be that lawyer: niche practice for lawyers
DESCRIPTION
A presentation on niche law practice.TRANSCRIPT
Be That Lawyer!
Make your firm memorable with a niche practice.Carolyn Elefant, MyShingle.com
In a competitive marketplace, how are you going to stand out from the crowd?
Spam?
TV Ads?Billboards?
Cheap Lawyer for
Hire
niche
--a place or position suitable or appropriate for a person or thing
A niche can be…A geographic segment of the market
A demographic segment of the market
A subset of an existing substantive practice
A means of delivering services (e.g., unbundled legal services)
A niche must be…
Unique
Specialized
Memorable!
Some examples found online….
A niche is not…Bargain basement rates!
Reasonable doubt at a reasonable price!
“The lawyer who returns phone calls!”
Bad business model
Slogan
What lawyers should do!
Why a niche?
Niches are delicious….easy roll out, low cost.
(Inc., 5/20/10
Target Your Audienceashington DC
CompetitionNiche
Riches in Niches
If you're the best in the world, the market cares. The secret, if you have limited resources (don't we all) is to make 'world' small enough that you can actually accomplish that.
--Seth Godin, The Dip
Holy purple cow, brother! A store with only cupcakes!
I hear ya, Brother!
I’m drooling!
Niches ignite, excite & delight - both lawyers & clients
Isn’t a niche going to be too limited?
Small % of revenue, but shines a light on your entire practice
Aren’t all of the good niches taken?
Motifake.com
Examples of Niche Practices NOT Found Online….
• Social media in the workplace lawyer
• Single mothers by choice lawyer
• Estate planning for single parents
• “Cloud” law• Outside counsel for solo &
small law firms• Lawyers representing the
[XXX] cultural community• Outsourcing to India• Virtual law practice for the
military
• Lawyer for home based businesses
• Criminal defense of computer based crimes
• Medical malpractice in women’s health
• Negotiation of electronic rights for book authors & freelancers
• Bully law - victims & accused
• Blogger lawyers• Family law for domestic
partners
4 Steps to a Quick Niche
Practice
Step 1:
Which Niche?
Considerations for Choosing a Niche
*Personal interest
*% of time desired to devote to niche
*Existing contacts within niche area
*Substantive capabilities - existing or ability to procure.
*Ability to re-purpose existing capabilities (if adding a niche)
*Geographic capabilities
Step 2:
What’s the Itch for the
Niche?
Resources for Figuring Out the Demand for a Niche
*Google trends, www.google.com/trends
*Census data, www.census.gov
*Chamber of Commerce information
*Twitter.com/search
*Pewresearch.com
*Trendspotting.com/blog
*Slideshare.net
*Speak with colleagues
Step 3:
When To Switch to the
Niche?
Different Approaches….
Will it be a transition to a full niche - or just a partial practice niche?
Do you want to grow into the niche gradually?
Do you want to formally launch the niche? (if so, don’t do it in summer!)
Step 4:
How to Pitch the Niche
Marketing your niche practice
Notify existing clients
Identify tradeshows or trade press
Participate in niche specific listservs and social media communities
Create an ebook for niche specific practice
Online webinars and video
Local cable TV?
Respond to HARO requests or contact the media yourelf
Start a blog & purchase niche-specific names
If local niche, explore Google Local, FourSquare and other local search engines
Collaborate with other lawyers in the niche who don’t compete
Step 5:
Ethics and the Niche
Ethics Issues With Niche Practice
Caution about advertising as a “specialist”
In niche practice of national scope, watch out for UPL issues
In niche that may involve non-lawyers, be attentive to rules on fee-splitting and referral fees