When it comes to deciding on the right legal case management software (CMS) for your solo or small practice, there should be no compromise. Your practice should run like a well-oiled machine on autopilot, and the CMS you ultimately go with should make your firm a lot easier to manage. But from all the options […]

This month's big question: "We’re a small firm and can’t afford to hire a full-time marketing director. Are there other options we should consider?" Of course there are. And in this edition of "Ask the Experts from the Legal Marketing Association," Keith Wewe and Alycia Suter have the answers.

Last October, I posted advice in this space on how to extricate yourself gracefully from unwelcome conversations at networking events. Recently, a reader asked how to handle the reverse situation: when you’re the one being ditched. (I’ll belatedly label the previous post Part One; think of this as a delayed Part Two. It will make more sense if you read Part One.)

Don’t fall prey to the notion that people get paid to perform. The reality is that people get paid to show up and do work. How well they perform is largely related to how they feel. It’s true: Emotions play a huge role in performance. Productive legal team managers embrace this fact and use it to achieve the team’s common objectives. There are a number of behaviors you can exhibit that will enhance your team’s performance. Here are five.

Few attorneys are eager to step away from client work to find new business, yet it’s an essential part of your practice. Since you must invest the time, what’s the best way to get the most from your effort? A new research study identifies three business development methods that are the most successful for law firms. What do they have in common? All three are ways to demonstrate expertise and educate clients on matters they find compelling.

When we think of information security breaches, we often blame weaknesses in technology. But in many of the most damaging security breaches, trusted law firm employees and partners are the weakest link. An old email trick has resurfaced recently in the legal services arena. Fraudsters attempting to take advantage of the unwary use email to try to trick trustee office administrators. Using sham email addresses that look similar to a familiar one, requests are being sent to trustee administrators to send money immediately.

In our product-oriented culture, people are encouraged to define and exploit their “personal brand.” I have always resisted the idea that individuals should come up with a self-definition that parallels Disney or Apple. Both people and careers are much more complex and fluid than that. You do, however, still need to articulate the attributes and characteristics — not to mention skills — that make you stand out from the crowd and offer value to a client. Developing your personal value proposition is an alternative way to make a case for yourself that doesn’t have to include a logo. It requires introspection plus the ability to articulate that value to a prospective client.

Every group of listeners is a multi-eyed monster that a speaker must confront, eyeball to eyeball.

Okay, I'll say it and get it out of the way: "A picture's worth a thousand words." Trite as the aphorism may seem, it has been proven true time after time that a good solid image can be far more powerful than any block of text. Why do the most powerful speeches feature slides with absolutely no words — only images?

Recently, I interviewed the partners at a law firm as part of a marketing assessment. I asked each of them whether there is any particular industry or type of client the firm should target for business. One of the lawyers said to me, “I don’t understand that concept. It doesn’t matter to us what the client is doing or selling; we can still provide our services.”