Looking at ways to jump into marketing can be overwhelming for a lawyer who mainly gets cases through tried and true referrals from lawyer friends and former clients. It doesn’t have to be!

My best advice is not to get all the way out of your lane with new marketing. Keep doing what already works (and do more of it) but allocate part of your marketing budget to the new endeavor. If you are looking to grow your practice and try something new, video is an excellent medium for reaching new potential clients.

Law firms can use videos on many different platforms, from their own websites to YouTube to Facebook video ads or even television commercials, just to name a few. Their function can range from biography videos to opinion documentaries to traditional ads and many more. (Litigators sometimes create “Day in the Life” videos or use videos to vividly tell a story at trial.) Videos can be carefully curated and filmed by a professional studio, all the way to a selfie iPhone video with a casual message as a lawyer jumps into her car after a court appearance. I have seen it all!

I will guide you through some of these options and share advice about what works best. I hope that you’ll come away with a much better idea what’s involved and how you might use video. It’s not as intimidating as many people think!

Ways to Streamline Your Practice with Video

Video is a great way to expand your reach, focus on a new practice area, or just bring in more of the same clients. But even if you’re not looking to do any of those things, video can help “weed out” the kinds of inquiries you don’t want and save time with those you do.

Frequently Asked Question videos can have a wonderful effect on your practice. If you spend time answering the same questions with too many inquiries that go no further, video (preferably you on-camera) on your “forward-facing” assets (your website or social media) prominently answering these questions (24/7!) is a wonderful way to simplify your practice.

You can also save time with “how-to” or “what-to-expect” videos. These videos will walk clients through your firm's specific approach. “What-to-expect” videos might include, “How to Dress for Court,” “Preparing for Your Deposition,” or “Understand How Long Before You Hear from the Judge.” You could have videos about how to fill out various documents or how to pay you.

Your potential clients know they need your expertise, but likely have only a very small notion about what you actually do. Even these streamlining videos will help them know and trust you in a new way and make you more approachable to people who need your help.

Here are some samples of video formats that may inspire you.

Choosing a Platform

I have directed, produced and placed videos for thousands of lawyers on all platforms. I’ve found that where you find your clients varies depending on your practice areas. Each practice area has its own business model because clients are in an entirely unique frame of mind depending on their particular need for your services.

For our digital healthcare lawyer, your potential clients will likely be referrals from other firms, LinkedIn and email marketing. Whereas, if you’re a social security disability lawyer, TV has been a great choice for my clients because that firm often wants an abundance of clients due to caps on what they can be paid. When a law firm needs lots of cases, utilizing many platforms at once tends to go well. But there’s no one place to find clients and sometimes what you think is the right place may end up producing “crickets.”

Research and Strategize for the Best Outcome

With just a little research you can tell how many people are searching for your practice area in your preferred geographical area. Start with the Google Keyword Adwords tool (if you don’t have a Google account, create one) and get an average of how many people are searching monthly and what the competition is for getting your clients.

If you are placing ads on a platform such as Facebook, set up a draft ad campaign to see what they offer by way of metrics in your demographics and geography.

Each platform and strategy has its own timing. If you are new to TV and resonate with that platform, get into it for the long haul. One TV spot won’t get you much. Before plunging in, consult a legal marketer to find out what your time frame needs to be and what to expect.

Here is more about why researching your practice area is crucial.

Save Money Wisely on Video

No matter what the platform or purpose of your video, I always recommend you have professionally made video unless there are special circumstances. I say this not just because I have produced thousands of professional law firm videos! I have seen mistakes made by lawyers all over the U.S. and Canada.

These mistakes often started with getting a kid to shoot with an iPhone. The content was horrible, starting with the script. The sound was reverby and far away. The lawyers looked scary, neglecting to use lighting correctly (or at all). The background was a mess. And worse than any of these more obvious problems is that the kid is neither your ideal client nor a marketer and doesn't know your audience. On top of that, the lawyers showed no empathy! If they did, even a badly produced video might actually speak to those who need help.

The other common mistake I’ve seen is lawyers hiring an expensive wedding videographer. This will create a beautiful video, but almost always misses the most important part: how to speak directly to your ideal clients with what resonates and gets them to act.

Now that I’ve painted a picture of what can go wrong without even mentioning post-production editing—which is about 90% of the work—let’s look at how to do it right!

Structuring a Successful Video Shoot for Your Law Practice

Success is truly not primarily about how much money you’re going to spend. It’s really about preparation, knowledge, and keeping your outcome in mind.

Start with Your Own Script

One of the biggest and most widespread mistakes I’ve seen is “copycat” lawyer marketing. If you have no budget or patience to test your ads, copying might get you some rate of return on your investment because some of the same elements might work—or they could send cases to the other law firms that are doing the same thing.

So be original. Think about your audience and who you want your clients to be. What do they need from you? What do they want to hear?

You as the Star

Most lawyers are better on camera than hired actors. Why? Because actors overact! They don’t appear authentic and don’t actually know much about what you do. From a marketing standpoint, my data shows that real attorneys get viewers to respond, whereas actors just don’t feel right to most people.

The Most Important Ingredient

No matter what your practice area, like any good relationship, be empathetic first.

Empathy is one of the most missed elements of law firm marketing. You need to put yourself in the shoes of the person who needs your help. Lawyers are quick to skip over empathy and reach into their vast experience to fix a problem. Lawyers are really good at fixing problems. But as anyone in a long-term relationship knows, you need to empathize first before you fix the problem or people tune out and usually end up not liking you very much.

Advice Builds Trust

Educate potential clients. Tell them something they can go out and use even if they never call you. If you are a plaintiff’s personal injury lawyer you could say something like, “After your accident, your own insurance company is thinking about protecting its shareholders and not just you. This may result in a lowball settlement.” Educating the viewer, especially with something helpful and unexpected, will build trust.

What should you say for your practice area? Think about the most common concerns people have when they come to you. Address them!

Presenting Yourself on Camera

Your video is likely going to represent your firm for years to come. Dress in professional attire. Be timeless, crisp and make sure your hair and/or makeup are not overdone. They should make you feel your best. Be rested! Film at your best time of day.

While your wardrobe is professional, you should be more casual, authentic and real. I find that the more relaxed you are the better. People have preconceived notions about attorneys that you want to dispel with your demeanor.

Shoot for Visual Storytelling

I film lawyers at my greenscreen studio here in Sausalito, California. The greenscreen is removed in post-production, placing the lawyers in a beautiful courtroom or office space. We then shoot on location. Being immersed in an interesting and relevant environment helps tell your story.

On one of my favorite shoots, I took personal injury lawyers (a law firm from Georgia, and then again with Virginia lawyers) to “Pick-n-Pull Cash for Junk Cars.” Pick-n-Pull is in the East Bay (Richmond). This place has acres of wonderfully junked cars and trucks that have been in accidents.

We filmed our lawyers inspecting passenger vehicles and trucks that had been totalled. This was very cinematic. But you should always be aware, before the days of everyone carrying a video camera on their cell phone, we needed permits to shoot. And you could be “shut down” if you don’t go through the proper channels, though you probably won’t be, depending on where you try to shoot.

Meeting Your Viewers for the First Time

It can be an odd feeling meeting a person who has been watching your videos. You might begin to tell them something and they already know because they’ve spent time with you! But this is something I hope you experience for yourself. It’s nice having your videos out there doing the heavy lifting! In fact, I built my own company with video. You can join nearly 5,000 lawyers who enjoy my weekly 1 to 2 minute TIP video about legal marketing and management by sharing your email address on any form on my website.

Finally, to leave you with one piece of advice, I can’t stress enough how important it is for you to represent your own practice on camera. No matter what you look like to yourself in pictures and video, when your potential clients find you helping them, you look beautiful.