Digital marketing continues to change the way clients find and interact with law firms. Advertising where prospects or future clients might see you is a great start – but you’ll need a more sophisticated plan to attract and engage them. 

In today’s highly competitive marketplace, lead nurturing has become crucial. By giving individuals content that is actually helpful and useful based on where they are in the decision process, you can reach those seeking assistance at the right time, as well as build loyalty to your firm. 

Content mapping is the exercise of plotting out content for each stage of your unique marketing funnel. Lead nurturing is essential in turning a stranger into a client, and content mapping is a key component of that process. 

The 4 Stages of a Typical Marketing Funnel

Although every marketing funnel is different (for example, shopping for jeans is naturally a lot different than choosing an attorney), prospective clients generally follow predictable stages: Awareness, Consideration, Decision, and Delight.

Awareness

In this stage, readers are looking for answers that address a problem. They might not fully understand the problem or even be aware that a law firm could assist them. At this stage of the funnel, you will want to focus your efforts on creating educational and informative content that will enable your prospects to better understand the issue at hand and help them to determine whether or not they need to seek the help of a lawyer. Remember, at this stage, readers may not be thinking about a solution, and may not even have considered hiring a lawyer yet.

Their goal: is to get information that’ll help them solve a problem

Your goal: is to attract them to your firm’s website, generate awareness of your brand, and position your firm as an expert

Some content ideas: blog posts, checklists, infographics, ebooks, podcasts, cold emails

Some tips for the awareness stage:

• Understand your buyer personas and their problems
• Try to refrain from being self-promotional
• Conduct sufficient keyword research 

Related: The Law Firm Guide to Podcasting eBook

Consideration

At this stage, clients understand what their challenge is. They know they need a lawyer’s assistance and are considering different attorneys and firms. This is a critical phase because it’s where prospects build their “shortlist”. Any content you provide needs to be exceptionally valuable and clear, while also subtly addressing why your firm is the best. This is where case studies and webinars can help prospects understand the knowledge and experience that your lawyers have.

Their goal: is to research solutions more and learn more about the solutions you provide

Your goal: is to educate them on your offerings and set yourself apart from your competitors

Some content ideas: case studies, testimonials, client reviews, lead nurturing emails, webinars, newsletters

Some tips for the consideration stage:

• It’s okay to self-promote at this stage
• You can repurpose awareness stage content by combining them into more robust offerings

Decision

This is the “make or break” stage where individuals will decide between the lawyers and firms on their shortlist. They need very compelling information on why your firm can best meet their needs and solve their challenges.

Their goal: is to choose which law firm they’re going to use to help solve their issue and feel confident in that decision

Your goal: to convert them, and answer any pressing questions they have keeping them from converting

Some content ideas: case studies, comparison sheets, consultation meetings with slides, FAQs, specific landing pages

Some tips for the decision phase:

• All your content should be hyper-targeted with specific ideal client profiles in mind
• Try to think of any questions someone might need to be answered before making this purchasing decision

If you need help creating an ideal client profile, check out this free guide: A Law Firm’s Guide to Creating an Ideal Client Profile

Delight

Success isn’t won simply by signing the contract. If you want to retain clients and build lifetime value, you need to continue to please them and do a great job. Go above and beyond to ensure your client’s satisfaction and keep in touch regularly (in a helpful way). Referrals are important for any law firm, so focusing energy on people at this stage is never a waste of time. 

Their goal: to feel happy with their decision

Your goal: to keep the client happy, answer any questions, sign them on for more services, or get a referral

Some content ideas: client alerts, re-engagement emails, client newsletters, press releases, surveys

Some tips for the delight phase:

• You can segment your client audiences for better focus
• Always keep your content informative 

There is a second component to impactful content mapping, and that’s building out proper buyer personas and understanding how to reach them. For advice on creating your perfect client persona, visit our previous blog post: 15 Questions to Build Your Client Personas. 

Takeaway

Combining accurate client personas with content that is matched to their stage in the buyer’s journey will lead to stronger lead nurturing and increased client conversions. Now that you have learned how law firms can map content to their marketing funnel to increase conversions, it is time for you to start analyzing your content. 

This post has been edited and republished from Jul. 29, 2019.