There are a lot of factors that go into marketing and advertising, but when you are doing attorney advertising you must pay particular attention to the credibility factor. Will the person who sees the attorney advertising trust the lawyer or law firm being showcased in the ad? That is the first and foremost consideration. If the message is not loud and clear that the attorney is capable and credible, then the ad will become just another one that is glazed over. So many traditional ways of advertising now are not being even seen by young people and older people who are social media savvy.

It is very important to reach through the traditional methods and the social media capacity of attorney advertising. In each ad placement, no matter what the venue, the message remains the same: This attorney or law firm is credible and will work hard on your case. To do attorney advertising, I would recommend that you start with the end in mind. You want to consider what type of person will be your potential client. Obviously, that will depend on what kind of law you are practicing. You need to zone in on that group that will pay the big bucks. I realize that there are some lawyers who want to do pro bono work. This information does not really apply to you. Believe me; people will be clamoring to get your free legal services. This information is for attorneys who want to reach out to people who can and will pay their bills.

Once the demographics for your potential clients are determined, you can then zone in on reaching them. Of course, before you send anything at all out, you will want your message and branding to be impeccable. It would not be a bad idea to gather a focus group to test out your ad appeal before you hit a mass appeal. Having a focus group will give you the opportunity to test your ads. It will also give you the opportunity to make any changes, whether large or small, to your campaign if you need to. Expect and encourage your focus group members to be blatantly honest. It is best to get strangers in your focus group. If you ask your friends and family, they may have a difficult time being objective and honest with you. When your focus group approves of and is attracted to your ad, then you are ready to get it out there.

Finding your target group is a tricky part sometimes. Most likely you will want to contact a marketing company who has tools which are designed to reach the exact market you determine. If you try to develop the database for that group yourself, you may invest so much time that it would have been more cost efficient to hire the marketing firm in the first place! So, let’s go over the checklist. Look at your branding: Do you like it? Can you live with it for the entire length of your time in business?

Your logo and colors should reflect what you are doing. It is helpful to the potential customers when they can easily see, at first glance, what you are all about. Look at your message: Does it say exactly what your potential customers need to hear? Many companies who advertise approach this backwards: they give a message that is what they want to say, not what their potential customers need to hear. Make sure your message is from their point of view. Finally, if your focus group gives you the go ahead, then you are ready to rock the world with your dynamic legal skills!