So, newsletters, huh? Has your firm made one or more attempts to produce one in the past? For too many firms, it is tortuous process that is frequently abandoned. Why?
I do have a bit of experience in this area. I produced an award-winning 36page for the Independence Chapter of the Association of Legal Administrators for 11 years. I take great pride in sharing that we won the 1st or 2nd place award every year at the ALA Conference.
I never missed an issue in 11 years. Most law firms without in-house marketing staff can’t regularly publish issues. It’s a constant frustration because firms can’t get people to to commit to writing articles, and delivering them on time. The person assigned to remind people about deadlines has another job to do and they often don’t have sufficient authority to hold people accountable. I was fortunate that the ALA Chapter officers were required to submit articles as part of their duties on the board. All I had to do was schedule the articles for a particular issue, work up a topic with the authors that they felt qualified to write about and then bug the heck out of them consistently.
My key to success was structure and tons of follow-up. I made sure each issue was mapped out several issues in advance, knew exactly what combination of material I wanted in each issue and monitored our upcoming events, so they got scheduled for timely coverage. I rarely took no for an answer when asking someone to commit to contributing. Instead, I discussed what obstacles they had to overcome to say yes. “I’m just too busy” was easy to overcome by moving to a later issue! That was the most frequent objection. “I don’t have a good camera,” was another frequent objection. Fortunately, one of our members was a great photographer and loved to attend every event possible.
I’m tired of getting newsletters that reveal what a tortuous process the firm went through to get the issue out the door. Let’s start with why we want to even publish a newsletter.
An updated and current mailing list is a high-value asset. Most firms fail to communicate regularly with clients, especially past clients, so o referral opportunities, and return business opportunities, are often lost. Usually, firms don’t realize until they are trying to dispose of the client’s file years later that they have no valid contact information. Staying in touch regularly enables a firm to keep its contact information updated. Bragging about awards, presentations, big wins, new practice areas and so forth is a valid marketing tactic. Newsletters are suited to this, but not to the exclusion of information which may be of benefit to the client. I receive so many newsletters which are solely issued for bragging rights, and they are a big turn-off.
Revealing a bit about the culture of the firm and allowing people a glimpse into the values and lives of the people who make up the firm, not just the lawyers, can be scary, but I think it enables clients and potential future clients to feel more comfortable and feel they “know” the firm.
I am pleased to acknowledge the charming e-newsletter published by Schmidt Kramer PC. of Harrisburg. Included in their issue was an award-winning combination:
- News and updates on attorney activities and awards with lots of quality, captioned photos
- Charming short stories of community events or charitable works sponsored by the firm, including photos
- News about achievements and milestones of staff and attorney’s family members with photos. It’s apparent the firm’s staff is engaged in contributing to the content in their newsletter. Based on smiles in the photos,
- Two different law updates
- A small but charming pet corner, with photos (who doesn’t love pet pictures?)
- A few recent client testimonials. Testimonials mean everything to a potential client!
Not every firm can publish a newsletter successfully. Maybe a holiday greeting or client alert is a better strategy. If you haven’t been regularly communicating with clients, prospects and referral sources with something of value to them, give the idea some thought. Even if you’ve tried and failed in the past, it doesn’t mean you can’t do it in the future. PBA members who want to discuss ways to improve outbound communications are encouraged to schedule a chat with me to strategize.
A version of this article originally appeared in the June 23, 2025 issue of Pennsylvania Bar News.
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