We get a lot of inquiries about our lawyer marketing services; one of the most common hesitations that clients have is cost.  Our attorneys realize that you have to spend some money to make some money; however, they don’t have a lot to put out at the onset.  If you’re looking for the most cost-effective, fastest results, pay-per-click listings still rule.

We recently had an attorney contact us in regards to how our services compare to a major competitor of ours.  After finding out what law firm marketing strategies he had implemented in the past and what his current strategy was, we were able to put a proposal together for him.  The attorney was interested in getting a return on his investment before expanding to a full-blown marketing program. 

We suggested that he should create an effective law firm website design; due to cost, our Gallery Websites would probably be the best option.  Then, to get the fastest and most cost-effective return, a pay-per-click SNAP campaign would work best; this way, their ads would be up and running the same day that the website launched and we could easily control placement and cost.  Once the attorney saw a return, he could expand to optimization, newsletters, BLOGs, and more.

Unfortunately, our competitor felt differently.  This competitor told the client that he needed a website (which we agreed with) and that he needed an eNewsletter and that’s it.

We told the client that the purpose of an eNewsletter is three fold.  First, it provides fresh content to the site regularly, which helps in optimization.  Second, if you feature the articles on the homepage, it gives readers a reason to drill down further into your site.  Third, a reader could bookmark the page and come back later for more information.

However, what the competitor failed to tell the client was that optimization works well over time and there are no guarantees.  It could take 6 months to a year to be effective and, then, there is no guarantee that you will show up well.  The pay-per-click listing guarantees first page results in the same day.  While you may not get a huge volume of cases, they tend to be more qualified, so you are more likely to take on enough cases to pay for your expenditure and then some.  Once you have received a return, it makes sense to expand to eNewsletters and optimization, but until then, you will just be waiting for 6 months for a phone call. That doesn’t seem cost effective or fast.

The one thing that we remind our clients is that we won’t suggest a service if you don’t need it.  For a firm just starting to make a presence, a newsletter is not going to give you a return and you don’t have the time to wait.

Don’t take the word of one law firm marketing company – ask around.  You will become educated and know what to ask other companies.  This way you can really compare them without just looking at dollar signs.