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At LWP, whether we're on an implementation call or at our Tri-Annual Retreat – or serving elsewhere, we're getting questions about marketing. It seems to be the No. 1 concern. So, we created a bi-weekly marketing roundtable call to give you the space to ask questions or get your marketing needs met. Our last call was all about your marketing plan. Where do you get started? How do you get it started? These are areas we facilitate and talk about on the call, so I encourage you to show up – and participate! I promise, you’ll get something out of it if you do.

You may or may not even be serving in a marketing role in the firm, but it’s something you know you need to focus on, so let’s dig in. So often when I’m on implementation calls I hear that people will table their marketing plan review at their weekly team meeting. Or they have a weekly marketing meeting but they only look at the RMS reporting, not consistently at the marketing plan. So I want to get everyone back on track as we are headed into end of August, with only four months left after that, to make sure you reach your goal.

We have a theory at LWP that goes like this: “What gets measured, gets results!” So, if you’re not looking at your marketing plan weekly – start! Even if it’s blank, look at it. I can promise you that, if you just spend two hours a week to make progress on your marketing plan action items, you will increase your revenue. The best plans I’ve seen started right there – blank. But they eventually grew until every space was filled out and completed. And that didn’t happen overnight. Also, they almost all start with the attorney in the “WHO” (responsible for) section – but they eventually change to the RMS coordinator landing in the “WHO” section, and that’s when things really start rocking and rolling.

If you commit only two hours a week, I promise you – with time management and deciding as a team that, come hell or high water, you're going to dedicate time to your marketing plan – you WILL double your revenue. It just takes time, discipline and determination. One of the most common roadblocks I come across on implementation calls is apprehension about that term “marketing.” People tend to clam up a little. And if you have that feeling where you hear “marketing” and you get apprehensive and find yourself shying away from it, I challenge you to think of it differently. Because what you're actually doing is building and nurturing relationships by counseling your clients and advisors. Don’t even use the term “marketing” if it doesn’t sit well with you. Don’t let anxiety paralyze you when it comes to marketing. Make a mental shift and approach it in a way that works for you. Make it your own and interact with it in a way that feels like you are making a difference. Don't think about it like you are “selling” but rather like you are communicating your value in the marketplace.

So, with all that, let’s look at the three different areas on the marketing plan:

• Retail: This is anything you write a check for. It has a slower ROI and has to be consistent and constant, because consistency is the key to your retail marketing. This is ads in newspapers and radio spots, for example. The best thing you can do here is to create a budget. (We do have a call that addresses creating a budget too.) When creating your budget, be honest and realistic. If you only have $500 a month for the next six months, that’s OK. Figure out what you’re going to do with that money and do it consistently; don’t bother if it’s a one-shot deal. Members have said to me so many times, “I ran an ad and no one called or showed up.” The problem is not the page your ad appeared on or the circulation it’s in, it’s the consistency. If you want to brand yourself as the expert in your area, they have got to see you over and over again. Bottom line. In the long haul, your retail marketing does pay off, but you must be patient and stick to your budget. Quitting is a mistake. It takes people seeing you 5-7 times before they take action. Retail takes money and consistency for 6-12 months to work. It’s not a magic bullet. People get so frustrated with their efforts in retail marketing, but branding is important and drives your wholesale marketing. It may take some research to find out the best placement or circulation, but eventually you will identify your ideal market and client, and then you can put your marketing dollars towards that with confidence.

• Wholesale: This is all about your relationships. When starting out in marketing to build your referrals, wholesale is the bulk of your marketing efforts. It’s your blood, sweat and tears, your starting path. It drives business quicker. It’s your face-to-face synergy, strategy, and relationship-review meetings. It’s you showing up, being present to them and demonstrating the value you create. If you have unlimited time and little money, do this and the money will come! Then, once you get it going and you need to hire, LWP can help. The greatest resource you have in this area is your time, and the follow-up is crucial. It won’t be successful if the conversations that you're having don’t have a next action attached to them. I can’t stress that enough! Don’t look at it like it’s transactional, because if you do, I promise you will sound that way and they will feel it. I like to say it’s like you're dating them. You have to realize it takes time to build the relationship, much like dating. Show them that you're interested in a long-term “committed” relationship, and prove yourself! Get into their perspective and create power in partnership.

• Community: This really combines your wholesale and retail. It’s consistency and branding, but it’s not just you donating money. Everyone does that. What community means is bringing the wholesale and retail together and having your face attached to your name/brand, and getting involved. Have the entire team do a walkathon together. Do something like that every quarter. It doesn’t mean just throwing a check at a sponsorship, it means getting involved. It’s being in the community AND developing your relationships. It’s your FIRM participating, making it fun and, at the same time, letting your community see you.

So start bringing your marketing plan to your next team meeting. It may be a mess, it may be outdated and it may even be a blank one that you print from the website. But have it there. And be the firm advocate for making it a living document. This isn’t just another document you’ve got to bring into the room to make your team or marketing meeting longer or more difficult. It’s the revenue generator for your business, and you must have a conversation around it regularly and be focused and intentional with it. Declare who in the office is going to own it, and I strongly encourage you to assign someone other than the attorney because those are the plans that are the most successful.

Take it seriously for the months of September, October, November and December. And you only have to take it one step at a time. If you just take two hours a week to work on one item per quarter from either your wholesale, retail or community plan, it will make a huge impact on the revenue in your firm. So my challenge to you all is to send me your current marketing plan – rdrotar@lawyerswithpurpose.com. I’m happy to review it and give you feedback and really support you with implementation of your plan before the end of the year.

If you want to learn more about Lawyers With Purpose check out our Practice With Purpose Program in October.  Click here to look at the full agenda or contact Molly Hall for more information – mhall@lawyerswithpurpose.com

Roslyn Drotar – Coaching, Consulting & Implementation, Lawyers With Purpose

Are you going to the most critical event that will change your estate planning, asset protection and elder law practice? The Asset Protection, Medicaid and VA Benefits Practice with Purpose Program October 20-22 in Phoenix, AZ.

National Medicaid and VA experts Dave Zumpano and Victoria Collier will be hosting this three day program and bringing dozens of attorneys together to discuss and solve the most critical elements and strategies around today's Asset Protection, Medicaid and VA needs of our clients. Click here now for the course outline and to register.

In this program we will provide solutions to the following:

ASSET PROTECTION:

• Recent updates to asset protection and Medicaid compliant strategies.
• The new asset protection strategies dominating the marketplace.
• The death of DAPT'S, FLP'S, GRATS, GRUTS, and tax planning, and what's replaced them.
• The five essential trusts and key drafting needs to serve 99.7% of clients.
• Four "must have" drafting considerations and three "most forgotten" powers in trust.

MEDICAID:

• Four steps to Medicaid eligibility for any client.
• How to calculate the "breakeven" to ensure the proper filing date for the shortest penalty period.
• Medicaid Qualifying Annuities: Hidden risks and how to properly disclose them to clients or protect from them.
• The seven key factors to calculate any Medicaid case in seven minutes (or less!)
• IRA's: Exemption versus taxes, how to calculate if IRA's should be liquidated or exempted in Medicaid and VA cases.

VETERANS' BENEFITS:

• New fully developed claims process for veterans and widows.
• Qualifying assisted living facilities as UME's.
• Key choices to complete the physician affidavit for more timely approvals.
• Update on three year look back for VA benefits.
• The key reports no longer required for VA applications.
• Dangers of annuities in VA benefits planning.
• The effects of the Supreme Court decision on DOMA related to veterans benefits.

ALL PARTICIPANTS IN THIS SUMMIT WILL RECEIVE:

• Asset Protection, Medicaid and VA Practice Kit which includes:
• 50 state Medicaid Reference Resource Guide (summarized in 3 pages)
• 50 state Estate Recovery Article and updated state by state summary.
• Grantor Trust Summary and use tool.

Click here for a full outline of the program and to register for this event that has SOLD OUT the past 5 programs.  There are ONLY 25 seats available…DON’T WAIT TO REGISTER! 

During our weekly marketing meeting recently, our social media strategist shared that she was having problems getting information from one of our vendors; “They say they can’t give us access because….” Without skipping a beat, our CRM extraordinaire blurts out, “So sad, everybody’s swimming upstream.”  Living in a world of scarcity = if I give you access to X, then you may no longer need me.

Once I got involved, it was like magic – we had the information we needed in less than 15 minutes. I couldn’t help but incessantly think about this over dinner and, honestly, well into the night. OK, I lost sleep over it. How could a vendor we are doing business with (paying) not give us what we are paying for? 

One of my favorite authors, Brené Brown, sums it up beautifully: “We each have a choice in any setting to step back and let go of the mind-set of scarcity. Once you let go of the scarcity mind-set, we discover the surprising truth of sufficiency. Sufficiency is an experience, a context we generate, a declaration, a knowing that there is enough and that we are enough.”

It got me thinking about the law firms I work with every day.  From the first implementation call, we are pumped to get on the team’s side because “here we are to save the day,” we have systems and processes to make your life so much easier and efficient. Over the past 17 years, fewer and fewer teams are stoked about the promise of systemization. They fear they will become irrelevant, that they will eventually be out of a job. They think, I’d rather swim upstream day in and day out than gamble with the possibility of becoming unnecessary.

We all want to be needed. Scarcity creeps in when it comes time to give up that special X that only you do or have.  But the honest truth is that people will continue to pay you over and over, and never think twice about it, if they feelsafe, heard and appreciated.  Integrity, compassion and character cannot be systemized or replaced – especially in the personal services industry.

So the next time you feel that bit of panic when someone asks you to systemize what you do or train so and so to do what you do or provide us with the passwords to X, dig deep. Check in, and if your integrity, compassion and character are in place, nothing but opportunity and growth is waiting on the horizon for you. If you lead with creating a safe environment where people feel heard and appreciated, you have nothing to worry about.  Those “job functions” are few and far between.

One of the first homework assignments we give to our members and their team is listenting to "The Attorney / Team Mindset To Create An Extraordinary Practice."  We highly recommend you carve out 1 hour of time – with your team – and give it a listen.  We promise, it WILL change your mindset day in and day out and the way you all communicatea nd function as a team moving forward.

If you want to learn more about Lawyers With Purpose join us at our Asset Protection, Medicaid & VA Practice With Purpose Program October 20-22nd in Phoenix, AZ.  Register now.  Seats are filling up quickly. If you are already a member and want to attend Practice With Purpose, contact Angela in Member Services at acrowther@lawyerswithpurpose.com

How many times have you found yourself anxious about change – no matter how big or how little – simply because the uncertainty ahead appears daunting? Many of us make up a colossal fact pattern in our heads with anticipated upset (emotionally, financially, organizationally, etc.)  involved in the final outcome. In my experience, when you take the plunge and dive into the deep end of the pool versus easing into the shallow end, you find it wasn’t as rattling as you expected. 

Two weeks leading up to heading east from Colorado to New York, I had an unnecessary amount of anxiety about making the “big trip.”  I was scripting an elaborate story about how hard it was going to be to walk into the family home of 43 years that my parents built when I entered this world (child #4 of 6). The last time I was there was in February, when my mom passed away in our family living room.  It was one heck of a year for 35 Cannas Court: Mom and dad both passed away eight months apart, leaving our family home for the final time.

Truth be told, the moment I walked into my folks' back yard – where the in-ground pool (encircled with my father’s master gardening) was traditionally overflowing with my nieces and nephews, parents and  siblings on any given Sunday afternoon – I instantly felt a calm come over me. I knew this was exactly where I needed to be. It felt very healing. I knew I was not only going to get through this, I could learn and grow from my time here.  I would be better for it. There would be therapy in helping my sisters pack up the home and get it ready for the escrow closing at the end of the month. Cutting my father's grass, though not as well as he would have, would help me to properly say goodbye. 

I quickly remembered the most accurate definition I think I’ve stumbled upon for the term  “anxiety.”  “The root of all anxiety comes from lack of information.” The only information I had in preparing for the trip was from everyone else’s perception. “Wow, that’s going to be really hard,” they told me. “I don’t know how you are going to get through packing up your childhood home.”  And many other renditions of the fear of the unknown, the fear of change and the fear of goodbye. 

I hear attorneys and team alike spout the workplace version of this  every day: “I am nervous to add another person to the bus, I don’t know how I will pay for them.” “If I let him go, everything is going to crumble.” “I really would love to X but I fear Y.”  And as we all know, yet must forever relearn and remember, every time we move forward we find that the dread was worse than the actual change. 

“When you take a deeper look at all the things that you fear, notice that fear is an emotion that exists only in regard to the future,” says Ariane De Bonvoisin, author of “The First 30 Days: Your Guide to Making Any Change Easier.” “Worry and anxiety come from imagining terrible scenarios that could occur in the future instead of focusing on what is actually happening in the present moment.”

Making a move (change) in life is absolutely daunting, especially for those who have lived in an area/situation self-imprisoned by the mental fear of the worst-case scenario. But making the actual move (change) is worth every step versus the alternative of living in the planning anxiety phase, the lack of information (guarantee) about the outcome. The breakthrough is always just on the other side of the breakdown.

Where in your life or practice are you living in planning anxiety?

If you want to experience what Lawyers With Purpose has to offer, join us in Phoenix AZ, October 20-22nd for our Asset Protection, Medicaid & VA Practice With Purpose Program.  If you are currently an LWP member and are interested in attending the Practice With Purpose Program, please contact Angela Crowther at acrowther@lawyerswithpurpose.com to obtain registration information.

Molly L. Hall, Co-Founder, Lawyers with Purpose, LLC, and author of Don’t Be a Yes Chick: How to Stop Babysitting Your Boss, Transform Your Job and Work with a Dream Team Without Losing Your Sanity or Your Spirit in the Process.

Interviews don’t have to be painful. Honestly. Most interviews are painful because of the quality of questions you are (or are not) asking. Most people are easily seduced by an impressive resume, so most interviewers ask the customary questions: “Why did you leave your last job,” “What are your strengths, weaknesses, etc.”  It’s pretty hard to raise any major red flag in this manner. 

This morning I was supporting an attorney in conducting phone interviews for a paralegal position. In reviewing the candidate's resume, I was pumped – with her current company for 12 years, previous company for seven years and the bullet points describing each position were beautifully crafted to articulate leadership and self-direction. 

Ten minutes into the phone interview I was feeling so hopeful for the attorney. The candidate spoke of how she is financially free, house paid off, husband successfully running the family business. Sweet, I thought, the money conversation should go fairly smooth, since she’s not afraid to talk money and clearly is not primarily motivated by it.  “Fantastic”, I said, “You have such an impressive financial outlook. You’re leaving a company after 12 years and your husband and father are doing well running the family businesses.  I’m hearing that money is not a primary motivator for you; what about coming into the estate & elder law industry excites you enough to make an industry shift, if not solely for the money?”

An awkward long pause. And then LOTS of choked up tears. “I don’t appreciate you saying I am wealthy and spoiled,” she replied. “I take huge offense to this and I am hanging up on you now.” CLICK. Clearly I triggered something BIG for her.  It's amazing how people show their true colors when the questions have some heft and depth to them. It is very hard to have canned answers for how to respond. Google won’t come up with questions like these on the Top 10 Interview Questions lists.  I had never been so happy to be hung up on when I began to visualize how this gal would have handled the first challenging call from an upset, scared, confused baby boomer client who pushed buttons she didn’t even know she had.

To say the attorney was happy when I followed up with my notes is an understatement. The truth is very seldom revealed when we are asking safe, standard questions.  To request  a free copy of “The 5 Minute Phone Interview” script, please contact me at mhall@lawyerswithpurpose.com

If you are interested in attending our Practice With Purpose Program, register and reserve your spot today! This event always sells out and will teach you all you need to know to run an efficient and successful estate planning / elder law practice.  We look forward to seeing you in the room.

Molly L. Hall, Co-Founder, Lawyers with Purpose, LLC, and author of Don’t Be a Yes Chick: How to Stop Babysitting Your Boss, Transform Your Job and Work with a Dream Team Without Losing Your Sanity or Your Spirit in the Process.

I don’t mean in 1776.  Rather, just last week.  Where were you and what were you doing?  Almost everyone I know looks forward to the Fourth of July – especially this year since it was a three-day weekend.  In Atlanta the weather was great; cool in the morning and low humidity in the afternoon.  It was a perfect day for the common rituals of barbequing, spending time outdoors with family and friends, and traveling.  

But July 4^th is actually just a date.  The true essence of the holiday is to celebrate America’s independence from Great Britain.  Seeking independence, or trying to maintain independence, can bring about struggle and strife.  The pilgrims had to journey long distances in small boats across vast oceans for freedom.  They then had to face natives and engage in a battle against the Red Coats.

Our seniors and veterans define independence altogether differently.  Each day is a struggle to maintain independence when losing eyesight, hearing, or the ability to walk or drive.  When caring for a loved one whose health is declining, that person will try very hard to maintain independence. This can bring discord to the family.  Battles may ensue. 

Less than 100 years after the Declaration of Independence was signed, April 12, 1861, the Civil War began dividing a nation – both sides fighting for independent rights (the Union to free the slaves and make them independent and the Confederate to be independent from government scrutiny).  Georgia was the fifth state to secede from the Union on January 19, 1861, and heavily supported the Confederate cause.   I spent July 6, 2014 visiting the Historic Oakland Cemetery in Atlanta, Georgia which offers tours highlighting the notable events shaping Atlanta.  Thousands of Confederate soldiers are buried there, as well as 16 Union soldiers.  Visiting the cemetery was a reminder of all of the independence we have today because of the struggles our forefathers were willing to forge.

But, not to get lost in the remembrance alone, I also spent July 6, 2014 celebrating Independence Day listening to the 116^th National Guard Band play patriotic music.  Each military branch has a band, although they are becoming smaller due to budgetary constraints.  Before long, we may only have memories of military bands playing for citizen celebration and morale.

Remember as you begin to “help” your loved ones who may be losing the battle of personal independence, that their lives and accomplishments are to be remembered and celebrated. Take a moment to recognize the strain but celebrate the person behind the cause.  When the battles are over and the memory is all that remains, make sure it is one you can celebrate with joy.

Victoria L. Collier, CELA, Elder Care Attorney, Co-Founder of Lawyers for Wartime Veterans and Lawyers with Purpose, Veteran, author of 47 Secret Veterans Benefits for Seniors and most recent book, Paying for Long Term Care: Financial Help for Wartime Veterans: The VA Aid & Attendance Benefit.  

For the past two years you’ve been keeping your allied professionals and clients advised on the controversy between Federal district courts on whether an inherited IRA is protected from bankruptcy and other predators. 

For the past ten years, Lawyers With Purpose has taken the position inherited IRAs are not protected and have planned for their clients accordingly.  On Friday, June 13^th, the U.S. Supreme Court in Clark v. Ramiker ruled inherited IRAs are not retirement accounts for purposes of protection from bankruptcy and general creditors. 

We are excited to bring to the LWP community a LIVE GoToWebinar of Dave presenting a live Lunch & Learn to his allied professionals on what the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled on Tuesday, June 24^th at 12:00pm EDT.

In one hour you’ll get:

• An understanding of the key holdings of the recent Supreme Court decision.
• Learn the asset protection strategies available for inherited IRAs.
• Know the four requirements for trusts to qualify to own IRAs without causing taxation.
• Discover the "inside" and "outside" planning strategies we have used for years to protect inherited IRAs and provide clients with the maximum number of options at death to avoid the loss of an IRA to creditors and long-term care costs.

While many are surprised by the Supreme Court’s ruling, we believe working with well qualified, forward thinking estate planning attorneys, like you, is essential for your clients to protect their most valued asset.  Now let’s let your community and allied professionals know, and showing up for the GoToWebinar will get you the information you need to know to start that conversation.

Join us on Tuesday, June 24^th at 12:00pm live via GoToWebinar. Click here to register now! We hope you can join us!

There's definitely an art to building a successful nursing home marketing plan, and a recent Marketing Roundtable we had with some successful members on the subject revealed some valuable advice. If you missed the first post on this subject, you can find that by clicking here.  This post deals with how to respond to resistance and rejection when you're trying to get in the door.

A lot of people get hung up on what to do when the nursing home receptionist puts up a stop sign. Do you shrug your shoulders and move on to the next place?

Many times, your next course of action should be to figure out if the facility has a marketer or an admissions person; often it will be the same person serving both roles. That person's job is basically like our job, trying to create new relationships, so if you can’t get through the door from outside, the marketing/admissions at person can provide you with another path. They know you can actually be a source of referrals for them when clients come to you before they're in a nursing home, so they see the value in forming a mutually beneficial relationship. You can often use that relationship to get to the business office manager or the administrator.

One approach to consider – the marketing people are always trying to do something in the community, maybe by sponsoring a luncheon or CEUs or something in the hospital.  You can partner with them on these ventures by sharing costs or doing an informative presentation at the event.  You'll just need to keep in mind your goal of establishing a relationship with the business office manager, because that's where your referrals will come from, not from the marketing person. So don't keep partnering on these events if they're not getting you to the right people. 

Why the focus on business managers? They’re your biggest opportunity – once you’re in and they see what the benefit is, how you can help them, they’ll put you in front of the administrator. Then you can have your synergy meeting and form that relationship with the administrator.  Honestly, the administrator just wants to make sure everyone else is doing their job and it’s getting done right.  Once you've established your value, from that point on, they see you there.  They know who you are.  They don’t want some stranger walking through their building and walking into their back office.  They want to know who that person is, so eventually you'll have to get in front of the administrator. 

Approach the business office and say, “I can set up a lunch-and-learn with you guys.  Bring in the key staff.  Bring in the administrator.  We’ll bring in lunch.  If anyone has questions, throw them at us.  We'd be happy t share with you all how we do things.” Inevitably at this point, you will get asked what you charge. And be honest; just tell them what the costs will be. But let them know, we’re going to show you the value of our service and what it's going to cost your client. The process will be transparent to you, so you’re not going to have to worry about a black hole or a non-payment because we’re going to make sure everything falls into place at the deadline just like we said it would happen.

You're probably wondering, how many times should you try to get through to this business office manager before you decide to move onto the next place? We usually give it about three attempts.  If you just don’t get anywhere, or you get some pushback or see materials from other attorneys or other senior financial places, then they probably have a existing relationship with an elder law attorney. That's when we go back to the admissions person or the marketing person. Work that angle again, because they’re just much more accessible and can help you get back into the business office. Once you've formed that relationship, you will have a strong advantage over someone else who has tried to get in the door by just dropping off a business card.

We will have more to say on this subject in future blog posts, so be sure to check back for the next piece soon.

Roslyn Drotar – Coaching, Consulting & Implementation, Lawyers With Purpose