A Note from Don Frankenfeld

Here's a dark little secret: for many lawyers, websites are not working as a marketing tool. While everyone agrees that the Internet will dominate the future, today belongs firmly to the yellow pages, television, and billboards.

Why have so many lawyers found the Internet to be a dismal and expensive failure? First and foremost because most consumers use the yellow pages and not the Net to hire a lawyer. Second because consumers who do venture out on the Internet often find their Net searches unwieldy and awkward, yielding lots of dross and very little gold. Third because once a consumer finally finds a lawyer's web page, it often proves to be boring or frustrating or both. Fourth and finally, most web pages, even good ones, don't engage the consumer's interest long enough to create an incipient "relationship," the kind that leads to a letter of engagement.

Still, you should have a web site now. You know you will have one sooner or later, and there is little risk in becoming a pioneer, knowing that the experience you gain today will lead to a better site-and more business-tomorrow. Besides you can do a lot to overcome the general malaise affecting lawyer web sites and turn yours into a profitable enterprise now. For starters, integrate your Internet presence into the rest of your marketing campaign. Of course your firm brochure should include your Internet and e-mail address. In addition your web site should broaden and extend the content of your brochure, providing additional details of attorney's biographies, for example.

If your practice is primarily personal injury, you should consider our powerful Rainmaker marketing service. By closely integrating your yellow page and Internet marketing, you will enhance the effectiveness of both. By providing your prospective client an elegant and professional service of great value, you will distinguish yourself from competitors in the best possible way. And Rainmaker's performance-based pricing plan means your risk is almost non-existent. I'll have more about Rainmaker, and other tips to improve marketing results, in future issues.