Integrity Marketing

What Happens if Your Succession Plan Doesn’t Succeed?

Could it be that the same estate planning lawyer who advises owners of privately held businesses about the need for a succession plan as part of their estate plan is the same person who does not have a succession plan of her own? Ironic, we know. But irony won’t help if your estate planning law practice isn’t robust enough to either pass on to an heir or sell. What you need comes in two parts: first, you’ve got to have a thriving practice that retains its value and then you need a succession plan.

We can’t help you with a succession plan, but we sure can help you boost your practice, re-build a sagging practice or create a new practice by harnessing the power of digital marketing.

We know firsthand that many estate planning law firms are led by boomers who are starting to consider retirement and succession. For some, this is a real challenge, because they truly love what they do, and the idea of handing over the reins is not an easy thing to imagine. For others, who are more focused on the business side, it’s more of a business transaction and less of a lifestyle consideration.

Whichever camp you fall into, you want to have a law practice that is worth selling or passing down. If selling your practice is on your horizon, now is the time to go full speed ahead to ensure that your years of building the practice don’t evaporate into thin air.

If you are doing the bare minimum, now is actually the time to step up your marketing and business development. If you were selling a building, would you let it fall into disrepair before putting it on the market? If you do, don’t expect it to be worth much.

What’s the health and well-being of your marketing list? The most valuable marketing list is the one that you have grown over the years. But if yours is loaded with simple errors ([email protected], rather than [email protected], for instance), you have a list of missed opportunities. Ditto if you haven’t bothered keeping it up to date. Email and client information list maintenance is an important marketing task. No, you should not be doing it—but someone in your firm should. If you were using our automated E2 CRM system, this would be already done!

What would happen if you were suddenly incapacitated? You have these conversations with clients all the time, but have you ever given thought to what would happen if the unthinkable happened to you? Do you have a plan in place so that clients will continue to be taken care of, so that your partners know what they need to do to keep the practice going?

On a more pleasant note, what if you just wanted to start the retirement process by picking and choosing the clients you work with, and let other attorneys handle other work?

Bottom line: to have a successful succession plan, you need a profitable estate planning practice.

Succession Planning for the Estate Planning Law Practice

Succession planning is a topic that you discuss with business owner clients. But have you thought about succession planning for your own law practice?

The cobbler’s children never seem to get those shoes, do they?

Consider your business owner clients. You don’t think twice about discussing what their wishes are when it comes to doing their estate planning. Do they have family members who are active in their businesses? Do they want to sell their business to a long-standing employee? Or do they plan to sell their business, reap the rewards of years of hard work and enjoy a leisure-filled retirement? They rely on you for help mapping out a plan, starting with the big picture when they are younger and digging into the details as the years go on.

Depending on your age, health and finances (let’s not ignore the 800 pound gorilla in the room), you have options. You could conceivably continue to practice well into your 70s or 80s. Look at the Supreme Court bench for inspiration! Lawyers who love what they do often chose to work long past the time when other people have retired. After all, it’s your profession, your practice and a large part of your identity.

If you are just starting out, this is a concept to put in the back of your mind. Building your practice to succeed today, utilizing all of the available tools to grow and sustain your practice, will give you more options in the future.

If “someday” is closer in your future, consider these questions:

What would you like your future to look like? For some lawyers, that means less time practicing law and more time in leadership positions: speaking, writing and expanding involvement in the profession or with community groups.

Is your practice making the most out of technology? Are systems in place for document management, practice management, marketing and accounting functions to be as efficient as possible? This will make a big difference in freeing up your time for other activities. It will also make a difference in making it attractive for another attorney to merge their practice in with yours or come in as a partner and eventually take over for you.

Is there someone in your office who you would like to pass the baton of ownership to? The young lawyer who started with you years ago is now an experienced practitioner. Will they chose to stay with you if there is a discussion of partnership, or will they leave and become your toughest competitor?

You have built a law practice centered on helping others plan for the future. That doesn’t mean it is easy to do this for yourself. But like any other difficult topic, the earlier you start exploring the issues, the better decisions you will be able to make for yourself, your family, your clients and your practice.

A Tale of Two Companies

Posted by Jennifer Campbell Goddard, CEO
INTEGRITY MARKETING SOLUTIONS

If you own a business, chances are October 2008 is a month you will not soon forget. It didn't matter if you were a good business person or not, October 2008 hit everyone like a ton of bricks. When we are all old and gray and sitting in our rocking chairs, we'll be telling our grandchildren (or great grandchildren) about those difficult times and the days that followed.

I think the real results, however, are just now starting to surface. By "real results," I mean the test results -- who passed the test of their business mettle, and who failed? It wasn't a question of whether The Great Recession hit your business or not, but rather, how did you respond? Because it's your response to challenge that determines your success, more than any single other factor.

Let's look at two of the companies I've been following since 2008, and see how their responses determined their outcome. We will call company one Digital Technology and company two Steel Fabrication.

Digital Technology would appear to have the competitive edge over Steel Fabrication, wouldn't you agree? Steel Fabrication is stuck in a capital-intensive, labor-intensive, mature market. Digital Technology ought to have the advantage of ... well ... technology! They ought to be nimble, efficient and profitable. But -- Digital Technology is a big corporation with bureaucratic bloat and Steel Fabrication is a third-generation family business. Hmmm ... let's see what happened!

Digital Technology responded to the economic downturn of 2008 by implementing the following cost-cutting measures in 2009:

1. Eliminate the entire marketing department
2. Eliminate attendance at all trade-association conferences
3. Eliminate all association memberships
4. Reduce human sales force (and focus on Google)
5. Slash all travel budgets, keeping sales force "on the phone" and reducing "windshield time"

At the same time, they chose to renew leases on high-rent office space in New York City, Washington, DC and London, because these prestigious addresses were seen as assets rather than liabilities.

Here is how Steel Fabrication responded:

1. Resolved to keep every person employed if at all possible
2. Slash owner's salary to bare minimum
3. Reorganize debt to maintain positive cash flow
4. Keep the CEO in the air -- via the corporation's twin-engine self-piloted plane -- touching base with key customers, bidding new jobs and closing deals
5. Leverage three generations of engineering prowess to provide solutions others simply could not envision

In addition to the failing economy, Steel Fabrication suffered yet another body-blow  -- the sudden illness and death of their elder owner within a span of eight weeks. The company lost decades of wisdom, experience and relationships. Facing an economic crisis, his son also had to cope with deep personal grief at the loss of his beloved father, and added responsibility of caring for his suddenly-widowed mother.

One would think the deck was stacked against Steel Fabrication. And maybe it was.

But today -- Digital Technology's sales are down. In fact, they have slipped so far that the company is considering selling out. They may have waited too long, though. You see, they cut the very things that could have made their company strong. What did they THINK would happen when they eliminated their marketing department, dropped out of trade associations, and stopped meeting with people face-to-face? I'll tell you what they thought. They thought GOOGLE would save them! They thought they could sit in their expensive offices on Park Avenue and sell their wares online. They were wrong. They destroyed their own company, and are now hoping someone else will take it off their hands before it loses any more money.

Steel Fabrication? They kept all of their employees. They sadly buried their elder owner. His son is still flying about the midwest, still closing deals and solving problems that leave others scratching their heads, still caring for his firecracker-of-a-mother! He says they are starting to come out of it -- starting to come out of two of the worst years he has ever seen in his 30-some years of business. He is glad he stuck with his older twin-engine airplane ... it gets the job done, gets him out to meet and greet and wheel and deal and still make it home for dinner (which, by the way, is one of his top priorities!). He wishes he had something bigger, faster, newer ... but overall, he says, it's a good life.

And a job well done, I might add.

Steel Fabrication's story could have had a much different ending. There were plenty of reasons for this company to fail, for the owners and employees to all become victims. And who would blame them?

If you are an estate planning attorney in your own practice, you are a business owner. You can choose to adopt a victim mentality -- say the economy is bad, Congress has so confused the issue of estate taxes that no one is planning any more, that marketing is a burdensome expense. And who would blame you? You have every perfect excuse to fail.

Or you can rise to the challenges you face. Be smart. Be efficient. Invest wisely. Make personal sacrifices if necessary. Leverage technology, leverage your knowledge and experience. And above all, keep marketing. Keep building relationships, keep meeting people face-to-face. You will find that, overall, it's a good life!

Marketing Estate Planning Services to Business Owners

So far this week we have focused on target marketing estate planning services to blended families, baby boomers, and women.Today we focus on one of the most important niche markets for your estate planning marketing: small business owners.

Why is this niche so important to you? Because wealthy households own businesses.

"What is surprising is the composition of asset holdings among the rich. Most of their wealth is in the form of unincorporated business. They are owners of small businesses or professional practices. Stocks, bonds and other financial assets represent less than one-third of their assets." -- The Rich & the Poor: Demographics of the U.S. Wealth Distribution

Additionally, the business is consistently the single most important portfolio asset among the wealthy. Oftentimes, the business IS the estate. And this presents unique estate planning challenges, especially at the retirement, disability or death of the primary business owner.

Those challenges will include:

• Providing support for a surviving spouse
• Determining business continuation within the family
• Equalizing an inheritance among children who are not all active in the business
• Providing for key non-family employees
• Providing liquidity (cash) for business debts and taxes

Here are some tips for marketing estate planning services to business owners:

• Business owners are easily identified through a variety of list compilation services, and you can easily narrow your focus to specific sizes and types of businesses within almost any market area.
• Business owners typically work with professional advisers in a number of areas, including accounting and property/casualty/liability insurance.
• Business owners are used to consulting experts and professionals, and may be less intimidated about seeking legal advice than non-business owners.
• A portion (or all) of your services may be considered a business expense, payable with a business check -- which is easier to write than a personal check.
• Note that business owners may be very busy, bottom-lined oriented, and fast-paced. They may expect you to meet them on their own turf, make doing business with you very convenient for them, and you may be surprised (at times) by the abruptness with which they can interrupt and ask for a bottom-line cost-benefit analysis. In other words, you may have to flex your style to meet their demands, but the payoff could be substantial because ...
• Business owners tend to network extensively with other business owners. They are highly inclined to make referrals, and to seek referrals from their trusted colleagues. Becoming a trusted adviser to one business owner can open up a world of ongoing opportunity.

Of course, your website, blog, e-newsletter, personal networking, direct mail and social media are all important marketing channels for reaching business owners. Our Essentials clients benefit from compelling, relevant content and strategies to reach business owners, fundamental throughout The Essential Solution®. In addition, you may want to consider incorporated our targeted workshop entitled, "Saving the Family Business," which outlines the fundamental steps necessary to plan for the survival of the family business.

Estate Planning for Baby Boomers

This week I want you think about targeting your estate planning marketing efforts. Yesterday I discussed Blended Families. Today, let's take a look at the Baby Boomers.

You've been reading for years about the greatest generational transfer of wealth from the WWII generation to their children -- The Baby Boomers.

• Baby Boomers are expected to receive an estimated $8.4 trillion in inheritances.
• Experts say they have already received some $2.4 trillion.
• With an estimated $6 trillion anticipated.

What issues are of interest to The Baby Boom generation?

First, realize that the oldest Baby Boomers are just now turning age 65, most of them are still working, but with a keen eye toward retirement. Many of them also can be referred to as the "Sandwich Generation" -- caught in the middle -- caring for aging parents while still providing support for their young adult children.

Your first contact with a Baby Boomer may be through an issue related to their aging parent. They may want you to help plan for their parents. They may need advice about elder law issues such as durable powers of attorney, health care documents, or guardianships. They may even seek out advice on Medicaid Planning -- for their parents. They may need help protecting a family farm, home or business from a parent's long-term nursing home expenses.

So you can see how elder law can become a key aspect of your estate planning marketing.

Baby Boomers also will be interested in reading and learning more about Social Security and retirement lifestyles. If they own a small business, they may need guidance on continuation -- or exit -- strategies. Transforming their business interests into retirement income will be playing on their minds.

To summarize, top issues for Baby Boomers include:

• Elder Law
• Estate Planning (for their parents!)
• Retirement Planning
• Business Continuation & Business Exit Planning

Social Media -- Guess Who's on Facebook!

Think your clients are not on Facebook? Think again!

I just received my summer edition of Kansas Living magazine. You might be shocked to learn that social media was their cover story!

"Some folks are puzzled by the hoopla, but farmers and ranchers like Potawatomie County Farm Bureau member Glenn Brunkow are using Twitter, Facebook and other social media tools..."

Brunkow is a fifth-generation farmer (do you see estate planning opportunities here?) in central Pottawatomie County, Kansas, who farms about 600 acres with his Dad (did I mention estate planning opportunities ... asset protection ... elder law?).

Brunkow got started with social media as most people do these days, through Facebook. (Did you know that Facebook is now the 4th most-visited site on the web? Right behind #1 Google, #2 Bing, and #3 Yahoo.)

His social networking experience was probably a lot like yours. "I wondered what I was doing and if it was worth my efforts," Brunkow said. Today, he is using Facebook, Twitter and writes a popular blog called "Dust on the Dashboard."

"I am blown away with the speed and the power that social media has," he says.

Glenn Brunkow is just one example of how YOUR CLIENTS are using social media -- specifically Facebook, Twitter and blogs. You need to join the conversation!

We offer social media coaching and training as a subscription service. To learn more, call James at 1-877-352-2021, ext. 0.

Follow Glenn Brunkow on Twitter: http://twitter.com/brunkow

Read his blog "Dust on the Dashboard": http://dustonthedashboard.blogspot.com/

Find him on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/glenn.brunkow

P.S. The inside cover article focused on the "death tax." Were you kidding yourself that YOUR CLIENTS are not concerned about the estate tax? I see a workshop opportunity here!

Funding the Buy-Sell Agreement

I ran across a good reference article online last week, Estate Planning – Funding the Buy-Sell Agreement Between Business Partners.  This brief article explains how a buy-sell agreement works, suggests life insurance as a funding method and includes a link to another good article: The Buy-Sell Agreement.

If you are blogging for your law firm, these are the types of links that help you attract business owners to your blog, and if you use them strategically, to your website. For example, if you have a Practice Center for business owners, you could write:

Visit my website to learn more about Business Succession Planning.  While you’re there, be sure to download our free report: Business Owners Beware.

Note that Kyle’s website also includes the free report download: Business Owners Beware. When visitors register for the download, he is collecting new leads. Always be sure to integrate your blog postings to your website and link back to your site, where you can further the relationship.

Another strategy you can use is to link to your e-newsletter, archived online. Scott Makuakane’s website includes a 12-month archive index, as well as his animated e-newsletter online. The January 2010 issue addressed financing a buy-sell agreement. He could write something like this:

We recently featured the many estate planning challenges that business owners face in our January newsletter. In fact, on page three inside, we take a closer look at Buy-Sell Financing. You can keep learning about these and other estate planning issues by signing up for our free Estate Planning e-Newsletter.

Scott’s website does not include the free download registration that Kyle’s does, but he can still try to capture qualified leads by linking back to his e-newsletter and encouraging visitors to subscribe. When they do, he now has the opportunity to build a single blog visit into the kind of ongoing relationship that leads to new clients…and referral sources