3 Things DIY Legal Sites Can Teach Trademark Lawyers

The internet is vast portal of information (and misinformation). On any given day you can pop into YouTube and teach yourself to garden, or knit, or fix your kitchen sink. Thanks to sites like Canva you can DIY design your own marketing materials. But what about DIY legal services?

Did you just shudder?

We all know they exist and that people use them. A lot of people, in fact. But are they a threat to the trademark lawyers of the world? The short answer: no.

DIY legal sites are not really competition for trademark lawyers because those people were probably never going to hire a trademark lawyer anyways. But there are lessons to be learned from the rise of these sites!

Lesson #1: Their pricing structure

Trademark lawyers would benefit from making their structures more simple and more transparent, so that potential clients aren’t overestimating the cost and going to a DIY legal site out of baseless price fears. Just take a look at popular DIY legal sites like LegalZoom. Their site tells visitors up front what the cost (or price range) is going to be, what the process entails, and what the deliverables are. 

Lesson #2: Their websites

DIY legal sites are sales machines. Take a cue from the genius marketing behind them. Their landing pages have pictures that allow small business owners to easily identify the fact that they are in the right place (and the right price range). Their copy is in plain language and speaks to the pain points they are experiencing (not having your brand protected). There is also a clear call to action for what to do next.

Lesson #3: Use Name Warden

The Name Warden Client Finder service was designed to help lawyers find unrepresented applicants who now have office actions, notices of allowance, or other work to do that they don’t understand because they didn’t use a lawyer for their initial filing. A great opportunity to swoop in and save the day!

They may not be direct competition, but pay attention and you may pick up some good ideas for  drawing potential DIYers over to your practice.