The Importance of Referral Marketing in Your Overall Legal Marketing Plan

"All things being equal, people will do business with, and refer business to, those those people they know, like and trust."

In other words, if you can develop relationships with clients and referral sources, show them that you are a person who is likeable and worthy of them doing business with, then over time they will begin to trust you and, eventually, they will send you referrals.  This process may take a week, or it may take several months or longer.  You never can tell where your next referral will come from.  This is why it is vitally important that you begin implementing a legal marketing system immediately.

Why is Referral Marketing such an important legal marketing strategy?

Referral marketing is a great way to build a law practice for the following reasons:

1. It is less expensive to implement a referral system than paying for traditional marketing or advertising (i.e. yellow pages, tv/radio ads, etc.)

2. Referred prospects are already presold that you are the right lawyer for them - When a trusted friend tells you about someone you should be doing business with, you immediately transfer that trust to them...even if you've never heard of them before. 

3. Referred prospects are highly motivated to retain a lawyer

4. People that are referred to you are willing to pay more for legal services

During my first year in practice, referrals were my number one source of new business.  My closing rate on clients that were referred to me was well over 90%, versus 10% or less for clients that came to me via traditional advertising. 

How do lawyers obtain more referrals?

There are two ways that lawyers can get more referrals.  The first method is to develop a plan or system to obtain more referrals.  The second way is to ask for referrals! 

A written plan that outlines exactly how you intend on gaining more referrals must be part of your legal marketing plan.  You've heard this saying before - "if you fail to plan, you plan to fail."  The same can be said when you are looking for more referrals for your law firm.  Your written plan should include the following:

• A determination of who your best referral sources are and how you will meet them

• A determination of how you can help your potential referral source, or recommend business to them (remember - "givers gain")

• A timeline of when and how frequently you will ask your referral sources for referrals

• A compelling reason why your referral source should recommend you versus a hundred other attorneys that do what you do

• A detailed definition of how you should be recommended by your referral sources

• A clear determination of how you will handle the referral once they are sent to you

Second, if you do nothing else in your referral marketing efforts, you must start by asking for referrals.  It is such a simple idea, yet so many people either forget to do this, or are scared to do it.  If you have done good work for people, and provided them a valuable service, they want to tell others about you.  So make sure you are always asking for more referrals.