Simple Idea

I may have mentioned this in the past and if so I apologize. I have an idea on a way to cost effectively advertise for your local chapters. Classified Ads. They are relatively low cost in most newspaper and those reading them are often the ones that will benefit the most from having a support group around them. Imagine if you were looking for a job and saw that there was an organization you could go and meet with that represents those you are looking for jobs with. So if you need a legal secretary or paralegal job in Austin, then you can go and meet with a group of legal secretaries and paralegals in Austin. Not only do you get the chance to learn which of their firms are looking, you get a chance to make a great first impression with some involved with that firm. It is almost like a guaranteed first interview!

All of that on top of the fact that they will learn what it is they need to separate themselves from others in the field and have the opportunity to gain continuing education at the same time.

It sounds like a no-brainer because it is! You guys just have to make the effort to tell everyone that you can about it. SPREAD THE WORD PEOPLE! Anyone that has used this method let me know how it works...I am curious. Also if you have some simple and low cost promotion ideas post them in the comments!

Jay

Facebook Groups and LinkedIn are growing!

As of this post the NALS Facebook group was up to 22 members...Not Bad! Now get in there and start some conversations people! This is a way to network both professionally and socially so take advantage. Also this is a great way to promote your state and local associations and use them to build your membership base. You can post events you are hosting and also send invites to people as reminders. Might as well take advantage of these offerings and use them for all they are worth.

Over at LinkedIn which will basically only work as a professional contact builder the NALS group is looking good with 66 people signed up. This is a great way to build your contacts and will serve as a way for you to connect with people across the country. The world is small people and it can be smaller if you use the right tools!

We are here to help you so please let us know of the things you need and we will do our best to help you out!

Jay

Help Make NALS Famous!

Well Facebook and LinkedIn famous at least! I have started group pages on both Facebook and Linkedin for NALS. I am sure everyone is familiar with Facebook but some are not so much with LinkedIn. LinkedIn is a professional networking site that lets you make contacts with people and see how many steps away from others you are. You can also post and look for jobs as well as give and receive recommendations. The NALS Groups will give you access to other members of the group so you can use them as a resource if needed. Here is the link to the NEW NALS Group on LinkedIn:

I have no idea how to give you a link for the Facebook group but I am trying to figure it out. Until then you can do a search and hopefully that will get you to the proper place.

Let me know how it goes!

Jay

Support Those Supporting You!

One thing that people take for granted when flipping through their next issue of @Law or even a local newsletter is the advertising. Advertising is what pays for these publications and the publications count on its readers to support those paying to advertise in them so that they will continue to support it and use it as one of their marketing venues. You might think that this is not a chapter or NALS marketing issue when it involves someone else's ads but think of it this way. When NALS or your chapter needs support to host a conference who do you look to? Often times this is a corporate entity. If we take these businesses for granted and do not support their efforts by picking up a copy of your local or national publication and taking a look at what the people that are supporting your organization have to offer then one day they may not be there.

So the next time you need a deposition company or a process server or even mailing labels or copies take a look at @Law or a local publication and see if anyone in there offers these services. If they do I urge you to give them a try...they are giving you one by paying to put their information in front of you!

NALS members are a loyal and devoted group, if we show our corporate sponsors and advertisers this then we will be able to prove to the world outside of NALS what kind of organization we are...and that is marketing!

Jay

Happy April Fool's Day!

Nothing new regarding Marketing but I would love to hear some stories about great April Fool's Day pranks! I know everyone has them so share...maybe you will give someone a good idea.

I will start with a good one. I have a friend from college that got married to a Naval Academy grad and moved around a lot right after school. They settled in Maryland and when she found out that she was pregnant we all were excited for them. The next April Fool's day several of her friends got calls from her husband saying that they had just had a baby boy. Of course we all thought it was a joke being April 1st. We all played it off as a joke not wanting to seem like we were fooled. A few days later we tried to call and check up on her and found out she actually did have the baby on April 1st...we actually fooled ourselves!

Okay so not a great story but something interesting to kick things off.

Leave comments, I like to read them!

Jay

******NALS is not responsible for any stress or mental anguish that may be caused by any of the shenanigans posted on this blog...this is for entertainment purposes only and no pranks here should be duplicated on those individuals not able to take a joke. Please do not use the NALS name or logos in conjunction with any pranks.******

Market Your Chapter with Fun!

As Spring arrives and the weather in most places starts to improve use this opportunity to market your chapters by doing some fun outdoor activities. Maybe you have a lunch picnic at a local town square or centrally located park. Have your members invite a co-worker that is not a member and make the picnic just about lunch and having a good time. You do not have to meet about legal things all the time, meet as friends and show others the way NALS works as a tool for developing friendships. During this picnic try not to be pushy toward those that are not members...maybe don't even mention NALS unless it comes up in conversation.

By having these types of informal gatherings and having members bring co-workers you will be able to show non-members a unique benefit of NALS and that is the sense of belonging you have. Even if it has nothing to do with your jobs or careers you can still have a good time and invite new people to experience the same type of camaraderie.

Just a thought as I sit here in my office looking out the window at a beautiful day!

Jay

Back at the Office!

Well the Professional Development & Education Conference has once again come and gone...this year was a great conference! I want to thank everyone that attended the conference and especially all of the first time attendees we had this year! It is always great to see new people at the conferences and we hope that you had a wonderful time. We hope to see you again in Norfolk in September.

As you can see I did not manage to find the time to blog live from the conference, imagine that. I always seem to be running from one room to the next trying to get all the sessions off to a smooth start. Maybe in Norfolk I will have a spare minute or two to try and let all of you that are not attending know exactly what you are missing! There were some great sessions and some very good marketing information that was passed around. I will try and organize some of it and get it posted here so you all can check it out and see how you can use it back at your state or chapter level.

Back to emails!

Jay