Networking is an integral part of establishing a successful personal injury law business, because like all social engagements, relationships are critical to business development. You may make a great first impression upon meeting someone new in your professional circle, but how do you keep that relationship going and creating top-of-mind awareness?
What to say after your first hello
First impressions are important. If you make a good first impression you have completed the first step of creating a potential referral source; however, you can’t just leave it at that. It’s vital to establishing a long-term connection that you know what to do after that first hello. You have to understand that once meeting a potential networking source, you have to nurture it to create top-of-mind awareness.
For any networking relationship to endure, it takes repeated interaction to create a mutually beneficial relationship. The following are recommendations to make this happen.
- Email newsletters: Creating and sending out a monthly or bi-monthly email newsletter is an easy and inexpensive way to keep your name in someone’s head. It only takes a few hours to write the content and add some images. With this in mind, always add to your relevant email group every potentially helpful networker you meet.
- Social media: You just can’t beat social media for getting your name out there. For networking relationships, we highly recommend Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Google+, and Facebook business and personal pages. Post frequently and regularly, anywhere from daily to a few times a week.
- Websites: Nothing identifies you better than a website bearing your name and/or that of your personal injury law firm. After you meet someone and make a good first impression, he or she will likely “look you up” online. Websites connote that you are credible, well-established, and up on everything that is digitally new in the world around you. Make sure you have a website that makes you look good and is full of knowledgeable information about your law firm and personal injury law. Blogs have become an essential reputation-maker, as well as being necessary to boost your search engine rankings.
- Videos: High-quality videos are an excellent way to stay connected with networking relationships. They help build trust and a personal connection. You can use videos on all of your social media platforms, your website, your blog, and even post them on your own YouTube channel.
Make the time you spend networking count. Each connection you make and keep is an important potential referral source that can really help grow your business If you don’t have a well thought out marketing plan to nurture these relationships, you have wasted your time.
And don’t forget one of the most important networking tools of all – business cards!
Don’t have time to manage your networking relationships? Give us a call at Group Matrix. We can help you with any and all aspects of your personal injury marketing strategy.
Group Matrix Blog – June 13, 2018 – by Sharon Bowles
