By: Steven H. Heisler, Esq.
The best way to create impenetrable relationships with your clients, and maximize referrals as well, is to start your own VIP club.
I created a VIP club for my top clients back in the early 2000’s and the benefits to my practice have been nothing short of amazing.
Strong relationships with your client base is the lifeblood of any successful and profitable law firm. In my opinion, a VIP club is one of the best bets to accomplish this.
To be clear, the VIP club that I envisioned and created is not your grandfathers VIP club. It’s not just about giving rewards points or a free review of the member’s will or contract. Rather, my VIP club is engaging and interactive. It’s about creating unforgettable experiences that your members have never experienced before with any other law firm, let alone business.
Why are VIP clubs so effective in building life-long relationships with your clients? Here are three reasons why:
1. THE ULTIMATE THANK YOU – There is no better way to show your appreciation to a client who thinks of you and your law firm then to identify them as a very important client and induct them into your VIP club.
VIPs could be individuals who consistently refer you cases or clients who write a glowing review on Google or Yelp. I admit anyone who has a passion for my firm. Whatever criteria you choose, a VIP club as a means to say thank you is second to none.
2. SHOWING RECOGNITION – Most every law firm has “raving” fans or clients who will go to great lengths to show their love for you. These are the individuals who personally walk their friends and family into your office with new cases. What better way to recognize these ambassadors for your brand than to invite them into your special club?
Humans crave recognition. Study show that our brains involuntarily respond to the sound of our own names. Yet, people are rarely recognized. Not by their employers, friends, or sadly their immediate family. How incredible would it be for you, their LAWYER, to recognize them by telling them that they are important and that you want them to participate in your club. That is the power of the VIP club and it will have your clients talking about you and your firm for years and years to come.
3. STAYING IN TOUCH –Keeping consistently in contact with your client ambassadors via the VIP club, including personal interaction when you’re “off the clock”, builds meaningful relationships. You are now also considered by your client as a VIP… TO THEM!
And here are two additional reasons why you may want to start your VIP club:
1. TOP OF MIND – As a result of creating and implementing a VIP club, you will always be on the tip of the tongue and top of the mind of your best referral sources. They will literally talk about you every chance they get, to whomever they can, about how their lawyer is better than all the other lawyers. They will let everyone within earshot know that their lawyer showed his appreciation by putting them in his Very Important Person club
2. RECIPROCITY – It is a well-known principle of psychology and marketing that when you do something nice for people, they feel compelled to reciprocate. I always notice an uptick in referrals after a VIP club appreciation event. A huge portion of our total leads come from referrals and our VIP members are a big reason for that.
Here are a few of the benefits a kick ass VIP club could give its members
1. Fee discounts
2. Cell phone access to the attorney. I know a lot of you probably would rather have a tooth pulled than give out your cell number. However, VIP members should be able to circumvent the normal process (especially when they have referrals). Just get a second cell phone for your VIP members only.
3. An “Insider” newsletter. In the newsletter you provide valued content that your members aren’t getting anywhere else. It could be legal, medical, financial or tax information from experts in those fields. You can also let members in on what’s happening in your life. Client see you as a celebrity so they want to learn about your life behind the scenes
4. Monthly or quarterly social gatherings. This could include lunches or dinners (We always bring a speaker to these events to talk about topics of interest to the members), bowling parties, picnics, baseball games, etc. These are great opportunities for your client ambassadors to rub shoulders with you.
5. VIP member super event. We hold our annual VIP super event at an entertainment destination. We usually stage the events at a casino (Atlantic City, Maryland LIVE, etc). Last year we held the event at Dave and Busters. At the event we provide, at our cost, food, entertainment and giveaways. Some of the giveaways include sports tickets, gift cards, etc. It is my way of showing appreciation. It is a true extravaganza and members talk about it (especially on social media) for quite some time.
6. Personalized Birthday Cards.
If you’re serious about building an iron clad fence around your clients so that they would never ever even conceive of going to another attorney, start a VIP club. You won’t regret it.
About the Author
Steven H. Heisler, Esq. is the proud Founder and CEO of PlaintiffAttorneyMarketing.com, the world’s leading marketing newsletter and website for Plaintiff Attorneys. Steve is also a practicing Plaintiffs’ attorney and is the founder and senior attorney of the Law Offices of Steven H. Heisler; located in Baltimore, Maryland. You can reach him stsheisler@injurylawyermd.com.
Attorneys – Check it Out!! LET STEVEN HEISLER, “THE INJURY LAWYER”, AND THE LAW OFFICES OF STEVEN H. HEISLER BE YOUR GO TO INJURY ATTORNEYS IN THE STATE OF MARYLAND. If you have a client who has been in an accident, job injury, or any other type of injury in Maryland, don’t hesitate to call or email Steve personally to discuss. Steve has received referrals from numerous attorneys throughout the United States and will gladly provide references. sheisler@injurylawyermd.com410-625-4878 (HURT)877-228-4878 (HURT)www.theinjurylawyermd.comCell- 443-854-2471
Quick Tip!!By: David M. Ward
What do you do when a prospective client (who found you through the Internet) tells you they probably won’t hire you because they’ve had free consultations with several of your competitors, suggesting that one of them will get the nod?
If most of your competition offers free consultations, and you don’t, should you change course to stay competitive?
Maybe.
If you get (or want to get) most of your clients via an Internet search, where prospective clients are given to shopping and comparing fees, you probably need to offer free consultations just to stay in the running.
On the other hand, if you get (or want to get) most of your clients through referrals, and prospects talk to you because they trust the client or professional who referred them and/or they don’t want to bother shopping around, then maybe not.
But there is one more option.
If you do something or offer something most other lawyers don’t do, and you can “sell” that difference to prospective clients, you may not have to make any compromises.
Do you specialize in a particular area of the law that most lawyers don’t handle, or focus on representing a certain type of client?
Do you have a better track record you can quantify and point to?
Do you offer benefits that no one else offers (or no one else promotes?)
Failing these, if you what you offer is pretty much what everyone else offers, there’s only one other way to beat them–with better marketing.
You need a stronger on-boarding process, better marketing documents, better follow-up, and better salesmanship.
When someone takes a look at you, you need to do a better job of selling them on hiring you.
Start by answering this question: “Why should anyone hire you instead of any other attorney in your field and market?”
If you have a good answer to that question, you’ll know what to do. If you can’t, you’ll know you have some work to do.
About the Author
David Ward is an attorney and marketing consultant to attorneys. His website is The Attorney Marketing Canter where he offers a free newsletter about marketing, productivity, and personal development.
You can learn more at http://attorneymarketing.com
That’s it for this week. I’ll have a brand new issue for you this time next week. Also, if you have any questions or comments about the content in this newsletter please email me at sheisler@injurylawyermd.com ~SHH
