they have all the information they need? The longer the cycle, the more money you spend staying in touch while they contemplate their decision.

• What's the geographical size of your prospect base? For many professional service firms, like doctors, lawyers and accountants, it is usually limited from five to 25 square miles.

• What is your average fee per client? $500? $5,000? $500,000? $5 million? Services less than $500 require different marketing strategies than $5000 services. Typically, higher fees require you to provide additional evidence as to your credibility and necessitates the need to educate your client as to the benefits of hiring your firm.

• What's the lifetime value of your average client? How much does your average client spend with you over a given time frame?

• When you have that final number you know how much you can afford to spend on landing each client before it negatively affects your profit margins.

• Alternately, If your average client only uses your services once and never returns, then you will need to use lower cost marketing strategies to reach them.

• Consider factors to increase the value of each client. For example, developing simple, yet seemingly extraordinary customer service strategies will extend the "life" of a client and create referrals, thus increasing their value.  

Once you have had a chance to review and analyze these variables for your firm I invite you to immediately TAKE ACTION by using the information you gather to complete or revise your marketing plan in the next 30 days.  

If you would like more direction in writing or implementing your marketing plan contact me for additional resources.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Register For The Rainmaker Retreat

Now is the time to create your Lifestyle Law Firm!

The Rainmaker Retreat is our 2-day Marketing Boot Camp where we teach lawyers how they can have it all; increase the number of clients they have, double their income, and yet work less. Build and create a 'lifestyle' law firm that is professionally satisfying, but allows you the time to do what is important to you.

Friday, August 19th and Saturday, August 20th - Las Vegas, NV

Friday, October 7th and Saturday, October 8th - San Francisco, CA 

Friday October 21st and Saturday October 22nd - Livingston, New Jersey 

(Registration Details Coming Soon)  

Friday, December 2nd and Saturday December 3rd - Los Angeles, CA  

Many people have asked us what it is like to attend our Rainmaker Retreat. This is a "snapshot" of what you will learn. Listen to colleagues (and even competitors) Describe their experiences at the 2 day Rainmaker Retreat.  Watch now or order a free DVD recording.

If you take advantage of the Early Bird Special (only available when you register at least 2 weeks in advance of the event) you receive $300 worth of extra benefits!

Discount Pricing available for multiple attendees from the same firm. 

For more information please call: 888-588-5891 or visit www.RainmakerRetreat.com

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UPCOMING DATES:

Wednesday, August 3, 2011  

12pm PT | 1pm MT | 2pm CT | 3pm ET

Thursday, August 11, 2011  

11am PT | 12pm MT | 1pm CT | 2pm ET

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

1pm PT | 2pm MT | 3pm CT | 4pm ET

Wednesday, August 24th, 2011 - Phoenix Legal Networking Group. Join local Phoenix attorneys from small and solo law firms for a networking event and law firm marketing seminar  -  "Finish 2011 Strong and Jumpstart Your Law Firm's Marketing"   5:30pm - 7:30pm Ticoz Resto-Bar, Phoenix, AZ.  Registration Details Coming Soon.  

We are coming into the final stretch of 2011... Are you generating more leads and referrals now than you were in the Spring?

• Are you achieving the goals you set for yourself back in January?
• Is your team implementing the strategies you planned?
• Do you have a written game plan for the next 90 days? 

Races are often won or lost in the last stretch. Far too many attorneys have a tendency to relax or rest on their laurels (or their latest award) coming into the home stretch.  Now is not the time to take it easy or sit on the sidelines!Now is the time to refocus, reconnect, and finish this year strong!

Thursday, September 15th, through Saturday September 17th, 2011 - 84th Annual Meeting of the State Bar of California. Join law firm marketing expert Stephen Fairley for an energetic workshop on how to use social media to generate more leads and develop a referral network. Learn how to use the top 6 social media platforms for attorneys to drive more referrals and leads.  

Thursday, October 20th, 2011 - Egg Harbor Township, NJ
Thursday, October 20th, 2011 -  Camden County Bar Association, NJ   

2 Hour Programs - "The 5 Rules of Internet Marketing for Attorneys: How to Ethically Use Your Website and Blog to Generate High Quality Leads for Your Law Firm" - Join us for a fast-paced seminar on how top attorneys are using the internet, their websites and blogs to find more and better clients for their law firm.  Discover: The 3 keys to getting your website on the front page of Google, Registration Details Coming Soon