It’s no secret that the COVID-19 crisis has had a large and immediate impact on the revenue of law firms throughout the country. Instead of reminding you of the problem, however, we’d like to discuss what your firm can do right now to improve your marketing and generate more revenue.
As David Rhodes and Daniel Stelter of the Harvard Business Review put it, “inaction is the riskiest response to the uncertainties of an economic crisis.” Their description of a rapid but measured approach — both offensive and defensive — resonates.
The firms who will walk away from this as winners will be the ones who didn’t take their foot off the gas. Instead, they buckled down, got creative, and emerged better than before. But, how does that actually happen?
There are always ways to improve your revenue growth, which we’ll discuss, but you can also grow your business by becoming more profitable. Taking the time to identify inefficient operating procedures can have just as a dramatic effect on the bottom line as a new client. Modernizing your firm’s operations with Amberlo is an amazing way to improve profitability without doing any marketing. We are in a unique position to witness what’s working because we are evaluating the marketing of a large group of law firms on a daily basis. It’s easy to spot who is winning and the others who are missing the mark.
The truth is that your firm can employ a number of simple strategies today, which will raise your visibility and put you ahead of your competitors. Let’s look at some of the winning strategies.
Keep Communicating
One of the most simple ways to keep generating revenue during this period is to communicate with your audience. Many law businesses have completely halted during this period, and without effective communication, consumers may assume that you have, too.
Make sure your current and prospective clients are aware of the status of your business during this time. Share weekly or situational updates on your social media channels and add a concise note on the homepage of your website explaining how to get in touch with you. If you’re offering accommodations such as video or special safety practices, add that as well. Simply raising your hand and providing clear communication could be the difference between you and a competitor who is taking a break.
You may also want to keep your audience informed about updates in your field of law as it relates to COVID-19. Facebook Live events answering common questions are a great way to reach people. The goal here is not to convert clients immediately, but instead raise awareness around our brand by providing value.
You can also improve your presence by creating short, informative videos and publishing them to YouTube.
The next time someone’s friend or a family member needs a lawyer, you just might be the person they think of.
We also suggest updating your audience using blog posts, site updates, and any other medium which you utilize — some great examples of how law firms are leading the way in this can be found here.
Invest in Yourself
Now is the perfect time to invest in your website’s content. We are an SEO-centric company, largely because of the ROI it produces for law firms. Search results are dynamic and extremely competitive, which is why you should be constantly looking to improve your website’s content.
There will certainly be new topics and keywords that emerge from COVID-19, but we don’t recommend making them the focus of your efforts. Play the long game and continue to work towards the searches that have happened for years. Even though searches for ‘Lawyer in Your City” may be down right now, they will almost certainly come back as states begin to open up.
Can we say the same for COVID? Maybe, but I wouldn’t bet on it. Ask yourself, is someone going to search ‘COVID-19 lawyer?’ Possible, but what’s the scenario where someone would do that?
Now is the time to innovate and adapt. The positive additions you make now will be rewarded while others have stayed stagnant.
If SEO sounds like a foreign language to you, don’t be intimidated. We’re talking about some non-technical ways you can improve your content by simply investing your time. Answering common questions from clients, adding depth about the page’s topic, citing reputable sources, and adding common keywords (Pro tip: use this free tool to gather relevant keywords) can all help you rank better.
The firms who are using this time wisely to do some updates in this period will gain BIG as people come back to the table.
Keep Your Ads Running
The law firms we work with typically generate leads in two ways: organic search traffic and paid ads. Since the pandemic started, many law firms have dropped out of advertising, which is exactly the WRONG move.
While search volume and advertising clicks are down substantially and the demand for many law services has decreased, they’re not gone completely. Additionally, as others have removed themselves from the Google Ads market, prices for clicks have gone down across the board.
There seems to be a split in mentality during this crisis — some people are avoiding action until things settle down, while others are motivated to get things done because they have more time. So why not continue to capture the people who are motivated to act right now?
Our tip: Keep your ads running. Even with a depleted search volume, you’re still giving yourself the opportunity to generate revenue during the downturn. If you stick to pay-per-click ads, the worst that can happen is you won’t spend the maximum of your budget!
An Unorthodox Revenue Stream
While it’s true that the majority of legal leads come through two primary sources, there are others. In fact, one channel continues to hum along with motivated customers seeking legal help.
What is it? Freelancing platforms. Despite the economic downturn we’re experiencing, not all business has slowed down — in fact, a few industries have seen an uptick in activity during this time.
We’re talking about websites like UpWork, Freelancer, TopTal, and others. They are marketplaces where people go to purchase or provide services. Although they are traditionally frequented by technology-focused service providers, legal jobs are happening as well. Entrepreneurs and a variety of other individuals are utilizing these platforms to get contracts developed or reviewed. Even law firms use it to get assistance from other attorneys who have the bandwidth to write briefs, create website content, and more.
Although this may be an unconventional way for lawyers to obtain clients, these unprecedented times call for unconventional measures. Using freelance platforms such as Upwork to find clients who may be seeking law-related services outside of your usual practice is a creative way to keep a steady source of revenue coming if your regular business has slowed down.
This also opens doors to establish partnerships that can last long after this tough time has ended.
Prepare for What’s Ahead
It’s important to keep in mind that this won’t last forever. Even if your revenue has significantly decreased, there’s no better time to address areas of your marketing efforts that may have been overlooked before the crisis. This will quickly lift you above your competition once your market begins to grow again.
Now is the perfect time to find those inefficiencies and invest your time into marketing.
If you invest now, clients begin rolling in again as you reap the benefits of the marketing strategies you implemented during the crisis.
Authored by:
Patrick Carver
Owner, Constellation Marketing
High performance online marketing for law firms.
