Accurate comparison by Bonnie Buol Ruszczyk, on Lawyerist that investing in marketing is a lot like investing in working out:
I like to compare it to going to the gym. Come January 1, you are at the gym at 6am, running on the treadmill, working out with weights, and you may even hire a trainer. You religiously go three times a week, but the results are slow to come. You only lose one pound in the first week, and none in the second week. Your determination starts to wane. By the third week, you only get to the gym one time, and only run on the treadmill on that visit. You drop your trainer because he’s not doing any good anyway. You gain a pound in your fourth week. Your drive falls even farther, and you don’t make it at all during the 5th week. And so on.
This is how many law firm marketing efforts go too. You start with a plan (though many don’t even do that) and are excited to see the results. You may create a customer newsletter, hold a seminar, update your website, or even start using Twitter. Everyone is excited and ready to handle the work that is going to start rolling in. But the results aren’t what you expected. So, over time, you pull back, decrease your marketing efforts and see even fewer results. Eventually you are firmly convinced that marketing is a complete waste of money and time because it doesn’t work.
Other aspects of marketing that are like working out:
- Results take work.
- Results need to be tracked.
- Don’t set unrealistic expectations.
- Set attainable goals.
- Spend more time on what works.
