LegalTube hoping lawyers, clients tune in on video site

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The next best thing to seeing a prospective client face-to-face is for an attorney to connect to a person through video.

So says Lewis Garrison, an Alabama attorney who recently co-launched the online marketing Web site LegalTube.com.

The site allows lawyers and firms to pitch their services through mini-infomercial vignettes which can be searched by geographic location or by more than a dozen practice areas.

“We’ve tried to combine the fact that people are looking for more legal services on the Internet with the idea that videos give a person a real sense of who they are going to hire,” said Garrison, who developed the site with attorney Tim C. Davis, both of Heninger Garrison Davis LLC.

Since its launch on September 1, Garrison said LegalTube has gotten an overwhelming response, and he said its main draw is that select lawyers can cater to a specific audience.

While a person can search for legal services in about 200 different markets, only three firms per practice area, per market, are allowed to post videos at one time.

In other words, someone looking for a personal injury attorney in Milwaukee would find only three firms listed on LegalTube.

That aspect is attractive because it allows firms to limit the competition, said Dana Kader Robb, founder of Barefoot Marketing, a business consulting firm in Wauwatosa.

Unlike sites such as Lawyers.com or Law.com, Garrison said LegalTube is “not a directory” and is not designed to overwhelm users with long lists of attorneys.

“Text comes at you in waves on those sites, and I don’t think they give you a feel for the attorney,” he said.

FindLaw legal marketing consultant Eileen Wertenberger agreed that video is one of the most effective online tools for lawyers, especially if it establishes a connection with a viewer.

But she questioned whether LegalTube will initially be seen as a viable outlet for legal services, given that its domain name is a take-off of YouTube.com, which is primarily known as an entertainment outlet.

Given that the estimated cost for a personal injury firm in Milwaukee to sign-up with LegalTube is $750 per month for either a six-month or one-year contract, lawyers will want to make sure they will be taken seriously. (Costs vary depending on practice area and location.)

“People with real legal issues want a real attorney,” Wertenberger said. “I think they will get an audience this way, but I don’t know if will be their target audience.”

Robb, who primarily deals with small firms, said the site could provide an opportunity for attorneys to attract new business. She noted that it appears to be aimed at a slightly younger audience which may be looking for an alternative to “suit and tie attorneys.”

Still, she said that strategy could cut both ways.

“In a litigation situation, do I want my attorney standing in front of the jury and them thinking, ‘I saw you on that YouTube kind of site?’” Robb wondered.

Garrison said the site is developing lighter content to supplement the search videos, including links called “Law Laughs” and “Law Tales,” which feature legal anecdotes. But the similarities to YouTube end there.

“You can put a video on YouTube and it gets lost in the morass and that is that,” Garrison said.

At this point, Garrison was not aware of any firms in Wisconsin that had contracted with LegalTube. Thus far, about 50 have signed on nationally.

Robb noted that firms are often excited about new marketing options, but cautioned lawyers to be realistic in their goals.

“I’d expect in a couple of months to get calls from firms asking if this LegalTube thing is for me,” she said. “My response is there are a million avenues, but it all depends on your budget.”