VII. MARKETING THE WEBSITE
A. THE PRESS RELEASE
Once you have defined the audience and the "compelling message", the marketing opportunities will flow naturally from this story. To begin with, you can issue the press release you've already drafted to the publications that serve the audience that you have identified.
Don't stop with the press release. If prospective summer associates would be interested in your website, send a press release to law school placement offices. Would trade associations be interested in this information? Use the website and its content as a seminar topic at their annual meeting. For clients who don't have access to the web, print out the pages and send out a special mailing to the client. Even consider including software that will get them on line and take them directly to the website. Once you have a website with a compelling story, you have a leverage point to generate publicity about the firm and to prospect for new clients in many places.
B. OTHER MARKETING OPPORTUNITIES
1. Website introduction seminar
An excellent way to debut a site is to create the website with the idea of presenting the site at an introductory seminar. If you have a large complicated site, a guided tour to let clients and prospective clients see all the potential of your website can get your clients in the habit of using your website's resources.
2. Stationery, faxes and brochures
The website URL (its address) should be added to any paper that leaves the office, whether fax, letter, business card or firm brochure. The look and feel of the website should compliment the firm's brochure and other promotional material.
3. Client mailings
You should tell your clients about your website whenever the opportunity arises. Send them print-outs and disks to get on-line. Tie in your website links with your newsletter articles. Archive your newsletters at your website. Tell your clients how they can use your website. Each new print or website item should re-enforce every other communications tool used to market your firm.
4. Media coverage
Work with your publicist to plan your press release and the follow up with reporters. Think big! If your message is really compelling, go for coverage on network television or the major cable channels. If you do sports law consider ESPN; finance law - CNBC, consumer fraud - the Today show, your chances are as good as your website.
After thinking big/low probability also think small and high probability. Target the trade journals, and association newsletters that your clients read. These periodicals are frequently understaffed and need material that can inserted directly with little editing. Reporters are some of the most wired people, so you don't have to explain the basics. At the same time, they are going to quickly recognize another "me-too" site, so explain why your site is different in the first paragraph. Don't write like a lawyer. If you cannot write press releases that get published, hire someone who can.
C. ON-LINE MARKETING
1. Search engines
Internet search engines are developing very rapidly, but don't depend on people using these search engines as the primary way to find your site. Prospective clients can't find your site if they don't know what question to ask. You should register your site with all the major search engines, but your website designer/marketer should target better ways to market your site.
2. Linking is an effective way to promote a website
The Internet gives you a very powerful way to reach people you would otherwise never meet -- linking. Linking involves having someone with a related site put a hyper-text link from their site to your site. People looking for information on that site can click on this link and jump directly to your site. The most common type of links involve an exchange of links from and to each site. In addition firms can buy banner advertising on popular sites such as Yahoo. You can expect that if you provide good information, many people will want to link to your site, even without their requesting a link back.
3. Email sig files
One of the most overlooked, but most effective ways to promote the firm website is the email sig file. A sig file (short for signature file) is a file that is automatically appended to end of each email you send by your email software. For example: ________________________________________________ ____ Mark Pruner mark@webcounsel.com Web Counsel, LLC http://www.webcounsel.com 17 Wilmot Lane (203) 637-4352 (voice) Greenwich, Connecticut (203) 698-1052 (fax) 06878 Home of the Webbernauts Awards for the Best Legal Websites Website Design and Internet Consulting ________________________________________________ ____
In an email, the sig file replaces the letterhead, that would be found on a snail mail letter. When listing your website in your sig file be sure to include the "http://" in the URL. Many email programs, and in the future all email programs, will recognize a complete URL as a hyper-text link and will make this a hot-link. Readers using such email programs need only click on this URL and their browser will automatically start-up and take the recipient directly to your page.
4. Newsgroups, listservs and OSPs
Putting up a website only covers the World Wide Web portion of the Internet and even the best website is less personal than a direct response. Attorneys have a multitude of opportunities to have their names seen by thousands of people every day by posting to newsgroups, electronic mail listservs and the forums of on-line service providers (OSPs) such as America Online, Compuserve and Counsel Connect.
Posting to such groups or, even better, organizing such groups can be extremely effective methods for generating business. An attorney should carefully select which discussion groups, she wishes to participate in. Carefully budget your time, since many groups generate a large number of messages. Ideally, select groups in which your clients already participate. Posting to such groups is a good indirect way to remind them of your abilities.
Before posting anything, monitor the group to determine the hot issues and the tone of the postings. Group members are frequently very sensitive to postings by lawyers due, to some mass junk postings perpetrated by a law firm in the early days of the Internet. (This firm subsequently felt the wrath of the Internet community.) In most newsgroups and listservs, a short sig file listing your email address and website on your posting is fine and is an excellent way to promote the website. Sig files are generally not acceptable in postings to OSP forums.
Targeting 2-3 discussion groups is an excellent way to stay current in your client's business and puts your name in front of hundreds or thousands of potential clients. Be informative and helpful and not overtly commercial; in the on-line world, you are what you post. Also be careful in your postings that you do not inadvertently form an attorney-client relationship by responding to an individual's specific fact situation and that you don't violate your state's anti-solicitation rules.
D. LEVERAGING RELATIONSHIPS VIA THE WEBSITE
A firm can use its website to leverage other relationships. The most common relationship is the simple exchange of links referred to above. Once you have exchanged links, keep in touch with the other party. With the right software, you can tell how many people followed the link from the other party's page to your page. The other party may be very interested in this information and may be able to supply you with the same information about links followed from your site.
Once you have a website, you not only have the ability to link to anyone, but you can publish to the world. Your clients may not want to put up certain kinds of information on their website (e.g. litigation or regulatory agency's enforcement actions), so you can provide an appropriate site.
Firm attorneys may be actively involved in charity work; offer to host the charity's website on your website. Everyone who comes to the site will be typing the firm name in the URL. You need not link the charity from your home page, give them a sub-domain such as www.firmname.com/~charity/.
If you are going to serve as a special master in complex litigation offer your website as a clearinghouse for information. You can also set up a passworded clearinghouse for information for all of the counsel on your side of a multi-party litigation. Your firm is now at the center of the information flow.
If you have a referral network, you can provide a short web page to each of these attorneys to strengthen these relationships. Ask these referring attorneys what other web based resources you can supply via your website.
What you can do is only limited by your imagination, and by the ethical rules concerning the practice of law with non- attorneys.
E. FOLLOW UP LEADS
Websites are new and most firms have not mastered how to make the most of website-generated leads. It is not uncommon to see postings in discussion groups from potential clients that sent an email to the firm and never got a reply. It is very important, once your website has done its job by generating a contact from a client, that you respond quickly and appropriately. The Internet culture is one of immediate feedback.
You should assign someone to check several times a day for new inquiries. This person should evaluate each inquiry, then respond promptly or refer the message to the appropriate person. The gatekeeper should follow-up with the appropriate person, if they do not respond that day. A quick response, even if not fully responsive to the inquiry is better than a delayed response or no response.
I. INTRODUCTION
II. OVERVIEW
III. THE IMPORTANCE OF TOP LEVEL DOMAIN NAMES FOR LAW FIRMS
IV. WHY CREATE A LAW FIRM WEBSITE
V. DEVELOPING A WEBSITE DESIGN STRATEGY
VIII. DISINTERMEDIATING AND RE-ENGINEERING THE LEGAL PROCESS
IX. A BRIEF REVIEW OF LEGAL ETHICS AND WEBSITES
For information on how Web Counsel can help you develop your own website see our Web Counsel Services page OR send e-mail to mark@webcounsel.com, phone us at (203)-637-4352, FAX us at (203) 698-1052 or mail us at our Greenwich office address - Web Counsel, LLC, 17 Wilmot Lane, Riverside, CT 06878.
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