KCM Legal Marketing & Media Explains How People Find Lawyers

BALTIMORE, Aug. 31, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- People with personal legal matters are far more likely to turn to trusted sources instead of impersonal sources to find a lawyer, according to a public opinion poll conducted by the American Bar Association. KCM Legal Marketing & Media, a public relations firm for lawyers, serves as trusted adviser for many of the best-known law firms as well as up-and-comers.

"More often than not we save money for firms by cutting programs that don't work and enhancing adding programs that do," says owner Karen McGagh. "You practice law. We bring in business for you. It's a formula that's worked for many years."

Ms. McGagh explains that the ABA study showed that the use of print directories, such as the Yellow Pages, as the primary way to find a lawyer for a personal legal matter appears to be waning and is now about the same as online searches.

According to the ABA younger adults are more likely to rely on online searches as the primary way to find a lawyer but the extent to which online searches will grow, as this population ages is unclear.

So what's a lawyer to do?

Bring people together. Linking up your clients and referring them business is a powerful way to encourage loyalty.

Take them out. Regular face-to-face contact is critical. Get together over coffee or lunch regularly, and try to spend time in a non-legal capacity.

Manage your reputation. Just as an unhappy client can cause a lot of damage to your legal reputation, good customer service keeps clients coming back and brings in new customers over the long term.

Spread the good news. If an article is written about your business or you are quoted in a newspaper or magazine, send copies to your existing customers and clients through a press release, email campaign or direct mail piece. This will keep you in their mind, bolster their confidence in you, and encourage them to recommend you to others.

Follow up. You can't reach out to someone once and have a customer for life; you need to reach out to them regularly. Like anything worthwhile, consistent follow-up requires a lot of effort, but over time you'll reap the benefits of a steady stream of repeat business and referrals.

Talk to them. How you communicate with your customers isn't that important; what's important is that you do it! Stay in touch with email newsletters, mailings, or a blog. These methods remind your clients and customers that you're around when they need you.

Get personal. Send a card on special occasions — like birthdays, anniversaries, or promotions.

"These are tips that have helped lawyers bring in business for years," said Ms. McGagh. "We help clients integrate strong communications, and research-driven understanding of client interests as they face some of their toughest business development challenges."

At KCM our goal is to ensure that every engagement produces three results for the client: 

Insight: We work to ensure lawyers view the world through the client's glasses. We help these employees build an anticipatory perspective that allows them to recognize potential business opportunities within their firm.

Structure and Budget: We help clients develop marketing infrastructure to support firm business goals and more often than not we save them money.

Strategies: We provide the benefits of decades of experience managing marketing, public relations and business development campaigns for law firms in virtually every industry. We use proven strategies to help position our clients effectively.

About KCM Legal Marketing & Media

KCM Legal Marketing & Media is a public relations firm dedicated exclusively to lawyers and law firms. Our award-winning marketing efforts for law firms are highly targeted, cost-effective and compliant with state bar association standards. Many clients rely on our firm to manage all aspects of firm marketing. We work with established law firms and up-and-comers. Please call us today at 443.632.4217 to get started. Also visit our website at www.kcmlegalmarketing.com.

SOURCE KCM Legal Marketing & Media