Generic marketing advice is of limited usefulness to law firms. Your legal expertise is not a widget. The rapid changes in consumer tastes rarely effect law firms, except in superficial ways. If you designed your law firm’s logo in the 80s, you might want to update it, but no matter what you do, Bloggins and Associates will never be to 2021 what slap bracelets were to 1989. Still, the sales funnel is a meaningful concept in law firm marketing, just as it is in retail.
The goal of the sales funnel is to engage with and appeal to prospective clients at all stages of readiness to engage your services. The four segments of the funnel are called awareness, consideration, decision, and buy. Well-written legal blog content can make the awareness and consideration segment of your sales funnel more effective, especially if you complement it with other sales and marketing strategies that target other segments of the funnel.
Awareness: Lead Generation
The awareness segment of the sales funnel is about letting the general public know that you exist. It is in your interest for as many people as possible to know the name of your law firm and what it does, even though most of them will never need your services. Personal injury lawyers don’t wish that there were more hit-and-run accidents, and family law attorneys don’t wish that more people would have acrimonious divorces, but you still want everyone to know about you, so they can mention your name when someone does need you. To increase awareness, advertise your law firm on billboards, or sponsor community theater productions or youth sports teams, so that your law firm’s name appears on the program. Perhaps the most important aspect of lead generation is having a website with strong SEO.
Consideration: Lead Nurturing
The segment of the sales funnel is about keeping the attention of prospective clients who have initially shown interest in your law firm. These are some effective lead nurturing strategies:
· A frequently updated blog with detailed information and news on topics related to your practice area
· Email marketing
· Webinars
· Podcasts
Decision: The Last Mile
At this point in the sales funnel, the prospective client has decided to contact you. Your goal is to make the process as painless as possible, so the prospective client doesn’t give up at the finish line. Here are some ways to achieve that:
· Displaying your contact information prominently on your site
· Live chat on your website
· Responding promptly to inquiries submitted through online contact forms
· Offering free initial consultations
From Sales Funnel to Flywheel
In many industries, the “buy” stage of the sales funnel is about turning new customers into repeat customers or “brand evangelists”. (You don’t have to be religious for that term to give you the creeps.) You do, however, want your clients to write good reviews of your law firm online. You achieve this by providing excellent service.
Law Blog Writers Will Help Your Law Firm Gain Name Recognition
The legal content writers at Law Blog Writers can provide engaging blog content for your site, turning casual readers into people who recommend your law firm to friends and colleagues who need your services.