If you’ve spent any amount of time researching the Simon Law Group, or its co-founders, Robert and Brad Simon, you’ve likely recognized that one of our firm’s core principles is helping others in the legal industry reach their highest potential. This principle is one the main reasons our law firm commits to helping other attorneys through our Justice Team podcast. We believe that rising tides raise all ships. As we look forward to a new year, there’s no better time than now to reevaluate the strategies that connect us to new clients and help us grow our breadth of experience. I have always tried to be a sponge and soak up tips shared by some of the most successful attorneys and I’m here to share one repeated piece of advice: tap into your personal network!
I used January of 2021 as an anchor for some of my personal goals and wanted it to set the tone for the rest of the year. At the top of my list of goals was connecting to those in need of help within our practice areas. I remember telling my family, “I’ll just go back through my entire contact list in my phone and individually message every person.” There were a couple of eyerolls, but the takeaway was, “if you actually do it, it might work.” It was a no brainer and worth a shot in my mind, so I got busy. I spent the next week carving out time in my evenings to messaging each person in my contact list in a way that was genuine and not a simple copy and paste. It took a lot of time and patience, but it worked. This exercise alone helped me connect with numerous people who needed help at that time and who we are currently representing.
Casting a net- more than just personal injury cases
Robert, errr, Bob Simon has told me several times that the most effective way to connect with new clients is putting your boots on the ground, shaking hands, and sharing what you do with as many people as possible, aka “planting seeds.” Clearly, the shaking hands approach was taken off the table during Covid, but I still wanted a chance to connect with people around me. There was no easier way than picking up my phone and texting people who already knew me. It was a 2-for-1 deal: I had a chance to catch up with people I lost contact with throughout the years and an opportunity to update them on my ability to help others should the need arise.
My message was deliberate and focused: we practice in several areas of the law and can find a way to help anyone who has been harmed physically or financially. I wanted to cast a wide net and not pigeon-hole myself as only working on auto crashes. Sure, crashes are a surefire way to connect with potential clients in the personal injury space, but the truth is, there are many other areas for us to focus on in helping the harmed. Highlighting a broader practice area makes you more valuable and helps you differentiate yourself from thousands of attorneys in this industry. Even if a novel injury comes across your desk that you’re unfamiliar with, you can find someone to help guide you within a matter of minutes. Utilizing this strategy will also allow your eventual clients an opportunity to refer you friends or family within their own networks. Think of compound interest in the bank, but rather than a YTD return on a financial investment, you are receiving compounding referrals and goodwill from the lives you’ve changed. Not a bad investment of time or energy by any means.
Helping the person, not the case
Now this leads me to my last point and this one might seem a bit esoteric and abstract, but bear with me. One major change I committed to in 2021 was trying to connect with “people” and not “cases.” In our space, it’s easy to refer to potential clients as “cases” or “referrals” and the more I focused on those words, the less my phone rang. There is neither science nor data to back this theory, but it’s my gut instinct. My gut says, the more we focus on helping human beings and empathizing with their harms, the more genuine we become in our role as advocates and the more comfortable these people will become with us. This last bit of information might be worth no more than table salt, or it might change the way you connect with people in 2022 entirely. I would put my money on the latter and let the dice roll! Good luck in 2022 and if you ever want to brainstorm ways to connect to your communities, feel free to reach out!
Written by: Robbie Munoz