15 Things About Marketing That Most Lawyers Don't Understand

What psychology can teach us about how people find, remember, and choose a lawyer.

Have you ever heard of the mere-exposure effect?

It's a psychological phenomenon where people tend to develop a preference for things simply because they've encountered them before.

Interesting, isn't it?

Especially when you consider how people choose a lawyer.

Marketing companies love numbers. Impressions, clicks, likes, followers, reach, engagement. All the things that look impressive on a monthly report. But those numbers don't necessarily tell you whether anyone is becoming more likely to hire you.

There's an entire world of psychology behind how people make decisions. Why we remember certain people, why we trust some businesses more than others, and why we sometimes put off decisions we know we need to make.

And much of it has very little to do with advertising.

I've spent years learning about marketing, business, and consumer behaviour. And I've come to realize that some of the most useful marketing knowledge is also some of the simplest.

So I put together 15 things I think every lawyer should know before spending another dollar on marketing.

Not SEO tricks. Not social media hacks. Not another list of things you should be paying someone to do.

Just a few fascinating things about how people think, and what you can do with that knowledge.

1. The Mere-Exposure Effect: Familiarity Matters

People tend to develop more positive feelings toward things they've encountered repeatedly.

It's why a familiar face can feel more approachable than a complete stranger.

Now imagine someone looking for a family lawyer. They've never hired one before, but they've seen a particular lawyer answering questions online several times.

When they finally need help, that lawyer might be the first person they think of. Not necessarily because they're the best lawyer, because they're familiar.

Of course, familiarity alone doesn't establish trust, but it can make that first conversation feel a little less intimidating.

What you can do: Answer one question your clients frequently ask. Post the answer somewhere people can find it. Repeat with another question next week. You don't need to become famous. Just familiar to the right people.

2. The Peak-End Rule: People Remember How You Made Them Feel

People don't remember every moment of an experience equally. Research suggests we often place extra weight on its most intense moments and how it ended.

Think about your last vacation. You probably remember the best dinner and the terrible flight home more clearly than everything in between.

Your clients can be the same way.

They might forget dozens of routine emails but remember exactly how you treated them when they were frightened, frustrated, or receiving difficult news.

And those memories can influence what they tell other people about your firm, and all your future referrals.

What you can do: When closing a file, send a personal message explaining what's been accomplished and what happens next. Don't let the final memory of your firm be an invoice.

3. Processing Fluency: Simple Is Powerful

Our brains generally prefer information that's easy to process.

In psychology, this is called processing fluency.

Lawyers spend years learning complicated terminology. Unfortunately, the people searching for lawyers haven't.

Consider this:

"We provide representation in employment termination and statutory entitlement matters."

Versus:

"Lost your job? We can help you understand what your employer may owe you."

Both describe legal services, but only one sounds like something a worried person might actually understand, and when people understand something, they're better equipped to decide what to do next.

What you can do: Read the first paragraph of your website. Would someone with no legal knowledge understand it? If not, rewrite it the way you'd explain it to a friend.

4. The Paradox of Choice: More Isn't Always Better

We tend to think more choices are better.

But research suggests that too many options can sometimes make decisions harder.

Imagine someone looking for a lawyer after an accident. They arrive on a website with 15 practice areas, eight buttons, six contact options, and a menu that seems to go on forever.

They don't want to explore your website. They want help. And the harder you make that process, the easier it becomes to leave.

What you can do: Open your website on your phone. Can you figure out how to contact your firm in five seconds? If not, make that next step easier to find.

5. The Availability Heuristic: Stories Stick

People often judge how common or likely something is based on how easily they can remember examples.

Psychologists call this the availability heuristic. It's one reason stories can be so memorable.

A person might forget a detailed explanation of employment law but remember a story about someone being handed a severance agreement and told to sign it immediately.

Why? Because they can picture it happening, and perhaps something similar has happened to them.

Stories help people recognize situations they might otherwise struggle to understand.

What you can do: Next time you explain a legal issue, start with a simple, realistic example. "Imagine your employer calls you into a meeting on Friday afternoon..." Just make sure the example doesn't create misleading expectations.

6. The Von Restorff Effect: Different Gets Remembered

Here's an interesting one.

People are more likely to remember something that stands out from similar things. It's called the Von Restorff effect.

Now visit five law firm websites.

"Experienced. Dedicated. Compassionate. Results-driven. Committed to excellence."

Sound familiar? If everyone is saying the same thing, how is anyone supposed to remember you? Standing out doesn't mean being louder or more outrageous. 

Sometimes it means being clearer.

What you can do: Look at your homepage. Remove one generic statement about how wonderful your firm is and replace it with something specific about the people you help.

7. The Intention–Action Gap: Wanting Help Doesn't Mean Asking for It

Have you ever intended to do something important and then put it off? Of course you have. We all do.

There's even a name for it: the intention–action gap.

Someone might spend an hour researching divorce lawyers, decide they need legal advice, and still never make the call.

Maybe they're nervous, maybe they don't know what a consultation costs, maybe they have no idea what they're supposed to say.

The problem isn't always convincing someone they need help, sometimes it's making that first step feel manageable.

What you can do: Add a short explanation to your contact page: "Here's what happens when you contact us." Tell people what to expect. That's it.

8. The Serial-Position Effect: Beginnings and Endings Matter

People tend to remember information at the beginning and end of a sequence better than information in the middle.

This is known as the serial-position effect.

Think about your lawyer biography. Does it start with a long list of qualifications, or does it immediately explain who you help? And when someone finishes reading, do they know what to do next?

Your qualifications matter. But so does how you organize the information.

What you can do: Look at the first and last sentences of your lawyer biography. Make the first one relevant to your prospective client and the last one helpful.

9. The Default Effect: Make the Next Step Obvious

People often follow the path that's already laid out for them.

Behavioural scientists call this the default effect. It's one reason a clear next step can make such a difference.

If someone visits your website and sees six equally prominent buttons, they have to decide which one matters.

If they see one clear invitation to request a consultation, the decision becomes easier. This doesn't mean making choices for people. It means making it easy for them to choose.

What you can do: Pick one main action you want visitors to take on your homepage. Make it obvious, without hiding other important options.

10. The Empathy Gap: You're Not Experiencing Your Website Like Your Clients Are

This might be one of my favourites.

The empathy gap describes how difficult it can be to appreciate how differently we think and behave when we're in another emotional state.

You're reviewing your website on a Tuesday afternoon with a cup of coffee.

Your potential client is reading it at 2 a.m. because their spouse was arrested.

Same website....very different experience.

You understand the legal system. They probably don't. You know what happens during a consultation. They might be terrified of making that first call.

It's easy to forget what your own profession looks like to someone encountering it for the first time.

What you can do: Pretend you're visiting your website because something frightening just happened. What's the first question you'd want answered? Make sure that answer is easy to find.

11. Mental Availability: Being Remembered Matters

Here's something marketing researchers talk about that most business owners rarely hear.

Mental availability.

It describes how easily a particular brand comes to mind when someone needs a product or service.

For lawyers, the idea is simple.

When someone gets fired, receives a demand letter, or is involved in an accident, does your name come to mind?

Being visible isn't quite the same as being remembered, and being remembered isn't much use if nobody can find or contact you.

Good marketing considers both.

What you can do: Think of one situation that causes people to need your services. Create a helpful explanation about that situation and make sure people can easily find your contact information alongside it.

12. Category Entry Points: Something Happens Before Someone Needs a Lawyer

This is another concept from marketing science.

A category entry point is a situation or need that causes someone to think about a particular type of service.

For lawyers, these moments are everywhere. Someone receives a letter from their landlord. Their employer stops scheduling them. Their business partner disappears with company money. Their teenager gets arrested.

These are the moments that can lead someone to start looking for legal help.

Yet lawyers often market themselves using practice areas rather than the situations that bring people to their offices.

People don't always know what kind of lawyer they need, they just know something happened.

What you can do: Write down five things that typically happen right before someone contacts your firm. Those are five excellent topics to explain on your website.

13. Attribution vs. Incrementality: Did Your Marketing Actually Bring You That Client?

This one could save lawyers a LOT of money.

Marketing companies often report how many clients came through an advertisement, website, or campaign.

That's called attribution.

But there's another concept called incrementality. It asks whether the marketing actually caused additional business.

Imagine someone receives a recommendation from a friend. They Google your name, click your advertisement, and contact your firm.

Your advertising report might count that as a conversion, but would they have contacted you anyway?

Possibly.

That doesn't mean the advertisement was worthless. It means the report doesn't necessarily tell the whole story.

What you can do: Ask five new clients how they first heard about you and what made them decide to contact you. Compare their answers with your marketing reports.

14. Demand Creation vs. Demand Capture: Not Everyone Is Ready to Hire You

Marketing serves different purposes.

Demand capture reaches people who already know they need something. Someone searching "divorce lawyer near me" may already be looking for representation.

Demand creation helps people understand a problem or recognize a need they hadn't considered.

For example, someone reading about what to consider before signing a severance agreement might not have decided to contact a lawyer yet.

Both approaches can be useful, but they're doing different jobs, and measuring them as though they're identical can lead to some pretty questionable marketing decisions.

What you can do: Look at your last five marketing posts. Are they all asking people to hire you? Try publishing one that simply helps someone understand a common legal problem.

15. Client Acquisition Friction: Small Obstacles Can Cost You Clients

Friction is anything that makes completing an action more difficult.

In marketing, that might be a complicated form, a slow website, confusing instructions, or an unanswered voicemail.

Individually, these things might seem insignificant, but imagine someone finally gathers the courage to contact a lawyer.

They fill out a lengthy form, then they click submit. Nothing happens. No confirmation. No explanation. No idea whether anyone received their message.

How long before they try someone else?

Law firms can spend thousands attracting visitors while overlooking the obstacles preventing those visitors from becoming clients.

What you can do: Try contacting your own firm through your website. Complete the form, check the confirmation, and see what happens next. Fix one thing that makes the process unnecessarily difficult.

What I Wish More Lawyers Understood About Marketing

There's a reason I wanted to share these concepts.

Lawyers are being sold an extraordinary amount of marketing.

Websites. SEO. Advertising. Social media management. Video production. Content creation. AI visibility. Another platform. Another subscription. Another monthly invoice.

Some of those services are genuinely valuable, but I wonder how often anyone explains the thinking behind what they're selling.

Why familiarity matters. Why people hesitate. Why simple language works. Why stories stick. Why someone might remember one lawyer and completely forget another. Or more importantly, why a marketing report full of impressive numbers doesn't necessarily mean your firm is getting more clients.

These aren't things you need a marketing degree to understand. They're things you can start applying today.

You can make your website easier to understand. You can explain what happens during a consultation. You can answer questions people are afraid to ask. You can make yourself easier to remember and easier to contact, and you can start asking better questions about the marketing you're already paying for.

Lawyers definitely do not need to become marketing experts, but I do think lawyers deserve to understand enough about marketing to recognize what works, what doesn't, and what they shouldn't be paying for in the first place.

You can buy attention. You can pay for clicks. You can put your face in front of thousands of people, but understanding what makes someone remember you, trust you, and feel comfortable enough to call?

That's knowledge worth having.

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About the Author

Cara Echino is the Founder of Lawggle, a legal technology platform helping people find and connect with lawyers. With decades of experience in the legal industry, she writes about legal marketing, consumer behaviour, the psychology of trust, and how people find and choose lawyers.

She believes lawyers deserve to understand the marketing they're paying for, not simply be sold more of it. Her work focuses on making legal marketing more transparent, practical, and accessible, while helping lawyers build visibility through their knowledge and expertise.

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These concepts come from established areas of psychology, behavioural economics, and marketing science. Their effects vary by context, and none guarantees that someone will hire a particular lawyer. The examples are intended to help lawyers apply the ideas thoughtfully, not as promises of marketing results.