Law Firms

Law Firms Should Look to Marketers as Rainmakers
Executive Summary About Law Firms By Robert Melillo

Small and mid-sized law firms around the nation are faced with the proverbial question - what comes first the chicken or the egg? In the case of marketing, many firms are learning that marketing needs to come before client acquisition and investing in quality marketing is key. The competition among lawyers and law firms is too severe to view marketing as a luxury.

Small and mid-sized law firms need to invest in marketing and view their marketing firm as their primary rainmaker. The right marketing firm will bring clients into a firm through a multi-faceted approach.

Marketing for law firms should include: Internet marketing, local marketing including advertisements, networking, seminars and public relations among other forms of marketing. With a marketing firm focusing on their area expertise and the attorneys focusing on their area or areas of expertise success comes much easier.

Internet marketing for attorneys is vital. Many small and mid-sized law firms are realizing that they do not need websites with all the bells and whistles. A clean, professional website that is seen by their target audience is much more effective than a state-of-the-art website that is seen by no one. The best marketing firms are having law firms spend less on website development and more on Internet marketing.

Internet marketing is much more than search engine optimization and pay-per-click campaigns. The top marketing firms are also working with clients on webinars, optimized press releases, podcasts, social networking and more.

In addition to a comprehensive Internet marketing campaign, marketing firms are using an integrated approach that focus on branding and targeting specific markets and populations. While the lawyers focus on practicing law the marketing firms are researching local opportunities to bring clients into the firm ranging from local ads in publications and church bulletins, to opportunities to be interviewed on the latest legal news.

Optimized press releases and e-zine articles are a great way for lawyers to show expertise in a particular area, while the marketing firm stays on top of what the law firm can and can not say (for example, few marketing firms know they should not use the term "expert" to refer to lawyers in most areas of practice).

The best marketing firms, whether local or not, can also plan and execute highly effective seminars and social events to expand the firm's client base. The key is the marketing firm maximizing the law firm's return on investment - the measure of a truly great rainmaker.

The highly competitive legal industry requires firms to invest in high quality marketing that is specialized, diverse and integrated. The top marketing firms are offering this unique approach to small and mid-sized law firms around the nation.

Divorce Lawyer

How to Select a Divorce Lawyer
Executive Summary About Divorce Lawyer By Scott Morgan
Selecting a divorce lawyer to handle your family law case is a very important decision. The following are a few important criteria to help in finding the right divorce lawyer.
Experience and Focus
Any divorce lawyer you consider should have substantial experience in handling divorce cases in your location. An experienced divorce lawyer will know the tendencies of the various judges in your jurisdiction and should be able to use this knowledge to your advantage. Additionally, that lawyer should practice primarily in the field of divorce law. Often people will hire a lawyer who practices primarily in some other area, thinking that any lawyer will do. However, divorce law is a very specialized field that requires particular skills and experience in order to have a likelihood of reaching a successful conclusion.
Past Client Testimonials
Perhaps the best way to decide which divorce lawyer to use for your divorce case is to find out what former clients have to say about that lawyer. While divorce is never an enjoyable process, some divorce lawyers have more success at satisfying their clients than others. If you do not know someone who has been a client of that particular divorce lawyer, you should consider asking the lawyer for a list of clients that you can contact who can describe their experience with the lawyer. While client confidentiality is important, any good experienced divorce lawyer should have at least a few former clients who are willing to vouch for him or her.
Accessible
When a client becomes dissatisfied with a divorce lawyer, one of the most common complaints is that they were unable to communicate with the lawyer. It is very important that your divorce lawyer be accessible and prompt in responding to your phone calls, emails, and requests for meetings. While you can ask the divorce lawyer about their office policy, this is another area where you can best evaluate the divorce lawyer by hearing what former clients have to say.
If a former client of the lawyer tells you that they found it very difficult to contact the attorney, or that the lawyer either did not return calls or respond to emails or would take several days to do so, you should definitely avoid that lawyer. Divorce is an unpleasant and frustrating process under the best of circumstances. If you are unable to reach your divorce attorney, or at least someone on his or her staff, the frustration level can increase exponentially.
Fees
When you make your initial appointment with the divorce attorney, you should inquire about a consultation fee. Some lawyers do brief initial consultations for free, although most experienced divorce lawyers will charge between $100.00 and $200.00 as a consultation fee, or will charge their normal hourly rate.
For example, I charge a flat $100.00 consultation fee with no additional hourly charges, regardless of the length of the meeting. Essentially, the consultation fee is to "weed out" those people who are not serious about the possibility of hiring me. Given that my normal hourly rate is $200.00/hour and the usual typical consultation takes about 90 minutes, the charge for my consultation is significantly discounted. Therefore, you shouldn't let a consultation fee scare you away from interviewing a particular lawyer.
During the consultation it is vitally important that you have a candid discussion with the prospective divorce lawyer about fees and what you can expect. Typically, an experienced divorce lawyer will require the payment of a substantial retainer up front, against which that lawyer's hourly rate and expenses will be charged. You should find out what that lawyer's hourly rate is, what the up front retainer will be, whether any portion of the retainer is refundable if it is not exhausted, and how often you can expect to receive invoices that detail their hourly charges and expenses. You also will want to know how detailed the invoices are. Once again, this is another area where you can get excellent information from those people who have been clients of that divorce lawyer.
Comfortable
While all the above issues are important, there is one final question you should ask yourself before hiring a divorce lawyer. Are you comfortable with that lawyer and are you confident in his or her abilities? If the answer is anything other than a resounding "yes," you should keep looking. Your case is too important to entrust to someone who does not inspire your confidence.