DEVELOP YOUR MARKETING MINDSET
Let's start by identifying what a "marketing mindset" is. Lawyers go to school to learn about the law, and are not taught about what it takes to develop a successful practice. How do you ensure that you have a continuing flow of clients coming through your office doors? How will you ensure you retain your clients? How can you make yourself indispensable to your law firm? How do you develop local, regional, national, even international legal niches for your practice?
Your mindset about what marketing strategy you need to implement is the key to your business foundation. At a minimum, you need to identify what clients you need to attract, so you can strategically design and implement your marketing plan. This is the "marketing mindset": a mindset where nearly all actions you take are aimed at achieving results for your clients and achieving positive results for you and your practice. A successful marketing mindset also ensures that your personal life will be just as successful - because sacrificing one's personal life for professional achievement is not what we define as "success."
Here is a preliminary checklist to see what kind of marketing mindset you currently possess:
1. Do you take at least one intentional and planned action every day to reach out to potential new clients?
2. Have you identified what your "ideal clients" are (whether or not you currently represent them)? If you do not attract your "ideal clients," what actions do you take on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis to target them?
3. Does your professional brand (as reflected by your logo, firm website, business cards and other promotional materials), attract or appeal to these "ideal clients"?
4. Does your firm even have a website or promotional materials (you would be surprised how many do not, particularly smaller firms or solo practitioners)?
5. Do you work to not only attract individual clients but also to develop referral sources (i.e., sources that continuously refer new clients to you)?
6. Do you belong to organizations (business development, networking, and social groups), that introduce you to professionals in other industries, or do you only network within the legal world?
7. Do you continue to educate yourself (via classes, books, teleseminars, etc.) about ways to cultivate business, network effectively, and generate clients?
8. Does your firm have a newsletter or other materials it regularly sends to past or present clients, potential clients, and other professionals? How do you reach out to your clients and prospects?
9. Does your firm utilize a CRM (Client Relationship Management) program or at least have a systematic approach to cultivating and tracking client relationships?
10. Last but certainly not least, do you have a Marketing Plan in place that keeps you focused on business development goals on a daily, weekly, monthly and annual basis?
These are simply a few questions to check in with what your current marketing mindset looks like. ESQ Consulting was formed to keep lawyers and firms focused on the "forest" of business development practices, not simply the "trees" of billing, daily workload, and the rest that your busy practice requires. We offer a host of services, customized to your goals and budget, to grow your practice and to invigorate both your professional and personal lives.
To inquire about services or to schedule a consultation, please call 212.929.9999 or email us. It would be our pleasure to talk to you about your business goals, to answer any questions you have, or to schedule a meeting.
