Legal Marketing
The process of educating consumers on the legal and business activities a firm uses to deliver quality and ethical legal services.
Cross-selling
Selling additional services to existing clients.
Marketing Plan
It specifies a target audience the firm is trying to reach, the exact goals that the marketing program is to accomplish, and establishes a detailed strategy of how the goals will be achieved.
Rainmaking
Bringing in new clients to the law office.
1. Create good will and interest in the firm.
2. Create positive name recognition for the firm.
3 Educate clients and potential clients regarding the firm's array of services.
4. Improve the firm's competitive position in the marketplace.
What are some goals of law office marketing?
1. Overall goals of the marketing program
2. Strategies and activities that will be necessary to achieve the goals
3. Estimated cost of the marketing program
4. Estimated profit the successful marketing program would bring in
What should a firm's marketing plan include?
Yes
Can attorney's in Tennessee advertise as specialists assuming they have passed the specialists exam?
1. Internet Site
2. E-mail newsletter
3. Online yellow pages
4. Promotional materials
5. Business cards
What are some law office marketing strategies?
Age Discrimination in Employment Act
Legislation that prohibits employers from discriminating against employees and applicants on the basis of age when the individual is 40 or older.
Americans with Disabilities Act
Legislation that prohibits employers from discriminating against employees or applicants with disabilities.
bona fide occupational qualification
An allowable exception to equal employment opportunity, for example, for an employee to perform a specific job, the employee must be of a certain age, sex, or religion.
Civil Rights Act
Legislation that prohibits employers from discriminating against employees or applicants on the basis or race, color, national origin, religion, or gender.
coaching technique
Counseling that focuses on the positive aspects of the employee's performance and explores alternative ways to improve his or her performance.
disaster recovery plan
A disaster recovery plan includes information on how the law office will rebuild and recover from a total disaster.
document assembly software
Creates powerful standardized templates and forms.
employment at will doctrine
Doctrine that states that an employer and employee freely enter into an employment relationship, and that either party has the right to sever the relationship at any time without reason.
document management software
Organizes, controls, distributes, and allows for extensive searching of electronic documents typically in a computer-networked environment.
equal employment opportunity
Concept that requires employers to make employment-related decisions without arbitrarily discriminating against an individual.
Equal Pay Act
Legislation that prohibits employers from paying workers of one sex less than the rate paid an employee of the opposite sex for work on jobs that require equal skill, effort, and responsibility and performed under the same working conditions.
extranet
A network designed to provide, disseminate, and share confidential information with clients.
facilities management
Encompasses planning, designing, controlling, and managing a law office's building or office space.
Fair Credit Reporting Act
Federal legislation that governs the use of consumer reports in all employment decisions.
Family and Medical Leave Act
Legislation that allows employees in certain circumstances to receive up to 12 workweeks of unpaid leave from their jobs for family or health related reasons.
human resources management
Hiring, evaluating, compensating, training, and directing law office personnel.
management by objectives
A performance program in which the individual employee and the employer agree on goals for the employee.
negligent hiring
Hiring an employee without sufficiently and reasonably checking the employee's background.
office services management
It refers to the administration of a number of internal systems and services in a law office.
personnel handbook
A manual that lists the formal personnel policies of an organization.
reasonable accomadation
Accommodating a person with a disability, which may include making existing facilities readily accessible, restructuring the jobs, or modifying work schedules.
sexual harassment
Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal physical conduct of a sexual nature that create an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working environment.
typing errors, sending the wrong attachments, sending e-mail to unintended parties
Name three problems or errors that can occur when using e-mail.
Document Management Program
The paperless office is associated with what type of computer program?
It allowed attorneys to advertise their services.
Why is the case of Bates v. State Bar of Arizona important?
Advertising is simply getting your name out to the public, Marketing includes advertising but also includes providing quality services to clients, gaining insight and feedback into client needs, having a good reputation in the community and exercising goo
What is the difference between marketing and advertising?
marketing plan
Before a law firm begins to market it is essential that it has a __________________.
studying competitors, interviewing clients
Name two ways to obtain research for a marketing plan.
false
True or False: a law firm ad can guarantee future results based on a recent victory of the firm.
True
True or False: an attorney may personally solicit legal business from family and people with whom the attorney has had a close personal or prior professional relationship.
The name and address of at least one lawyer or law firm responsible for its content, so authorities will know who to contact if there is an ethical violation.
Any ad or marketing piece must have two things somewhere in the ad; what are they?
alphabetic filing system
Filing method in which cases are stored based on the last name of the client or organization.
bar coding
A file management technique in which each file is tracked according to the file's bar code.
centralized file system
Method in which a file department or file clerk stores and manages all active law office files in one or more file rooms.
CD-ROM legal database
A database like one found on Westlaw or LexisNexis but packaged on CD-ROMs.
decentralized file system
System in which files are kept in various locations throughout the law office.
electronic legal database
A database containing law related material on the internet such as Westlaw or LexisNexis, Electronic sources, such as e-books.
file-opening form
A standardized form that is filled out when a new case is started.
imaging
Uses a scanner to capture an image of a document. The image is store electronically.
off-line
The user is not connected to an information service and no charges are accruing except possibly a printing or downloading charge.
online
The user is connected to an information system and is running up charges.
1. Easy to learn
2. Easy to use
3. Easy to adapt
Name three attributes of an effective file management system.
alphabetic, and numerical
Name two types of file systems.
Organizes, controls, distributes, and allows for extensive searching of electronic documents.
What does document management software do?
1. excellent tracking and reporting capabilities
2. reduced instances of misfiling
3. reduced space and storage costs
What are three advantages of document management software/the "paperless office?
Westlaw and LexisNexis
Legal research comes in a number of formats, name any two.
1. Firm Approach
2. Target Market and marketing plan objectives
3. Market research
4. Market problems and solutions
5. Marketing action plan and strategies
6. Marketing budget and resources
What are the steps involved in a marketing plan?
1. Who is in charge
2. What's vital to the office
3. How to obtain information
4. Where are important items located
5. Who can help
What is included in a disaster recovery plan?