Legal marketing
How people choose
a lawyer.
Most people don't start with a lawyer. In Victoria's large legal needs survey, 30% of people sought advice from family or friends, and 13% from a private lawyer, and almost half of those who took action found information online. So the lawyer they choose is often the one a friend names, then checks out online. What decides it is how the first contact feels, and whether the cost is clear.
Written by Dan Picken, a marketer who checks the sources. Last checked 2 November 2026.Where people
go first.
The Public Understanding of Law Survey asked 6,008 Victorian adults about the legal problems they'd faced. For their main problem, 32% handled it alone, 14% used only family or friends, 29% got non-legal help and 21% got legal help. Almost a quarter of those who got no independent advice didn't know where to go or found help too hard to reach.
Online matters early: almost half of those who took action found information online, against 13% from printed sources. Before anyone rings a firm, they've usually read something about their problem. If it was your article, you're already the obvious call.
In NSW there's often another stop first. Legal Aid NSW tells people the first step towards getting a lawyer is its call centre, LawAccess NSW, whose staff aren't lawyers but explain the options and refer people to other services. So some people reach your website after a first conversation about their problem, with a rough idea of the help they need. Meet them there: say plainly which matters you take and how you charge.
What decides
the call.
A recommendation gets a firm onto the list. Then the person checks: the website, reviews, whether the firm does their kind of matter, and any sign of what it will cost. Specific beats general. 'We act in family law property settlements on the Central Coast' is easier to choose than 'full-service law firm'.
Speed counts too. Someone with a legal problem is often stressed and may contact more than one firm. The one that replies clearly and early has an edge before fees are even discussed.
What leads
to complaints.
The NSW Legal Services Commissioner received 2,960 written complaints in 2023-24. Among the issues raised, negligence was 19.0%, communication 16.8% and overcharging 13.1%, with general costs and cost disclosure adding more. Family and de facto matters made up 23.5% of complaints by area.
Marketing can't fix negligence. It can set expectations about communication and costs from the very first contact, which is where many of those complaints start.
First contact check
Does your first call
prevent a complaint?
Communication and costs are two of the most common issues in complaints about lawyers. Answer for how your firm handles a new enquiry today.
Score
/ 12
Fix first
What I see most often
What I see
most often.
- 1
'Full service' and nothing specific
A list of every practice area, with nothing that shows what the firm does most or best.
- 2
No sign of cost anywhere
Not even how the firm charges. People who can't guess the cost often don't call.
- 3
Web enquiries answered days later
Forms routed to a general inbox that nobody owns.
- 4
Lawyer pages with no detail
A photo and admission year, but nothing on the matters each lawyer handles.
The honest bit. Marketing can bring the enquiry. The first call decides whether it becomes a client, and the way the matter is run decides whether they refer anyone else.
Questions
people ask.
How do most people find a lawyer?
Often through family or friends. In Victoria's legal needs survey, 30% sought advice from family or friends, and almost half of those who took action found information online.
What do people complain about most with lawyers?
In NSW in 2023-24, the most common issues were negligence, communication and overcharging.
Do lawyers have to give a cost estimate?
In NSW, Victoria and WA (the Uniform Law states), it depends on the likely total, excluding GST and disbursements: none is required up to $750, a short standard form is allowed up to $3,000, and full disclosure above that. Other states have their own rules. Many firms give an estimate early anyway.
How can a law firm get more clients?
Be easy to recommend and easy to check: specific practice area pages, reviews, clear information on how you charge, and a fast, clear first reply.
Related
Keep
going.
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- 2I go through it and write up the 3 biggest fixes.
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