The Shift to Virtual: Marketing Your Law Firm in a Remote World Published: May 2020 When COVID-19 forced law firms to close their physical offices in March 2020, many panicked. How do you market legal services when you can't meet clients face-to-face? The answer wasn't just about going digital - it was about fundamentally rethinking how law firms connect with clients. ## The Wake-Up Call Nobody Wanted Let's be honest. Most law firms were behind on digital transformation before COVID-19. They relied on referrals, in-person consultations, and traditional networking. Then overnight, all of that stopped. I remember getting a call from a personal injury firm in Houston. They had spent years building their reputation on face-to-face consultations. "Jacovia," the managing partner said, "we don't even have a way to do video calls. What do we do?" They weren't alone. Across Texas and nationwide, law firms scrambled to figure out virtual operations while their marketing budgets were being slashed. ## Virtual Consultations: Not Optional Anymore The first priority was enabling virtual consultations. This wasn't just about downloading Zoom. It was about creating a professional, secure, client-friendly experience. Here's what I implemented for firms in those early months: Technology Stack:

• Zoom or Microsoft Teams for video consultations
• DocuSign or HelloSign for digital signatures
• Secure client portals for document sharing
• Online payment processing (finally!) But technology was only half the battle. The bigger challenge was mindset. ## The Customer Service Reality Check This is where I need to tell you about my experience consulting with a first-party insurance firm in Texas during this period. They came to me frustrated. "We're spending thousands on Google Ads," they said. "Phones are ringing. But we're not converting." I spent a week observing their operations. The problem wasn't their marketing. It was their customer service. Here's what I found:
• Calls going to voicemail during business hours
• Average response time of 4-6 hours
• Staff working from home without clear protocols
• No CRM system to track leads I told them something they didn't want to hear: "Your marketing is working. Your operations are broken." This is a lesson every business owner needs to understand. Marketing amplifies what you already do. If what you do is answer the phone poorly, marketing just exposes that faster and more expensively. The solution? We implemented:
• Call routing to mobile devices
• CRM system (we chose GoHighLevel for cost-effectiveness)
• Response time SLAs (under 1 hour)
• Daily lead review meetings Within 30 days, their conversion rate jumped from 12% to 34%. Same marketing spend. Better operations. ## Marketing in a Virtual World: What Actually Works For law firms specifically, here's what I saw work during those early COVID months: ### 1. Video Content Explosion Suddenly, everyone was comfortable on camera. Zoom fatigue was real, but it also normalized video communication. Law firms that embraced this gained massive advantages. I had clients create:
• Weekly legal tip videos
• FAQ sessions addressing COVID-specific legal questions
• Virtual office tours to build trust
• Attorney introduction videos for their website One family law firm in Houston started posting daily 2-minute videos on Facebook answering common divorce questions during lockdown. Their consultation requests tripled. ### 2. Empathetic Email Marketing Your email list became more valuable than ever. People were home, checking email constantly, looking for information. But the firms that succeeded weren't the ones pushing hard sales messages. They were the ones providing value and showing empathy. What worked:
• "How COVID-19 Affects Your Legal Situation" guides
• Updates on court closures and procedure changes
• Resources for clients dealing with financial hardship
• Personal messages from attorneys (not just branded content) ### 3. SEO and Content Marketing With everyone at home searching online, SEO became critical. Law firms that had invested in content marketing before COVID-19 saw massive traffic increases. Those that hadn't were scrambling. I helped firms create content around:
• COVID-19 specific legal issues
• Virtual consultation processes
• Safety protocols for essential in-person meetings
• Financial relief options for clients One firm I worked with published a comprehensive "COVID-19 Legal Resource Center" on their website. It became their #1 traffic source and generated hundreds of qualified leads. ### 4. Google My Business Optimization This was huge. With local search dominating, your Google My Business listing became your storefront. Critical updates:
• Mark yourself as "open" with modified hours
• Add virtual consultation options
• Post weekly updates about your services
• Respond to every review (especially important during crisis)
• Add COVID-19 safety information ## The CRM Wake-Up Call Before COVID-19, I could get away with recommending Salesforce to larger firms. But when budgets got slashed, that $150-300 per user per month became impossible to justify for small firms. This is when I started recommending GoHighLevel to small and mid-sized law firms. At $97-297 per month for unlimited users, it made sense. Plus, it included:
• CRM and pipeline management
• Email and SMS marketing
• Appointment scheduling
• Landing page builder
• Reputation management Was it as robust as Salesforce? No. But it was 80% of the functionality at 10% of the cost. For a 5-10 person law firm, that math works. ## The Firms That Thrived Not every firm struggled during COVID-19. Some actually grew. Here's what they had in common: 1. They Moved Fast
• Implemented virtual consultations within days, not weeks
• Updated their website and marketing immediately
• Communicated constantly with clients and prospects 2. They Invested in Technology
• CRM systems
• Video conferencing
• Digital signature tools
• Online payment processing 3. They Focused on Service
• Answered the phone (even from home)
• Responded quickly to inquiries
• Showed empathy in all communications
• Made it easy to work with them remotely 4. They Adapted Their Marketing
• Shifted budget from events to digital
• Created COVID-specific content
• Increased email frequency (with value, not sales pitches)
• Optimized for local search ## Lessons for Marketing Leaders ** If you can't deliver excellent service virtually, don't spend money driving leads. Fix operations first. Speed matters more than perfection. The firms that launched "good enough" virtual consultations in March beat the firms that waited to perfect them in June. Empathy is a strategy. The most effective marketing during crisis acknowledges reality and provides value without asking for anything in return. Digital transformation isn't optional. COVID-19 forced changes that should have happened years ago. Don't go back to old habits when this ends. ## Your Action Plan If you're a law firm (or any professional services business) still adapting to virtual operations: 1. Audit your virtual consultation process - Is it easy? Professional? Secure?**

2. Test your response time - Have someone submit a contact form. How long until they hear back?
3. Review your website - Does it clearly explain how to work with you remotely?
4. Implement a CRM - If you're still using spreadsheets, stop. Today.
5. Create video content - Start with one video per week. Just start.
6. Optimize Google My Business - This takes 30 minutes and can double your local visibility.
7. Email your list - Provide value. Show you're still here and ready to help. ## Looking Forward COVID-19 accelerated digital transformation by 5-10 years. Virtual consultations, digital signatures, online payments - these aren't temporary solutions. They're the new normal. The firms that recognize this and invest in virtual-first operations will dominate their markets. The ones that wait for things to "go back to normal" will struggle. This is the biggest change I've seen. But it's also the biggest opportunity. The question is: will you adapt, or will you wait? --- Jacovia Cartwright is a Fractional CMO and marketing leader based in Houston, Texas, specializing in law firm marketing, revenue operations, and business growth strategy. During COVID-19, Jacovia helped dozens of firms successfully transition to virtual-first operations while maintaining and growing their client base.