Episode Transcript
[00:00:22] Speaker A: Welcome to your life and legacy. I'm your host, Christopher Nudo. On this show, we explore how the decisions you make today shape the legacy you leave tomorrow. In business, in family, and in life. Today's guest is Marilyn Jenkins, a digital growth strategist and founder of Law Marketing Zone. Since the early 90s, Maryland has been helping law firms scale their businesses through strategic digital marketing. From paid ads and SEO to, to Google optimization.
Her strategies have produced incredible results with some clients generating seven figure revenues and returns over 14x.
But what sets Marilyn apart is her belief that true marketing is about connection, not just conversation.
Marketing is too often seen as selling, but at its heart, it's truly about building trust and relationships.
Marilyn, thank you for joining our show and welcome.
[00:01:32] Speaker B: Absolutely. Thank you so much. I'm excited to be here.
[00:01:35] Speaker A: Let's start with this. Professionals often sound pushy instead of purposeful in their marketing, creating a disconnect that costs them trust and growth.
So why do so many law firms struggle with marketing themselves?
[00:01:53] Speaker B: I think lawyers are trained for precision procedures, those kinds of things. So when it comes to say, introducing themselves, their first thing is their credentials. And you know, where they went to school, the types of law they practice, they're not taught the kind of nuances to, you know, say, use empathy, you know, what's in it for them, speaking to the person. You know, most attorneys see people on many times the worst day of their life or their recent life. And so they're, they need to know that you care about the person.
But if you start your message with your credentials, it's all about you.
[00:02:30] Speaker A: That's very true. And I'm guessing that your average lawyer is very results driven.
And so they, when they're thinking of marketing, all they're thinking about is what is the ultimate outcome versus the process to get there. How do you, how do you take a lawyer and kind of remove them from the ultimate outcome and teach them more about the process?
[00:02:57] Speaker B: I think it's explaining to them that we need to talk to the person.
So just an example, we had a client doing estate management and we were talking about the videos so that people get to know estate planning. So people get to know who you are and that you care. And what worked really, really well is to set up like an interview type program.
So the attorney sits in a chair, a person off camera asks them a question, then they reiterate the question and answer it as if they're talking to a person. So being yourself, people do business with people they know like and trust. And so we want you to create that Persona so people know that you care. And in times of really importance in their life, they want someone that they feel comfortable to know. If you've been on their radar and they, they feel like they know your voice, then they're going to be more apt to, to listen to you.
[00:03:52] Speaker A: And so the attorneys that you're working with, have you found them to be incredibly receptive to this new approach?
Have they told you that as a result of you helping them really connect with people, they're seeing a difference in their practice?
[00:04:07] Speaker B: Exactly. I mean, there's only very few that are resistant to even being on camera. And it's just, you know, we all, you're all nervous at the beginning. We are all nervous at the beginning. And you just keep doing it because again, there's a lot of noise in the marketplace and you want to make sure people understand. Especially if you want to be known as the go to lawyer in your community, you, you want to have your reputation out there. You want to have your views that people see that you and your team care about the person that's coming in their life, their case, not just the outcome for you.
[00:04:43] Speaker A: So how can value based messaging attract the right clients? How can the law firm put a message out there that really draws those clients to that firm?
[00:04:55] Speaker B: Well, I think values kind of act like a filter. So if you say you start your messaging, if you're a family law or divorce attorney, you start your message that you know you're protecting children's stability first, so that projects a certain amount of value as opposed to winning custody battles. So if you think about that, you're also going to attract different kinds of clients.
So it depends. You can consider your messaging your core message first.
Do you want it values based? Then make that and make that the core of what you're talking about. And that'll bring in the right type of clients.
[00:05:28] Speaker A: It definitely will. And you're absolutely right about the type of client that you want. You need to project the right messaging. So speaking of these clients, all attorneys like to build long term relationships. So what? How can you direct a firm to really put out the right messaging, the right marketing efforts to build long term relationships versus just quick transactions?
[00:06:02] Speaker B: Right. And I think your messaging, it starts with your messaging. You know, do you want to be projected as the person who cares about educating your potential new clients before they come to you? What type of reputation do you want to put out there? Then once they come in, are you giving them world class service in the intake so they feel taken care of? They feel like they are a priority. And once they feel like a priority, you are the only one they're going to think about when anyone in the future has an issue that's similar to theirs. So if you're cultivating, obviously referrals is not the only way you want to grow your business.
It's not predictable, but we want those because people that are referrals are going to be better, faster retainers. So but being that message first, education first, you care and your team cares, that's going to grow in the long term to great referrals and long term relationships with each client.
[00:06:59] Speaker A: And we know that in the referral, we know that referral business is so powerful because the relationship, or at least a part of the relationship is already established. Somebody says, hey, I, I can trust this lawyer, go use him. We've used him or her, we're happy.
So how do you get that kind of, what tools do you use to get that kind of messaging ahead when it's not a referral?
[00:07:31] Speaker B: Again with the marketing messages and the refer reviews on Google, that's going to be huge. So when you get a review on Google, what you want to do is make sure that you reply to every single one.
The reason that's important is anytime I'm looking to use somebody, I want to see their response to the bad reviews. Right. Were you professional? That shows you're aware of caring about your future clients. So it's all the online. When you see anything online that may be negative, then you reply or you're in a group and you reply to any question, show that you care with those answers. If you are the kind and informative one, you're the one that people are going to think of.
[00:08:11] Speaker A: That's right. And I often am reminded that acknowledging your weaknesses is not a flaw and that we all make mistakes.
So when a mistake is pointed out, while it may be embarrassing or it may cost you because you did something incorrectly, acknowledging that mistake can actually be a positive.
[00:08:34] Speaker B: That's true. And the other thing is bad reviews sometimes have nothing to do with you. It could have been that person was having a bad day, they had an unwinnable case, or they just, they were never even a particular client.
So addressing those issues also lets people that are reading through the reviews know that that's not real and they can kind of, you can read the room when you read some of those reviews and know that this doesn't sound like at all somebody that actually visited the firm.
So it's, it's important to respond to Every review and keep your same firm voice and core message in that.
[00:09:10] Speaker A: That's really good, really good advice.
Is there a magic number of reviews that seems to make a difference? Like so if you're new and you're starting to acquire Google reviews, what should be your target, where it's really making an impact?
[00:09:27] Speaker B: At least 10 depending on how many your competition has. But if you're new and you haven't been doing any, at least 10. And one of the things you can do about Google reviews, if you don't have 10 clients that can give you a review, Google doesn't say they have to be customer reviews, they can be character reviews. So say you went to some of your service providers, I mean, silly maybe, maybe even your dentist, they can say he's a great standup guy. I mean it's anything like that. People you network with, people you've worked with in the past, go for character reviews to get those built up and reply to everyone.
Remember, Google is like they build on engagement so they see that you care on the customer, their visitor engagement. They will give you potentially more rating in the map pack because you are providing more information.
So reply to all of them, but get as many reviews as you can.
But aim for 10 to begin with.
[00:10:23] Speaker A: Excellent. Great information.
Coming up, we'll talk about how confusing messages can cost you clients and even weaken your legacy.
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Hi, I'm here with Marilyn Jenkins, founder of Law Marketing Zone. We're diving into the importance of clarity in your message.
Because when your story is confusing, clients tune out and your legacy suffers.
Many professionals struggle to clearly explain what they do, losing opportunities to connect. Marilyn why is clarity so powerful when it comes to attracting the right clients?
[00:12:21] Speaker B: Clarity is confidence, bottom line. And if you have any confusion in your message, the person who's listening to it, the confused mind says no always. And they don't make a decision.
We people need to know who you serve and how you help them. Period.
Simple. If you can't be clear, you lose that confidence and then people just won't make a decision. They'll just move on.
[00:12:45] Speaker A: So, you know, I know that a lawyer can sometimes, you know, especially if they don't have a lot of work, they're going to be grasping, right, because they're like, ooh, I may have a client here, a fish on the line.
And they'll lose clarity because they're really trying to draw somebody in that probably isn't a good fit for them. How do you help those lawyers really stay true to their messaging?
[00:13:14] Speaker B: I think that just goes back to finding. Okay, let's talk again about your core. Let's be very clear.
Of course we want business, but we want the business that we can handle the best. And I think instead of being like, say the immigration attorney, that is, we are immigration attorneys, maybe focus.
Because what happens is when you niche down and you actually make your messaging very clear, people around that messaging will also come to you. Can you help me? You help them? Can you help me as well? So, yeah, we want a lot of business. When we get started, we'll take any case that comes our way. But you're going to make some mistakes by taking cases that are going to cost more than they're worth. They're going to be more trouble where if you can really focus on who you help and what you can do for them, then similar cases will come to you. So be true to your core message. And it is very clear. Again, it's clarity.
[00:14:09] Speaker A: Yes. And so what are some of the common mistakes that you see when trying to. An attorney's trying to craft their story?
[00:14:17] Speaker B: A lot of it's too many jargon.
Normal people are. Again, like, like I said, they're coming to you at one of the worst days of their life. Maybe it's a divorce. They've been struggling with the decision they made the decision they come to you. But if you're. You're marketing and all your messaging is very lawyer y, you've intimidated them. You know, I mean, the general public thinks, well, I can't really approach an attorney. They know so much and they're so important.
Well, you never want that to be part of your. Of course you're important. Of course you're smart. You're incredibly smart. Look at what you've done for law school and all the cases you've worked with. But you need to be a normal person. I can sit across the desk from and talk about this horrible thing that's going on in my life, but doing it's going to change my life. And I need to know that you feel that and you can communicate that with me. And we can keep that in the messaging.
[00:15:07] Speaker A: Absolutely. And it's really honestly simplifying things because large words, fancy jargon, not only is it intimidating, but it's confusing and it doesn't really communicate well. So, you know, just how do you take these lawyers who may be full of themselves and really try and help them, that simpler is better.
[00:15:33] Speaker B: Mostly rewriting the message and then saying, now think about this, because I feel like a lot of times we get stuck in what we think we are or what we think our message should be. You know, one of the things when we're working with clients, they're like, what keyword do you think people type in to find your firm?
Notice how I frame that question?
That's not necessarily what people type in to find your firm. Now, I'm from North Carolina.
We don't say auto accident. We say car wreck.
So, you know, it's like, so let me see. Let me take your messaging and then let me simplify it and make it more human speaking and which would be your customer and give that back to you and let you see it. So I find that what works really, really well is, is see what you have and then give you options. Because we get. We put blinders on when it comes to putting our head down and doing business. And I think seeing things, you know, you can't see the whole picture when you're standing in the frame. So. So let somebody else take that picture and hand it to you. Now you have options. It's so much easier to rewrite the core message when you've got options and some start to resonate with you better.
[00:16:38] Speaker A: What are some of those tools that you use to rewrite the message?
[00:16:44] Speaker B: A lot of I, we use Claude a lot. We use some AI. So if you want to come up with like 10 options. Right. I don't want to say, you know, make one core mat. If you've got. You don't know what your core message is, but, you know, these are the things about you that are important. Okay, fine. I've got a writing team want to come up with some options, some keywords and some phrases, and then we feed them into the AI. If we don't feel like we have a good enough number of options for you and then bring those to you. Because some people just, if the. The phrase kind of sings better, they'll be able to remember it and that'll something they can say in all of their marketing. But again, it has to be human to human language, not lawyer to human language.
[00:17:22] Speaker A: You had mentioned Something called Claude. And I'm just envisioning like an old uncle, but that's not a term I'm familiar with. Yeah. Explain to our viewers what that is.
[00:17:33] Speaker B: So people know ChatGPT is an AI engine. You can go ask it questions and it answers you well. Claude is very human speaking.
It's a very much more. More clear.
And as with any AI agent, you can say, you know, give it a role to play.
Most AI is set up to be an admin assistant. So you tell it. I want you to work as a expert copywriter, helping with my core message to my ideal client. And put in your information. These are the examples I have. Can you give me five more?
It just comes up with some really great human speaking.
I'm not saying talk to a fifth grader, but you don't want to talk legalese either. So you want to be feeling emotional and. Yeah. Down to earth and clear.
[00:18:24] Speaker A: Yes. And I'm guessing you don't have to take Claude out to lunch.
[00:18:27] Speaker B: No.
[00:18:29] Speaker A: There's a bonus everywhere. So how does your message clarity really strengthen the legacy of the firm and the impact.
Now we're thinking not just transactionally, not just with this one client, but now big picture.
[00:18:46] Speaker B: I think it brings your entire team in. If you've got something that. And you've made your messaging and your legacy with your core message and your core values, as long as every team member feels that and they exude that and they show that to new clients coming in, your legacy is going to be that core message.
Right. Every. Every partner you bring in, every team member, especially, especially your intake people with the empathy. Right. They are the first line of anybody that speaks to your front desk people that empathy that core and have the core values on your wall.
[00:19:22] Speaker A: I think that's very important.
[00:19:23] Speaker B: Makes a big difference.
[00:19:24] Speaker A: Yes, yes. Keeping it in front of people so they can see it both not only your staff, but your clientele and the attorney who's driving the firm. So, Marilyn, when you and I spoke earlier, you told me that your. Your firm handles everything from the marketing to the intake. Tell me why the intake side is so important.
[00:19:46] Speaker B: The intake is where the first place people, the first time people has talked to your firm. Right. They've got a problem and they're filling it out. They're trying to see what they need.
And it's just so important to stay super focused on that. Where if your intake person is also your front desk person that's answering other phone calls, sometimes they're not 100% focused on, wait, this is an intake. I need to. I need to stop and focus core values and get this done. Where. When you got a full service call center that has connection to your calendar, has every question you want to ask, and they know they are hired for empathy and can work this through and get this intake done with empathy as quickly as possible, and then either book them on your calendar or ideally live transfer directly to the attorney because they want to take the case.
[00:20:32] Speaker A: And your intake people, just so for the lawyers that are watching are the same people at each firm, meaning that if Alexis is answering the phones, she's answering the phones Monday through Friday. It's not like the firm has a revolving door of intake people. It's the same intake people.
[00:20:54] Speaker B: Correct. You have a team, is 24 7, bilingual, and you'll have a team assigned to your firm. When they answer the phone, it's for your firm.
So it's all. Everything is set up, they're trained in place. And when they answer the phone, it is with your firm name and their name. How may we help you today?
[00:21:13] Speaker A: I think you've produced an absolutely marvelous thing there for those firms, Marilyn, for those who want to learn more about your strategies, how can they connect with you online?
[00:21:25] Speaker B: Well, the best place is to look at my website. It's lawmarketingzone.com and you can book a call with me at lawmarketingzone.com Bookacall Perfect.
[00:21:34] Speaker A: And up next, we'll uncover why so many professionals fear visibility and how stepping into the spotlight can actually become an act of courage and faith.
Welcome back to your life and legacy. I'm here with Marilyn Jenkins. And now we're talking about visibility.
So many professionals have powerful stories and skills, but hide behind the scenes, and it keeps them from building the legacy they're meant to leave.
Fear of judgment or failure keeps many professionals from sharing their stories publicly, even when that story could inspire and attract clients.
Marilyn, we all know that we all carry baggage, right? You know, we all have shame. We all have things that we're embarrassed by. You know, some people have a story of alcoholism. Some have a bad childhood. Others may have a divorce in their family, you know, just as examples. And so people are like, I'm going to be judged by others.
And you and I know that getting out into the spotlight is just part of being real.
How do you help these lawyers overcome?
[00:23:27] Speaker B: Just trying to explain to them and have them practice not talking to the camera. Like, so you set up your iPhone and you're trying to make a video. Don't talk to the camera. We See ourselves on the camera. First thing we do is, you know, you start fixing your hair or then you start judging yourself. I shouldn't have wore this shirt. It's not about that. Talk to the person that's going to be watching this video. Talk through the camera. Right. So it's a lot about coaching like that because we are worried about being judged, you know, but, but being present or here's the truth is showing up is not about self promotion. The reason we do this is to tell who we serve, what we do.
By doing that, you're going to get that, that exposure.
[00:24:10] Speaker A: You are, you are. And you know, speaking of who, who we serve, we know we serve our clients, but we also. Many people have faith. They, they're grounded in some faith minds in Christianity, others have their own. But how does faith really integrate into self? You know, people being self aware and being able to really be themselves?
[00:24:37] Speaker B: I think it's honesty and integrity and not hiding behind a shield of this is who I am and what I do. You know, it's like I'm a lawyer, so that's my identity. No, you're a human being who practices law. Let's make sure people understand you have empathy, you have integrity.
And by running, you know, using your honesty, empathy, integrity, that's what's going to get across. No matter what faith you have, that you are a good person to work with.
[00:25:02] Speaker A: And that empathy, honesty and integrity at the end of the day is really their personal story.
[00:25:08] Speaker B: Exactly.
[00:25:09] Speaker A: And I'm guessing that their personal story then somehow connects with their mission.
[00:25:14] Speaker B: Absolutely, because it's you. And some people don't actually have written down a mission, but they know what they want for each client. So I think that's important is no one necessarily needs to deal with a, and come out with a hero's journey, as they say that you were all this fabulous, then you found a, a valley you fell in and then you overcame that. That's not what we want. We want to know, you know, people want to know who you are and what you can do for them. And by using your empathy and integrity and that honesty, you're going to put your position out there and people are going to be drawn to you.
[00:25:48] Speaker A: So one of the things you said in our last segment was, you know, write down your values on the wall. What kind of responses do you get from these law firms when you tell them that's the next step we got to do. We got to get these values, we got to get a little ste list and we got to get them up on your wall. Tell me about like, I'm sure you get multiple responses to that concept.
[00:26:11] Speaker B: I know most of them are like, I never thought of that. You know, they've got their logo, you know, the big logo on the wall when people come in the door. Well, even in the hallway or, or somewhere have the sign with that with your core values on it. And they, it's usually well received.
It just it people can read that and instantly know they're in the right place.
[00:26:31] Speaker A: You know, when I leave here today, Marilyn, next thing I need to do is get those core values put up on my wall. So excellent messaging there.
So I'm sure there's some self doubt and fear of judgment. You and I have already kind of talked about that a little bit. But let's unpack more about how we know that our imperfections sometimes can be more relatable than they can be something that pushes people away.
Do you help firms communicate that story?
[00:27:08] Speaker B: Yeah, I think what people look at when it comes to communicating that, especially on social media or on your website or your YouTube channel, is we see all of the trends, we see the influencers that have polished everything and we feel like we have to do that.
Well, when you're talking to people, you might stumble, you might say those things. Influencers never do that.
Right. These are so curated it's ridiculous. People love to see the human side of something. Now I always say that if we talk to our friends the way we talk to ourselves, we never have friends. So stop judging yourself and just do it.
You know, just remember, don't worry.
[00:27:47] Speaker A: Really good advice.
[00:27:48] Speaker B: Yeah, don't worry about saying, skipping a word or maybe saying the word twice. So you got it right. You know, just things like that. Just be human.
[00:27:57] Speaker A: Right. And so I know that, you know, you're a marketing genius and so, and we, I know some of the avenues in which law firms market whether it would be different channels on Google and you had mentioned YouTube and I'm sure there's others. Why don't you kind of break down some of the lanes that, that law firms really need to focus on in order to make them visible out there.
[00:28:28] Speaker B: Right.
Number one, obviously you want to be known as the local law firm in your area. You want to make sure that you have your Google business profile claimed optimized and you're posting to it on a regular basis. Right. Your website as well, ads. I definitely do Google ppc.
And that gets anyone that's searching right now to see you.
And then you have the potential of not only your Google Business profile, your website, and your Google Ads showing up. That gives you three positions on the page in one search. Now if someone sees you three times on the page, you're going to be the one they call meta Ads. Depending on your practice area is going to be a great one to use because people are scrolling and they're having emotional conversations while they're there. Say you're a divorce attorney, those people are there. And then what we're doing.
[00:29:19] Speaker A: Let's back up for a quick second. Sure, let's back up for a quick second and let me just help our audience understand.
So when you say fancy terms like ppc, what are you referring to?
[00:29:33] Speaker B: So on Google, when you do a search, there's sponsored posts, those are pay per click ads, and those are there when someone searches for a term that you have placed a bid on.
[00:29:45] Speaker A: Very good. And then you had mentioned meta, and I think most of us now have come to terms with the fact that that's Facebook. But I just want to confirm that that's Facebook marketing.
[00:29:55] Speaker B: When we're talking about meta, it's Facebook and Instagram, so.
[00:29:59] Speaker A: Oh, okay.
[00:30:00] Speaker B: Yeah, with Facebook. Yeah. And Google has another side and it's called Display, which means these are websites all over the world that have little plugs for Google Ads. So it's kind of like if you go to Amazon and you look for a coffee maker and then you don't buy the coffee maker, so you go on about your business, doing research and that co maker keeps popping up.
Those are cookies that gets followed around so that that person that's selling that coffee maker, they're buying the fact that they can put their coffee maker in front of you all the time.
[00:30:29] Speaker A: So that's just not by accident. And I say that in jest because it just happens way too often for it to be accidental. Exactly.
In all of this, I know you are building authenticity not only for the firm, but for the lawyers themselves.
You can't change, you can't change a firm without changing the lawyers behind the firm. Is that true?
[00:30:58] Speaker B: That would be true. Because they are the Persona and they are the message. They've got to bring that message forward their team and to show, to lead from their, their, for their team.
[00:31:09] Speaker A: And in that you're really creating deeper trust and really, I gotta believe, building a deeper legacy for the firm.
How many firms do you work with where you have multi generational lawyers and you really see that your message is translating through, you know, maybe some late boomers to some Gen Xs, millennials and the Gen Z's and trying to cross all those boundaries.
[00:31:39] Speaker B: Several and what's interesting is seeing that whenever the younger attorneys come in the old, in many instances, they are being able to influence the older attorneys saying this is what we need to do now.
And it's getting to be an easier, easier message. Absolutely. They're seeing the boomer and Gen X attorneys are seeing it's changed, messaging has changed and they're liking it. So yeah, it's nice to see the multi generational firms coming in.
[00:32:06] Speaker A: That's great. And how can stepping into visibility be seen as an act of faith and courage?
[00:32:14] Speaker B: I think again, it's, it's telling the story about and being honest.
People want to do business with they, with people they know like and trust. And if you're not having that integrity in your messaging, you're just listing your accomplishments and talking about what you do and it's all about you. If your messaging starts with I, me or we that and you know, it's just not the type of thing that people are going to, they're going to turn off.
So if you want to build, have that messaging of who you help and how you help them.
[00:32:46] Speaker A: Perfect. Perfect. Listen, stay with us. In our final segment, Marilyn will share how to stay authentic in today's digital world while still building influence and impact.
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In this closing segment, we're tackling the digital dilemma.
How to show up authentically online in a world full of filters, fakes and trends.
Marilyn, this is such an important conversation, especially with the the world of filters, fakes and trends. I mean, I can't tell you how many times I scrolling through Instagram. And I know that what I'm looking at is not reality. Right? So tell me about law firms and your how you help them in the.
[00:35:02] Speaker B: Social media space to not follow trends. You know, social media is when you look at social media, you're looking at somebody's highlight reel, right? That's not real life. And the whole thing about social media is, is it's very much likes and follows and interactions, those kinds of things. And when it comes to a service based business, that's not what's going to help you grow. You're not doing it to be an influencer. What you want is you want to portray your again, core values, your integrity and how you work, who you are, what you do for people and who do you help and by being authentic in your voice is what's going to get through to your audience. You don't need a million likes, you don't need 500,000 shares because it's not about that. But social media rewards, appearances. And what we want to do is do something different. We want to appeal to our ideal client and that's someone who needs our help.
[00:35:58] Speaker A: What law firms? So I'm assuming that different law firms really use different social media outlets. So what? Give me an idea of the type of firms and social media outlets and how you know, if you are a personal injury lawyer versus an estate planning lawyer, how you should be looking at the different social media options.
[00:36:21] Speaker B: Absolutely. Most attorneys that are business to consumer so not business to business. So it's going to be personal injury, family, immigration, estate planning, criminal, that kind of thing would be on Facebook and Instagram. Right.
We have experimented with some firms on TikTok and have found like it's just the wrong, I mean it just doesn't work. If you want, if you want those likes and shares and pump your ego up a little bit, you might. But TikTok hasn't done a lot for us.
Instagram does well as well as Facebook to get those messages out there. We have, we have experimented with some firms that were open to it of following some, some fun trends. You know, like when the last Marvel movie came out, there was a whole bunch of meme type videos and those were cute but they really didn't get any traction. What we find is when we stay on message, stay on brand and make short 30 second videos, they don't need to be anything long.
And then of course very clear image ads that have our message, those are the ones that get interaction, that get a phone call, that get a comment or not a comment but a direct message. And that's what we want. Ideally we want phone calls, right? So we want to make sure that we keep it clean. And I mean, you know, branded as well, you know, stay on brand and that's what you're going to get is keep to your message, don't follow the trend, you know, and it's just the meme thing didn't work. We did test that on several instances. And yeah, we got a few likes, but we never got real messaging from it. No comments, no DMs. And so that way we knew that it worked. We follow the data.
[00:37:55] Speaker A: Right. And I'm guessing the conclusion to a good social media campaign is a conversion. Somebody who sees the information, calls the firm, buys the service.
[00:38:11] Speaker B: Right. And an attorney probably shouldn't play be playing with the trends unless it's something that really resonates. If the attorney is a funny person, that's part of their personality, go for it. But the ideal thing is not to go for the trends and the likes and the shares. We want authenticity.
[00:38:30] Speaker A: You want the message and you want it probably to be incredibly consistent and done often.
[00:38:36] Speaker B: Yeah, I mean your ideal message should be one sentence of who you help and how you help them.
Then you have a sentence of who you are and what you do.
[00:38:45] Speaker A: And so your firm, MD give us a scope of how you help a firm. We already talked about how you have the pool of people that can help on the intake side.
So what are the other key areas that you'd want to make sure are checked off so that a firm is properly being seen?
[00:39:11] Speaker B: Well, they're search engine optimization. So to break that down, that's making sure that your website is clean, that Google and Yahoo and Bing can read it and index it. So and that you're getting consistent content put on it as well as your Google business profile and make sure everything is up to date and optimized. So those are the two big important things there. If you're doing social media, we want to look at that and see is this your core message? Is your messaging consistent across and it should be all consistent if you're running ads, which we feel you should be. And even you know, look at the National Law Review to see what you should be spending depending on your your goal revenue. But everyone should be spending on marketing, otherwise you're going backwards. Right.
So doing ads and figure out we can help them decide which is their best platform or ideally if they're a two plus attorney firm, they should be doing multiple platforms. So you're getting people when they're searching, you're getting people after they've searched for something and they're doing something else. And you're also in front of them on Facebook and Instagram. We even offer in streaming TV so you could be on the freebie to be and that sort of thing and all of these different channels. So being omnipresent in your market is another way of being very well, very well positioned to grow.
[00:40:27] Speaker A: That's excellent. And are you limited geographically or can you help firms all over the United States?
[00:40:34] Speaker B: I work all over the United States.
[00:40:36] Speaker A: That's fantastic. Because we want to make sure our viewers know that you are accessible.
[00:40:41] Speaker B: Absolutely.
[00:40:41] Speaker A: So these digital tools, that's. Yeah, I know they're going to be excited. Marilyn, how can digital tools. And I really want to kind of help our audience.
We want to define what digital tools are and how can they serve rather than be manipulative of people.
So I think we want to start really with what are the digital tools out there. The digital toolbox is what my brain is thinking of right now that the firm needs to have and then uses it properly versus using it as some kind of manipulative scheme.
[00:41:19] Speaker B: Well, I think a big thing is email newsletters, right? So you're building a database from the moment you open the first case or the first lead and having an email newsletter that keeps the core message and also says something personal. Maybe someone in the firm had a. Got a new puppy this month. Maybe they had birthdays. You got. I mean, something new, something to make it feel personal. So one digital tool is an email newsletter, and anyone can sign up for it, that sort of thing. Your reviews. That's a digital toolbox that you really need. And it's a good idea to ask. Have your front desk always ask for a review when a case is finished, maybe mail a postcard with a QR code that people could take a picture of and go directly to your reviews. So you can do those things just like that.
I find that Facebook and Instagram are two great places to keep your audience and up to date with what's happening in the firm. So everything doesn't have to be a ad.
It can make you personal, you know?
Did your firm participate in a charity event this weekend?
Right. Did you sponsor a charity event? Was there a, you know, a breast cancer walk this weekend that all your team members went in? Those are things that people want to know. If you're doing things in your community, put it everywhere, put it online, put it in your email newsletter. Those are digital tools that can get your message out to people that know you. And if you're doing things in the community, that's amazing as well. And it's just all this keeps building upon each other and the. The new noise gets out of what you're doing.
[00:42:54] Speaker A: Yeah, it's definitely the building, the story behind the firm that makes it more than just a stop along the way among all the other storefronts.
[00:43:10] Speaker B: Exactly. It sets you apart, you know, especially if you're one that you know, you're all. Your team is involved in some charity work. Always put that online.
Always let people know you're involved in the community.
It's not bragging, it's letting people know. This is a thing to get involved with. Maybe you should, too.
[00:43:26] Speaker A: So how does.
What does it look like to really blend your faith, your purpose and your professional in the online space?
[00:43:37] Speaker B: I think, again, integrity.
If you are showing integrity, then I believe that you. It's just all in your messaging.
People can smell it when it's not there.
[00:43:48] Speaker A: Yes, right.
[00:43:49] Speaker B: It's just, you know, your professionalism, your empathy and your honesty and your. It'll show up in your reviews as well.
[00:43:56] Speaker A: Yes, it will. You're spot on, Marilyn. This has been incredibly valuable again for our viewers. Where can people follow your work and continue learning from you?
[00:44:08] Speaker B: Thank you so much. You can go to lawmarketingzone.com and you can learn all about us. You can see the books that are available, the workshops, webinars, and if you want to book a call with me, it's lawmarketingzone.com Bookacall Wonderful.
[00:44:25] Speaker A: Again, thank you so much for joining us today and for showing us that marketing isn't about manipulation, it's about meaning. We've explored the importance of clarity, courage, visibility, authenticity in building both business success and a lasting legacy to our viewers. Remember this, your story matters and how you share it can shape the impact you leave behind.
Don't be afraid to connect, communicate, and show up with purpose. I'm Christopher Nudo and this has been your life and legacy on NOW Media tv.
Until next time, live with clarity and lead with courage and leave a legacy that lasts.
