“I try to stay objective and matter of fact,” he adds. “If we have access to the PPC account, we’ll do an audit to show them how they’re currently doing. I don’t promise anything special, we just break down the economics for them. For example, here’s what your click through rate is. Here’s your cost per click. Here’s your conversion rate. And, if you’re saying a case is worth this much to you, here’s how much we need to pay per lead. We are very transparent about how it’s going to shake out with our fee, and it lets them know how it makes sense economically.”
In other words, no sales pitch is required. To quote a very old adage, “The proof is in the pudding,” and even a casual perusal of the many enthusiastic testimonials on SEM Growth’s website makes it clear, this is a team that delivers.
“We break it down as if we work for the firm,” Leonardi says. “There are so many lawyers who have been burned. Companies have taken their money and really done nothing. Kind of like a snake oil thing, so we want to be the opposite. It must make sense economically, and there has to be a definitive timeline involved so they know when they can expect to see results. I just know, when all these things line up for a law firm, their campaigns are successful.
“From my view, it helps to understand the business model of agencies that serve law firms,” he continues. “Nearly all agencies have competent, well-paid salespeople, but they are often handing off your marketing to junior practitioners with one or two years of experience. Turnover is high. Then, there’s the smaller, leaner outfits that talk a good game, but they often outsource your marketing to some freelancer overseas all while pocketing your cash each month. The third model, which is ours, is a small team of practitioners with no dedicated salespeople or account managers. We can’t scale to be the biggest law firm agency, and we don’t want to do that, but it does mean that our client’s marketing is 100% handled by expert practitioners with decades of experience. The difference in execution and absence of cutting corners is evident early in our client’s results.”
Another, perhaps more subtle indication of how effective the SEM Growth team is, is apparent not only in the long-time business alliance with clients, but the fact that so many clients become friends. The kind of friends who share holidays and backyard barbecues. Of course, one of the best and most obvious indicators of client satisfaction is the number of referrals received.
Trust, as Leonardi emphatically notes, is the number one priority. Setting up their marketing plan is only the first step. Like any good product or service, follow through is where you develop this trust.
