Are you thinking about starting a podcast for your law firm, but aren’t sure how to do it?
Let me tell you my story.
This week, a big winter storm blew through the Southeast United States with snow and freezing rain. My law office was shut down for almost three days. Appointments cancelled, revenue lost. I would be lying if I didn’t say that the entire situation stressed me out.
I spent the week working from home. At one point we lost power for 4-5 hours. It really sucked.
But one good thing came out of this time I spent alone in my home office…
I started a podcast for my law firm.
If you want to find out how I did it, enter your name and email below:
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I’m so excited about the launch of this podcast that I want to share with you how and why I did it – so that you can do it too.
First things first… Do you even know what a podcast is?
Here’s a quick and dirty definition for you.
A podcast is nothing more than an audio file that is uploaded to the internet for the whole world to listen to.
Sounds simple, right? It really is that easy.
Are you interested in dramatically improving your income, growing your practice, all while working with only the most desirable and profitable clients? The information on this page will teach you how to use podcasting to leverage your time more efficiently so that you can spend more time doing only what you love. I was first introduced to podcasting in mid-2013 and it has completely revolutionized and changed my law practice for the better.
You are already starting to think of excuses for why podcasting won’t work for you – you are a lawyer after-all.
Here are the common objections I get from lawyers thinking about starting a podcast.
- It’s too complicated. (It’s really not).
- It will take too much time. (Much of the work can be easily delegated).
- I don’t have the right equipment. (Actually, you probably do).
- This will cost me an arm and a leg. (You can get up and running for less than $50).
- It must violate some ethics rule. (It won’t).
So stop yourself right there. Let me share with you why you need to make the decision to start a podcast for your law firm right now, and how you can do it in the next 90 days.
6 reasons you absolutely, positively, MUST start a podcast in the next 90 days:
1. No other lawyers are podcasting right now.
This isn’t a joke. If you go onto iTunes or Stitcher radio and do a search for the vanity keywords that a potential client of yours would use, what do you find? It’s ok, I’ll wait.
I did a search for “North Carolina Divorce”, and only one podcast came up (I haven’t submitted mine to iTunes… yet). It was called “Civil War Talk Radio”. I’m not kidding. Here is the screen shot…
This is the competition I face for my new law firm podcast…
Now go over to Google and do the same search. For “North Carolina Divorce” I received 57 million results.
Right now, there are 450 million active English Blogs. If you are doing the math, that is one blog for every 6 people alive on the planet today. And video, which is still being touted as the “next big thing”, is quickly becoming over-saturated as well. There are 100 hours of video uploaded to YouTube every minute, which comes to 4 million hours per month.
By comparison, there are ONLY 225,000 podcasts in existence today*, and most of them are horrible. Better yet, I’m guessing that not a single other lawyer in your local area has created a podcast yet*.
So it may appear obvious to you at this point, but you can be a big fish in a small pond with an audio podcast. This is the easiest place to go with your message to quickly become a sought-after expert in your practice area.
2. Everyone has a smart phone.
There were days when this statement wasn’t true. But not anymore – now everyone I know has a smart phone, and every single one of them has the ability to subscribe to your podcast, for free.
Most podcasts are consumed on a smart phone. It used to be that if you wanted to listen to a podcast, you had to first know what one was, then you would have to download the audio file from the internet and listen to it on your computer. Now, however, there are free apps that you can use to automatically download new episodes to your phone as soon as they become available.
In other words, with the advent of the smart phone, podcasting is poised to go mainstream.
3. You don’t have to watch a podcast.
Because you don’t need a screen to watch a podcast, you can do other things while listening to a podcast. With video, because it commands your undivided attention, people will only spend a very short period of time watching you. If you don’t capture their attention immediately, they will turn you off. With podcasts, however, no screen time is required, so you end up with a much more captive and engaged audience.
In addition, it is estimated that approximately 97 million people drive to work everyday, alone. In addition, people go out to walk the dog, go for a jog, etc., all by themselves. In other words, people can say “yes” to listening to your podcast without saying no to something else they are doing or want to do.
4. You will stand out from your competition.
On an audio podcast, you can convey more of “who you are” than with a written blog. When people listen to a podcast, they typically do so with ear buds, in stereo, or with bluetooth in their car. The average podcast subscriber will listen to your podcast for 20-60 minutes, and will subscribe to multiple episodes. Your subscribers will come to know, like and trust you so much so that you become part of their weekly listening routine. In other words, not only will you provide these people with great information, but you can also have a great influence on your listeners and you will have the opportunity to positively change their lives.
5. Connect with experts, mentors, and referral sources.
One of the best ways to build a law practice is through referral relationships. A podcast makes this extremely easy to do because it gives you an opening to reach out to potential referral sources and provide something of value to them – a podium to tell their story. This in turn provides additional value to your clients and the potential clients who subscribe to your podcast. You can use a podcast to seek out and connect with people who you would not otherwise be able to connect to.
And I’m not just talking on a local level, you can reach out to big contacts on a national level and bring them into your world to help your listeners. Nine out of ten times they will happily accept your invitation to be a part of your podcast, when they otherwise wouldn’t even take your call. You will get credibility by association. I can’t overstate how big this is.
6. Building relationships around the clock.
Clients want to work with a lawyer that they know, like and trust. A podcast is one of the best ways to build this rapport and trust. People you have never met will come into initial meetings with you feeling like you are already their lawyer. The sales process will become much easier, because you have already sold them, through your podcast.
If someone calls your office looking for free legal advice or a free consultation, you don’t have to turn them away – you can simply direct them to your podcast, where they can get all the free content they want.
Are you convinced yet?
I sure hope so. And I want to help you along your journey to start a podcast for your law firm in the next 90 days. I recently launched a podcast for my own law firm, and I want to share with you all the details about how I did it and how it is working for me in my law practice. Just fill-out the form below and I will send you periodic updates and tips about how to build a podcast for your law firm. In addition, I’m working on an e-book that outlines the process. I will send you a copy as soon as it is finished.
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