[Author – Noreen Fishman]
Any business that wants to grow needs to understand the expanding world of digital marketing. The problem is that the online landscape is so vast and rapidly evolving, to be effective in the space requires more bandwidth than most law firms have. Chances are, you’ll be better off with a digital marketing agency in your corner. Here are our tips on how to choose the right law firm marketing agency.
How to choose a lawyer marketing agency
Ask yourself: What are your law firm’s marketing needs?
First, you need evaluate where your internal staff falls short. What are your ultimate goals and how do you expect to market to achieve those goals? What can you do internally and where do you have the time or talent? Consider specific initiatives that require outside help. From technical SEO help, to a content creation strategy, to web design, all of these areas require different skills. Some agencies may offer a full service, but many will specialize in certain areas. Once you’ve narrowed down what your real needs are, you can come up with a list of agencies that can help you in those specific areas.
Look for a digital marketing agency with industry legal knowledge
As in any field, there are marketing agencies that do what they do very well, and some that make promises they can’t keep. You need to find an agency that produces a strong ROI, and the best way to do that is to look at past results. Look at their track record and take a close look at the type of companies or companies they have worked with. Do they have experience working with law firms? If so, how big are the companies? Some agencies may have great results, but not in your practice area. This can make a difference in performance.
To truly develop a marketing strategy that aligns with your law firm’s business goals, it’s ideal to work with an agency that has a successful track record of working with other law firms like yours. They are more likely to have innovative and disruptive approaches to attract and capture yours ideal client because they understand your practice.
A highly rated agency should have a list of references. Ask if they have any contacts you can speak to directly. If they can’t provide it, take it as a bad sign.
Hire a strategic partner for your law firm
When you are hiring a digital marketing agency for your law firm, you are cultivating a true strategic partnership. While some of your goals may be short-term, you should consider working with an agency for the longer term. Commit to taking the time to find the right match. Rushing to pick one because you feel obligated can result in a waste of money and time, and starting over anyway. Try to hire an agency like you would when hiring someone for your in-house team. You have to make sure there’s a good cultural fit, that members of both teams seem to like and respect each other, and that they’re committed to being in the trenches with you. The right agency will be happy to dig into the challenges with you and work towards solutions, and should have staff available to help when you need it.
Focus on value
Everyone has one budget. Of course, cost will be a consideration when choosing a legal marketing agency – that’s just the nature of the business. However, focusing only on price instead of value is a mistake. The cheapest digital marketing agency rarely offers the best value. If one agency offers services at a much lower rate than others, consider why this might be. Are they applying less resources to your account? Do you use less sophisticated tools? There is probably a reason why they can offer such a low rate. Instead, it is important to invest what is required, but feel confident in how your investment is spent. Make sure you have a clear understanding of what you’re getting for what you’re paying and how success will be measured. Make sure you have regular check-ins and can change your strategy to work towards better results as needed. Hiring an agency is a significant investment in the future of your business, and all parties should view the process as such. In that articleMailchimp lists some of the best questions lawyers can ask to determine if an agency is a good fit for the brand.
Look at their reputation
When looking to hire a lawyer marketing agency, pay attention to what their reputation is in the legal industry. Try looking for online reviews and case studies or testimonials they have on their website. Are there notable stories of what they’ve been able to do for other law firms? Have they worked with notable law firms? The law firms they have helped have marketing similar what would you be looking for?
Related: Check out Index of social offices 2021 to get an insight into what the top law firms are marketing like.
Ability to build
Sure, you may only need help with one facet of your marketing right now, or you may only have the budget to tackle 1 or 2 articles, but what about the future? Chances are your business will change and want to do more with your marketing, or on the not-so-bright side, you may need to put more effort into your marketing if you’re not meeting your business development goals. Look for an agency that offers a multitude of services, or better yet offers a full range of services. This will allow your law firm to grow with the agency and means you can easily add more services should you need them.
What is your team made up of?
You might be surprised how many specialties there are within marketing and within the legal marketing industry. For example, a well thought out agency will probably have people for particular tasks such as Search Engine Optimization, website design, writing, etc. Or the agency can outsource these tasks. Look at the teams of the agencies you are researching. Do they have a team that meets your needs? Remember, you’re going to an agency because you want expert help, so make sure that agency has experts in all the marketing stuff you need.
Take away:
The right law firm marketing agency will help you generate revenue, relieve stress, and allow you to focus on what’s important to your firm: building your practice.
This post has been edited and republished since November 19, 2019.
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