I’ve personally viewed over a thousand consumer law firm websites across the US. Ninety percent of these firms lack one element that literally makes-or-breaks them from the viewpoint of being chosen by new clients. It’s a simple section on their site titled “Why Choose Us” (or “Why Hire Us”). When a potential client visits your law firm site, he or she is trying to answer this very question. If you…
Every consumer law firm would like to retain more clients. Here are five “must-dos” that are guaranteed to improve your conversion rate on retaining new leads – based on the experience of other law firms we work with across the U.S. 1. Always answer the phone; don’t let any calls go to voicemail Even if your firm does not have a receptionist, never let incoming phone calls go to…
How should your law firm react to an increasingly competitive market of attorneys fighting for a limited number of cases? Analyze and optimize your firm’s competitive advantages with these guidelines. Competition is everywhere. Today, the opportunities for attorneys to promote themselves are nearly unlimited. Past restrictions, professional norms and concepts of ethics have changed in the last 20 years. Legal services are advertised virtually everywhere consumers are. Referrals, the old…
If your law firm is short on staff, a virtual (or real) assistant (VA) can easily help you retain more clients for a relatively low investment. A VA can increase the number of appointments you set, cut down on no-shows (even for scheduled phone consults), and improve retention rates. Here are 10 tasks for a virtual assistant that will pay for themselves: 1. Answer every call Since any unanswered call…
Think of your law firm’s traditional website as a Swiss Army Knife. It has many functions and addresses many different audiences and needs. But this multi-utility tool alone cannot adequately do the one job most needed by consumer law firms – law firm lead generation. Here’s why, and what to do about it… Your main website has to have something for everyone. One audience in particular, new prospects who are…
Just because a prospect misses an appointment does not mean that the potential lead is dead. A little effort on your part can go a long way toward still potentially retaining these clients. Yes, your time is valuable and No Shows are disrespectful, but just because a person missed an appointment (and may not have called later to apologize or reschedule), doesn’t mean you shouldn’t make an effort to follow…
Having regularly generated thousands of qualified new client phone inquiries to consumer law firms across the U.S., here are the top five mistakes we see attorneys initially make that keep them from retaining those clients. Not Answering the Phone This is the biggest and most obvious mistake your firm can make. Even if you’re a solo practitioner without a receptionist, never let an incoming phone call go unanswered. The…
If your law firm is currently cash-strapped and handling fewer bankruptcy cases, consider following the lead of other successful firms across the country with these tips for generating more cash-up-front cases. 1. Offer “$0 Down” to new prospects. (Yes, it sounds counter-intuitive.) Use a third-party entity to offer bifurcated fees to Chapter 7 prospects who traditionally have had a pressing need to file, but not the immediate resources to pay…
Legal lead generation is not just about generating new clients on a single lead-by-lead basis. It’s about building a self-sustaining client-base that ultimately generates multiple new clients for your firm on it own. The key? Make sure every new client generated from your lead program is 100% satisfied with your service. Here are three ways each lead can then multiply into many future cases for your firm: 1. Returning Clients…
Based on data reporting from LeadQ, potential clients are most likely to initially contact consumer law firms on Mondays over any other day of the week. Nearly 23% of all new clients inquiries during the week occur on Mondays. This indicates the importance of making sure your law firm is open and you or a staff member are answering the phones diligently beginning first thing Monday morning each week. If…
If we are generating too many new client inquiries for your law firm to handle, it may be a sign that an opportunity exists to grow your law firm. Here are some tips on what to do, and what not to do if or when this situation arises. What Not to Do Do not stop answering your phone. Do not ignore people leaving messages for you. Ignoring incoming calls can also wreak…
At LeadQ, we’ve found that posting positive testimonials and online reviews about a law firm significantly improves the number of inquiries the firm receives and makes your firm stand out among the competition. Here are six easy tips for law firms to generate those vitally-needed testimonials and reviews in today’s competitive environment. 1. Make sure each client, first of all, has a positive experience in dealing with you and your…
Attorneys routinely spend thousands to create attractive law firm websites to promote their services. And more than often they are disappointed by the amount of new clients those sites attract. Here’s why. If the primary goal of your website is to generate new clients, you have to think about your site from the prospect’s point of view. Generally, visitors to your law firm website have either: 1. Already heard of…
If your law firm is seeing an increase in “no shows” for initial consultations, here are six easy-to-implement solutions that have helped other consumer law attorneys turn more leads into paying clients. 1. Do automated appointment reminders This is the easiest way to avoid missed appointments. Several online businesses offer this service for about $30 per month. Simply enter the prospect’s appointment time and contact information, and the system…
Eighty eight percent of customers have been influenced by an online review in making a purchase decision, according to Zendesk, a customer service software platform. That means managing your law firm’s online reputation is a vital part of generating new clients for your firm. A request recently came in from an attorney interested in collaborating with our group and a quick online search of the attorney’s name revealed why he…
Here are the five basic elements prospects use to judge consumer law firms when making a decision on who to call. Meet their needs in these areas and you’re virtually guaranteed a steady stream of new cases. Fall short, and clients are potentially looking at your competitors for a better fit. 1. Pricing First and foremost, pricing is a dominant selection criteria driving the majority of consumers when choosing a…
Every day, people call on consumer law firms to inquire about filing a case. But not every inquiry results in a paying client for the attorney. Here are the top reasons why those leads go cold, and what you can do to prevent prospects from walking away from your firm. 1 Taking Too Long to Respond to the Prospect If you can’t respond to a lead within 24 hours, you’ve probably lost that…
2020’s COVID pandemic has severely impacted the US economy, pushing unemployment rates to around 15% mid-year. In 2021, unemployment rates continue to hover around 7%. But Chapter 13s are down 45% from 2019, and Chapter 7s down 21%. With so many people out of work and struggling, why has the demand for bankruptcy filings dropped? Traditionally, there is a direct correlation between unemployment rates and bankruptcy filings. The current enigma…
In today’s digital, fast-paced, short-attention-span world, consumers have grown to expect everything to happen ASAP. And that applies to scheduling professional consultations too. The longer it takes to do a consult with your prospects, the greater the opportunity for them to contact and meet with another attorney before you. Often, the first attorney to meet with a prospect will get the retainer agreement. While it’s usually not possible to do…
Amid the many so-called marketing “experts” telling you about their attorney lead generation abilities, here are, more importantly, the 7 Deadly Sins that will either sabotage your marketing efforts or cost way too much. Avoid these at all costs: Avoid the wrath of trying to get out of a multi-month marketing contract. Never pay for attorney lead generation services on a multi-month contractual basis. This is a common strategy of…
While the vast majority of inquiries generated by LeadQ are direct phone calls, occasionally a prospect leaves a firm a voicemail message or sends an after-hours email. That means you or your firm must call back the prospect to set a consultation appointment. How many times should you attempt to call before giving up? According to sales research collected and analysed by Insightsquared, over 85% of prospects can be reached…
There are several ways consumer law firms may answer the phone when potential new clients call. Here is a ranking of how effective each are at establishing the rapport with a potential new client that ultimately results in a new case for your firm. 1. You, the attorney, answer the phone Prospects prefer to speak directly with an attorney when they call. They have questions, you have answers. When you…
We know it may seem like it’s virtually impossible to answer every single incoming call to your law firm. You may currently answer only a fraction of your incoming calls – even when you have a dedicated receptionist. However, every time you miss a call, a number of possible outcomes can happen: – The caller may leave you a voicemail message. – The caller may hang…
The final days of December — and first couple days of January — are popular vacation dates for consumer law firms across the U.S. And while every business needs downtime and time for employee vacations, law firms often miss out on a competitive opportunity to acquire new clients during this time. If your firm is closed, at the very least, you should continue to answer the phone. Potential clients don’t…
Working with attorneys across the U.S. over many years, and having seen many different forms of attorney lead generation, we’ve discovered these 7 “Immutable” Laws that apply to all attorney lead generation. Follow them, or risk sinking your marketing dollars into a big, black, one-way hole. They apply universally, no matter which method you use to generate new clients for your law firm, or which firm you partner with to assist…