What The “Balloon Boy” Hoax Teaches Us About Marketing Law Firms

Published on 19 October 2009 by Jeff Berman in Blog

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balloon boy What The Balloon Boy Hoax Teaches Us About Marketing Law Firms I’m sure everyone has heard by now about the hoax of the balloon boy. If you haven’t heard, here is a link that tells the story.

I found the implications and after-effects of this story very interesting. The “balloon boy” is a hoax that was perpetuated for the sake of attention and fame. I wanted to look at the story under the lens of marketing.

Here are a couple of things the balloon boy can teach us about marketing our law firm:

1. Marketing Is Storytelling: I’ve written before about the art of telling a good story. What was so remarkable about the balloon boy was how quickly this story spread. Once the cable news jumped on it, it spread across the internet and everyone was hooked. It shows the power of an interesting, suspenseful situation that appeals to our emotions. I think sometimes we forget just how influential a great story about your practice might be. It doesn’t have to be as fantastic as this one. Going out of your way to do something for a client. Resolving a bad situation. These are things that a client remembers and more importantly, talks about with others. They may not remember your phone number, a tag line, or your commercial, but they remember a story or experience they can relate to others.

2. Deception Is Not The Way To Go: No one wants to be made to feel dumb. Especially when something tugs at our heartstrings. The backlash when you are exposed will always be greater than the short term benefits. I think it goes without saying that creating a hoax to deceive everyone, while it will get you attention, is not the direction you want to take your marketing for professional services. What it does highlight is the need to be transparent and honest in your marketing efforts. What is key is finding a niche, develop solid positioning for your firm, and providing a great service. There is no “magic marketing bullet” so don’t try short-cuts to find it. Marketing is a lot of work and you’ll find that the best payoff is an aggregate of all your efforts and a willingness to try new ideas.

3. When Creating A Brand, Think Long Term: This idea ties into the last paragraph. There are lots of quick ways to get attention for ourselves. PT Barnum used to say there is no such thing as bad publicity. Certainly the family at the center of the balloon boy hoax has gotten attention for themselves. I wonder at the end of the day if they feel it was worth it. The long-term ramifications of their decisions have yet to play out, but I can assure you there are many people who are very angry at what transpired. When you are building long term equity in a business such as a law firm, you need to think very carefully about the type of attention you would like. There are many short-term strategies to get noticed, but if you are looking to build a brand for your firm, you need to think long-term. Again, there are no short-cuts and quick fixes.