After investing the time and energy to create an identity and establish yourself in your particular market, it’s important to continually nurture and support your brand with consistent, compelling messages. Messages that remind your various audiences – current and prospective clients, referral sources, media sources, etc. – who you are, what you stand for and what makes you special.

One of the more unique and effective ways to deliver your message is through storytelling. A strong story well told can really resonate with an audience. It can help make your business and the work you do tangible and real to prospective clients. It can also help you in earning the trust of valued referral sources. Last but not least, a powerful story is a reminder to your current clients that in choosing you they made the right decision.

You’ve heard it said many times: Everybody loves a good story. Stories have always fascinated people and they’re often more easily remembered than a list of facts. So what makes a good story for your business and brand? Three things: emotion, truth and relevance.

On June 26, 2015 the United States Supreme Court issued its opinion in Obergefell v. Hodges, the name assigned to a series of consolidated cases on same-sex marriage rights. The Court ruled 5-4 in favor of the petitioners, holding that same-sex married couples are entitled to equal protection under the laws, and that their marriages must be recognized nationwide.

In an earlier blog, I reviewed the advantages of a strong referral network (CPAs, financial advisors, etc.) and how to make the most of this valuable resource for effective legal practice building. 

In this post, I’d like to “reverse field” for a moment and share some thoughts on how a partnership with you can add real value to a referral resource’s business.

When seeking new referral source relationships, the question of reciprocity is a common one:  “Will you, in turn, refer clients to me?” It’s a fair question and deserves a fair response. Because many of the clients an Estate Planning Attorney receives, already have a relationship with a Financial Advisor or CPA, is is very difficult for the attorney to reciprocate referrals. However, the question the referral source is really asking is:  “What’s the advantage to my business?” Or simply put, “What’s in it for me?” To that basic question, your response can be “Quite a bit, actually.”