How to spend marketing dollars? None of us have unlimited resources, yet so many choices.
Social media?
Google ads?
I’m now writing “Social Media Advertising – What I Wish I Knew Before Engaging a Specialist” for publication in an upcoming issue of Trusts & Estates Magazine, where I’m on the editorial advisory board. It’s easy to throw away tens of thousands of dollars without a return.
Unfortunately, I experienced this first-hand. Three years ago, my firm flushed forty thousand dollars down the toilet on a large, well-known media/marketing conglomerate with an amazing platform, before realizing these “experts” were misguided.
They excitedly shared a monthly dashboard displaying all the “clicks” and “engagements” to our landing page. The numerous clicks defined success to them, but not to us. From the onset, our stated goal was to reach a specific target audience. What we got was a convicted murderer’s handwritten note mailed from the Florida State Prison complaining that his sister was cheating him out of his inheritance.
We laugh about it now. Not so much then.
We provide premium services to wealthy clientele. That’s not an easy sale. Consider tax and financial service advertisements. TurboTax prepares free tax returns. Fidelity, Schwab, and Vanguard offer zero-cost trades. Traditional marketers know how to promote freebies. Obviously, our needs are different.
We turned things around. I attended several expensive national marketing symposiums. My unique ability breaks down general business strategies into specific action plans relevant to a boutique practice. We hired an excellent social media outfit.
So, how should a firm leader approach 21st-century marketing?
You start by identifying your target market. It’s not generally like, “elderly people looking to establish an estate plan.” Be specific. What attributes describe a client that you’ve been a hero to? What are her demographics? What differentiates your A+ client from your B- clients?
You must consistently develop relevant content. That’s a subject for another email.
Your marketing firm must understand your economics. How much are you willing to spend? The number of clicks is irrelevant and costly. The quality of those clicks leads to success. Your landing page should only have one – or perhaps two – calls to action.
To guide your efforts, The Practice Xcelerator Live Event includes a deep-dive, fifteen-point worksheet, along with other thinking tools, progressing towards a cost-effective, high-return marketing plan.
I share my knowledge and experience with you. We’ve automated and integrated our CRM and marketing platform, working 24/7 whether we’re asleep or on vacation. Low-cost technology that’s available to you, too, is what we use.
The tuition pays for itself, many times over. Check out our course curriculum, with more than fifteen modules on systems and processes, right-fit teams, technology, law firm economics, client care programs, and, of course, packaging your wisdom.
You truly can’t miss it.
To your bigger future,
Craig R. Hersch
Florida Bar Board Certified Wills, Trusts & Estates Attorney
Senior Partner, The Sheppard Law Firm
Founder, The Freedom Practice ®
PS – Don’t forget our upcoming free fifty-minute Practice Xcelerator virtual preview Friday, September 17th at noon eastern time where I share a counterintuitive strategy that will increase your firm revenues right away.
PPS – “We have been able to quickly implement programs and systems that completely reworked how we run our firm, shifted our entire approach to how we market and grow our business.” Marco Schiavo, Simmons & Schiavo, Woburn, MA.
