Most law firm owners want to attract better quality leads, which typically they convert into better quality clients, which typically means they bring higher average case values. Higher case values lead to higher profit margins, which help the firm grow.
It makes sense that you want this.
But the secret to actually attracting those high-value cases sounds counterintuitive to many attorneys.
It’s not actually about doing more: opening a new office, starting to take on a new practice area, or expanding into any sort of new market.
Rather than trying to be for more potential clients, the secret is actually to very clearly define who you’re not for.
When you’re addressing your audience, if you’re saying that you target “injured people,” that actually doesn’t mean much. Anyone can get injured. Babies can get injured. Middle-aged people could get injured. Men can get injured. Women can get injured. Anyone interested in anything could get injured. You’re really just marketing to the whole world if this is your approach.
Many firms do take this approach, believing they should try to get any case they can.
But then that’s exactly what they get — any old case.
Not the high-value cases that really set them up for long-term success and sustainable growth.
If you cast such a wide net that you have not really differentiated your firm specifically for who you’re trying to attract, you will inevitably not attract the best cases. More discerning clients are looking for a firm they connect with. If you don’t stand out to them, they won’t choose you.
Everybody wants the best cases. But if you’re not getting the best cases in your market, it’s almost certainly because you don’t deserve them.
Your potential clients have a lot of options. There are thousands of law firms in every single market, including yours. They could hire anybody. So why would they hire you?
If you clearly differentiate yourself and communicate exactly who you’re for, those are the types of people who will see a reason to hire you over any of your competitors.
This often means niching down on a very specialized practice area.
Some of the most successful law firms that we work with have become experts in their space:
- If they’re expert trucking lawyers, they’ve written books on trucking and they’ve founded trucking organizations. They provide workshops, trainings, webinars, and seminars on trucking. They put out tons of trucking content — and they’ve been doing it for over a decade.
- If they specialize in motorcycle accident cases, they have great grassroots relationships with motorcycle riders and those that are part of motorcycle clubs within their community — and it’s taken them decades to build those relationships. They’re constantly reinvesting in their community.
- If they focus on medical malpractice cases, they say no to potential cases having to do with family law, estate planning, criminal defense, traffic tickets, and anything else. When those cases come in, they refer it out to other firms that specialize in them. They focus on what they specialize in.
Many firm owners are afraid to say “no” to a potential case because they don’t want to miss out on anything. But I’m telling you: that is a recipe for attracting generic, low-value cases that will not accelerate your growth.
But if you narrow your focus instead, that allows you to dial in your message. If you can communicate exactly who you’re for and why we’re for them in all your marketing content (videos you create, social media posts you publish, articles you write, emails you send, and ads you run), over time you will become known for exactly what you’re trying to attract.
And the discerning clients with the big, high-value cases they would only trust with an expert? They’ll choose you.
