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Posted on November 2, 2022
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Mark Metzger is an attorney, law firm owner, and my good friend. He started out working for a huge law firm in Chicago and went out on his own in early 2006.  When he first began his solo practice, it was just him and his computer. However, in less than seven years, Mark grew his practice tenfold.  I recently had the opportunity to sit down with Mark and he shared the strategies that allowed him to grow his law firm so exponentially. Let’s dive into the three changes you can make to grow your law firm. Hire Strategically The first thing you need to do to start seeing amazing growth in your firm is hire help. The ironic thing is that most solo practitioners have so much work on their desks that they could probably hire multiple people to help them out. They're just terrified to do it. They don't know how to pay for it and they don't know whether they should pay for it. Additionally, everybody wants revenue first. Nobody wants to invest in capacity first. We say things like, “Just give me the money, and then I'll hire somebody.” However, it doesn't work that way. You have to hire to create capacity. The...

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Posted on October 27, 2022
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If you answered "yes" - you are not alone. Time management is one of the four business skills that support growth and profitability in your law practice. To support the growth of your firm, this skill must grow and evolve with the size of your practice. Part of evolving, is working "in" your law practice and not "on" the law practice. Some of the more powerful time management skills include the power hour, planning your day, and handling interruptions. The power hour can have a huge impact on every aspect of your practice. It is a 60 minute block of time per day - without distractions - where you focus specifically on production. This allows you to get things done without interruptions. The best way to do this is to prepare your team with a script ahead of time so that both your clients and staff understand the process and when you are available. By preparing this ahead of time, you will be surprised at how many "urgent" items, aren't as urgent as they seem. Protect your power hour so there are no distractions, write it down so you make the time to do it, and don't respond to emails or phone calls...

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Posted on October 6, 2022
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You may have heard about "visual storytelling" before - but how and what does it have to do with your law practice? Visual storytelling is a clear and visual description of stories, beliefs or ideas that are shown through emotions and insights. Storytelling your business is one of the most effective marketing tools. Through storytelling, you are connecting with past, present and future clients by visually telling them a story or experience to build trust and rapport. Trust can lead to consultations, free trials, referrals, and even becoming a client. The practice of law is the business of persuasion, and storytelling is the most effective means of persuading. A credible lawyer capable of telling a well-reasoned story that moves the listener will always beat the lawyer who cannot. Before you can tell your story, you will want to consider the following: - Who your target audience is and their challenges so you can relate to them in a way that is meaningful - Discover something that is unique to you and your firm - why would they want to choose you over another law firm? - Think about a meaningful experience that you can share and pass on to prospects, clients, or past clients - Collect testimonials...

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Posted on October 4, 2022
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As an attorney and law firm owner, how are you preparing for the holidays? The past few years have shown us that unforeseen circumstances can have a huge impact on your law practice - including: Shipping Costs Inflation Increased Production Time Labor Shortages With that being said, it's important that you start working on your holiday marketing sooner - rather than later. So what are some things you can do now to help with your holiday marketing? Hire an assistant - an assistant can help with choosing and creating holiday cards, schedule a holiday party or event, help with additional holiday budgets and advertising, and they can also fill in so you can take some time off during the holiday season Set new goals - set boundaries, re-evaluate your current goals, pivot if you need to and make the remainder of 2022 as successful as possible Send out holiday cards - if you are going to send out holiday cards, we recommend that you start working on them now. Give yourself plenty of time to customize the card and order them in a timely manner Plan for a holiday party or event - if you are going to plan a holiday party...

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Posted on September 29, 2022
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Why is it crucial to build a great life? Can’t you just give your all to building your practice, make a lot of money, and be content with that? No. That is the biggest lie and the most fatal mistake I see lawyers making.  This is exactly why I started my podcast, Great Practice, Great Life. I created the show I wish I had when I started my practice, one that explains why you need to work on creating a great life and how to begin. Today I want to take some time to dive a little bit deeper into why I started my podcast and what I hope to get out of it. I’ll also tell you more about what you can expect if you tune in and what you will get out of it. Finally, I’ll give you three challenges that will help you get started in building a great life and a great law practice. My Motivations I decided to start a podcast because I’m a lifetime learner. I love to read, explore different countries, and learn new things. When I learn new things, I like to share them. Additionally, I know some really interesting people who have been tremendously successful. I figure,...

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Posted on August 29, 2022
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As a very reserved, introverted person (with a speech impediment to boot), I’m not the likely candidate to start a podcast. I was questioned a lot as I began the journey of launching Great Practice.  However, I have a message I want to share with the world and, more specifically, with my fellow lawyers. This message gives me a driving passion that helps me overcome my limitations and get out into the public sphere to share it. What is that message? If you’re focused on building a great practice but neglect your real life, you will never know true success.  We need to build a great practice and a great life at the same time–in other words, life in practice. That’s what my podcast is going to be all about.    My Background How did I get my start in the legal field, anyway? Let me tell you a little about my first experience as an attorney. I was fresh out of college and unemployed when a firm in Tampa, Florida hired me. They offered me a job which I gratefully took. My starting salary was less than the receptionist. It was a chaotic first couple years of my career. They required me to work on Sundays for...

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Posted on August 23, 2022
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Would you believe us if we said that, as of this year, Instagram has 1 billion users? Instagram is a place where law practices can share about their business, provide personal stories, reviews and updates. It is also a place where past, present and future clients can learn more about your business through photos and videos. It is a powerful platform for lawyers looking to increase visibility and awareness and connect with prospective clients, peers, and other firms. LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook are often regarded as the best social media tools to attract clients, but law firms are now starting to see the value of Instagram. Hashtags are often used for specific search results and location can be turned on so potential clients can find your services easier. More than 200 million users visit at least one business account on the platform every day. Meanwhile, 81 percent of users have used Instagram to research products and services. So, how do you go about creating a business Instagram account for your law practice? Sign up for a free Instagram account HERE Fill out your email address, name, and create a username that is relevant to your practice and consistent with other social media platforms you may...

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Posted on August 3, 2022
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Creating a LinkedIn business page for your law practice is an important element in establishing trust and credibility. It is a powerful platform to promote your services, find top-quality job candidates, connect with your audience and make it easy for your clients to find you. "As of today, more than 830 million people and more than 58 million companies are on LinkedIn." According to ABA Legal Profile, 77% of lawyers personally use or maintain a presence on social media for professional reasons. The most popular social media platforms include: LinkedIn (88%) Facebook (39%) Twitter (23%) Martindale (15%) Avvo (14%) Instagram (13%) If you still aren't sold on LinkedIn, this platform can also increase searchability. When someone searches for your business in Google, your LinkedIn account can pull up. Your account can link to your website, a blog post, and you can share articles with keywords to help build credibility and awareness. You can also use this platform to educate clients about your business. "LinkedIn helps you create an environment of thriving professional legal connections, with minimal financial investment." So how do you go about creating a LinkedIn Business page for your law practice? Log in to your personal LinkedIn account Click on the "Work" tab in the top right corner Click...

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Posted on July 27, 2022
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If you are experiencing high-pressure, high-demand, never-ending emails, back-to-back meetings, working more than 50 hours (minimum) on a weekly basis, you are most likely susceptible to lawyer burnout. Lawyer burnout is a real issue that occurs more often than we think. "Recent studies have shown that 64% of attorneys have anxiety, 31.​2% feel depressed, 10.​1% feel they have an alcohol problem, and 2.​8% feel they have a drug problem." According to the Attorney Workload and Hours Survey by Bloomberg Law in 2021, lawyers are less satisfied at work and felt burned out more than half of the time. The survey also noted that lawyers worked an average of 53 hours per week - and 80 hours on their busiest week. Mental health and work related issues can include: Disrupted sleep, anxiety, depression, personal relationships, and health issues. The pandemic heightened this issue and brought to surface the disparity between a lawyer's work life and a non-existent personal life. So how do we go about fixing this? 1. Plan ahead - Planning ahead and knowing what is coming up can help reduce stress. When you are planning your week, we recommend planning for family events first. In theory, this is easier said than done, but...

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Posted on July 15, 2022
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Have you ever received an email from Netflix, Amazon, Paypal or a familiar company that shows that you made a transaction for $3,585.​58 that you didn't make? Phishing, or hacking, is unfortunately very common and so many people fall victim. According to Proofpoint’s 2022 State of the Phish Report, 83% of organisations fell victim to a phishing attack last year. According to the FBI, businesses lost $2.​4 billion in 2021 to Business Email Compromise (BEC) scams. This is a large, but very common, issue that can cost businesses thousands of dollars. So, how do we differentiate a real email from a phishing or malware email? 1. Look at the senders email address - Hackers do a great job of mimicking the company name, logo, header, and footer, and making the email look like it's from a specific company. When you receive these emails, look at the senders email address - if it isn't straight from the company itself, it may be spam. Sometimes the sender has an email with a combination of letters and numbers instead of a company email. Also, if the email contains gmail.​com or yahoo.​com instead of a business name, it could also be spam. 2. Look for misspellings and punctuation errors...

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