Adopting AI to Transform Your Law Firm

Find out how AI is reshaping law and the best legal AI tools to help you get started.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is disrupting almost every industry, including law. This is a broad term, but it’s the science of self-learning software. It takes over tasks traditionally done by humans. For example, here we used an AI tool to write a blog post about AI. (Ironic, isn’t it?)

There’s already a profound transformation happening. Research shows both clients and professionals want to move forward with automation.

1. 62% of consumers are willing to submit data to AI if it gives them a better experience 
2. 61% of professionals claim it boosts productivity 

The hype around AI is because of its subsets of machine learning and deep learning – a computing model inspired by the structure of our brains!    

So, what does AI mean for law firms?

Incoming associates and clients are thinking digital-first. That means:

1. Your customers don’t want to be numbered in a system. They’re looking for a unique personalized service. 
2. You can work smarter by relying on automation tools (more on this in the following sections).

How Law Firms Leverage AI

More law firms will invest in AI to save time, improve organization, and reduce the tedious process that is legal research. 

Law firms use AI for:

1. Mergers and acquisitions – Investing in all-in-one platforms that provide reports, documents, payments, etc. 
2. Legal procedures – Combining search terms to group and examine papers, locating ‘the needle in the haystack.’ 
3. Contract reorganizing – Locating, examining, and grouping contracts
4. Legal document analysis – E.g., reviewing documents for discoverability

The 2 Main Challenges Behind AI for Law Firms

It can’t go without saying AI is a mirror to humanity, revealing some flaws. Because AI tends to “think” the way it’s been taught, some studies show there are some biased outputs related to race, biological sex, nationality, and age.

We’ll start by saying: AI can help facilitate processes but it should not take on the entire human experience, especially human judgment. Some institutes like AI Now are pushing for regulations, especially around sensitive areas like criminal justice and healthcare. 

The Best Legal AI Tools To Grow Your Firm In 2023:

1. Review Contracts Faster With Lawgeex 

 Lawgeex is a contract review automation tool. According to its statistics, firms save 80% of the time previously required when reviewing and approving contracts. 

In a nutshell, their AI is pre-trained and understands over 1500 legal concepts, and uses that to analyze the contextual meaning behind contracts. See it in action:

 

2. Improve the Discovery Process With CS Disco Ediscovery 

Lawyers going through the discovery process can leverage AI tools like CS Disco Ediscovery.

 

Their studies show firms can reduce by 50% reduction their document population size. With it, you can: 

• Save time 
• Locate evidence faster
• Perform effective early case assessment
• Easily move documents between spaces
• Streamline production (A million-page production can run in as few as 25 minutes.)

 

3. Expedite the Legal Research Process with Westlaw Edge  

Westlaw Edge is an AI-powered legal research tool, from document analysis to overruling risks, litigation analytics, etc. You can check out the different price tiers and features here.

4. Predict Legal Outcomes With Lex Machina 

Lex Machina, a legal analytics tool, solves issues related to unstructured and complex legal datasets, specifically for the litigation space. 

Their most appealing benefit is predicting legal outcomes. Here’s one example: 

• If you need to persuade a judge to grant a transfer of venue, you can check on the trends for all of their transfer orders in prior cases.

They’ve also launched Appellate Analytics, legal analytics for federal courts of appeals. It provides an end-to-end overview of the litigation status (from trial through appeal), thus allowing professionals to evaluate outcomes better. Here’s a sample overview:

5. Find On-Point Cases and Briefs with CARA

According to their study, attorneys using CARA, Case Analysis Research Assistant, save around 210 hours of research time.

It can help you: 

• Find on-point cases in your jurisdiction 
• Find briefs related to the brief you’re researching
• Check on drafts for missing texts
• Find cases opposing counsel missed, etc.

CARA searches legal papers, statutory provisions, viewpoints, and editorials using a proprietary algorithm, allowing lawyers to investigate more proficiently without worrying about missing ideal cases. Like this:  

6. Leveraging OpenAI’s Most Popular Offering: ChatGDT 

One of the biggest legal marketing trends in 2023 is ChatGDT, a trained model powered by OpenAI. It is by far the best AI chatbot ever created. It can write cover letters, blogs, and perform various natural language tasks. You name it, you have it!

Check out this viral Tweet showing the tool’s capabilities:  

Takeaway 

It is an exciting time for law firms looking to experiment and scale up. In the following months and years, we’ll see more firms pushing tech-enabled scalability with the help of AI tools and digital experts. 

We hope this serves as a starting point. But what’s next? If you’d like to look into digital assets, discover new growth strategies, and ask more questions, let’s have a chat.

 

 

 

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Legal Marketing Trends & Predictions 2023

Don’t press pause on your business strategies in 2023 Find your Legal Marketing Trends & Predictions for 2023 here. (Trust us, you’ll want this – it includes tips and FREE strategies!) 

Despite the long-term consequences of the pandemic, disruptions brought on by political tensions, and economic uncertainty, there’s no doubt that 2023 will be a boom year for digital marketing experimentation and evolution, and we’d love to help you prepare.

You’ll find the top legal marketing trends in the guideline, but here’s a sneak peek:

1. Law firms must take a number of measures to:

• Increase efficiency
• Maximize profits 
• Nurture and protect their client-centered service(s) 

 

1. Law firms will seek sustainable solutions for issues related to: 

• Achieving growth in an unstable macro environment 

• Competing for top talent
• Developing hybrid work models 
• Rising costs due to inflationary pressure

 

1. More law firms will rely on sustainable solutions like: 

• Investing in highly skilled staff 
• Outsourcing with the help of a law firm marketing agency 
• Maximizing digital tech and marketing investments 
• Shifting from opportunistic to strategic growth thinking 

 

Let’s move forward together.

Show Me the 2023 Legal Marketing Trends & Predictions  

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The Best Ways for Law Firms to Generate More Business

The business of law is slowly but surely shifting from a labor-intensive to a tech-driven workforce…and this is an excellent thing for law firms! Discover the best ways to secure your lead pipeline and generate more business here.

The smartest firms are trying to find ways to remain recession resistant. A new study by law.com also saw the country’s top firms gearing up for a different kind of tech-driven work with the help of M&A involving technologies like blockchain and Web 3.0. 

By now, you may be asking yourself, ‘what does that even mean?’ We’ve covered everything law firms need to know about Web 3.0 here. But in short, this means more firms are beginning to invest in technology that will facilitate their entire business process, one of those processes being the lead generation strategy. 

The lead generation strategy for law firms is to attract possible clients (prospects). Typically, this involves a mix of various sources like SEO, PPC, social media marketing, etc., driving traffic and pushing that traffic down your sales funnel.

Before diving into the lead generation strategy, let’s quickly look at the concept behind leads.

Securing the Leads = Securing the Sales Pipeline 

Leads are those found in the middle of your sales funnel:

Getting a stranger to shift into a lead takes time and effort, but when done right, it’s rewarding! Since leads are at a critical stage of your sales funnel, you want to nurture them to convert them to customers and promoters.

You can expect 2 types of leads:

1. Qualified leads – a prospect that matches your ideal client profile (needs, budget, legal services, etc.)
2. Unqualified leads – a prospect that does not match your ideal client profile.

It’s worth noting that attracting both types of leads is normal. (As you grow, you’ll learn which strategies work to attract qualified leads, and you’ll be able to replicate that.)

When done right, you can expect the following:   

Now that you’ve wrapped your head around this concept, let’s dive into the strategy..

The Best Lead Generation Strategies for Law Firms

The following are 5 solutions that law firms of all sizes and practice areas can use: 

1. Optimize your web page layouts for conversion 

Your website is like your home, and you want cases coming in through your doors, which is why the first thing is to have a website optimized to convert leads.

We could list hundreds of ways you can optimize your pages, but here are some ideas:

• Use simple language, avoid legalese and legal jargon 
• Keep the copy visually appealing by adding bullets….like this!
• Add a mix of images and videos 
• Add call-to-actions 
• Above all, provide value 

If you want, you can go deeper and improve the page speed. This is critical and often overlooked by many, but the first five seconds of page-load time has the highest impact on conversion rates! Here’s a free manual that’ll help out:

Download My Page Speed Strategy

2. Leverage the power behind CTAs

CTAs, call-to-actions, prompt user action, and while this seems like a small step, it can make the most significant difference in your marketing strategy: from campaigns, emails, blogs, to videos and contact forms. 

Once a user lands on a specific page, you want them to take action, e.g., download, call, book, schedule, etc. To help you get started, here are some of the best power words:

• Free
• Download
• You
• Easy 
• Best 
• Now 
• Exclusive 
• Proven 
• Expert / Insider

3. Set up an Agile Digital Advertising Strategy

Besides optimizing your website, one of the quickest ways to boost lead generation is through the Agile Digital Advertising approach at Consultwebs. It has proven to be quite successful for firms because it involves:

1. Setting up multiple campaigns on multiple ad platforms.
2. Using your advertising money in the smartest way by shifting strategies and funds where trends and data suggest your firm gets the best results.

While no two firms are alike, you can get an instant ticket to the top of Google through Google Ads and LSAs, local services ads. Like this:

Taking a closer look at the case of the personal injury and bankruptcy firm Amourgis & Associates shows how the combined efforts of SEO and LSAs boost their bottom line. 

• The firm’s cost per lead decreases over time 
• The firm’s number of leads increases over time 

Read the Rest of the Case Here 

4. Update Ads With the Best Keyword Strategy 

With Google Ads, you’ll instantly place your firm in front of prospects searching for solutions. You can add a keyword intention to your ad texts to boost your chances of being found and chosen.

Keyword intention uses keywords in your ads to connect with people searching for what you offer. 

Let’s say you’re a personal injury firm advertising accidents and injuries. You could add a keyword insertion code like {KeyWord: Accidents}, and Google will then replace this code with one of your other keywords in the ad group, for example: 

• Slip and fall accident 
• Car Accident 
• Construction accident 

5. Offer a FREE Consultation 

There’s a reason the word free is so powerful – people love free stuff!

The reality is that most of your website traffic won’t convert on their first visit, but with consistent marketing, they’ll keep you on top of mind when and if the time comes. 

Free consultations can add excellent value upfront. Here’s an example from the firm Amourgis & Associates:

Takeaway 

The most profitable and recession-resistant law firms are securing the lead pipeline. But, to attract and nurture leads, you’ll need to upgrade your monthly lead generation strategy consistently. 

If you’d like to leave all of this in the hands of experts or want to find out more – schedule a 1-1, and we’ll answer all your questions. 

 

 

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Last-Minute Holiday Marketing Ideas for Law Firms

In need of last-minute creative marketing ideas? We’ll show you the top 6 ways your law firm can give back this holiday season.

It seems like the holidays sneak up on us every year and leave us feeling stressed and behind schedule. At such a busy time of year, a holiday marketing strategy for your law firm may not have crossed your mind. But don’t despair, there is still time to plan a promotion while spreading some holiday cheer. 

So, why now? 

People who are in the holiday spirit are more likely to invest their time and money, which paves the way for::

• Increased traffic to your website 
• Additional interactions/followers 
• Brand exposure 
• Relationship building

 

Whether you’re looking to build on relationships, increase followers, or all of the above, we encourage you to set realistic goals, such as increasing the number of Instagram likes by 10+ interactions, nurturing 1-2 referral relationships, etc.

With the goals in mind you can: 

• Determine what you need to do to get started 
• Achieve the expectations you have for your campaign
• Help measure your success 

With that said, let’s dive in.

The Top 6 Law Firm Holiday Marketing and Branding Ideas 

1. Run a Contest

During this time of year, people actively purchase gifts for loved ones, friends, daycare providers, teachers, colleagues, and more. Giving people the opportunity to win something they could use as a gift will often inspire them to take time out of their day to enter a contest, leading additional traffic to your website or social accounts and increasing followers.

Contest prizes can range in a variety of types and values, such as: 

• Scholarship
• Gift card  
• Tickets to a local sporting event 
• Cash prizes

Take advantage of your website by adding the contest information to a landing page.  

• If applicable, utilize local avenues that could publish your contest information to increase reach. 
• Partner with your voluntary bar association. 

 

 

Find Out Why Voluntary Bar Associations Are Great for your Law Firm

2. Sponsor Drives

When you sponsor a drive, you’re supporting a good cause and creating positive publicity and brand recognition among potential clients and local organizers.

The type of drive that you run will determine which organizations you reach out to.

A few examples of drives can include: 

• Toy drives
• Food drives
• Clothing drives
• Fund drives, while matching donations 

We’ve covered more ways law firms can give back to their community here.

 

3. Add Promotional Freebies

This type of campaign typically requires more planning but carries big potential for great results. 

Law firms have many great options for promotions and giveaways. Some examples could be: 

• Free taxi rides home (within a certain distance) 
• Uber codes for safe rides home
• Coupons or a percentage off of a good or service 

Putting specific parameters for users to qualify for the promotion or giveaway will help ensure that you see some return on investment. The parameters could include the following: 

• Linking your social accounts 
• Tagging 2-3 people in the comments 
• Sharing the post on social stories and tagging your firm
• Adding a link to the promotion on their blog or website
  

4. Create Your Charity Event

Giving back to your community is just as important as growing your business. 

While there are several charities you can focus on, decide on something that speaks to you and your firm. Take the case of Fine, Farkash & Parlapiano, P.A., a personal injury firm that endowed 2 permanent scholarships to honor the victims of two wrongful death cases.

Firms can develop a unique approach to branding through niche social responsibility campaigns like the one Fine, Farkash & Parlapiano, P.A. has.

 

Discover How Firms Leverage Social Responsibility Campaigns 

5. Take Time to Celebrate Referral Relationships 

Like any business, the business of law is about people. 

You can do more than send your referral partners a holiday card that will potentially go unread. Please take this time to acknowledge your top referral sources. For example, a face-to-face meeting or dinner can strengthen these valuable relationships. 

On this note, you can also….

Take Care of Attorney Referrals 

Perhaps some small firms and solo practitioners have an abundance of caseloads during this holiday season, and their staff might want to take time off. If you know of a case and have the capacity, the holidays can be a great time to market your referral program and handle cases on behalf of others.

 

6. Host a Holiday Promotion

We’ll steer away from saying you should offer discounts as this may change a client’s perception of a firm’s rate. However, you can offer a fee relief!  

Offering a fee relief helps your clients with short-term struggles but still maintains the integrity of your rates. Thomson Reuters states, “Bringing forward ideas like fee relief or fixed fees allows a law firm to provide much-needed assistance to clients, but on the firm’s terms.”

 

Takeaway 

The holidays are a time to be thankful, express our gratitude, and ultimately sparkle with joy (with a few shameless branding plugins). 

Many businesses investing in marketing capitalize on these efforts throughout the year and if you’d like some help with this, we’re here.

 

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How Law Firms Can Use Video Marketing to Win More Clients

If you’re looking to incorporate video into your business strategy, you’re making a smart move. However, if you’re still on the fence, then this post is for you. Psst…you’ll also find a FREE video strategy checklist! Did you know that research finds that video has an online usage reach of over 90%? And the number of video viewers keeps on rising every year. 

So, what does this mean for your firm? 

Whether it’s a 15-second video ad or a compilation, video marketing is one of the most effective ways you can capture your audience’s attention. Attention not only paves the way to being remembered, but it also has the power to pull prospects in, and ultimately that means more money, calls, and cases. 

We don’t have to look far to see that this is true. Simply consider the number of videos you consume daily. Whether it’s 10 minutes or 6 hours, the reality is that most of us consume videos daily, and so does your audience.

Let’s quickly look at what video marketing for law firms means and some of the best practices to help you get started. 

 

Video Marketing: Your Firm’s Ticket to Better Leads, Sales & Relationships 

Video is your ticket to better leads, sales, and relationships. While you may see some success with traditional marketing, consider the leads you’re leaving up for grabs when you don’t implement videos. 

In our LAWsome podcast, we’ve discussed how you can amplify your firm’s messaging strategy with video marketing. 

But to briefly recap, video works because it provides extra value to your clients, and like all marketing, providing value is critical. Besides that, videos can help you: 

• Create immersive experiences 
• Strengthen your brand and personal connections 
• Improve your SEO (It drives more traffic, and Google ranks traffic and click-throughs as major ranking factors.)
• Keep users interested for longer
• Recycle content between multiple platforms 

And we could go on, but let’s quickly show you what we can do for you.

Scan the QR below to watch a 6-second video mockup for a personal injury firm: 

 

There’s more to it than meets the eye! If you’d like more information on our video bundles, add-ons, etc. feel free to schedule a 1-1 with our Senior Marketing Advisor here.  

Get Started With Proven Video Marketing Tactics

Whether you have a team in-house or want to rely on an agency, you need to ensure your video strategy is successful. This means looking into aspects like budget and time as well as: 

• What kind of video content should your firm focus on? 
• Where should the videos be published?
• How can you assure your video’s top quality?

 

To help tackle each of these critical aspects, let’s look at: 

1. Things to consider when producing a video 
2. Video content creation 
3. Where to post the video
4. A FREE printable checklist to start planning your firm’s video strategy today!

Things to Consider When Producing Videos 

There are quite a few factors you need to think about prior to the actual production and editing of videos, including: 

• Camera: There’s no one right answer here. The video equipment that’s best for you should be based on quality and your budget. Schedule a 1-1 with us and we’ll give you some suggestions to get started.
• Lighting: Make sure the room is well lit and isn’t backlit.
• Sound: Besides needing a mic, you’ll need to make sure the location is quiet. Also, make sure you articulate clearly and speak loudly. 
• Editing: This is the second half of a video strategy, and it’s a necessity as no one is likely shooting a perfect video in one take. But for starters, try to shoot in shorter lengths and then grab and cut the best shots.

Video Content Creation 

Most people outside the law don’t know the legal process, so you’ll want to provide reassurance and answers before a client comes through your doors. Thus, FAQs come in handy. They can help pretty much anyone in your sales funnel, from those just beginning to explore to those moving through the evaluation process. 

 

Here are some questions you may cover: 

• What cases does your firm handle?/ What’s your specialty?
• What are the fees and costs? How are they billed?
• How do I know if I have a possible case?
• How will I be informed about my case’s progress?
• Where are you located?
• Have you handled cases related to _____?
• Why did you go into law in the first place?
• What differentiates you from your competition? Why are you the best?

Where Your Firm Can Post Videos 

The beauty of videos is that they are a great asset for content recycling. To help you, here are the top 3 places we recommend you post: 

1. Your website: No matter where else you post your videos, they should always live on your website. 

• Social media platforms

1. 1. Facebook and Instagram: They’re technically owned channels, so you can cross-post between platforms. 
   2. TikTok: With over 1 billion active users, there’s no doubt firms should take advantage of the TikTok market.
   3. YouTube: There’s no better place to post videos than this video-specific platform.
   4. LinkedIn: LinkedIn prioritizes videos, which is why it may come as no surprise that LinkedIn videos get 5X more engagement! 
   5. Your emails: The people in your email list(s) are further down the sales funnel, and this is an excellent opportunity to nurture those leads with videos.

2.Avvo: By adding videos in Avvo you’re providing prospects a strong reason to contact and hire you versus the competition.

Your FREE Printable Video Strategy!

If you have made it this far, congratulations! Here’s a gift for you:

 

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