Secrets of Attorney Marketing Law School Dares Not Teach: (3rd Edition – 2020 Update)
Welcome back to Secrets of Attorney Marketing Law School Dares Not Teach, 3rd Edition. It has been thoroughly revised, expanded, and updated for 2020 and beyond. Because the first edition came out in 2013, many attorneys want to know what has changed in the attorney marketing world between then and now, and what is going to happen in the future – and I’m going to address that here. Here’s what has NOT changed: Clients still need legal help. They still need qualified, highly experienced attorneys to help them with their legal situations. Clients’ behavior in handling their legal situations has not changed, just as human nature has not changed over thousands of years. There are still people procrastinating until the day before their arraignment, until they’ve been beaten by their spouse for the 50th time (domestic violence), until their parent is in hospice, days from death (to create an estate plan) before they will call your office. Then there are the proactive people that react immediately to their situation by searching for and retaining a lawyer within a day. The third type of person takes their time to decide, needing to: pray on it, sleep on it, think on it, talk to their wife or husband, or weigh their options for days, weeks, or months. None of these customer archetypes have changed, because people do not change, even though technology does. Here’s what HAS changed: As I am sure you know by looking around, people spend much of their time with bent neck, a smartphone in their hand, and their eyes glued to the screen. Living examples of Darwinism are walking into traffic, getting hit by cars. They’re walking off cliffs and dying while playing Pokémon Go or texting. Some call them smombies (smartphone zombies). What I’m seeing, as undoubtedly you are, is the rapid proliferation and use of mobile phones and tablets all day and night, in every situation, social or otherwise. In 2013, website visitors came mostly from laptops and desktops. Perhaps 20% or less came from smartphones and tablets. In 2019, the numbers had nearly switched. At the end of 2019, mobile website visitors were 73% and rising. They are poised to top out at 85% in 2020, possibly even more. Laptops and desktops will not disappear by any means, but mobile devices’ use now outpaces their use, and will continue to widen its lead into 2020. In fact, 90% of Facebook users access, post, comment, read, and interact from their mobile device. Mobile devices have achieved record market penetration and widespread use.