In this short on Legal Marketing by Spearleaf, Joshua Albanese, founder of Spearleaf, explains four ways law firms get clients: answering fast and search ads for crisis practices like criminal defense and personal injury, referrals and question-answering pages for planned practices like estate planning and immigration. Narrated with an AI voice clone of Joshua Albanese. Other characters are AI-generated. Every answer is written and checked by the Spearleaf team.
Read the full guide: Law Firm Marketing: Crisis Clients vs Planned Clients →
Video Transcript
What law firm marketing actually signs cases for a firm like yours? It depends on how your clients decide to hire: in a crisis, or after planning. Here are four ways law firms get clients, and which kind of practice each way fits. One, answering fast, nights and weekends included. This fits crisis practices like criminal defense and personal injury. A criminal defense call often comes from a parent, late at night, asking how bond works. The first court date can be the next morning. Injury callers are often in pain and comparing firms. The one who calls back first, calmly, with a clear next step, often earns the consult. Answering costs staff or an answering service, every month. Whoever answers takes names for the conflict check first, and gets urgent calls to a lawyer. Two, search ads, for the same crisis practices. Google search ads can be running in a day or two, and they stop when you stop paying. Injury clicks often cost far more than the legal average, so know what a signed case is worth before you start. Match the ad schedule to the hours your phone is covered. You pay for the click whether or not anyone picks up. Three, referrals and trust, built over time. This fits planned practices like wills, business work and immigration petitions. A planned client can put it off for years. When something finally pushes them, they ask someone they already trust. So the people they ask matter. Financial advisors and CPAs for estate and business work. Past clients, churches and community groups for immigration. Referral work is paid in your time, and it builds slowly. Any thank-you for a referral falls under bar rules, so check your state bar's rules. Four, pages that answer a planned client's questions. What funding a living trust means. How long a family visa petition can take. How your flat fee works for each case type. Planned clients often read for a while before they call. Some ask ChatGPT or Google's AI for a lawyer too, and clear pages give those answers something to go on. How you're paid shapes the mix as well. A flat fee, an hourly retainer and a contingency case each change what one new client is worth to you. In practice, it's a mix. A DUI practice leans on speed and still gets referrals. An estate practice leans on trust and still needs someone answering. Once a month, pull signed cases by source from your intake log. Not calls, not clicks. Then move your time and money toward what signs. I put the rest in the Position Zero Guide to Getting More Customers on ChatGPT, Google and Google Maps. Comment "DRIVE" and I'll send it over. Follow for more straight answers for law firms.
Read the full guide on law firm marketing for crisis and planned practices →