How many client calls did you get today?

Your lawyer friends are getting more of those calls, and it’s not because they are better than you. It’s because they are doing something different than you. Video Marketing!

Like this ‘Machete’ video from the New York-based law firm -Trolman, Glaser & Lichtman. It was released as a commercial to promote the services of the said law firm.

Over on the web, videos have evolved as the most effective tool to communicate and connect with your customers.

To help you understand the potentiality of video, we have here laid out the four main reasons that we believe are the cause for the explosion in law firm video marketing:

1. Using Videos To Communicate & Advertise Your Lawyerly Services

Lawyers help solve the legal problems of people.

But before going to a lawyer, people turn to Google to do the research for possible solutions.

And, then they stumble on useful videos like this:

In this scenario, if you were to upload some videos talking about those problems (like the car accident video above), then it would help people discover your service and call you up for consultation.

2. A Chance To Win The Lawyer’s Golden Gavel Video Award Ceremony 

The creation of the American Bar Association’s Golden Gavel Video Awards made video marketing a noble pursuit, urging lawyers and law firms to create videos for awards and recognitions.

One of the early LPM Law Video Award winners was Tully Rinckey PLLC for one of their “Lawyer for Life” video series.

If not for this video, Tully Rinckey and I would be total strangers. So, that’s how a video can help your law firm to win awards and reach out to more people, in one shot.

3. Video Can Give You Instant Publicity & Search Ranking, Which Is Good For Business

Over 100 million people watch videos every day.

And, in US, YouTube reaches more 18-49 year-olds than any cable network.

So the big idea here is that opening a YouTube channel would be the best thing you can do to grow your business.

Also, with Facebook coming into the scene, video sharing has become the new trend for people. If you make an engaging video and post it over social media, then it might just go viral.

Just Don’t Make Any Bad Videos

There’s nothing wrong for lawyers to make videos.

But there’s a fine line between professionalism and childishness.

In an attempt to promote their law firm and maybe to go ‘viral’ as well, Allen Matkins, a California-based law firm, made a ‘legal’ parody of the trending Carly Rae’s song – Call Me Maybe. It turned out to be a big mistake.  

The Matkins parody video was criticized by Above The Law, a major legal website posting news and commentary on law.

The video suffers from poor execution. It opens with a male voiceover lip-synced by a female – an awkward and ugly start. And, that’s not the end of it. There are many other awkward moments to savor in this video. I wonder how those lawyers agreed to participate in this.

Of course, this doesn’t mean that all parodies are bad, and that you should stay clear of them.

Here’s one that’s kinda good. Presenting “We’ll Be Your Lawyers” (a parody of the song “Royals” by Lorde) from the Law Firm of Jacobson & Rooks.

Takeaway: If executed well, parodies and such entertaining videos can go viral easily. So, do attempt your hands on making a fun video, but with help from a professional video maker.

4. Videos Help Clients Judge Your Personality

Videos are an ideal tool for communication. People can see and hear you.

Ergo, it’s a true reflection of who you are, what’s your personality, and how persuasive you can be to make your case. So watching your video can help customers to gauge your personality and to decide whether you are the right person to handle their case.

Here’s David Mierendorff making the crowd laugh with his speech on “Boxers or Briefs: The Secret Life of A Barrister”. Thanks to which, he won the NSW Young Lawyers Golden Gavel Award.

In this way, videos can also help you build credibility and trust in the market.

Now that you understand that videos can help you get business, here’s a sample video marketing plan you can use to promote your law firm and grab more clients.

Phase 1: Brand Videos That Introduce You & Your Lawyerly Services

The first thing any client would ask you is this:

Who are you? Why should I make you my lawyer? Introductions can take a long time, and time is money.

Brand videos therefore make sense, as they cut short the sales process and also ensures that you don’t have to repeat yourself to each and every client who comes knocking on your door.

So, the first video you make should be one that tells your Brand Story.

Here’s the brand story of Baker & McKenzie, told through a mix of graphics and typography.

Also, if you are a law firm and not a sole law practitioner, then it’s a good idea to create a Company Culture Video.

Here’s one such video from Latham & Watkins, telling their audience to “Get To Know Us”. The quality of the video and its direction is of the top grade, which is what you should aspire for as well.

Phase 2: Educational Videos To Build Trust And Grow Your Audience Base

Once you are done with the introductory videos, you can now focus on creating some engaging videos for the following purpose:

• Using Videos To Attract Clients

TV advertisements are costly. But thanks to YouTube and social media platforms, it’s now easy to advertise your legal services to the people without having to spend a lot of money.

The only caution you should take while creating advertisement videos is to ensure that they don’t sound too salesy. People hate ads.They love stories.

So create promotional videos that tell a story. which your audience can relate to.

Here’s another clever advertisement video from Gregory S. Young, entitled “Lawyers On Weekends”.  

These types of videos are engaging and make a good impression on clients to help you get their case. Plus, people like to share videos that tell good stories, stories that they or their friends can connect to.

• Using Videos To Build Trust & Market Leadership

The videos in this series should present yourself as an expert in the legal services.

Here’s an example of an educational video that law firms can create.

Anatomy of A Deal – Allen & Overy, International Law Firm

American Bar Association (ABA) also posts videos on their Law Practice Division YouTube Channel.

As the foremost authority in the lawyerly services, ABA creates these nice, 2 minute “Law Practice Tip” videos to maintain their image as experts over the web. You can use this idea to create your own set of short ‘Law Practice Tips’ videos to present yourself as an expert in the market.

Conclusion

For video marketing success, there’s just one condition that you need to adhere to – don’t oversell yourself or your services, focus rather on telling stories that will resonate with your target audience.

By: Deepasha Kakkar

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