How to Leverage Your Most Powerful Marketing Tool

Second in a series of three articles:

What if you could reach thousands of prospects, build fruitful, pro-active relationships with them, and stay top-of-mind with them on a regular basis?and not spend a fortune in the process?

If this sounds too good to be true, then you've not mastered the art of leveraging your firm's online strategy. A web site is one of the most unique and powerful marketing tools you have, if you develop and use it correctly. It can also be a huge drain of wasted money and resources if you don't know what you're doing.

High Tech is High Touch

There are two components to this powerful marketing tool ? the website itself, coupled with a well thought-out online strategy. Done right, here's what a website and online strategy can do for you:

? Build relationships. Marketing your law firm is about creating and sustaining a trust-based relationship with your intended and current clients. A good website and online promotion strategy can do just that, without requiring more of you precious billable hours to be present in your clients' and prospects lives.

? Tap new markets. Why do clients come to you in the first place? Is it because they have a real problem, an immediate need, and no choice but to hire an attorney? What if you could tap a less crisis-driven, more pro-active market that provided you with more predictable and longer-term cash flow? Amazingly, an integrated online/offline marketing strategy, centered around your website can do that for you.

? Accelerate your sales cycle. By the time someone calls you, chances are they've already visited your website. With the right online approach, you can increase a prospect's confidence that your firm is the right one to call, reduce the number of unqualified prospects, encourage a "call to action," and begin a long-term relationship.

? Stay in sight and top of mind. The adage, "out of sight is out of mind" is true, even in legal matters. There is simply no guarantee that an existing client will return to your firm the next time they need similar services. Too many variables and influences can intercede, particularly if a lot of time passes between needs. Your website and online strategy can painlessly bridge the gap between more time consuming, "off-line" keep-in-touch activities (i.e., phone calls, direct mail, customer surveys) that are often hard to carve out time to do and expensive to implement.

? Turbocharge your business development efforts. A well-constructed website can be the "hub" of your firm's presence in the marketplace. Ideally, your website is the first place prospects go when they learn about your firm through a referral, while networking, in the press, or perhaps a direct mail piece. Once they're on your site, you can educate them, build their loyalty and confidence, demonstrate your results, and motivate them to take action?all for a fraction of the time, energy, and money these things require off-line.

? Manage your marketing dollars more wisely. Wouldn't it be great if you could tell which off-line marketing activities pay off and which ones don't? With the right approach, you can do just that, using your website ? and underlying technology ? as a tool for "measured marketing." You'll never have to wonder if the money you spend on direct mail, networking, or publicity is really worth it again ? you'll know for sure!

The Essentials

The money you spend on a website and promotional strategy is only as good as the work they do for you to turn "surfers" into real clients. For a website that works hard and gets results, here's what to consider.

1. Function over form. There are plenty of visually appealing websites that fall far short of what clients and prospects are really looking for. When someone visits your site, they want it to?

? load quickly

? be easy to read

? provide a range of information (not everyone will read it all, but everyone is attracted and motivated by different things ? so you've got to offer it all)

? make it easy to contact you

? not distract or waste their time with unnecessary effects

? be easy to print out

? perhaps teach them something they didn't know. Graphic design is a very important element of any website, but it should not be what drives content, navigation, and usability. At most, it should weigh in equally with content and navigation.

2. Long, well-written copy sells. Believe it or not, if what you say speaks to your target audience in language that's about them, their problems, their world, and their needs, they'll read a lot more than you'd think. The key, though, is that what you say has got to be about them, not your firm ? at least not initially.

This goes back to the laws of marketing discussed in the first article of this series, "How to Put Law & Order into Marketing Your Law Firm." (on our website at http://www.growyourlawfirm.com under Free Resources: Articles). Most professional service firms break this rule?and end up sounding alike. Differentiate your firm by writing website content that speaks to your clients' worldview, not yours. Educate them, motivate them, soothe them, convince them, inform them, and move them to action.

3. Load up on value. Give visitors to your site a reason to stick around and to "bookmark" your site because it's so darned valuable. Increase their knowledge and help them feel competent every time they go to your site, and they'll fall in love with your firm. Ironically, the more you share about what you know, the more people are drawn to your work and will trust that your services are highly valuable, not a necessary evil, and worth every penny they pay.

4. Integrate online with off-line. Think about how you get new clients now ? word of mouth? Referrals? Networking? A letter of introduction? Quoted in the press? Usually it's through off-line activities. While you're at it, invite people to visit your website and let it do the initial relationship-building work for you. Follow up an initial introduction with an email link to your site and an invitation to subscribe to your firm's free e-newsletter. Attach an article you've written that specifically addresses the concern they approached you about. Follow up with a phone call to see if they got the article and continue your conversation.

Maybe you get a new client right away, but if not, you keep in touch through your monthly e-newsletter that reminds them of how valuable you are, and drive them back to new content on your website. Before you know it, you do have a new client, and a lot of the heavy lifting was done by your great website.

Even if your firm has a website, take a look at how hard it works for you. Remember, marketing is about creating and sustaining a relationship with your target audience and current clients. Leverage the power of a well-crafted website and online strategy, and that process gets a lot easier!

TurningPointe? Marketing, Inc. helps professional service firms attract more clients, stabilize their business, and take their practice to the next level.

To learn more about our website audit services, Marketing Your Professional Services Firm Clinic, market strategy coaching, 3-hour market strategy analysis, and one-day learning and strategy session, please visit our website http://www.GrowYourLawFirm.com.

(c) 2004 TurningPointe Marketing, Inc. All rights reserved.
Marketing educator, Kelly O'Brien, is creator of the "Create a
TurningPointe!" Marketing Bootcamp. To learn more about this step-by-step
program, and to sign up for FREE how-to articles and 20-page marketing
guide, visit http://www.turningpointemarketing.com

---

Google News Updated : Sun, 07 Sep 2008 08:08:09 GMT Sarah Palin may have women flocking - to Barack Obama - New York Daily News Times Online Sarah Palin may have women flocking - to Barack Obama New York Daily News - 13 hours ago BY KENNETH R. BAZINET and MICHAEL McAULIFF WASHINGTON - If John McCain wanted to poach the women's vote from Barack Obama, he shouldn't have tapped a running mate who dubbed herself a "pit bull with lipstick. Sarah Palin's appeal to working-class women may be limited Los Angeles Times A feminist's argument for McCain's VP San Francisco Chronicle Boston Globe - Newsweek - The Associated Press - Richmond Times Dispatch all 1,109 news articles Publ.Date : Sat, 06 Sep 2008 18:10:33 GMT 'Home: A Novel' by Marilynne Robinson - Los Angeles Times Washington Post 'Home: A Novel' by Marilynne Robinson Los Angeles Times - 1 hour ago Drawing on the characters of prize-winning novel 'Gilead,' Marilynne Robinson revisits an Iowa town. By Emily Barton UNLIKE novels that delight in plot twists and structural play, Marilynne Robinson's Pulitzer Prize-winning "Gilead" is seemingly ... Back at home, troubled siblings look for refuge Boston Globe Their Father's House Washington Post The Oregonian - OregonLive.com - Austin American-Statesman - News & Observer all 7 news articles Publ.Date : Sun, 07 Sep 2008 07:04:58 GMT Yes, the mosquitoes were nasty this summer - Yakima Herald-Republic Yes, the mosquitoes were nasty this summer Yakima Herald-Republic - 1 hour ago by Ross Courtney PROSSER - Cody Jansen sloshes through a pasture, his rubber boots squishing in muddy puddles as he goes. He dips a ladle into a tiny pool and looks closely. Rockland resisted West Nile virus query Lower Hudson Journal news Aerial survey being conducted to find mosquito breeding grounds San Jose Mercury News San Francisco Chronicle - Shelbyville News - Atlanta Journal Constitution - dBTechno all 362 news articles Publ.Date : Sun, 07 Sep 2008 06:47:33 GMT Health Buzz: Immunosuppressive Drug Warning and Other Health News - U.S. News & World Report eFluxMedia Health Buzz: Immunosuppressive Drug Warning and Other Health News U.S. News & World Report - Sep 5, 2008 The Food and Drug Administration has asked the manufacturers of Humira, Cimzia, Enbrel, and Remicade—which belong to a class of medications known as tumor necrosis factor alpha blockers (TNF-alpha blockers)—to strengthen the warning for risk of fungal ... FDA urges more caution over TNF blocker infections Reuters Arthritis Drugs Linked to Risks From Infection New York Times WebMD - eFluxMedia - Scientific American all 622 news articles Publ.Date : Fri, 05 Sep 2008 15:23:08 GMT 'Wrestler' wins Golden Lion - Hollywood Reporter Hollywood Reporter 'Wrestler' wins Golden Lion Hollywood Reporter - 2 hours ago By Eric J. Lyman ROME - Darren Aronofsky's "The Wrestler," which set the Venice Lido abuzz after its world premiere Friday, won the festival's top prize Saturday. Video: Mickey Rourke Pinned in 'The Wrestler' AssociatedPress Will victory at the Venice Film Festival help 'The Wrestler' in ... Los Angeles Times Variety - Reuters - Monsters and Critics.com - Washington Post all 445 news articles Publ.Date : Sun, 07 Sep 2008 05:36:04 GMT Tim Tebow leads Florida past Miami - Los Angeles Times OnlineSportsHandicapping.com Tim Tebow leads Florida past Miami Los Angeles Times - 1 hour ago * at No. 5 Florida 26, Miami 3: Tim Tebow threw two touchdown passes for the Gators (2-0), who ended a six-game losing streak against the Hurricanes with their first win in the on-again, off-again series since 1985. Tebow's maturity key to Gators' win over Canes - College Football ESPN Marve's debut gives Miami (Fla.) reason for hope SportingNews.com Orlando Sentinel - Seattle Post Intelligencer - CNN International - Independent Florida Alligator all 590 news articles Publ.Date : Sun, 07 Sep 2008 06:58:47 GMT Gates outacts Seinfeld in Back To The Future - CNET News Seattle Times Gates outacts Seinfeld in Back To The Future CNET News - 8 hours ago Which is why Crispin Porter Bogusky, the agency responsible for the otherworldly new Microsoft TV spot featuring the clowning Bill Gates and Jerry Seinfeld, is already happy. Microsoft's Renewed Vista Strategy PC World Journals week in review: news from One Microsoft Way Ars Technica InformationWeek - New York Times - MacMod - CRN all 522 news articles Publ.Date : Sun, 07 Sep 2008 00:01:52 GMT Clickbank Affiliate Get Paid for Surveys

PARLOT::Ebooks, Scripts, Websites, and more...

Adsense websites

How to Really Get Your Customers

What Really Makes Your Postcard Mailing Successful? The biggest single... Read More

When, Why, and How to Use Mailing Lists

Mailing lists may be the cause of more heartbreaks than... Read More

Who Is Your Market and Where Are They?

An important part of planning your business is to know... Read More

Turbo-Charge Your Viral Marketing- Five Easy Ways

The world of marketing has changed. With increasingly better educated... Read More

How to Tie a Tie and How To Kiss - What Do They Have In Common?

How to Tie a Tie and How To Kiss -... Read More

D.A.N.C.E. With Me

Recently, a client asked what he could do to help... Read More

Recipe for Success

Special event and a special recipe- hand it out on... Read More

Plant a Seed and Watch Your Business Grow

Do you have all the business you could possibly want... Read More

10 Awesome Ways To Attract More Orders

1. Create a free ebook directory on a specific topic... Read More

Loyalty Cards ? Tips To Consider Before Committing To One

Loyalty marketing has been around for as long as retailing... Read More

Feature Your Benefits

Sales Copy? eventually every small business owner must consider what... Read More

Using a Marketing Calendar Template

Owning a small business isn't easy, especially if you are... Read More

Marketing Tips 101 - Where Can I Get Clients From?

The following tips have come from a wide variety of... Read More

Strategic Marketing and Tactical Marketing Know The Differences And Profit

Most people mistakenly assume that when you talk about marketing,... Read More

What Our CAT Taught Me About Marketing!

Toby is one of our two family pets (both cats).... Read More

Are You Sabotaging Your Marketing Success?

What?!? Sabotage your own success? Who would do that? Well,... Read More

Systems - Marketing Your Business Successfully

Business Systems that work for anyone, are a fundamental necessity... Read More

Earning the Right To Sell With Stats ? 10 Steps to Greatness

We could learn a thing or two from pro sports.Baseball... Read More

Effective Marketing for Small Businesses

Effective marketing for the small business begins with market researchIf... Read More

Getting Into Marketing Momentum ... The Accelerated Way

GETTING INTO MARKETING MOMENTUM: The 5 Power Principles for Getting... Read More

Business Cards That do the Business

A business card makes a statement about who you are... Read More

Like Brushing Your Teeth

What do the following things have in common: brushing your... Read More

How Price Gouging Can Hurt Your Business

"Price gouging" is an emotional, inflammatory term. Everyone is against... Read More

Off the Shelf Small Business Mapping Software

All small businesses can benefit from inexpensive off the shelf... Read More

Why Do You Need to be in the SERPS?

Why does your business need to be in the Search... Read More