There’s one thing that trumps all when it comes to discussing video marketing campaigns: Results. With a range of investments that you can make to market your firm, which one brings you the best cases and returns the highest ROI?
We could tout slick facts and statistics (and there are many) detailing the successes of legal video marketing, and that would be all well and good. But…
Wouldn’t you rather hear it directly from the attorney himself?
We interviewed our client, attorney Travis Jacobs, to discuss the role legal video played in transforming his practice, The Jacobs Law, a boutique law firm devoted to business law and business litigation for small businesses.
Why did you decide to produce a video for your firm?
I had been looking into it for almost a year, but hadn’t found a provider that was doing what I wanted done. I knew video was becoming a bigger and bigger driver of web traffic. YouTube, Vine, and Vimeo were crushing traffic analytics because people like to absorb content by watching it instead of reading it.
Many bigger, better funded firms that I compete with weren’t doing video (or weren’t doing it well) and I saw it as an opportunity to gain a leg up.
Could you put an estimate on the impact your videos have made (directly or indirectly) on your firm?
Our videos launched in October. Within two months (by December) we were getting about two to three times the calls we were getting before we posted them, and the calls were for more value-added work and fewer one-offs.
By January we had to hire an answering service because we were getting so many calls during the day that we couldn’t get existing work done fast enough.
How was your law firm doing before investing in video marketing?
We were making money, but it was very hand to mouth. Money went out almost as fast as it came in. At one point, we were successful on a big case and decided to reinvest a large percentage of the revenue into advertising. At the time we were getting a couple calls a week, but they were mostly one-off tasks.
How does your firm compare in terms of size/market share/resources/marketing budget with your competition?
Of the firms we compete with now, I’d bet they have bigger marketing budgets. We don’t spend an enormous amount on marketing, but I think we have been smart about the allocation of our marketing resources.
There are a number of legal video vendors out there, what made you decide to produce your videos with Crisp Video Group?
There are a ton of poorly produced grainy lawyer videos with a lawyer talking into a camera or behind a desk with a “client” on the other side mouthing gibberish while a voiceover says something to the effect of, “We are the best lawyers, we fight for you, we truly care…”
Have you ever heard a lawyer video say, “We don’t care about our clients.” No.
They all say and do the same thing. I wanted a video that tapped into us personally and conveyed an image of professionalism, but I hadn’t found a provider that was doing what I was looking for. After seeing Crisp Video’s work, their videos were exactly what I had envisioned.
What concerns or hesitations did you have leading up to the decision to work with Crisp? Did you have any doubts about making the right choice?
My biggest concern was the cost. The Jacobs Law had set aside funds for marketing for the year, but the Crisp Video package would use almost all of it. I kept watching the videos on Crisp’s website over and over. They were all very well produced.
I showed my associate some of them and he too was impressed. I slept on it, and the next day I decided to go for it. It was a risk, and at the time it was the biggest single marketing expense we had expended, but I thought – no risk, no reward. It definitely paid off.
What would you rank as the Top 3 investments in your firm?
The video we produced with Crisp Video is at #1 – no question. #2 and #3 would be targeted paid ads and firm-created content – blog articles, web pages, and social media.
Was investing in video with Crisp the right thing to do?
No doubt in my mind whatsoever. It was a risk to invest the funds, but it definitely paid off and continues to pay dividends. I’m planning to do another round of videos later this year.
Do you have any advice for attorneys struggling to differentiate themselves and grow their legal practice?
There is no magic bullet, and you have to spend money to make money.
I believe it’s important to resist the temptation to find the cheapest option.
Choosing a lawyer is no different – a great lawyer can charge more and devote more time and effort to fewer clients. You get what you pay for.
What would you say to an attorney who believes that video marketing is “too expensive” or is doubtful of the impact it will have on their firm?
Just research how video drives traffic and conversions. Any lawyer – any business – that still doesn’t believe video marketing is a necessity must be living under a rock.
Crisp has great people who are the experts in legal video marketing. If you’re looking for a video to introduce your firm to prospective clients, tell your story, and set yourself apart from the masses, Crisp Video is the way to go.
How has your investment in video marketing improved your life?
The videos drew more clients with more, higher value added work to our law firm. That, in turn, improved our revenue. Increased revenue has allowed us to be more discerning in the cases we accept, which has made our work even more enjoyable.
What do you see as the future of legal marketing?
Video is here to stay, and I’m betting every business will need to have video marketing options to stay profitable and current. A smart guy told me recently that virtual reality video was making headway as a marketing tool. That could be a very interesting tool for the next generation of attorney marketing!
