A cold call can warm up pretty quickly if you can find something in common with your target and then use it to your advantage. A client with 15 years of practice was having trouble finding new prospects. After I suggested he review his alumni law firm newsletter, he remembered a fellow graduate had recently been promoted to senior in-house counsel for an international garment manufacturer. By linking his first communication to the law school they had in common, and pointing out a related European Union decision, he has now been introduced to the world of international litigation and is growing his practice.
 
Don’t discount social networking sites like Linked In and Facebook to increase your legal marketing muscle. Alumni associations and just about every special interest association have found a home on these platforms. The technology works on the old theory of ‘six degrees of separation.’ You make a contact, you view that person’s contact list (along with other professional information mentioned) that may be of interest, and reach out to them. Contacts build upon contacts, which enables you to reach out to potential targets in a non-threatening manner.

This entry was posted on Friday, January 23rd, 2009 at 4:33 pm and is filed under Business Development. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.