So look, I get it. I’m in the “lead gen” space. I am one of those pesky agencies that is in your LinkedIn DMs trying to sell you leads. Chances are if you’re reading this, then you’ve probably either a) been burned buying leads from someone like me promising you that “you’re gonna get a ton of cases bro” and then you wasted 10 grand and got no signed cases OR b) you have a buddy that said to never buy internet leads.
And honestly, they’re not wrong. But it’s not as simple as “leads don’t work.”
Problem
Let’s zoom out a little bit and talk about all of digital marketing, heck, all of marketing as a whole. All of BUSINESS as a whole. There’s good customers and there’s bad customers. There’s the value shopper at McDonald’s who spends $2.67 on 2 cheeseburgers once a week and then there’s the daily Chipotle customer who spend $20 every day.
Just in one week, the “lifetime value” (how much a customer is worth to a business) is $2.67 vs. $140. This is the prime example of a low-quality customer and a high-quality customer.
Better brands have better customers. (Not knocking McDank's. I eat it probably twice a week.) And how you talk to customers and the language you use absolutely affects what kind of customers you bring in and how much they spend. Talking about promotions and discounts will bring in people who just want to get the best deal possible (i.e. not spend any money at all).
But. But but but.
The problem with this mindset when it comes to personal injury leads is that leads (your customers) aren’t buying cheeseburgers and burritos. They’re not picking between white and brown rice or the #1 Meal and the #2 Meal.
They HAVE been hurt in an accident, and now it’s just a matter of will they sign on with the right lawyer. By the time a lead has entered your CRM, assuming the leads aren’t just complete crap (they’re exclusive and properly vetted with a verified phone), there is only one decision left for them to make: signing on with your firm. It’s binary.
So what’s this have to do with leads and intake?
Story
I was talking to a buddy who does the same thing I do but for medical malpractice attorneys. He said “Joe, about two months ago I did a test order with two firms in Texas. One firm never would answer my calls again because they didn’t sign any cases, and the other firm just placed its FIFTH order of leads and this time the order is 5x the size of the original test order. What is going on?? I sent them both the same leads, how did one firm sign a ton of cases and the other literally got NOTHING?!”
I said “Well, it’s probably pretty simple. Let me ask you, what did the intake team look like at both firms?”
He went on to tell me how the first firm had a mix of the main attorney and a receptionist calling the leads back the day after they came in, and the second firm, the one that signed all the cases, had a full team that called the leads within 30 seconds of them being delivered and had a set script and process for sending the leads the documents to sign.
I simply said “BINGO.”
It all comes down to the intake. Quality, pre-vetted, phone-verified leads are table stakes. You simply need to be getting exclusive leads of people who were actually injured and haven’t talked to a lawyer yet. The real magic comes in what happens after the leads are delivered. Speed to lead, good scripts, and quickness are what wins.
Implementation
Hopefully all of that made sense. There’s a lot of misconceptions and junk advice in the personal injury lead gen space so I want this newsletter to provide a ton of value that can materially change your business. Unfortunately, ideas can become super mainstream and engrained in our heads just by seeing one “expert” post about something on LinkedIn or Twitter.
And unfortunately for me (LOL), that junk is “buying internet leads doesn’t work.” But honestly, those people do have a point; they have correctly articulated the problem, but not the solution. Let’s go back to the Chipotle example. Imagine if Chipotle spent a trillion dollars today on marketing nationwide to get every single American in their stores. Sounds great, right? But then they don’t hire enough staff and they don’t have the operation down pat to actually service people when they get into the line.
It’d be chaos, they’d run out of everything, people wouldn’t even get served, and no one would actually make it to the cash register to pay. It’s the same thing with leads: if you’re getting leads into your system but you’re not properly handling them, then it’s all a waste.
But the opposite is true: You could get just a few leads that turn into sign cases because your team is absolutely on top of it. So, do me a favor. This implementation will be really quick. Take out a notepad and pen if you have one handy or just use your Notes app, but write this down:
Write down what happens the moment someone fills out your online form or calls into your office (or if a lead comes in)
See how long it takes for a lead to be contacted
Jot down the questions your intake team is asking them
I want you to figure out the flow from submitting your information -> being contacted -> getting closer to you signing the documents. Put yourselves in your potential clients shoes. Is it super easy? Is it quick?
Bonus points if you play “Secret Shopper” and have one of your friends fill it out to see how they get handled in real life. You’ll be able to diagnose the issues super fast and be well on your way to consistently signing leads into signed cases right when they come in.
Work With Me
If you want my help breaking down your intake process and sending you fresh leads so you can start signing cases, check out my program at https://atriumleads.com and book a call to see if you qualify.