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Direct Mail Marketing for Law Firms Lawyers and Attorneys

Direct Mail Marketing for Law Firms - Lawyers and Attorneys

Attorneys may not be the kind of people you’d usually wish to interact with because it would most likely mean that you are facing some sort of predicament, either personal or professional. Although it is not necessarily the case on every occasion, this is the general perception of attorneys and law firms. Despite everyone’s wish to avoid any sort of legal issues, whether in business or family or estate planning, it remains an unavoidable part of life, and we will have to face them from time to time. When we do face such a situation, we always turn to a trusted attorney or law firm to have our back.

When it comes to legal issues, having the right preventive measures could save valuable time and effort. However, this is a fact lesser known to the general public, and conveying this message in a convincing way is the secret to success for marketing professionals in the sphere. In short, the major task ahead of a marketer for marketing a law firm is to educate prospective clients about the importance of legally protecting themselves even before there is an issue.

Direct mail marketing for law firms or lawyers and attorneys is a time-tested strategy for raising awareness and educating the general public on why they need legal services to prevent unnecessary or unwarranted predicaments in their personal and professional lives. This article discusses how you can use direct mail for law firms as an effective marketing tool. We also discuss the changes in direct mail marketing over the years and how coupling it with the latest tech has boosted its performance.

We take you through the aspects of direct mail you need to consider in order to captivate your target audience. Finally, we also take you through more ideas to optimize direct mail marketing for attorneys, lawyers and how you can convey the relevant message to the target audience effectively.

The Relevance of Direct Mail Marketing the Digital Age

One of the prominent reasons why direct mail remains a popular medium for sending a message across to the target audience is that it is incredibly effective so long as you have an accurate address database. Additionally, direct mails have one of the best ROI or Return on Investment in the marketing sphere and is particularly suited for law firms. Direct mail advertising for lawyers and attorneys is excellent for active outreach to your target audience and adds credibility to your campaign because most people find a printed piece of advertising to be more convincing than targeted ads that pop up randomly online.

Did you know that even in this digital era, as much as 10% of people looking to hire an attorney still consult the yellow pages? This is a perfect example of how people tend to trust printed words more. Another interesting fact you should know is that the response rate of direct mail sent via oversized envelopes is 4.9% as compared to the letter-sized envelopes, which have a 2.5% response rate. But, what really works in favor of direct mails is the fact that everyone who relieves postal mail checks their mailbox every day. In fact, studies found that about 36% of people aged under 30 actually enjoy and look forward to checking their mailboxes every day.

Why Use Direct Mail for Marketing for Law Firms?

The truth is that attorneys or law firms play an active role in everyone’s day-to-day lives even if they are unaware of it, and this means that you get a target audience that is both broad and diverse. This alone is a dream come true for any ambitious marketing professional. However, that does not mean it marketing for law firms is by any means less challenging because, as we mentioned before, the service of an attorney or a law firm is often (if not always) need-driven rather than desire-driven.

In most cases, a business or a person only considers hiring a law firm once they are served a legal notice or summons, or complaint. They fail to realize that this is the wrong approach to take, especially for businesses. In many ways, the legal issues you face are very similar to healthcare. Although the old saying “Prevention is better than cure” is better suited for healthcare issues (in a literal sense), the logic applies equally to legal problems. Direct mail for advertising for attorneys plays a pivotal role in conveying this message to the target audience.

Typically once the prospective client hears about your law firm or practice, they will do a quick (if not extensive) research before they actually make an attempt to contact you. This is where the legacy solution like direct mail could lag behind in the digital era. But, the direct mail we employ today has evolved over the years, and you can accommodate your digital efforts in your direct mail marketing as well, but it is essential that you have a strong digital presence first. Once you have established a strong online presence, you can make use of advanced address verification tools like PostGrid to streamline your direct mail marketing efforts and ensure maximum deliverability.

Getting Started on Direct Mail for Lawyers & Law Firms

There is no question about the efficiency of direct mail campaigns, and if you have come this far, then you are probably wondering, “but, where do I start?” Well, you can start by defining the goals for your direct mail campaign just like you do with any other marketing campaign. Furthermore, you also need to set your benchmarks, and once that’s done, you can then move on to create the message you want to convey to the target audience.

Personalized Messages

Personalization is the key to every successful marketing campaign, and it holds true for direct mail marketing as well. In fact, it wouldn’t be wrong to say that personalization is the most pivotal aspect of your direct mail marketing for law firms and lawyers because a whopping 70% of people stated that direct mails feel more personal than an email or text message. Furthermore, by customizing or personalizing the direct mail you send, you can boost the chance of your target audience opening the mail, ensuring maximum reach for your campaign.

When it comes to planning for direct mail for advertising for attorneys, It is important that you give attention to the details without overlooking the main aspects, which are the message and the design. The prospective client on the receiving end of direct mails marketing for law firms would naturally want someone they can trust to win the case for them. Therefore establishing trust should be a top priority in direct mail marketing by creating a positive brand image.

There are a few things you must consider when creating direct mail for criminal lawyers or law firms in general. This includes the type of direct mail you are going to use, is it a postcard or a flyer. You must also pay attention to the envelope (if you are using one). Finally, you must also be attentive to the quality of the paper and direct mail piece that you will be sent to the target audience. The quality of your direct mail piece will play a considerable role in generating conversions. But, it’s not good enough that you focus merely on the aesthetics either; what’s really going to matter is the content you put in it.

When it comes to the message inside your direct mail, it is essential that you do not make it sound like a sales pitch and instead go for a more focused approach that highlights your reputation and professional reliability. To do this, you can try including various details about yourself or the firm, including the number of years you’ve worked in the field, pictures of your office, client testimonials, pricing structure, and more. You need to show them how you can help them and why they need your services. The more successful you are in conveying these factors to the client, the better will be the result of your direct mail marketing campaign.

Types of Direct Mail Pieces

When it comes to direct mail marketing, you have the freedom to choose the best direct mail piece that fits perfectly with your unique requirements and goals. For example, postcards are the more popular choice when it comes to seasonal direct mail campaigns because they are cheap, and privacy is not an issue for these posts either. Below we discuss the different types of mail pieces that are best to be used in direct mail marketing for criminal defense attorneys and law firms.

Brochures

Brochures are the number one direct mail piece that is being used, perhaps since the very beginning of direct mail campaigns. Brochures are ideal if you run a small law firm or if you are an attorney who has just started out on his/her law practice as they are an effective way of introducing new services to the public. Ideally, you can make use of an advanced solution like PostGrid that can automate the entire direct mail process, including the printing of brochures to having the recipient’s address verified for accurate delivery of postal mails.

If you do decide to use a brochure as part of your direct mail marketing, then it is best if you include a complete overview of your law firm or practice. This means you have to consider including details like a brief bio of your firm and its history, the areas your firm specializes in, the locations of your office or offices, and contact information. It is also advisable to list out the benefits of hiring your services to your prospective clients.

Postcards

Generally, the postcards are bigger than brochures, and hence they can carry more information in them, and they are one of the popular choices when it comes to direct mail advertising for attorneys and law firms. The size and postage of the postcards alone are enough to garner the attention of the recipient. The DMA Response Rate Report stated that the response rate of postcards is about 5.1%, whereas the ROI or return on investment was found to be about 29%. The postcards allow you to include memorable CTAs or call to action along with more appealing images. You can also include the direct mail with news like changes in laws or introduce new lawyers/services, or even invite the prospects to an event like new office relocation.

Targeted Audience & Relevant Messages

Targeting the audience the right way is easily the most fundamental principle behind the success of all marketing campaigns. As mentioned before, the law sector is broad and can include anything from a road accident to estate procurement. Hence its is pivotal that you separate the services you provide and focus on each category individually. This way, you can also close on the most relevant message for each group.

Choosing the Right Time

The timing could potentially be the ultimate factor that can decide the fate of your direct mail marketing campaign. Like any other business, you can try giving your prospects attractive offers or discounts during the holiday season. But, it is also important that you choose a time where your direct mail doesn’t get drowned in the other direct mail from numerous companies during the holidays. Therefore, it is essential that you make sure that you choose the right time for sending out your direct mails, or else you run the risk of wasting all the efforts you put into your direct mail marketing for criminal defense attorneys and law firms.

Conclusion

Direct mail marketing for lawyers and attorneys is an effective strategy for bringing in more prospective clients, and the fact that it is a time-tested strategy enhances its reliability. However, traditional direct mail can not keep up with digital era marketing techniques, and incorporating advanced tech can help you streamline direct mail marketing for law firms and lawyers. By using an advanced direct mail tool like PostGrid, you can verify the addresses for accurate delivery, have your postal mails printed and delivered to their destination with minimal to no error.