The Long and the Short, and I’m not talking about body parts, but rather the empirical data from years and years of research by Les Binet and Peter Field that says stop wasting your law firm’s money on instant lead acquisition which is the short and balance it with the long, and the long is all about building mental codes in the mind of potential clients, that you’re the best choice when they need legal help in the future. The smart firms, invariably the big ones with great data, know that the long is what makes the short work better.
Look at the data – when you build mental availability through the long game, your activation costs drop, your conversion rates go up, and suddenly those Google Ads aren’t costing you an arm and a leg anymore. That’s because when someone searches for legal help, they’re not just picking randomly from a sea of identical ads – they’re choosing the firm they already know, the one that’s been building credibility in their mind for months or years.
But here’s the kicker – most firms are doing it completely backward. They’re throwing 90% of their budget at short-term activation when the data shows they should be splitting it closer to 50-50 between long and short. It’s like trying to win a marathon by sprinting the first mile – you might get ahead initially, but you’ll collapse before the finish line.
So what’s the solution? Balance. Keep your short-term activation – yes, you need those leads today. But start investing in the long game too. Build those mental codes. Create those distinctive assets. Make your firm the one that comes to mind when someone needs legal help.
Because in the end, it’s not about being the loudest voice in the room right now – it’s about being the first name that pops into someone’s head when they need a lawyer. That’s what the long game builds. That’s what makes your short game work better. And that’s what separates the firms that thrive from the ones that just survive.
Time to get the balance right. Start playing the long game.