June 20, 2009
Dear DUI Lawyer,
In today's age of ultra-competitive internet advertising, it should be obvious to most people that having a web presence for your practice is no longer enough. The fact is, there are as many ways for the internet to hurt your practice as are help it grow.
There is a sub-field of internet marketing known as reputation management. People who work in this field combat negative reviews and posts about you and your firm.
Every DUI or criminal lawyer who has been in practice more than a year or two knows that not every client is going to be happy. Many come to you miserable. Some have a misery that no amount of legal skill and hard work can cure. Others are looking for somebody to blame. In their mind the transaction goes they pay you, you take the blame for their mistake or criminal act. There is no way to stop these types from entering amongst your clientele, as they are a fact of life in any criminal practice.
Up until recently, if a client was disgruntled (rightfully or ignorantly) their best and sometimes only recourse was to complain to the Bar. As much of a pain in the tushy as a bar complaint can be, at least there is process and somebody with legal ethics and practice knowledge looking at the grievance. This is no longer the case.
There are literally thousands of places a disgruntled client can complain about you online. Sometimes you will never even know that the complaint exists or that the client had any sort of bone to pick with you until all of the sudden the toxic review comes up at the top of the search engines when people seek your name. Not good. In fact, it can be catastrophic to your reputation and your practice. It probably takes more than 10 good reviews to overcome 1 bad review in most peoples' minds.
Even more insidious than a misguided complaining client is a local competitor or former employee who wants to sabotage you. Most would not have the chutzpa to do it using their own name and contact information, but may do so using a fictitious name. The internet offers that kind of anonymity. That is, except when it doesn't. No matter that it's clearly an ethics violation. No matter that if word got out it would hurt the saboteur more than the victim. This is a severe recession, and the internet is the Wild West.
Savvy DUI and criminal attorneys realize that keeping up with what is happing online, and running campaigns that will help their practice thrive is time consuming. In fact, it's more than a full time job, and starting from scratch, while not as difficult as getting through law school and passing the bar, requires time and a steep learning curve. Busy attorneys have neither the time nor the energy to take this on.
It is not a question of if something negative about you will hit you online. The question is when will it hit? When it does you will feel like you just got mugged, but will you be ready to fight back? Its easier and more cost effective to call a plumber before a pipe bursts. But few people do it.
It's time to look forward in your practice. It's time to embrace online legal marketing in all of its aspects now so you don't get left behind the curve. It's time to take charge of your practice and your future. If you are still relying on phone book and billboard advertising, like the dinosaurs, you may soon find yourself stuck in the mud.
And now, the shameless plug (which I can do here, after all, it's my website, right)… if you are a DUI or criminal defense lawyer and want to evaluate your internet marketing strategy and infrastructure, let's talk. I have over a decade of doing what you do (running a firm, managing the business, associates, staff, payroll, court, briefs and of course the stress), and I am in a unique position to understand what you need to help you practice grow and sustain. My number is 480-951-3200.
Sincerely,
Dan Jaffe
Webmaster & DUI Attorney
Filed under Dear DUI Lawyers