Internet Lawyers, Internet Problems
Yesterday, a friend of mine who is a lawyer mentioned to me that a former client had posted a negative review of him online. He was concerned. My friend is about my age, and we’ve been practicing for about the same amount of time. He’s done nothing but criminal defense, just like me, but when Adrian and I were hanging our shingle, he was starting work at the county public defender. He gained some incredible experience, and he’s a great lawyer. He recently started his own firm. I try to send him cases when I can because I trust him to do a good job. He’s proven me right. My friend wasn’t sure how to deal with his online critic, and sadly, I was very little … Read entire article »
Filed under: Marketing
Time = Money
I’ve noticed an interesting phenomenon among many lawyers who’ve recently gone out on their own. I suspect it’s a result of the lawyers viewing solo practice as a way to avoid working long hours. These lawyers, never the most financially successful ones, love to complain whenever they’re stuck working more than a few hours a day. They never make the obvious connection between their lack of motivation and their lack of disposable income. I imagine the root of the problem is the way most solos bill. If you don’t keep track of your time, flat fees feel a lot like found money. Someone comes in and pays you, but you haven’t done anything yet. All of a sudden you’re richer, and all you had to … Read entire article »
Filed under: Marketing, Solo Practice
Does He?
I’m bad about checking Google Analytics to find out how people reach this site. I hear that tracking such a thing can make a lawyer rich and famous, but I’ve never had the discipline to look regularly. Luckily, I have a funny friend who may just get me hooked on it. This gem showed up in the search overview a little while back: Adrian Little looks like my lesbian aunt The tough thing is figuring out what’s more awesome: 1) that someone finagling those search terms can end up here (it works on my office computer but not on my home computer…no clue why that is); or 2) that someone came up with those search terms to amuse us. … Read entire article »
Filed under: Marketing
Peaking
Networking events bring out all kinds of lawyers. For the most part, they bring out normal lawyers looking to connect with other normal lawyers. They also bring out great lawyers at every stage of their careers. What’s the fun in writing about those kinds of lawyer though? It’s the outliers who make for the best discussion. Events bring out the young lawyers with no jobs, wandering around like zombies clutching stacks of business cards with “Esq.” after their names but no firm name or physical address anywhere to be found. Some only list a cell phone with an Illinois area code and a Gmail or Yahoo email address consisting of a cutesy name followed by a few odd digits. As smart as some of them … Read entire article »
Refining the Product
Private practice lawyers learn to play many roles. One role that many people seem hesitant to acknowledge is the role of salesman. Like it or not, if you want to make a living in the private sector representing human beings, it is imperative that people want to hire you. To do that, you must occasionally play the role of salesman. I am no salesman. It isn’t in my genes, I haven’t gone to great lengths to develop any sales skills, and quite honestly, the idea of selling things to people, even if it’s something I believe in, makes me feel a tad bit icky. I acknowledge I must sell my services to stay afloat in this profession, but I generally do that by sticking with one … Read entire article »
Filed under: Marketing, Practice in General
Ups and Downs
Private practice can be a roller coaster. The turns may widen and the grades may diminish as time passes, but the financial uncertainty never goes away altogether. Your threshold for risk will diminish as your practice grows. Traditionally, summer months are the hardest for me and Adrian, but this summer has been an exception. We’ve seen unexpected growth during a time when we usually hunker down and prepare for the worst. We’re lucky, but even if every month is a relatively good month compared to when you started out, you still never know what the next month holds. A lot of money can pour out of a business very quickly when times are slow. Running a small firm isn’t for the faint of heart. Running it … Read entire article »
Filed under: Marketing, Uncategorized
Marketing to Bikers
I follow Susan Carter Liebel on Twitter. She’s the creator of Solo Practice University, a website that’s supposed to be “the #1 web-based educational and professional networking community for solo lawyers and law students.” Yesterday, I noticed she put up the following with a link: “Adam Gee teaches you How To Market To Bikers in his newest class.” Intrigued, I clicked the link. I couldn’t find anything about the content of the course though, so I went to Adam Gee’s page at SPU. There, I saw the following under his syllabus: Marketing to Bikers: Developing a Motorcycle Practice * Indirect Marketing Techniques * Direct Marketing Techniques * Blogs, social media and books I think SPU is a great idea, and … Read entire article »
Filed under: Bikers' Rights, Clients, lawyers, Marketing
Poor Guy
August 6th, 2010 | 2 Comments
Sometimes, I have to respect spammers. Perhaps my favorite spam comment to date comes from “vimax,” who writes as follows: I’m currently being held prisoner by the Russian mafia [penis enlargement] and being forced to post spam comments on blogs and forum! If you don’t approve this they will kill me. [penis enlargement] They’re coming back now. [penis enlargement] Please send help! [penis enlargement] I think I just saved a life by posting this. You can thank me when they free you, vimax. … Read entire article »
Filed under: Marketing