If your efforts to grow your law practice aren’t working, maybe what’s missing is a marketing strategy.

Without a clear, coherent and cohesive plan to market your firm, you’re just throwing ideas against the wall to see what sticks. You’re also wasting time, energy and money.

“Developing a solid advertising strategy allows your organization to invest only in platforms that have the most impact,” writes Dan Casarella in this post for the US Chamber of Commerce. “[I]t might be investing in blogs and digital content [or] it may be more beneficial to create paid, targeted social media ads.”

Another pointer: use a budgetting template.

“There are many types of advertising budget templates,” according to Casarella. “Try out different templates to see which work best for your business. Once you’ve landed on a template that works, make sure you revisit it regularly and keep it updated. An out-of-date budget can harm your advertising strategies, as you’ll either spend money you don’t have or sit on capital that is not being used.”

Read 6 Tips for Managing Your Advertising Budget at the US Chamber of Commerce website CO.

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Tips for Your Marketing Plan

When it comes to marketing plans, there’s no one-size-fits-all solution. The right plan – and budget – will depend on the size and nature of your practice, as well as your growth goals. Talk to your team. Solicit their input.

Here are some takeaways from 6 Tips for Managing Your Advertising Budget (quotes are from the article’s author Dan Casarella):

• Establish benchmarks and goals. “Instead of running numerous campaigns at once, focus on only one or two at a time and set clear, defined goals for what you want to get out of each,” writes Casarella. “Clearly define who the target audience is, how the campaign is going to reach them and what measurable success looks like. At the end of each campaign, assess your goals to see how successful you were.”

• Track your expenses. “This can get complicated and tricky if multiple people, such as employees or contractors, have access to your company card for ad expenses. To more accurately and effectively track ad spending, organizations can consider using a dedicated accounting or financial tool that your whole marketing team can access. Certain programs and applications can make it easier for employees to invoice expenses and have senior management oversee and approve them. This streamlined, organized means of data input makes it easy to efficiently spend and identify overall trends.”
• Choose your media channels. These days there are more choices than ever: print, radio, television, social media, billboards, even old-school Yellow Pages. Pick one or two and invest in them; if you get little or not return, try another channel.
• Rely on data analytics to inform your decisions. “Once you know how much money your business can spend and the best ways to reach your goals, based on your strategy, use that information to effectively spend your advertising budget. Analytics can tell you what has worked in the past and what you’re wasting your advertising dollars on.”

Source: US Chamber of Commerce CO

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