Sunday, March 28, 2010

Nolo.com Advertising. Is it Worth It? A Review.

As you know, I'm constantly on the lookout for ways to market my law firm. If you've never started a law firm before, you probably don't think about it that much, but getting people to pick up the phone and call you when they need you is the most important thing there is. Great attorneys aren't great unless they have someone to help, right?

So, I got a call the other day from a representative at nolo.com. They acted as if I should know who they are and that they are all over the place. Honestly, I didn't really know much about them. But, to me, it didn't make much of a difference. I still took the time to listen to what they had to say to see if they could help me at all. I think most people hang up. I listen. Most of the time I say no. Sometimes I say yes (and then I let you know about it!).

What they offer is a kind of personal profile on their site. And, though I signed up a couple of weeks ago, I remember that an attractive aspect of the site was that there were a limited number of attorneys in the space, and that you had the ability to build out your own profile, which was quite extensive. In addition to that within your profile you get to create 25 links and point them wherever you want. As you know, I love links, so this is what put it over the edge.

The pricing is honestly a little steep. Essentially you are paying for an online yellow pages ad, which gets crawled who knows how much (I'll periodically update this so you know), for about $160/month. If you pay up front and enter into a longer contract, it's cheaper. But I only went for a year. If it works out, I'll keep it up.

Remember, if you have decided to start a law firm, the number one question you are going to have to answer, and answer fast, is how you are going to get clients into the door. If you don't have an answer, then you are going to have a tough go of it.

I talk to people a lot about starting a law firm. I encourage it. I tell them what I've done right and wrong, and I try to help them through the process. But time and time again I ask them what they are doing and it's reading the law. Read the law when you have a client to work for. You have been taught how to learn the law. Now is the time to get clients. Put your energy toward that, and when you get someone that needs help, learn everything you need to help them.

I can guarantee you nolo.com will be contacting me to talk about this review. They always do. I'll let you know if I left anything out of the post.

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