September is here, meaning the Major League Baseball regular season will soon be coming to an end. The MLB postseason is set to begin September 30th with the Wild Card Playoff games that determine which wild card teams will advance to the Division Series in both the American and National Leagues. This year, a new team will be crowned the World Series champion as last year’s victor, the Boston Red Sox, will not be in the postseason. While the playoff field is not set yet, some of the frontrunners in the American League are the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, led by Mike Trout; the Baltimore Orioles, featuring Adam Jones; and the Oakland Athletics, with Josh Donaldson. From the National League, the Washington Nationals, featuring Stephen Strasburg; the Los Angeles Dodgers, including Yasiel Puig; and the St. Louis Cardinals, with Adam Wainwright are among the teams that hope to claim the title. Continue reading “New York Law Firm Advertising Spotlight: MLB Postseason”
Category: Advertising
New York Law Firm Advertising Spotlight: The US Open
On August 25th, the most prestigious tennis tournament held on American soil will begin play. The US Open, held annually in Queens at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, is the final tournament of the four major tournaments that together make up the Grand Slam. The best and brightest names in tennis will compete over the two-week tournament, which will feature five event championships: Men’s and Women’s Singles, Men’s and Women’s Doubles, and Mixed Doubles. Among the the notable players expected to compete in the Men’s events are Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic. Big names in the Women’s events include Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova, and Li Na. Continue reading “New York Law Firm Advertising Spotlight: The US Open”
Advertising Spotlight: NFL Football
NFL football, the most popular sport in the United States, is set to begin in just a few short months. The 2014 NFL season will begin with preseason games starting on August 3rd and will kick off the regular season on September 4th. The Seattle Seahawks will try to become the first team since the New England Patriots in 2004 and 2005 to win back-to-back Super Bowl titles. Among the 31 teams who will try to prevent them from doing so are the local New York Giants and New York Jets. The Giants will look to make up for a disappointing season in which they finished 7-9, their first losing season since 2004. The Jets are in a rebuilding phase and were not expected to do well last season, but finished an impressive 8-8, a mark in which they will look to build upon this year.
NFL football typically receives higher ratings than any other sport in the United States, and with two local teams, the New York area is as passionate about the sport as anywhere in the country. Local law firms will have the opportunity to connect with the large viewing audience through television advertising spots from Cablevision.
Attorney Advertising Spotlight: Advertise During the 2014 FIFA World Cup
June 12th marks the start of one of the most unique and popular sporting events in the world: the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Thirty two different teams from six continents will compete for the prestigious distinction of being the World Cup champion. Among the notable teams are the United States, defending champion Spain, and host country Brazil. The month-long tournament will feature the brightest stars of the game, including Lionel Messi (Argentina), Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal), and Franck Ribery (France). The roster for the United States is not finalized yet, but will likely feature World Cup veterans such as goalkeeper Tim Howard and midfielders Clint Dempsey and Landon Donovan. The World Cup has been steadily growing in popularity in the United States and is sure to attract a large and diverse audience in New York and on Long Island. Law firms will have the opportunity to capitalize on the excitement with television advertising spots from Cablevision and Verizon FiOS.
Cablevision and Verizon FiOS are both offering special advertising packages for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, which will be broadcast on ESPN, ESPN2, and ESPN Deportes. The World Cup attracts a predominantly male audience, ages 25-54, from various demographics. Law firms also have the ability to choose individual games in which to run a commercial rather than purchasing an entire package. Prices for individual games may vary according to the time of the match and which teams are playing. Most packages contain additional spots on a wide array of general channels offered by Cablevision and Verizon FiOS.
The World Cup package with Cablevision will consist of seventy eight, 30-second commercial spots which will air on ESPN or ESPN2 during World Cup matches, World Cup Live, and SportsCenter. The package will also include 50 spots which will mention a law firm, and its tagline, as a local sponsor of the World Cup at the end of the promos. For example, “The World Cup on the networks of ESPN is sponsored locally by (law firm’s tagline here).” These spots will be run during general timeframes on various Cablevision channels.
The prices for the World Cup package with Cablevision are $2,500 for the Huntington zone, $2,800 for the Babylon zone, $3,600 for the Riverhead zone, $4,000 for the Brookhaven zone, $8,000 for the Hauppauge zone, $5,000 for the North Nassau zone, and $9,500 for the South Nassau zone.
Verizon FiOS has three separate packages for the World Cup, broken down by channel. The ESPN package will contain one spot per game for each of the 32 games that ESPN broadcasts during the first round. There will also be 58 additional spots which will run on general channels throughout the first round of the tournament, bringing the total to 90 spots. The ESPN2 package will contain 45 total spots. Fifteen of the spots will air during first-round games on ESPN2 and the remaining 30 are general spots. The ESPN Deportes package contains 56 spots, all of which will be run during games in the first round.
The prices for the ESPN package are $680 for the RCN zone (covers select areas of Queens), $1,090 for the North Nassau zone, $1,590 for the South Nassau zone, and $1,324 for the Suffolk zone. The ESPN2 package costs $775 for all of New York, except the RCN zone, which costs $395. The ESPN Deportes package costs $1,150 for all of New York. Verizon FiOS is only offering four ESPN and ESPN2 packages per zone and two ESPN Deportes packages, so space is limited.
The World Cup is still over a month away, which means there is still time to produce a 30- or 60-second commercial specific to the World Cup, or a general commercial if your office does not currently have a commercial to run. PR4Lawyers’ experienced staff offers broadcast-quality commercial production to help you through the process.
If you are interested in producing a commercial, purchasing an advertising package, or for further details regarding rates and pricing, please contact PR4Lawyers at 1-866-PR4Lawyers or email info@pr4lawyers.com.
Improved Facebook Advertising for Attorneys
Facebook recently overhauled its advertising system, making it easier for advertisers to target specific audiences. When using Facebook Ads, advertisers will now see many different options in the “Audience” section, which can be used to narrow down the Facebook users who will be shown their advertisement. Most of these options, such as Location and Interests, were already available in Facebook’s old targeting system. However, Facebook has unveiled a Behaviors option, which offers advertisers the opportunity to improve campaigns directed at general or narrow target audiences. Behaviors are broken down into eight different categories, with each containing numerous subcategories.
Automotive:
The Automotive category sorts Facebook users in many different ways— based on the cars they own or are shopping for. Advertisers can appeal to general audiences such as individuals who have purchased used vehicles. They can also choose to be very specific by advertising to owners of a certain make, model, age, and price of a car. This type of targeting is especially useful for product liability lawyers.
Charitable Donations:
Facebook allows advertisers to target users who have made charitable contributions to a broad selection of organizations. They can also choose specific subcategories such as Animal Welfare, Health, Political, Environmental, and more. If your firm does philanthropy within the local community, charity-based advertising can increase your firm’s profile, incur goodwill from your audience, and open the firm up to positive PR opportunities.
Digital Activities:
Advertisers can choose who is shown their ads by sorting users into categories based on their habits in the digital and tech worlds. Facebook users are sorted into subcategories such as Photo Uploaders, Small Business Page Owners, Online Spenders, and more. This can help you advertise specific practice areas to relevant audiences.
Financial:
The Financial category is broken down to three main subcategories: Insurance, Investments, and Spending Methods. Each of the subcategories is then broken down into several more specific subcategories. Advertisers can choose a general classification like the Active Credit Card User subcategory found within Spending Methods. They can also opt to use a specific distinction, such as individuals who renew their auto insurance in April, which can be found in the Insurance subcategory.
Mobile Device Users:
Facebook also gives advertisers the opportunity to target users based on the mobile devices they own. There are many general options, such as targeting by all mobile device users or by operating systems (such as Android or Apple iOS). There are also very specific options in this category. Advertisers can target users of a certain brand and particular model of phone or tablet.
Purchase Behavior:
Perhaps the most comprehensive category is Purchase Behavior, which contains a seemingly endless amount of ways to define a market segment. The Purchase Behavior category contains 14 subcategories, which are based off items users have purchased and where they have shopped. The subcategories all contain a second level of subcategories which narrows the markets. Advertisers can still reach broad groups, such as consumers who have shopped at high-end retail stores. However, they can also target much smaller markets, such as consumers who have purchased men’s business apparel.
Residential Profiles:
The Residential Profiles category sorts Facebook users by their living arrangements and contains four subcategories: Likely to Move, Recent Homebuyers, Recent Mortgage Borrowers, and Recently Moved. Each subcategory is relatively small compared to those in other categories and gives advertisers access to particularly specific audiences.
Travel:
The Travel category contains more subcategories than any other category in the Behaviors option. There are two main groups of subcategories: those who have traveled and those who are planning to travel. Broad spectrums of travelers can be targeted, such as business travelers or those who have been on a cruise. The Travel category also contains incredibly specific subcategories, such as people who have used mobile travel applications or those who are intending to travel to an assortment of popular tourist destinations (New York, France, Orlando, etc.).
All the choices in the Behaviors option gives the smart advertiser an extremely powerful tool in their hands. When the Behaviors option is used in conjunction with other options, such as age, location, and gender, it ensures that advertisements are reaching the correct target market. Facebook even provides a gauge to show the advertiser how many users are in the target market they have defined. Because Facebook Ads charges by a pay-per-click system, proper use of the Behaviors option will be a cost-effective and time-saving method for advertisers. Businesses should see a higher click-through/conversion rate as a result of these hyper-targeted advertisements since only relevant parties will be shown the ads. Advertisers who utilize the system properly will avoid wasting their time and money sending ads to irrelevant audiences.
However, it is important to remember that the narrower the audience, the fewer the people who will view the ad. If you are concerned about finding a balance between ad targeting and audience size, we recommend that you contact an advertising agency. For help building and managing Facebook Ads, please contact us at 866- PR4Lawyers or email: info@pr4lawyers.com.
New York Attorney Advertising Spotlight: NBA Playoffs
The 2013-14 NBA regular season is quickly coming to a close with two local New York teams having playoff aspirations. The New York Knicks, led by Carmelo Anthony, are seeking their fourth straight playoff appearance and are currently in the middle of a heated battle for one of two remaining playoff spots in the Eastern Conference. The Brooklyn Nets are in the midst of a turnaround season and have clinched a playoff berth for the first time since the franchise moved from New Jersey in 2012. The NBA Playoffs, beginning on April 19th, will offer local businesses a great opportunity to advertise to a wide audience.
Cablevision is now offering separate packages of NBA advertising spots for the first and second round of the playoffs for both the Knicks and the Nets. Local businesses looking to attract a male audience will have a great opportunity to advertise with options available on channels such as ESPN, ESPN NEWS, TNT, NBA TV, YES Network, and MSG. All of these networks have a male-dominated audience, with viewership primarily in the 18-54 year-old range.
Each package consists of 28 total spots to be run during both the games and general programs. The advertiser will be given seven spots during games (games will be on TNT, ESPN, YES, or MSG), seven general spots on ESPN News, and seven general spots on NBA TV. In addition, packages for the Knicks will include seven general spots on MSG, while the Nets package will include seven general spots on YES.
Prices for the first-round Knicks package are $735 for the Huntington zone, $791 for the Babylon zone, $1,099 for the Riverhead zone, $1,127 for the Brookhaven zone, $2,359 for the Hauppauge zone, $1,295 for the North Nassau zone, and $2,611 for the South Nassau zone.
Prices for the first-round Nets package are $553 for the Huntington zone, $595 for the Babylon zone, $826 for the Riverhead zone, $847 for the Brookhaven zone, $1,771 for the Hauppauge zone, $973 for the North Nassau zone, and $1,967 for the South Nassau zone.
Prices for the second-round Knicks package are $1,092 for the Huntington zone, $1,176 for the Babylon zone, $1,638 for the Riverhead zone, $1,680 for the Brookhaven zone, $3,528 for the Hauppauge zone, $1,937 for the North Nassau zone, and $3,906 for the South Nassau zone.
Prices for the second-round Nets package are $826 for the Huntington zone, $889 for the Babylon zone, $1,239 for the Riverhead zone, $1,267 for the Brookhaven zone, $2,646 for the Hauppauge zone, $1,456 for the North Nassau zone, and $2,933 for the South Nassau zone.
If you are interested in any of these packages or for further details regarding rates and pricing, please contact PR4Lawyers at (866) PR4Lawyers or email johnzaher@pr4lawyers.com.
Is Direct Mail or Email Marketing Better for Attorneys?
Recently, the popularity of Internet-based advertising has increased dramatically among lawyers. One of the most widely used methods of Internet-based advertising is through email. Email marketing offers law firms a cheap, easy way to directly target past clients, prospective clients and potential referral sources. Meanwhile, there has been a decline in direct mail advertising, a more traditional system of sending tangible advertisements to your target audience. Despite the lower costs associated with email advertising, does it bring in a higher return on your investment? Overall which is better: direct mail or email advertising?
Advantages to email advertising: For starters, emails can link back to your website, social media pages, recent verdicts and settlements, and much more. Also, emails are sent immediately. Advertisers do not need to wait for the pieces to be printed, shipped, stamped and delivered. Lastly, the main advantage to email advertising is very basic: it is cheap. As long as a firm is connected to the Internet, sending an email comes at almost no cost. Direct mail incurs costs such as printing and postage, which can add up quickly if a firm is trying to reach a large number of businesses or households.
Downsides to email advertising: While emails can be an effective way to reach a target market, what happens if a firm doesn’t have a large email database? Organically building a list of email addresses is a difficult process that can take months to sufficiently complete. This can be avoided by using agencies that offer lists of addresses, but all of this comes at a price. Also, a large number of emails are never seen by its audience. Email advertisements are often viewed as junk mail and automatically end up in spam boxes or are deleted before they are read.
The main advantage of direct mail: You are ensured the audience will see the advertisement. Even if they immediately discard the mailer, they will still briefly look at it, giving your firm increased exposure. This also presents the opportunity to change one’s opinion with catchy designs and content. Someone may delete an e-newsletter before it loads, but an eye-popping postcard in the mail can often lead to new clients. Also, certain demographics of people, such as senior citizens or low-income households, are more likely to respond to direct mail than emails.
The Direct Marketing Association found in a 2012 study that letter-sized direct mail has a response rate of 3.4% from a house list and a 1.28% rate from the general public. Email, on the other hand, only has a response rate of .12% and .03%, respectively. These rates can be even higher with a well-segmented list. Direct mail can still have a high return on investment and reach a wider audience.
In the end, the method that works best depends on the law firm, the practice area(s) advertised, and the resources available. Even if direct mail may benefit a firm, if it does not have the resources immediately available to make the investment, then emails may be the way to go. Often, a combination of both methods can be the best system for a law firm.
In either case, it is important to contact a marketing firm with a total understanding of the current attorney advertising rules in your state. PR4Lawyers prides itself on strict adherence to all advertising regulations and attorney rules of conduct. If you have any questions regarding advertising strategies, please contact PR4Lawyers at 866-PR4Lawyers or email: johnzaher@pr4lawyers.com.
On or Off Site: Video Production for Every Law Firm
Video advertising, such as television commercials, is one of the most effective ways to spread your firm’s message to a wide audience. Most often, videos are spread through a law firm’s website, video sharing sites like YouTube, or on TV. Professional video production usually comes in two forms: on-site and off-site. This article will provide an overview of the differences between on-site and off-site video production, as well as the benefits and disadvantages of each.
On–site video production
The biggest benefit of on-site video production is its contribution to your overall branding efforts. On-site videos are produced at the law firm’s offices, at a courthouse, or at a press conference, giving exposure to the firm’s staff and locations, which helps potential clients feel more comfortable with a firm or practice.
Often, partners at the firm will be featured in the video to provide a personal message or present themselves as the spokespeople for the firm. Other times, on-site videos include testimonials from actual clients or actor portrayals of clients. On-site video production may include the voices of actual staff and clients, actors, voiceovers, or any combination of the above. These “real” audio and visual elements allow potential consumers to not only learn about your practice areas, but also create an emotional connection between individual consumers and the firm (this can turn cold leads into warm leads every time a video is viewed).
Although filming is done on-site, most of the editing is done off-site. Off-site, producers will cut, edit, and compile the footage taken at the firm’s location. Producers also add text, graphics, and other design features to give the video a more professional appearance. In most cases, commercials and promotional videos will end with a graphic showing the firm name, location, contact information, and logo, but some videos will also include background music or sound effects. Off-site additions, particularly the graphics, constantly show the firm’s contact information throughout the video and reinforce consumer knowledge of the practice. If a video includes a jingle or an original song, consumers are also more likely to remember the firm.
Because of its customization, on-site video production is more time-consuming and more expensive than off-site production, especially if actors and production crews are involved. Filming alone can take several hours, and editing can take even longer. However, with on-site production, you can film and produce exactly what you want and play an active role in crafting your message.
Off-site video production
The greatest advantage of off-site video production is the cost-effective nature of off-site video campaigns. They can be less expensive than their on-site counterparts, and can be just as effective. Off-site videos can be produced anywhere and anytime, without the need for an on-site visit, production crew, or actors. Off-site video production relies most heavily on stock footage and stock images purchased from a reputable database. These stock images offer a wide variety of scenes that may be difficult to recreate on-site. Off-site videos often use more text-based graphics throughout the video and use voiceovers for the audio. Consistent graphics and design should still appear throughout the video as they strengthen your brand in the minds of consumers. However, unlike on-site videos, you will not be able to incorporate panoramic shots of your facilities or client testimonials.
If you are looking for a faster turnaround on a video project, off-site video is likely the better option. Stock footage usually requires less editing than raw footage taken on-site, and the editing process can be faster as a result. Otherwise, the editing process for off-site videos is similar to on-site videos because the producer must compile the footage, audio, and graphics into one video. As with on-site videos, graphics with the firm’s contact information remains on-screen throughout the video, ensuring that potential customers are always aware of the firm’s location, services, website, and phone number.
The main disadvantage of off-site production is that footage for the video is generic rather than custom-made, and it can be difficult to include staff, customers and facilities. Luckily, there are many resources and databases available to find the perfect clip and you can easily compare different types of footage.
Depending on your firm’s needs, on-site video production may prove more useful, or off-site video production may generate similar results at a much lower cost. If you are interested in video production or have any questions about your advertising strategy, contact John Zaher at 1-866-PR4Lawyers or at johnzaher@theprmg.com.
Attorney Advertising Spotlight: Yankees and Mets Baseball
Spring training is already underway, which means the 2014 Major League Baseball season is almost upon us. The New York Metropolitan area boasts two teams with fan bases among the league’s largest. The New York Yankees and New York Mets both have captivating story lines that are sure to attract millions of viewers throughout the season. The Yankees have a cast of newcomers who hope to get team captain Derek Jeter one last championship ring in his final season of play. The Mets hope rising homegrown stars, such as Zack Wheeler, will combine with established veterans, such as David Wright and Curtis Granderson, to get the team back into the postseason for the first time since 2006. The baseball season is a long one, which provides attorneys with ample opportunity to reach large audiences with their advertisements.
Cablevision is offering two advertising packages to be broadcast over both the Yankees and Mets television networks, starting on March 31st. The Yankees Entertainment and Sports (YES) Network is a premier sports and entertainment television network featuring the 27-time World Champion New York Yankees. SportsNet New York (SNY) is New York’s 24/7 regional sports and entertainment television network featuring regular-season New York Mets telecasts.
The “Grand Slam” package offers a total of 1,360 television spots for a 15- or 22-week buy. Advertisers will be given promos during live broadcasts for 80 Yankees games and 80 Mets games, as well as 300 cross-channel Yankee or Met promos to be aired between 9:00 a.m. and midnight. In addition to the promos, companies will also be given 900 additional spots to be aired over a twenty-week period on five networks of choice. Prices for the “Grand Slam” package start at $14,475 for the Riverhead zone, $18,355 for the Brookhaven zone, $18,395 for the Huntington zone, $19,295 for the Babylon zone, $43,795 for the Hauppauge zone, $28,095 for the North Nassau zone, and $57,515 for the South Nassau zone.
The “Triple Play” package offers a total of 680 television spots for an eight- to 12-week buy. Companies will be given promos during live broadcasts for 40 Yankees games and 40 Mets games, as well as 150 cross-channel Yankee or Met promos to be aired between 9:00 a.m. and midnight. In addition to the promos, companies will also be given 450 additional spots to be aired over a ten-week period on five networks of choice. Prices for the “Triple Play” package start at $7,575 for the Riverhead zone, $9,705 for the Brookhaven zone, $9,725 for the Huntington zone, $10,175 for the Babylon zone, $22,985 for the Hauppauge zone, $14,905 for the North Nassau zone, and $26,945 for the South Nassau zone.
PR4Lawyers is ready to help law firms advertise (while strictly following New York’s attorney advertising rules). If your firm is interested in placing an advertisement , producing or licensing a video or learning more about advertising opportunities available to attorneys, please contact PR4Lawyers at 1-866-PR4Lawyers or email: kerri@theprmg.com.
Changes to Facebook Ads
Starting in April 2014, Facebook will no longer support “Sponsored Stories,” a part of their Facebook Advertising options. Previously, sponsored stories were auto-created ads that leveraged users’ activity (connected to a brand) and displayed this activity to the users’ friends. Rather than showing in the right-hand column with the standard ads, sponsored stories were displayed within a user’s news feed. Now, the social context that was previously included with sponsored stories will be automatically included in all Facebook ads.
In addition to the standard Facebook display ads, advertisers will still be able to run “Page Post Ads/Boosted Posts.” Boosted posts expand the reach of a page’s posts (status updates, shared links, events, videos, questions, or offers) to reach a larger audience. These boosted posts can be done on a post-by-post basis for a single day or multiple days. Facebook is also improving its targeting options by allowing advertisers to more precisely target only a cross-section of your target audience. For example, instead of advertising to moms or people who like dogs, you can target “moms who like dogs.” The criteria for Facebook’s advertising targeting includes:
- Geographic location
- Demographics
- Interests/likes
- Behaviors
With this strict criteria, Facebook advertisers are able to more precisely target their audience and should see a better return on their advertising investment (even though it will remain a fairly cheap advertising platform). For more information, or for help setting up a Facebook advertising campaign, please contact aimee@pr4lawyers.com or call 1-866-PR4Lawyers.
