Lawyers always need to market their services, whether they are in storefronts or ensconced in a corner office perched high atop a tall building. Without marketing there can be no new clients, and without new clients the lights get turned off by the power company.
For many consumer bankruptcy lawyers, marketing is even more critical because most clients are, by their nature, not going to cause repeat business (at least, not in the short-term).
In the old days when there was only a small pool of bankruptcy lawyers in town it was like shooting fish in a barrel. But those days are gone forever.
Why? Two reasons.
First, with more bankruptcy filings comes more competition. It seems as if everyone is talking about bankruptcy these days. That’s good because it brings the skeletons out of the closet, but it also creates the perception on the part of other lawyers that this is a fertile field. All those real estate lawyers out there are now sniffing around for some way to pay their bills, and bankruptcy beckons.
Second, the barriers of geography are disappearing faster than Oreos in a child’s mouth. Not too long ago you could set up an office in New York City and be relatively confident that you wouldn’t get many inquiries from people in Buffalo (an 8 hour drive away).
Now people check the Internet for reliable information about bankruptcy lawyers and, once they find someone they trust, chances are good that they’ll send an email or make a phone call.
Assuming the lawyer knows his or her stuff and can help, the prospect won’t hesitate to work over long distances. Email, faxes, phones, overnight mail and the like melt those distances easily.
Don’t believe me? Consider this: a colleague of mine practices in a fairly depressed area of his Northeastern state. He’s a good lawyer, but his local clientele is poor and unable to afford his services. Over the past two years he’s beefed up his online presence and now has people driving 3 hours or more just to hire him.
My friend isn’t just eating his competition’s lunch, he’s pulling in clients from places that only a few years ago would never have considered his services.
Objects in the rear view mirror may be larger than they appear, right? Well, the same is true for your competition. There are more and more bankruptcy lawyers out there every day. And though they may not be eating into your bottom line today, trust me – they will be.
Photo courtesy of Naimi&virg
