A few days ago I was talking to the managing partner of a small firm. They have a monthly e-newsletter which goes to 3,000 clients and contacts. It has a couple of items about the firm and four items about law (these look like recycled items from the Mail and Express) in it, chosen by the agency. The firm write the former and an agency the latter.
The agency also send the e-newsletter for them.
They aren't too happy with the results. It doesn't drive in much business, subscriptions aren't growing and they pay £750 per month for the service.
They asked us to take a look. This is what we thought.
1.Lack of Targeting
The first issue is that the newsletter is generalised, not containing material targeted towards any particular audience. It doesn't offer anything of particular interest or value to anyone. People want to read about what interests them. A property developer wants to know what is happening in the property and planning world, not the divorce courts, and so on. We call this 'segmentation' in the industry and without it, the large majority of your business development efforts via email will fail.
2. Lack of Expertise
The second issue was that while the writing was good b2c content in terms of being understandable, it clearly wasn't written by anyone with any knowledge of the law, so some of the more obvious 'what this means for you' points were missed…and, being founded in popular journalism, not law reports, was at points very 'loose' in its views. Lack of precision can create time-consuming, useless enquiries.
3. Lack of Rapid Data
The third issue was that whilst it was routinely being circulated, the information about who was clicking what wasn't available to the firm until they received a monthly report some time later, full of glowing statistics (but not detail) about clicks so on. They weren't able to go back a few days afterward and contact specific people who had clicked to read specific items. Delay in response reduces the likelihood of success in gaining the instruction. Hit the button while they are hot.
4.The Pictures Scream 'Fake News'
The fourth issue was that it was almost all text (pictures are good, because they break up text), but the few the pictures in it were generic iStock or Getty type images…not tightly linked to the content and giving the whole thing a 'manufactured' air, lessening the perceived authority. It all smacks of fakery.
5. Where's The Social Media Distribution?
Fifth, there was no social circulation of the newsletter through their social media accounts. Recirculating your material through tour social media accounts can be automated and give you a 'free shot' at building influence. Our own newsletter has about the same 'social' circulation as direct email circulation and this social presence drives in a several new enquiries every year.
6.What This Means for You
Sixth, there was no 'call to action' in most of the material. It was 'here is something going on', without the 'and the reason we should be helping you with this is…'. The purpose of all business development material is to make it more likely that the recipient will contact you at some point in the future and buy your services. A 'what this means for you' slant makes this more probable.
7. HOW MUCH???
Seventh, they pay £750 per month for this…and it involves a liaison process with another firm which takes an hour a month. That is way too much time and money for an e-newsletter which can be done better for far less and in much less time.
Of course we suggested they might like to consider using LegalRSS.uk, because not only would it cure the segmentation problem (and automate it), but all the other issues as well. They can choose their own material from the 100+ items we'd provide them with each month…and they'd still save time…and money, because to fix all those issues and really make their enewsletter marketing work would save them more than £500 per month.
It is about understanding
The real issue here is not the cost (to be fair the procurement approach taken by most firms mitigates against them obtaining good value from such suppliers – a long story I am not going to tell here) and I really don't believe that the pricing policy espoused to me by a director in one such ('We charge as much as we think they will pay') is commonplace. However, I am at a loss as to why an agency that really understands the process by which clients select people to act for them and continue to place work with them would have thought that the approach they took would work and deliver a positive return for such a substantial investment.
…and that is about really understanding the client's business. Far too few people in the BD consulting world have actually been in professional practice at partner (ownership) level. When you have sat opposite someone whose future life depends on you getting a result and you have to fulfill your responsibilities to your partners as well as your client, you develop a mind set that makes you understand that the provision of advisory services is really not the same sort of thing as persuading people to buy brand X…and I think that is crucial – but then I would!
Want to know the seven content mistakes almost all law firms make?
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