If you are serious about building your practice, you could take a few lessons from the internet marketing gurus, who took a few lessons from direct marketers, who are the kings of marketing as far as I am concerned.

Almost any internet marketing guru can talk to you about the marketing funnel. Dedicated outside sales reps will talk about filling their funnel. what do they mean?

Because they could not advertise, these “Rainmakers” used the skills lawyers are trained to use, writing and speaking. This came naturally; those lawyers are trained to write, things like briefs and contracts, and to speak, especially when arguing a case.

Financial professionals, such as accountants, were not so lucky. Their college training focused on how to add and subtract. Harsh as it may seem, accounting rules are basically rules of when to add and when to subtract from one side of the ledger to the other.

There are clubs and organizations in your community who actively seek speakers for their meetings and community activities. Organizations like community colleges, the local SBDC (Small Business Development Center) and chambers of commerce all seek outside speakers to fill their programs.

If you can give a good presentation, then your time as a volunteer speaker to these clubs and organizations will return practice development dividends far in excess of any other marketing activity you do, with the possible exception of writing articles and books and getting published.

What are clients looking for? Determine what a prospects needs are, supply it and you’ll be successful, right? It’s what every sales manual you’ll ever see, that doesn’t cover the basics of Rainmaking skills, will try to tell you. Find a need and fill it. But, you’re in a profession, licensed or not, and what [...]