This past weekend, my twin and I had brunch with one of our best friends and her fiancé. While catching up on each other’s lives, we provided a brief update on our older sister. Our friend’s fiancé promptly replied, “I don’t believe you have another sister. She’s made up.”
I don’t blame him. Ever since she started graduate school in Atlanta, Steffi is hardly ever home. Add to that the fact she has been studying and researching in Europe when not taking classes at Emory, is tri-lingual and has a boyfriend with the same name as my friend’s fiancé, Steffi seems too good to be true.
He demanded proof of life.
Believe it or not, web leads demand the same.
When online visitors view your website, read your credentials or watch your videos, they are looking for key indicators of your validity and relevance.
How?
Pictures. People want to see a person behind the website. They want to trust that the person on the other end is who he or she claims to be. The best way to do this is through up-to-date photos (and videos). If your pictures look outdated or are a few years old, you should invest in new headshots. New clients should not be surprised by your appearance when they meet you.
Blogs. By posting your IMS-provided blogs each week, you are delivering a time stamp. In hostage situations in film or the news, the captives are often pictured holding the front page of the daily newspaper. Why? It provides an assurance that the individual is still alive at a certain time. Your blogs serve the same purpose. With a date and time stamp, your blogs prove your practice is active and you are not neglecting your website or its leads.
Reviews. People change. What was once true of someone may be no more. As an estate planning and/or elder law attorney, you are only as good as “your last at bat,” to borrow a baseball metaphor. Be sure you are constantly asking for reviews from each new client. People will put more weight on more recent reviews. Why? Because they more accurately reflect the here and now – your most recent trips to the batter’s box. Have a few negative reviews in the past? Reach out and seek to make things right. Also, start accumulating positive reviews now.
Leverage your website to give your leads proof of life. To provide IMS with your updated photos or testimonials, please submit a support ticket. If you or someone in your office needs a refresher on posting blogs, visit our wiki for step-by-step instructions and video tutorials. Finally, if video is something you would like to consider, contact James at 877-352-2021 ex. 80.