As with any small business, effectively marketing your law practice is the key to its success. Of course, there are plenty of media outlets in New York City to get your message to prospective clients across. But many of those outlets can be financially draining and inefficient. This article will explore some of the more cost-effective marketing strategies for lawyers in New York City and point out some of the pitfalls new attorneys must learn to avoid. Here are some tips on how to effectively market your New York City law practice.
If your law practice is located in any major city (and particularly New York), many of the conventional marketing strategies most lawyers employ may not be cost-effective for a new attorney just hanging out his shingle. For instance, the Yellow Pages. While advertising in the Yellow Pages in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, may be effective, in New York City ads will be too overpriced for your newcomer budget, and the competition will be too heavy to warrant the expenditure. Small, postage stamp-sized ads in Manhattan simply don’t stand a chance against the full-page, full-color ads of your competitors. And even the smallest available ad in Manhattan can cost you up to and over one thousand dollars a month. My quarter-page ad in the Verizon Yellow Pages (without color) cost me $2,500 a month, more than the rent on my two-bedroom, two-bath apartment in nearby Hoboken, New Jersey. And Verizon is far from the only book in Manhattan. There’s Yellow Book, New Yellow, Yellow This, Yellow That. It’s impossible to keep up. However, if you do advertise in the Yellow Pages, make sure the salesman gives you a specific telephone number that can track calls that you get from your ad. This way, after your contract is up, you can decide for yourself if it was cost-effective and whether a renewal is warranted.
Make certain you have an online presence. A solid website not only makes you more visible, it shows you are professional. Do searches to find attorneys in your area and in your area of practice, and then register your own URL at websites that link searchers to attorney sites. Many of these sites are free, and those that are not, usually charge only a nominal fee.
In New York City, most attorney business comes through referrals. Network. Make sure your current clients know that you would appreciate their referring you to their friends and family. Make certain they have a good number of your business cards on hand at all times.
By avoiding the Yellow Pages and making yourself visible on the web, you can grow your New York City law practice by leaps and bounds without spending an arm and a leg. Good business practices will ensure that your current clients will keep coming back, and refer to you their family and friends. And those are the keys to effectively marketing your law practice in New York City.
