How to Tell If Your Legal Lead Service Is on the Light Side or the Dark

Wouldn’t it be great if attorneys could use “The Force” to assess whether a legal lead service is worth pursuing?

As many law firms discover the hard way, there are legal lead companies who live on the “light side” and those who live on the “dark side” of things.

It can be hard to tell the difference. The way lead companies work can seem as vague and mysterious as the way “The Force” works in Star Wars. Attorneys can end up feeling they have no option but to take a leap of faith with a lead service, hoping they’ve signed up to work with Yoda instead of Darth Vader.

There’s a good reason for the vagueness. Potential clients often ask, understandably so, to see examples of landing pages being used by the lead service, so they can understand how well the leads are being vetted. However, because the industry is so competitive, it’s too risky for most companies to disclose those landing pages. Even the honest folk on the “light side” have to maintain an air of mystery to protect their business.

Where does that leave the attorney? Well, here is a set of litmus test questions that any company should be able to answer. These questions can peel back the veil of mystery from the “Force” of the lead industry enough for you to tell the light from the dark.

1) Do you use co-registration?

Co-registration basically means that someone visited a business for a product and was then convinced to give permission to hear about products from a second company.The two companies are exchanging contact information. An example might be when you book a hotel and agree to get information about car rentals or nearby tourist attractions.

We could easily write a few more posts about why this doesn’t work for legal leads, but the main thing is this. You need a legal lead to be actively seeking help, not considering it as an after-thought. You also need a legal lead to have taken some time and consideration in filling out a form to be properly vetted, which can’t happen by simply clicking a “send me more information about…“ box.

2) Do you “incentivize” your leads?

This is pretty straightforward. The lead is given an incentive to convince them to submit their contact information. The classic example is being entered into a contest of some kind. The problem here is obvious. The genuine concern or need on the lead’s part is immediately called into question.

3) Are you Bar compliant?

4LegalLeads consults with attorneys to be sure we are compliant with bar regulations in every state.

4) Do you use terms like this in your advertising, “Free Advice”, “Pro Bono”, or “Free Aid”?

Those are red flag terms that lead to a much higher volume of invalid leads.

5) Do you require consent from the lead to be contacted?

This is a must – for both legal and quality-control issues.

6) How do you verify the accuracy of the information?

They should have something in place. 4LegalLeads uses a third party verification system, and we have staff who personally follow up on any lead form that isn’t complete.

7) Are your leads exclusive?

Many lead providers will distribute their leads to more than one attorney at once. This forces their clients into competition with one another while they collect multiple fees. Often, this is how they manage to offer what seems like a great deal on pricing. In contrast, we believe that when an attorney receives a lead, they deserve to know they are the only one who received it from the company who sent it.

8) How does your refund process work for invalid leads?

For example, 4LegalLeads offers a 5-day window for returns. Returns are credited if the lead submitted but was not looking for an attorney, if the lead’s contact info is inaccurate, or if the lead somehow already has an attorney. (This occurs when they fill out the form incorrectly, possibly because they were just comparison shopping or seeking free advice.) We give fair consideration to other issues that come up as well.

A good firm should have a reasonable and understanding approach to processing returns.

9) Do you require a contract?

Simply put, a lead service should be confident enough in their product to not need a contract. 4LegalLeads has no contracts, no auto-billing, and offers a pro-rated refund of a partner’s account balance with 24 hour notice.

By the time you’ve run down this list, you should have a good sense which side of the Force you are dealing with. Yoda himself could hardly do better. In the end, A good firm will do all they can to provide you with information so long as it doesn’t endanger or expose their business to the competition.

VIEW OUR WELCOME VIDEO BELOW

(Since 2001 4LegalLeads has specialized in delivering prospective legal clients to the industry through targeted legal leads. All of our legal leads are exclusive, real-time, and are actively seeking legal help. We handle all lead tracking to final delivery, insuring the highest quality. Advanced targeting options combined with our powerful Backoffice Distribution System help grow legal businesses to the next level. Learn more at 4LegalLeads.com. (888) 444-3884)

#4legalleadsblog