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We are pulling together THE ACADEMY’S GREATEST HITS—1993 through 2013. There are eight courses that we’ll be offering to non-members at no charge during our 20th year, (members feel free to sign up and review!).
Each week we’ll give you the summary of ONE course. You can begin the course any time you want. Once you register for the series of sessions, the courses will be delivered to you one at a time over an 8-week period.
Looking back over the past 20 years that the Academy has virtually invented the services, coaching, marketing, legal education and legal documents estate planning attorneys deserve to build their practices with has been fun and exciting. We’re honored to make these sessions available in an effort to celebrate our two decades of support with attorneys in every state!
CLICK HERE to Register for Our Free 8 Week Course, “The Academy’s Greatest Hits”
YOU ONLY NEED TO REGISTER ONCE (If you previously registered for this course, you were already added to the class schedule. No need to register again.)
Session 1: Presented by the Academy’s first keynote speaker, Michael E. Gerber, author of The E-Myth, Why Most Small Businesses Fail and What to Do About It
Session 2: Top 10 Estate Planning Legal Questions (and Answers) from Attorneys Nationwide, Steve Hartnett, Academy Associate Director of Education
Session 3: Mastering 1st Consultations – Controlling the Economy in Your Conference Room, Sanford M. Fisch, Academy CEO
Session 4: Required Technology for Law Firms Today, Rita Chaires, Academy SEO and Social Media Manager
Session 5: Integrated Law Firm Marketing, Presented by Academy Co-Founder and President, Robert Armstrong
(2.5 hour video session, with slide images, MARKETING)
Here is another session that you shouldn’t miss out on! The core philosophy at the Academy is to market then repeat what works and stop doing what doesn’t. There is a specific way of executing on marketing that allows you to do just that!
To start with… what do you know about your target prospective clients? Do you know where they live, shop, or vacation? How old are they? What do they have in common with each other?
This Academy System, presented by Academy President and co-founder, Robert Armstrong, discusses how to identify your target market as well as how to determine the lifetime value of a client. Additionally, Robert outlines the Academy exclusive 6-Step Family Legacy Wealth Planning System that creates a transformational experience for your clients making you stand out against other law firms. The goal of marketing your law firm to prospective clients is to allow them to get to know you, like you, and trust you. Robert will walk you through the science of successfully marketing your firm to achieve the goals you set regarding revenue, business growth, client retention, and more.
Stay tuned, we’ll feature another session soon! We hope you enjoy the series and share the registration link with the attorneys you feel would get the most out of this instruction.
Jennifer Price
Chief Operating Officer
American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.
9444 Balboa Avenue, Suite 300
San Diego, California 92123
Phone: (858) 453-2128
www.aaepa.com
I’m always surprised to hear otherwise bright attorneys dismiss the idea of marketing as somehow beneath them, or at best, a waste of time. Although I’ve spent most of my professional life educating law firms on the benefits of ethical marketing both to themselves and their clients, I’m always happy to see others pick up the torch.
Here is a recent article I read by John Cunningham that neatly sums up the reasons many lawyers turn a blind eye to the one activity that could substantially enhance the success of their practices.
Robert Armstrong
President and Co-Founder
American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.
9444 Balboa Avenue, Suite 300
San Diego, California 92123
Phone: (858) 453-2128
www.aaepa.com
We recently were reminded of the impact each of your firms have on your clients and community. Last week we attended our annual law firm holiday open house. It is a wonderful reminder of many things. Much of what we have focused on comes to life when we walk into the Armstrong, Fisch & Tutoli Law Firm and are greeted by our staff and clients. Although we are not there day to day, the faces of everyone confirmed that our “why” is alive and well. The most memorable are the client comments; the appreciation we heard, the generations of families served, and the specific stories clients told of how our firm had helped them and their families. It’s always a moving and humbling experience to be reminded of the impact we intended and how it lines up with what others feel has been delivered.
As the Academy wraps almost two decades of serving law firms who serve clients just like ours, it’s the perfect time to reflect on what matters most.
First, it’s about relationships. For both of us, it’s with great pride that we look back on the relationships we have established with members, their families and staff over the past two decades. Our association with the extraordinarily talented firms we’ve had the privilege of serving is beyond what we ever thought possible.
Second, helping you help others. The number of clients across 44 states who’ve had the good fortune of working with an Academy member is staggering. Improving your relationships with your clients is the foundation of the services the Academy offers. The responsibility of providing legal education, comprehensive documents, one on one coaching, state of the art technology and a host of other tools so you can have the credibility you deserve in your community is daunting. We thank you for the trust, confidence and opportunity you have given us.
Finally, there’s a financial impact we see for our Members. As we wrap up the year and begin our review of the first 25 or so sets of financials that have already started to come in, it’s clear that the Academy’s tools and strategies has had a positive impact on the financial security of so many members and their staff. We are reminded regularly of the privilege we have to work with some of the brightest, most successful attorneys anywhere.
Our “why” is very simple: to transform the lives and practices of estate planning attorneys across the country, and we thank you for your commitment and passionate execution of systems and strategies that have had such a dramatic impact on your community.
As the new year launches, we hope that you’re reflecting on your “why.” It is the one thing that can always keep you centered. Be clear about what that is and share that message with your staff and your clients. Once stated clearly, the “how” and the “what” look after themselves and your vision shows up in every area of your practice.
Make this the year when everything you do rests upon the clarity of your WHY. Remember, your “why” isn’t a detailed agenda of what you will and won’t do. It is a purpose, a mission. It’s at the root of what lights you up. We encourage you to reflect on the past year. Look at the growth you’ve experienced personally and professionally. Look closely at the areas that may not have measured up to your intentions. Take a moment as the year ends to celebrate your victories and, in areas that may not have hit their potential, look again at your “why.” Often when the why isn’t defined, or it isn’t in alignment with what we’re doing, there is pain or, at the very least, a lack of satisfaction. It’s an easy adjustment to make at this time of the year as we plan out our future.
Our optimism about what lies ahead in 2013 could not be higher and the entire Academy Team looks forward to leading you into the future we are all creating. We firmly believe that our Spring Summit, where we celebrate our 20th Anniversary together, will be one of the most memorable gatherings in our history. It will be the perfect time to celebrate our relationships, our accomplishments and the achievement of our goals, but more importantly it will be a time to take aim at what’s possible. We’ll also be focusing on the importance of structures for ancillary businesses and continued emphasis on Elder Law tools. As an added bonus, we’ll have a number of sessions taught by the most popular speakers in our event history.
Finally, we want to acknowledge each of you for your commitment to continuous improvement as counselors and leaders in your communities. We are grateful and proud of our affiliation and we wish you a wonderful holiday season with health and prosperity in the New Year!
To your success in 2013,
Robert and Sandy
Robert Armstrong & Sanford M. Fisch
Co-Founders
American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.
9444 Balboa Avenue, Suite 300
San Diego, California 92123
Phone: (858) 453-2128
www.aaepa.com
At the Academy, we believe in the power of innovation. We are constantly trying to find ways to keep in touch with our colleagues and help our members find ways to expand their businesses. As such, we enjoy learning about how people in other industries are leveraging technological innovations to help fill needs within the field.
But, how can that technological innovation translate to a field that tackles more serious issues? A new essay from The Atlantic shows how one startup company is tackling a traditional niche industry with a fresh perspective. Mike Belsito, the CEO of eFuneral.com, started his company after his brother passed away. In planning his brother’s funeral, Belsito discovered that there was very little information about funeral home options on the web, and sites that had any information at all simply listed the phone number and address of local funeral home offerings. Later, after using Yelp.com to find local dinner options, he realized he could get more information about where to have a $40 meal than where to hold a funeral.
Belsito established his business by finding a need and attempting to fill it by offering an online platform where people can find funeral home ratings and reviews, the costs of funerals and any additional offerings. In the future, he hopes people will log on to the site to find ratings and reviews, but also to learn about offers on ancillary services and items like flowers.
So, what does this have to do with legal marketing? Perhaps more than you may think. The legal profession is notoriously traditional, so it requires perhaps even more creativity for lawyers to think outside the box in order to help grow their law firm practices. Even if you don’t have the technology or bandwidth to recreate your entire business model, you can strive to maintain active profiles on websites that cater to the legal profession, and can encourage people who’ve been pleased with your services to post positive testimonials or reviews. Or, you may want to think about starting a blog (have you seen this recent Academy post about the power of blogging?)
Much like the laws affecting funeral homes, there are numerous regulations as to how lawyers can advertise; however, if the funeral home industry can find ways to take advantage of technological innovation, then lawyers may also find creative opportunities for growth within the profession.
Robert Armstrong
President and Co-Founder
American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.
9444 Balboa Avenue, Suite 300
San Diego, California 92123
Phone: (858) 453-2128
www.aaepa.com
As an estate planning lawyer, you’re clued into the latest developments in estate planning and elder law. You consider yourself an expert, and after years of law school and countless hours researching and writing important documents for your clients, you’re probably a pretty good writer, too.
If you’re hoping to expand your client base and get the word out about your practice, then it might be time for you to start a blog. Blogs have multiple personal and social benefits, and can also serve as a forum for you to offer thoughts about matters relevant to current and potential clients. They are a great way to connect with both your online and offline networks.
According to the 2012 LexBlog report, 155 of the nation’s largest law firms now have blogs or lawyers blogging. Those 155 firms produce 633 blogs amongst them. Perhaps most interestingly, firms that had blogs improved their gross earnings in 2011 about $1 million over law firms that didn’t have blogs. And, if that’s just the big firms, then imagine how an active blog might help people in small- to mid-sized practices.
In addition to encouraging personal and professional development, a blog offers the added benefit of directing web traffic to your site and business. Google products provide over 300,000,000 searches daily, and interesting, relevant content comes to the top of those searches. There are a number of ways that a lawyer or firm can optimize content so that it appears higher in search rankings, through search engine optimization (SEO) of keywords and key phrases.
Though maintaining a blog may require time and effort, it is also free advertising and promotion for your firm. There is no requirement that content be limited to updates in the field and recent cases – you can write about anything you deem appropriate, such as firm events, employee profiles and abstracts of recent research papers. You can also post photos and videos, which are ranked more favorably in search engine results.
In January 2010, we launched the Academy blog as a means to help connect with our community of estate planning attorneys by offering interesting, informative content, mixed with doses of humor and wit. Our blog continues to help us connect with our peers across the country. If you are thinking of starting a blog, we advise you to start creating content as soon as you can. Once you start, you’ll wonder why you didn’t begin blogging sooner.
Robert Armstrong
President and Co-Founder
American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.
9444 Balboa Avenue, Suite 300
San Diego, California 92123
Phone: (858) 453-2128
www.aaepa.com
In our Academy Peak Performer’s group, the topic of throwing your hat over the wall without first knowing how you will get what you’re after came up. This bold act is the first step in what we call a “created future.” This is a future that wouldn’t otherwise exist, but for your vision of what could be in your practice and your life. What it isn’t… is a detailed plan on how you would get from where you are right now to that place.
Most of us have a laundry list of projects large and small that are the stepping stones to that shining future we see so clearly. The problem is that our perception of some of these projects or tasks, seem to paralyze our progress. We’re convinced many of them are too big or will take too long so we put them off in favor of other pressing engagements. Thus, the routine gets done and our invented future is put on hold.
One thing that occurred to me some time ago, was that many of these avoided projects simply need to be timed with a stop watch, to test whether they really were as time consuming as I feared. Like a scientist, I wanted to see if my emotional block to getting certain tasks done was unreasonable. Should I postpone doing A or B because they just took too long?
So one day I just timed everything I did during the day…amazing realization. Many of these tasks didn’t take anywhere near the amount of time I thought. Now, I can confidently know that doing this or that is really just a 5 minute or 7 minute deal. What an eye opener. I can’t fool myself any longer that it’s a big deal that needs to be deferred.
Let me give you an example. Because of our recent membership recruiting campaign, we are personally signing The E-Myth Attorney book as a gift for attorneys attending our Webinars. Each box has 20 books and in my mind I put off signing them because it took “so long.” Everyone was on my case about needing more signed books. “OK, OK, I’ll get to it.” I pulled out my iPhone, turned to the Stopwatch app and picked up a taped box of The E-Myth Attorney books. From beginning to end, 20 books out, 20 books signed, 20 books back in the box…a little more than 7 minutes.
Now, there is no way my mind can fool the clock. It’s still not my favorite task, but it’s not because it takes too much time.
Robert Armstrong
President and Co-Founder
American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.
9444 Balboa Avenue, Suite 300
San Diego, California 92123
Phone: (858) 453-2128
www.aaepa.com
It had to happen – an application that allows busy people to HandWrite their search query on the screen of their mobile device. It’s the latest offering from Google, and it can be used literally anywhere, at any time, by anyone. There’s no keyboard to fumble with if you have big fingers, and you don’t need to hunt for the right letters to type with two hands – just use your finger. While still in its experimental infancy, it is not intended to replace any other search function, but it does offer users yet another choice in how they use their mobile devices, in 27 different languages.
To use this latest application, it needs to be enabled in your settings. Open your browser, and search for Google.com, click on Settings, at the bottom of the page. Next, enable the feature, and save your settings. If you happen to have a tablet, enable HandWrite from the top right corner of Google.com, by clicking on the gear icon and selecting Settings.
When you write letters on the screen, there is a slight pause to remove the text you scribble, with new letters. This triggers search suggestions with each character/word you write out. If you happen to have a large screen, you have more room to write, in either portrait or landscape mode. Landscape gives you the most room to write. Be prepared to get a few odd responses on the handwritten letters converted to text, much like auto-correct with iPhone, which has been known to provide moments of unintended hilarity now and then.
This new feature may not be for everyone, depending on what system they use, or what their needs happen to be. It appears by early reports from users, that some have trouble getting it to work with Chrome. For those that prefer other methods of searching, like voice activation, or typing in a search query, and don’t want to try something like HandWrite, they can keep on using the keyboard, and just tap on the search box.
There is one thing to note that may deter users: the HandWrite feature currently “only” works on Google’s search page. Not everyone uses Google to search.
http://www.zdnet.com/google-adds-handwrite-to-its-mobile-search-input-options-7000001709/
http://asia.cnet.com/handwrite-your-google-searches-on-phones-and-tablets-62218153.htm
Robert Armstrong
President and Co-Founder
American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.
9444 Balboa Avenue, Suite 300
San Diego, California 92123
Phone: (858) 453-2128
www.aaepa.com
Time management is an essential issue in any office, whether it is a law firm or not, and one of the most nit picking wastes of time is the subtle, yet ever persistent mind looping of an unfinished task or idea. David Allen, the author of Getting Things Done – The Art of Stress Free Productivity, got it right when he said close the loop by taking action and reducing all those things undone to one list – and then deal with it. Dealing with it could mean delegating a task, doing it yourself, deleting it or deferring it, but it gets done, rather than rattling through your brain all day at the worst possible times.
I battle the mind loops with Evernote, the free “Remember everything application”, that lets your brain have the peace and quiet it deserves by grabbing all your tasks, gathering them in one place, and letting you do something about them, as you see fit. It’s easy to use and can handle anything you throw at it, from mp3s to web clips and from articles to emails. If you’re so busy you don’t have time to get to everything in a day, and hate having it strewn all over the office on sticky notes and other types of reminders, this may be the application to simplify your work day.
Evernote, when used with the iPad application, OmniFocus, is a powerful combination to deal with anything that comes up during the day, from brain storms to notations about pending cases. Use OmniFocus to snag, process, plan, and review while you are away from your desktop computer. Or, if you’re so inclined, leave it right by your computer for use on the fly.
The one thing I like best about it is the fact that it organizes itself in real time, without the refresh step, and it is capable of tracking a weekly review, on each project you are involved in. Its superlative flexibility is an appealing extra. Add in the fact that this application in now slashed down to half price, and it’s not a bad deal at $19.99. OmniFocus for Mac is priced at $39.99.
Robert Armstrong
President and Co-Founder
American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.
9444 Balboa Avenue, Suite 300
San Diego, California 92123
Phone: (858) 453-2128
www.aaepa.com
The Academy is all about systems. We believe that if your law firm is not organized with the systems running the practice and the people running the systems you are bound to get inconsistent results, confusion among staff and a haphazard client experience. Yet when I talk with experienced attorneys around the country their comments are uniformly the same: No we don’t have any written systems.
I remind them that they do, indeed have systems, even if they’re not written down. The default systems in most firms are the staff member’s way of doing things laid down by each departing employee on their way out the door. That is if you’re lucky enough to have an employee that actually gives you proper notice when they leave.
Systems are your way of saying, “This is how we do things here. This how we answer the phone. This is how we meet with clients. This is how we draft documents and pleadings. This is how we dress. Whatever it is that is going to set your firm apart and brand it with your way of doing things will be found in your unique systems.
My suggestion is to start looking at every part of your firm’s processes from the largest to the smallest and begin writing them down, better yet flowchart them. Have all employees set aside time each week to create a binder outlining every detail of their job. Make it an ongoing project that you monitor as closely as you watch your cash flow.
When it’s done, you’ll never fear those unexpected resignation notices and, more importantly you’ll take pride in knowing the firm is a reflection of your unique vision.
Robert Armstrong
President and Co-Founder
American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.
9444 Balboa Avenue, Suite 300
San Diego, California 92123
Phone: (858) 453-2128
www.aaepa.com
The social media revolution is in full swing, and it seems like everyone has joined in – from middle school kids to grandparents.
From a lawyer’s perspective, the pervasiveness of social media is great news. Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and a host of other social media sites are proving to be excellent resources for professionals who want to connect with current and prospective clients. But jumping into the fray can be a little daunting at first.
One of the biggest challenges when you’re first venturing into the world of social media, particularly in your capacity as a professional, is to figure out what to talk about. Here are three tips to get you started:
- Social Media is Not the Place for Shameless Self Promotion. This isn’t a replacement for a yellow pages ad, nor is it a virtual billboard. Social media is about interacting with people – you’re stepping into an ongoing conversation. So, talk a little about yourself. Offer useful information. And then, listen to what other people are saying and respond to them. Remember, Social Media is much like a cocktail party where people interact on topics interesting to the small group. You would never intrude in one of those gatherings with an advertisement about yourself or your firm. Provide interesting information and they will naturally gravitate to you and be interested to learn more about what you do.
- Let People Know You Have a Life Outside the Office. You do have a life outside the office, don’t you? Good! Tell your clients a little about yourself, and let them get to know you as the well-rounded person you are. Are you an avid runner? Do you love to volunteer at your local animal shelter? Talk about it. Better still, go a step further and post pictures or video of yourself doing the things you love to do.
- Don’t Forget to Link. If you find an interesting article from someone else’s website, post the link. Remember, the purpose of social media is to start and maintain conversations. Similarly, when you talk about your law firm, be sure to post a link to your latest blog post or to an interesting article or video on your website.
If you’ve been a little shy about mixing social media with your professional life, maybe now is the time to try these tips and join the conversation.
Robert Armstrong
President and Co-Founder
American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.
9444 Balboa Avenue, Suite 300
San Diego, California 92123
Phone: (858) 453-2128
www.aaepa.com
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