Starting a Criminal Law Firm – 5 Ways to Get Clients

Posted on 2009-11-17, 11:44, by Smalls, under Law, Marketing and Advertising.

If you have ventured out and tried to start your own criminal law firm, good for you. I hope you are finding it to be as rewarding and fulfilling a process as I have. But, there is no doubt that whether you are open for one day, one month, or one year, there is always one thing that is on your mind – getting clients. After all, without clients even the best criminal defense attorney out there is laying waste. But how do you go about finding clients? Great question, and one I'm going to talk about here real quick, with five helpful ways to find clients.

1. Let Everyone You Know Know You Are Open For Business

One of the first things I learned when I started my law firm is that business can come from anyone at any time. But it won't come if no one knows what you do. So, when you are talking to friends, family, acquaintances, the bus driver, the grocery line clerk, anyone, let them know what you do. Does this mean you are handing out cards all the time? Absolutely not. If someone asks for your card, definitely give it to them. But if you give out a bunch of cards, all you are going to do is contribute to the garbage problem. But don't be afraid to let people know what you do. This is one of the easiest (and cheapest) ways to get clients to your new criminal defense law firm.

2. Get a Website for Your Law Firm

If you have opened up your law firm doors and have not yet put up a website, you are already losing business! In today's world, a majority of people are going online to find the help they need for their problems, and this is particularly so if you are practicing criminal law because, first, people don't know a lot of criminal defense attorneys, and second, if they do, they are often embarrassed to ask them or ask someone they know for help. So they turn to the internet. And they can't find you if you don't have a site.

Putting together a website for your law firm can be done cheaply and easily. And as you grow, you can start to build it into a better and better site. So don't pay an arm and a leg for your firm website. Shop around, think about what you really want and need on the site, and get your web presence started.

3. Start a Blog for Your Law Firm

Contrary to what you may hear most of the time, I don't want you to start this blog so that you get people there that are actually reading it. I want you to start it so that you can begin linking it to your website and creating some coveted Google Juice, what Google uses to place you at the top of the search rankings. There is way more to it than just this, but if you get started on this today, then you can get your name out there in one more arena and people can start finding you who need your help. Blogger.com or wordpress.com have great blog platforms that are free to use and easy to maintain. All you have to do is get on there and start writing about what you are doing, what is happening in the news, and what people can do to help themselves before they are nabbed by the cops.

4. Attend Every Event You Can Where You Meet Other Attorneys

But don't do this expecting business right away! Meeting other attorneys, particularly those that aren't practicing criminal defense, is great because they get people asking them for criminal help from time to time and they need someone to send people to. And you will need attorneys you can refer business to when your clients, friends, or family come to you and need help with a problem you can't help them with (family law and bankruptcy are two great examples). So, when you go to these meetings, just put your social smiley face on, chat with as many people as you can (it usually ends up being four or five for me, because I like to get to know people a little more than most and leave a stronger, more lasting impression than most). You'll find that you begin running into the same people over and over again, and as they get to know you better, they'll start sending you business.

5. Sign Up for the Appointment or Conflict List

One great way to get some business, particularly when you are first starting out with your criminal defense law firm, is to sign up for the appointment panel or the conflict panel. Depending on the size of the city you live in, there is usually an appointment panel for criminal defense lawyers for people who can't afford a lawyer. Because the Constitution guarantees them counsel, you can get appointed to the case, get some great experience, and get some money all at the same time. In the end, this probably isn't enough to make a living off of, but it is a great way to get your name out there (you'll be in court, and some of the greatest criminal defense referrals are old criminal defense clients), get some court time, and get some money.

In the end, getting clients to your criminal law firm is an ongoing battle that you have to fight every day. If the phone does ring right away, don't worry. Just keep at it, keep pushing, and before you know it you'll be turning business away.

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