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Law Firm and Attorney
Marketing: A 21st Century
Guide
Marketing for Lawyers 101

This book serves as a guide to demystify law firm and

attorney marketing for lawyers and law firm managers in a
now global, competitive market.

Kingsley Ugochukwu Ani

First Edition
Law Firm and Attorney Marketing: A 21st Century

Guide

KINGSLEY UGOCHUKWU ANI.

ii
Copyright © 2019 by Kingsley Ugochukwu Ani, Esq.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any
means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information
storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the author.

First Edition

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: While the publisher and author have used their best
efforts in preparing this book, they make no representations or warranties with respect to the
accuracy or completeness of the contents of this book and disclaim any implied warranties of
merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. No warranty may be created or extended by
sales representatives or written sales materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may
not be suitable for your situation. Neither the publisher nor author shall be liable for any loss
of profit or any other commercial damages, including but not limited to special, incidental,
consequential, or other damages that may accrue to you for relying on the contents herein
contained. Please note that this book is for information purposes.

iii
This book is dedicated to all the lawyers in the 21st century who are willing to break away

from the restrictions placed on us as Attorneys.

Remember, you have to be visible to your target audience in order to get them to buy from

you.

iv
This page is intentionally left blank.

v
Contents
Preface........................................................................................................................................................................ x
Chapter One..............................................................................................................................................................10
Professional Service Firms: The Legal Services Industry in Focus..................................................................... 10
Industry Torn Apart?........................................................................................................................................ 13
Chapter Two............................................................................................................................................................. 17
Building a Digital Presence: The Importance of Having Online Portfolios.........................................................17
INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................................................ 17
Website Design for your Legal Practice...............................................................................................................19
Basics to Note:..................................................................................................................................................20
Law Firm Website Preparation.............................................................................................................................21
Law Firm Website Pages Planning...................................................................................................................22
Crafting Content for your Law Firm Website Pages........................................................................................23
Law Firm Website Design Evaluation............................................................................................................. 24
Integral Points to Note About Your Law Firm Website Design.......................................................................... 24
Navigation:....................................................................................................................................................... 24
Click-To-Call....................................................................................................................................................25
Call-to-Action/Lead Generation Forms............................................................................................................25
Use Compelling Headlines for Your Practice Areas........................................................................................ 26
Content............................................................................................................................................................. 27
Case Studies..........................................................................................................................................................29
Technical Points to Note for Your Law Firm website......................................................................................... 29
Website Speed.................................................................................................................................................. 29
SSL Certificates................................................................................................................................................30
Taking Action for your Law Firm Website.......................................................................................................... 31
Chapter Three........................................................................................................................................................... 33
Law Firm Content Marketing: A New Marketing Guide..................................................................................... 33
INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................................................ 33
What is Content Marketing?.................................................................................................................................35
Examples of Popular Law Blogs...................................................................................................................... 37
Developing a Law Firm Content Marketing Strategy.......................................................................................... 38
What Do Clients Want?....................................................................................................................................39
Benefits of having a Law Firm Content Marketing Strategy............................................................................... 41
Getting Started with Law Firm Content Marketing............................................................................................. 41
Content Development....................................................................................................................................... 42
Developing Content..............................................................................................................................................43
Content Marketing Guidelines for Law Firms..................................................................................................... 43

vi
 Solutions to Law Firm Content Marketing: Setting up a Department..............................................................44
Key Takeaway.................................................................................................................................................. 46
Niche.....................................................................................................................................................................46
Define your Audience...........................................................................................................................................47
Content Distribution: Choose your Channels.......................................................................................................47
Content Promotion:.......................................................................................................................................... 48
Strategy Evaluation.............................................................................................................................................. 48
End Note:..........................................................................................................................................................49
Chapter Four.............................................................................................................................................................50
Search Engine Optimization of your law firm website for local search...............................................................50
INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................................................ 50
Directories Submission.........................................................................................................................................52
Google My Business.............................................................................................................................................53
ILLUSTRATION............................................................................................................................................. 54
Quality Link Building...........................................................................................................................................55
Social Media Integration...................................................................................................................................... 55
Press Releases on Local Sites and Publishers...................................................................................................... 56
Local Keyword Targeting.....................................................................................................................................57
Conclusion........................................................................................................................................................ 58
Chapter Five............................................................................................................................................................. 59
Using LinkedIn to Market your Law Firm or Law Practice.................................................................................59
INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................................................ 59
How Can LinkedIn be Useful for Your Law Firm?............................................................................................. 61
Law Firms That Use LinkedIn............................................................................................................................. 62
Top Tips on Using LinkedIn to Market your Law Practice/Firm........................................................................ 63
Build a Great LinkedIn Profile:........................................................................................................................ 63
Creating Content: Consistently Provide High-Quality Content........................................................................... 65
LinkedIn Video Tips:....................................................................................................................................... 66
Network................................................................................................................................................................ 67
Your Law Firm Profile......................................................................................................................................... 68
Chapter Six............................................................................................................................................................... 70
Use of Content Aggregators and Article Directories............................................................................................70
INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................................................ 70
Why Should My Law Firm Use Content Aggregators?....................................................................................... 71
Choosing the Best Platform for your Legal Content............................................................................................ 72
Setting a Budget............................................................................................................................................... 73
Measuring ROI and other Metrics........................................................................................................................ 74

vii
Chapter Seven...........................................................................................................................................................76
Adapting Specific Strategies................................................................................................................................ 76
INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................................................ 76
Story for Illustration......................................................................................................................................... 76
Localizing Your Strategies................................................................................................................................... 78
SWOT Analysis................................................................................................................................................79
The Localization Process......................................................................................................................................81
Chapter Eight............................................................................................................................................................84
Advice...................................................................................................................................................................84
Advice for Lawyers.......................................................................................................................................... 84
Story Point............................................................................................................................................................ 85
Referral Sources................................................................................................................................................... 86
Advice for Law Firms.......................................................................................................................................... 87
Case Study 1..................................................................................................................................................... 90
Case Study 2..................................................................................................................................................... 92
Key Takeaway.................................................................................................................................................. 94
Plotting an Exit Strategy: Define your Successor................................................................................................ 95
Lack of Succession Planning in Law Firms..................................................................................................... 98
Nigerian Law Firms are Not Designed for Differentiated Branding................................................................99
Planning Long Term Succession Strategy..........................................................................................................100
Choosing Firm leaders........................................................................................................................................101
Succession Planning........................................................................................................................................... 102
Challenges.......................................................................................................................................................... 103
The Business of Law.......................................................................................................................................... 104
Choosing a Law Firm Business Model: Which Route to Go?........................................................................... 105
What Law Firms Founders Fail to Do................................................................................................................ 107
They Fail To Plan The Law Firm As a Business:.......................................................................................... 107
Growth Plan....................................................................................................................................................110
Institutionalization..........................................................................................................................................111
The Swiss Verein Model................................................................................................................................ 114
_______________Bonus Sections______________............................................................................................. 117
Becoming a Better Legal Marketer: It is your Duty...........................................................................................118
A Scenario...................................................................................................................................................... 120
The Mantra..................................................................................................................................................... 121
Managing the Fee Earners.................................................................................................................................. 124
Review your Staff over the Years.................................................................................................................. 124
COMPENSATION OF ATTORNEYS..........................................................................................................124

viii
 FIRM CULTURE...........................................................................................................................................125
Helping the Client Win.......................................................................................................................................129
The Future of Work........................................................................................................................................ 130
How Does Multiple Skills help a Lawyer?.....................................................................................................131
Ditching the Entitlement Mentality: No One Owes you Anything.................................................................... 135
The Problem................................................................................................................................................... 135
The Marketing Aversion.................................................................................................................................137
Conclusion..........................................................................................................................................................140
About the Author.................................................................................................................................................... 142

ix
 Preface

Beyond merely being a good lawyer, I believe that you have to understand the

way things work behind the scenes in law firm operations in order to have a

well-rounded view of the law. From the client intake process, to business

development initiatives geared towards attaining visibility, which will, in turn,

increase profitability for the law firm, having a deeper and well-rounded

understanding of the way the “business of law” really works will help a lawyer

develop stronger skills that will help him gain a better footing in the provisions

of legal services.

Because of my deep interest in business development and all things Digital, I

strove to gain deeper understanding of how the System works. What do lawyers

think of when they set up their websites? Why do they think they need to develop

massive visibility so that they can gain top-of-mind awareness from prospects

and potential clients out there? Do they understand how they can actively

monitor their online portfolios which may encompass various listings in different

directories and also involved third parties reviewing them online?

The deeper I dug, the more I realized many lawyers were floundering around and

did not know what to do or how to go about setting up strong digital footprints
x
for themselves. Sadly, a lot of them don’t even know how to market themselves

in a saturated marketplace oozing with other lawyers and hostile clients. Many

are terrified of marketing themselves because being visible will make them open

to criticism, and many people don’t like being criticized for the work they do. It

is like wanting to sprint across a rain-drenched field but not wanting to be

touched by the rain.

My fingers got to working on this book, one keystroke at a time, page after page.

I began sharing my perspective, and from there I built a narrative: that the

problem of many lawyers is both ignorance and inaction—ignorance because

they are not equipped with the knowledge they need to develop their book of

business and build visibility, inaction because many who know this seem to be

frozen down in an icy lake of inaction.

So, please enjoy this book. But while enjoying it, note one important factor: you

are not reading for reading sake. Read to add to your body of knowledge. Read to

act. There are questions in this book that requires deep thinking and critical

answers. Keep a pen and paper beside you; jot down points and questions that

come up as you read, then chew on them the way you would a legal brief.

The clock is ticking. Let’s go.

xi
 Chapter One

Professional Service Firms: The Legal Services Industry in Focus

Professional service firms are an integral part of the Knowledge Economy. From

lawyers, to investment bankers, to accounting firms, to consulting companies

(think McKinsey & Co. and other leading global consulting firms), to risk

management consultants, to management consultants, we have to agree that

professional services firms are a core part of the World. However, in this little

book, we are not focusing on the myriad of professional services types there are;

our core focus is on lawyers and the way the provision of legal services has

evolved over the past several years.

Everyone will agree that the legal services industry is a knowledge Intensive

Service sector because of the specialized, highly technical services they (we)

provide to clients. From the highly volatile world of commercial litigation, to

other specific types of litigation in law Courts, to Probate practise and Estate

Management, to those working within the Capital Markets, to Mergers &

Acquisitions and Corporate Restructuring, to general corporate-commercial and

company secretarial services, lawyers will agree that they are in a narrow niche.

10
This narrow niche still broadens out into several micro niches, some of which

require a higher level of technical know-how, expertise, and specialization.

Because of all the above, lawyers were ultra conservative. Furthermore, they

didn’t (don’t) bother with the issue of the management of their businesses. This

is even more glaring because lawyers don’t have economic background, so they

believe that their sole focus should be on the provision of high-quality client

service for their clientele. Given these factors, many lawyers were (and are still)

comfortable sitting back and waiting for clients to come to their office doorsteps.

In the past, this approach may have worked because prospects had no choice;

however, times have changed.

The legal services industry has been effectively disrupted. Alternative legal

services providers are springing up on the Web and the World Wide Web lacks

physical limitations; thus effectively evading jurisdictions where such may be

completely unacceptable. Many global law firms with international focus are

encroaching on territories by setting up member Firms in other jurisdictions.

Given the fact that many of these top Firms are structured with profitability in

mind, they usually and effectively disrupt the local legal services providers

because they are at the top of their marketing game.

There are DIY websites that help their “customers” with design templates for any

type of legal and commercial agreements they want. There are online alternative

web providers that give clients the option of going to the gatekeepers of the legal

11
services industry; lawyers. Furthermore, there are also more lawyers per client

area than there was in the past. What this means is that there are many more

lawyers now than there were in the past.

Thus, the need to become more economically profitable in the long run has

become more glaring. Lawyers have to scamper for briefs in many cases.

Ambulance chasing is on the rise. Now more than ever, lawyers have seen the

need for the marketing of their services, within the bounds of jurisdictional

limitations and Guidelines, of course.

The need for marketing has never become more glaring now than it was in the

past. Sadly, the legal services industry is one industry that is not structured for

competition; it is structured to make the practitioners conservative in thinking.

The structure is rapidly changing. Law firms are restructuring themselves and

moving into non-traditional legal areas: they are becoming estate planners or

investment advisors. They are entering into the Stock markets and several other

non-niche areas: immigration consulting, brand management and other

consulting areas. Many are now restructuring as consultancies which is what they

weren’t, and while law firms cannot put together a sign that says “hire us because

we win almost all our cases” because of local law prohibitions, public relations

and other subtle forms of advertising are coming into play to help them deepen

market share and gain more clients.

12
Industry Torn Apart?

What is the future of work? Sitting behind a well-worn mahogany desk, curtains

on the windows pulled back to let in the evening air, while a distinguished back

is bent over a legal document, poring over its contents? Or, sitting behind a

MacBook (or other computer apparatus), fingers flying over the keyboard while

the attorney in question is creating a legal opinion on an estate planning exercise?

Or, interfacing with lawyers spread across different states in a video conference

call to handle a complicated client brief?

The older crop of lawyers in the legal profession across the world－but we shall

focus on Nigeria here － will agree that there is a change in the practice of the

legal profession now than there was in the distant past. Lawyers would have

gone all out on marketing their practices if not for express local laws that

prohibits such; but does it really matter? Many jurisdictions have gotten to

understand the change in the tide of the profession and allow marketing and

advertising within set guidelines. Others still prohibit advertising expressly

though there are ways to circumvent the rules, bend them a little to suit each

Firm’s marketing needs. That way, they can effectively get in front of their target

audience while still conforming to local Regulations and Guidelines that regulate

their marketing conduct.

Law firms in Nigeria are still expressly prohibited from advertising, but some

time ago, a law firm in Lekki Lagos took out a Google Adwords campaign that
13
allowed the firm’s website to be displayed at the top of search engines alongside

organic search engine results. The ads were similarly displayed on website pages

that utilize the Google AdSense platform for revenue. This led to arguments and

questions amongst Nigerian legal practitioners, many asking if such was allowed

within the Rules of Professional Conduct for Legal Practitioners in Nigeria.

Some argued for and against. While all agreed that advertising is expressly

forbidden (yes, in Nigeria, attorneys are not allowed to market their practice),

some took the line that the times have changed and lawyers would have to

change with it. The people in the latter category agreed that the practise of taking

out Google Adwords for a law firm website to appear alongside organic search

results was never envisaged within the Rules for Legal Practitioners, so it didn’t

matter. And even if it did matter, they argued, it went more to show the state of

law practice: that the Times have changed and the profession will have to change

along with it.

Furthermore, as an addition to the events of recent times and the fact that the

legal services industry across the world isn’t what it was in the past, Technology

also entered the equation. Technology is no longer a phenomenon like it was in

the past but an integral part of operations for professionals, lawyers included.

However, in keeping with the supposed conservative nature of the profession,

many lawyers are expressly against the use of tech; they prefer sitting back and

writing their briefs in long hand for it to be subsequently typed up by a secretary

while the 21st century crop of Gen Y and Z lawyers and paralegals prefer moving
14
their fingers with blithering speed across their keyboards to get the work done

swiftly and move on. Many law firms have moved on into exploring ways total

automation of processes can help them work through their work load so as to

increase time spent on work and maximize efficiency.

 The increasing importance of the Internet and tech in general in

communications across different sectors has redefined the knowledge space.

 There is now a large access to information which could not be easily gotten

－ and in some cases were completely inaccessible － and softwares that

enable the conglomeration of large amounts of information and data sets for

retrieval and usage, including for non-technical persons.

 The Internet has created a level playing field for lawyers across board,

whether they’re practitioners with 20 years post qualification experience or 2

years PQE, particularly in terms of creating visibility for their practices.

All these have left a traditional, rigid profession in disruption. New practice areas

have emerged, and all these emerging practice areas require the practitioners to

be extremely tech-savvy and have more than a passing acquaintance with the

Digital sphere. Areas like Blockchain and Smart Contracts are new areas that

require use of tech to navigate through them.

The drum beats that will accompany this chapter are more distinctly martial than

romantic, more battle-tilted than rose-tinted, because the situation is massively

15
chaotic and gets even more so by the day. The profession is in turmoil. Newer,

sleeker law firms are moving like Ninjas through the legal Night, slashing and

cutting down their older counterparts with an arsenal of weapons that their older

counterparts probably never knew existed.

Marketing is martial, rendered even more so when jurisdictions like Nigeria

place stilts on them.

And these raise important questions that require some answers: what then is the

future? How can lawyers and law firms navigate through this future? What will

work and will not work?

Let’s find out, shall we?

16
 Chapter Two

Building a Digital Presence: The Importance of Having Online

Portfolios

INTRODUCTION

Law firms have gotten to understand that they have to gain visibility for the

services they are offering to potential clients. To that effect, a law firm website

that is well designed and professional-looking has the capability to attract the

attention of potential clients and have them contacting your law firm for their

services needs. Many law firms that do not have websites that can serve as their

2/7 sales person are looking for solutions on how to key into Digital for their

practises.

In the old days of law practice, a lawyer or law firm would need several years of

practice in order to gain a strong foothold and become attractive to potential

clients who are interested in their practice areas. However, the same is not the

case today: the Internet has rendered everyone to become global citizens,

17
meaning that even an attorney with barely a month’s practice under his legal belt

can gain more visibility and attract more clients online than an attorney or law

firm that has over a decade practice but who/which has little to no visibility. The

Internet has placed everyone on an equal footing because the same resources can

be accessed by everyone.

Now, there is more to running a successful law practice than having a fancy

physical office address and having your contact details out there in the Yellow

Pages. You also need to have a web address; an online presence that will serve as

your sales manager who’s active, 24/7 and who is accessible from all corners of

the world.

Nowadays, people start their search online. If someone has a legal issue or thinks

that he does, the first thing he/she does is to conduct an online search. That part

is extremely important for them. They could be looking for information on their

pending divorce, or they may be looking to take out a long-term mortgage, or

they’re looking to start a business in Lagos or Abuja or wherever else. Whatever

it is, they need information. They search for information that can help them on

that journey; it is important to note this: they are not merely looking for

information on which attorneys would be a good fit. They are searching for

usable information.

So, that’s where your website and thought leadership positioning comes to play.

What do you have on your site? What are you offering? How does the

18
prospective client perceive that you can solve their problem for which they are

looking for legal advice or legal representation? How does your online portfolio

present you to your prospect?

Many lawyers believe that they need a web presence, but they don’t seem to

know precisely how to go about this or what precisely to do. Many think it is all

about keyword research and stuffing of those keywords around their websites.

Many cannot differentiate between prospects and users who are information

gatherers and those who’re ready for action with regards to their legal situation.

The situation is simple: you may be unable to pinpoint the level each prospect is

in their buyer journey and the closer they are to buying, the higher the possibility

that they will contact you if they feel you possess the answers to their problems

or that you understand their situation enough to be able to do something legally

about it.

In this section, we will break the information down.

Website Design for your Legal Practice

In the past, lawyers had no online marketing options. Outside Nigeria, lawyers

could use the Yellow Pages and take out ads in newspapers. With the

development of, and expansion of the Internet, lawyers deviated from the

traditional marketing platforms towards having their own practice websites to

serve as their online interface accessible to the whole world.

19
Basics to Note:

 A professionally designed law firm website is your online address and can

retain the attention of your law firm website visitors.

 Your law firm website will help you gain credibility in the eyes of your

prospects who land on your website from different areas of the Internet.

 Your law firm website will help your law firm to increase their conversion

rates in the sales funnel and turn prospects to paying clients when the time is

right.

 Your website address is your sales person, available 24/7 to help you convert

leads and gain visibility to colleagues and potential clients who may be

interested in utilizing whatever services your firm offers.

 Your law firm website is not an end in and of itself; it is merely a tool which

ought to be sharpened and used well in order to maximize benefits that will

accrue from it.

 The website is the central repository of information about your law firm and

its practitioners. It is safer to ensure that all relevant information is available

on the site.

 A website does not sleep unlike lawyers and other professionals who have to

sleep after a hard day’s work. Having this marketing tool will ensure that

interested will always be able to interact with your online portfolio.

20
 It is a powerful marketing tool that you should never overlook. Ever.

Law Firm Website Preparation

Before delving into creating a law firm website, there are certain basics you must

cover. There is more to setting up a law firm website than merely slapping a

homepage, an About Us and a Contact Page together. Thoughtful planning must

be put into the creation of your law firm site and you need to let your

creative/design firm be aware of this. Ordinarily they should, but it helps if you

understand the rudiments of what your law firm website should look like and

how they should go about it. It helps if you have an idea in mind of what you

want and your team will help you implement it.

An in-house team would make more sense. The reason is simple: your law firm

website is not something you can just open and then abandon on the World Wide

Web. Things don’t happen that way. Search Engine Optimization is important.

Thought leadership is important. News/press releases from your law firm’s press

room is extremely important too. Please note that law firms are becoming full

press rooms with massive content they can churn out to their audience. Is that

something you can effectively outsource by putting a creative agency on retainer?

Or do you think you would be better off with an in-house IT team handling your

law firm website from within? Whichever you think is better, no problem. Utilize

it. But you have to absolutely note that your law firm website is not something

21
that can be just abandoned once it’s been created. That’s a sure recipe for disaster

and a dip in search engine rankings.

Law Firm Website Pages Planning

When creating a law firm website, it is paramount that you create your law firm

website pages concept map before you begin its implementation. Drawing your

website pages outline will help you to know precisely what you are developing

for the website and how to link them all up through internal hyperlinks. You can

draw that up using a design tool on your computer, or you can get a long sheet

and do that physically. Personally, I prefer the latter, with the sheet spread out on

a floor, my pencil flying over it to add the necessary pages and create linking

lines to show the structure they’ll take when the design process begins. Please

consider the following:

 Homepage

 Areas of Practise

 About Us

 Contact and Location

 Client Testimonials

 Publications

 Press Releases

22
 Attorneys

 Case Studies

 Any other pages/areas you feel your website should have.

When you have drawn up the above, then congratulations, you have drawn your

sitemap and you are ready to proceed to the next step. Note that they won’t take

the form above; it’s just to give you an idea of what to do.

Please note that your law firm site map mustn’t follow the structure above. The

above is merely for illustration purposes to give you and your design team an

idea of what they can come up with. You have to note your own unique

circumstances and law practice, plus note the applicable Regulations in your

jurisdiction on Attorney advertising when drawing up your site map. This should

take some soul-searching, but it shouldn’t be too complicated.

Crafting Content for your Law Firm Website Pages

With your law firm sitemap ready, you have to create the proper content that will

go with each page, starting from the website’s homepage. When creating content,

you have to consider the type of page each one is and know if there are any

additional add-ons that will accompany them like images, graphics, videos, etc.

Also note that the content marketer/copywriter will write the content with

localized SEO in mind.

23
Law Firm Website Design Evaluation

You choose the design elements you want to use [or your developer does that for

you] and then you evaluate same to ensure that it is suited to your needs. Fonts,

colors, spacing, everything that will go into the website should be evaluated at

this point. You have to also note that your website outlook should go in line with

your Branding imagery and logo so as to make for a consistent branding outlook

for everything you are doing.

Integral Points to Note About Your Law Firm Website Design

Navigation:

Your law firm website should have intuitive navigation and should be easy for

even the biggest Internet novice to find themselves around the core pages of your

law firm website and find these areas in your law firm website:

Your services

Your attorneys

Your Contact information and Phone numbers

Your core values

Your law firm’s case studies

Your law firm’s thought leadership which will encompass its areas of expertise.

24
Click-To-Call

Individual Pages Law firm websites should contain the firm’s contact phone

number so that visitors to the site can find it easy to call the law firm contact

handles with the press of a button. Many law firm websites bears these

click-to-call phone numbers at the header of each page so that all users have to

do is to click on the number as they navigate through the website so that they can

get in touch immediately with the contact person of the law firm and discuss

their needs.

Most people browse through the Internet with their mobile devices, and chances

are, they will call you on their mobile devices as well. So, leaving the law firm’s

phone number in a conspicuous space on your law firm website will be beneficial

to prospects seeking to call the law firm directly from the website. It will

definitely be better than hiding the phone numbers away on a page the prospects

will have to start searching for if they need to contact your law firm.

Call-to-Action/Lead Generation Forms

Every professional website needs a lead generation form. Some would prefer to

use the term contact form. Some prefer to have lead generation forms across

multiple pages of their site, preferably in the practice area pages of their websites.

As part of their strategy, some law firms also include their lead generation forms

in the thought leadership pages of their law firm website, prompting readers to

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get in touch with them and setting actionable steps they can take to do that.

Whichever one you want to call it, or however placement you want your lead

generation forms to have, there are certain basics you have to take notice of:

It has to be easy. You have to ensure that the information needed from the

potential client at that point is merely basic. Ideally, potential clients on your law

firm website should have to fill these: their name, contact info and email address,

and a brief summary of why they are contacting you for their needs. Anything

more should be shelved for either when the prospect is facing your attorneys in a

meeting or when you are making a follow-up of the contact. It doesn’t have to be

too detailed so your prospects don’t feel too pressed for information, but it has to

cover the basics. Every other information needed will have to wait for your initial

phone or face-to-face consultation.

The point is that you are not going to, or trying to, close the prospect right there

on your lead generation pages. The goal is gather enough information as would

enable you to get in touch with the prospect and effectively pitch your firm’s

legal services to them.

Use Compelling Headlines for Your Practice Areas

There are several law firm practice areas; you already know the practice areas

you are targeting. They could be the areas you already work in or want to break

into over the course of time. You also know the practice areas your law firm

practitioners address and the sectors targeted. Use compelling headlines and
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sub-headings to explain your practice area expertise across each of your law firm

website’s practice areas. Headlines are important because they present to the

reader in precise, popping terms the content of the page they are navigating

into/through. Point to note:

Unique Value Proposition: Your unique value proposition for your law firm

prospects must be easy to glean from whatever page they are navigating through.

At a glance, your law firm website visitor has to understand the value your law

firm is proposing to them and how you intend to deliver that value to them. Make

this as perfectly clear as possible.

Slapping together marketing catch phrases you don’t even believe may be too

easy to spot in the long run. In legal marketing, you have to remember to

communicate your core values to potential clients, and it must be easy to shine

for prospects to take note of.

Content

The whole internet has agreed that content is king. Whether it is static content, or

long articles, or blog posts that are geared towards making people understand

your subject matter expertise, content is important for any website. There are no

two words about it.

There are different forms of content, and there are different categories of

audiences that each content form will appeal to. While some will be happier

27
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
The Project Gutenberg eBook of Over the
Santa Fé Trail, 1857
This ebook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States
and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no
restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it
under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this
ebook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the
United States, you will have to check the laws of the country where
you are located before using this eBook.

Title: Over the Santa Fé Trail, 1857

Author: William Barclay Napton

Release date: December 20, 2023 [eBook #72461]

Language: English

Original publication: United States: Franklin Hudson Publishing Co,

1905

Credits: Sonya Schermann and the Online Distributed Proofreading

Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from
images generously made available by The Internet Archive)

*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK OVER THE

SANTA FÉ TRAIL, 1857 ***
 Transcriber’s Note
Larger versions of most illustrations may be seen by right-
clicking them and selecting an option to view them separately,
or by double-tapping and/or stretching them.
Additional notes will be found near the end of this ebook.
Over the Santa Fé Trail
1857

BY
W. B. NAPTON.
1905.
FRANKLIN HUDSON PUBLISHING CO.,
KANSAS CITY, MO.
 CONTENTS
Page
I. Captain “Jim Crow” Chiles 3
II. In Camp, South of Westport 10
III. Buffalo 14
IV. Companions of Voyage 18
V. Pestiferous Indians 21
VI. At the Kiowa Camp 28
VII. To the Cimarron 33
VIII. My First Antelope 38
IX. A Kicking Gun and a Bucking Mule 46
X. A Gray Wolf 50
XI. Arrival at Las Vegas 54
XII. In Peril of Indians 62
XIII. Captain Chiles’ Chase 69

LEWIS & CLARK’S ROUTE RETRAVELED

Chapter I 73
Chapter II 84
Chapter III 93
 ILLUSTRATIONS
Page
“Jim Crow” Chiles Laughed 7
The Mule Suddenly Bucked 24
Punched Him With the Point 26
Difficult to Get the Heavily Loaded Wagons Across 34
Their Drivers Were Unable to Restrain Them 40
“Skeesicks” Walked Up 44
He Plodded Along With the Lame Cattle 46
He Jumped and Kicked 48
The Officers Dragged Him Out 60
“Men, They Are Indians!” 66
 Over the Santa Fé Trail, 1857.

I.
Captain “Jim Crow” Chiles.

When I was a lad of 12 years of age my father had a red-headed

overseer, good-natured, loquacious and fond of telling stories, the
kind that suited the understanding and tickled the fancy of a boy. His
stories were always related as being truthful accounts of actual
occurrences, although I suspected they were frequently creatures of
his own imagination. This overseer, a Westerner born and bred, had
driven an ox wagon in a train across the plains to New Mexico; had
made two trips across—in 1847 and 1848—one extending as far as
Chihuahua, in Old Mexico. His observation was keen, and his
memory unexcelled, so that, years afterwards, he could relate, in
minute detail, the events of every day’s travel, from the beginning to
the end of the journey. I was charmed with his accounts of the
Indians and buffalo, wolves, antelope and prairie dogs.
Reaching the age of 18 in 1857, with indifferent health, my father
acquiesced in my determination to cross the plains to New Mexico.
The doctor said the journey would benefit my health. Already an
expert with a gun or pistol, I had killed all kinds of game to be found
in Missouri, and had read Gordon Cumming’s book of his hunting
exploits in South Africa, so that I felt as if nothing less than killing big
game, like buffalo and elk, could gratify my sporting proclivities.
Colonel James Chiles of “Six Mile,” Jackson County, was a state
senator, and while at Jefferson City during the session of the
legislature, my father telling him of my desire to go out to Santa Fé,
the colonel sent me an invitation to come to his house by the middle
of April and go out with a train belonging to his son. So in the early
spring of 1857 I set out from my home in Saline County, well
mounted and equipped for the journey.
The spring was backward, and when I reached Colonel Chiles’s
house in the middle of April winter was still “lingering in the lap of
spring.” The grass was not good on the plains until the 10th of May.
It was arranged for me to go out with the train commanded by “Jim
Crow,” a son of Colonel Chiles.
“Jim Crow” was then about twenty-five, not over medium height,
but strong, athletic and wiry, and had a pretty well established
reputation as a fighter among the frontiersmen. He had killed a
lawyer named Moore, who lived at Leavenworth, in the Noland hotel
at Independence. After the Civil War he killed two other men at
Independence, and he himself was eventually killed in a fight with
the Independence town marshal. But I found “Jim Crow” a kind and
considerate friend, jovial and good natured generally, but subject to
violent fits of anger, and when angry, a very dangerous man. One
night on the “trail,” while he and I were riding some distance ahead
of the train, amid the solitude of the darkness and the vast plains, the
conversation drifted into a confidential vein. He recalled the killing of
Moore, saying he regretted it beyond measure; that the affair had
haunted him day and night; that he would willingly give up all that he
owned or expected to acquire to be relieved of the anguish and
trouble and remorse the act had caused him. But he was possessed
of the kind of courage and combativeness which never suggested
the avoidance of a fight then or afterward.
Kansas City was even then, in 1857, an aspiring town. For a
month or two in the spring the levee was covered with wagons and
teams, and sometimes four or five steamboats were at the wharf
discharging freight. General John W. Reid had recently bought forty
acres, the northwest corner of which is now the intersection of
Broadway and Twelfth street, for $2,000. The land was covered with
timber, which he cut into cord wood and sold to the steamboats for
about enough to pay for the land.
 There were no streets, and only one road from the levee, leaving
the river front at Grand avenue, running obliquely across to Main
street and back again to Grand avenue, in McGee’s addition.
Colonel Milton McGee had taken down his fences and laid off his
cornfields into lots.
The work cattle and wagons were collected and a camp
established, about the first of May, on the high, rolling prairie near
the Santa Fé trail, three miles southwest of Westport. The wagons
were heavy, cumbrous affairs with long deep beds, covered with
sheets of heavy cotton cloth, supported by bows. A man six feet high
could stand erect in one of them, and they were designed to hold a
load of seven or eight thousand pounds of merchandise each. Those
in our train were made by Hiram Young, a free negro at
Independence, and they were considered as good as any except
those with iron axles. The freight consisted of merchandise for the
trade in New Mexico. Two of the wagons were loaded with imported
champagne for Colonel St. Vrain of Las Vegas and Mora.
There was a shortage of good ox drivers that spring and Captain
“Jim Crow” found it difficult to supply the number he needed. Twenty-
five dollars a month “and found” were the wages. One evening, while
we were lounging around the corral, waiting for supper, three men
came up on foot, inquiring for the captain of the train. They were
good looking, well dressed men, two of them wearing silk hats, but
bearing no resemblance to the ordinary ox driver. They said they
were stranded and looking for work. They proposed to Captain
Chiles to hire to him for drivers, while they disclaimed any knowledge
of the calling.
 “JIM CROW” CHILES LAUGHED.

“Jim Crow” laughed, and after interrogating them as to their

antecedents, said he would hire them on probation. “I will take you
along,” he said, “and if I find you can learn to drive cattle before we
get to Council Grove, the last settlement on the road, then I’ll keep
you; otherwise not, and you must look out for yourselves.”
 They were invited to supper and assigned to a mess. One of
them was named Whitcom. He hailed from Massachusetts and had
never seen a yoke of oxen in his life, but he was strong, sturdy and
active, and before we reached New Mexico he was rated the most
dextrous driver in the outfit. Moreover, his team looked better than
any in the train when we reached the end of our journey. Ten years
ago Whitcom was living in Cheyenne, and was one of the wealthiest
cattle raisers in the state of Wyoming.
Another of the three hailed from Cincinnati. He wore a
threadbare suit of broadcloth and a “plug” hat, and was tall, angular,
awkward, slip-shod and slouchy in appearance. He had been
employed in his father’s banking house in Cincinnati, and was
accomplished in penmanship and a good accountant; but he proved
to be utterly unfit for an ox driver. He could not hold his own among
his rough companions, and became the object of their jeers and
derision. By unanimous consent he was given the name of
“Skeesicks,” and by this name he was known ever afterwards.
The third of the trio proved to be a fairly good driver, and is now
a prosperous merchant in the state of Montana.
Among the drivers was a young Mexican, Juan, who had been in
the employ of the Chiles brothers for years. Through him we were
enabled to converse with the Kiowas and Comanches when we
reached them. Many of the Indians could speak or understand
Spanish, but could not understand a word of English. We had men
among the teamsters from Tennessee, Kentucky, Arkansas and
Texas. They soon became known and answered to the name of their
own state. “Tennessee” and “Texas” prided themselves on the size
and weight of their whips, and the loudness of the noise they could
make in popping them.
Young Reece, from Missouri, went out with the train for his
health. He had consumption and hoped the journey over the plains
would be of benefit to him. He was very tall, being six feet four
inches, of large bone and frame, but thin as a huge skeleton, and
had allowed his heavy black hair to grow until it hung below his
shoulders. He was well off so far as property was concerned, and
rode a splendid dapple gray horse, muscular, tough and graceful,
with handsome mane and tail, which could fairly fly over the prairie.
 II.
In Camp, South of Westport.

In the camp, three miles southwest of Westport, we were

detained for a fortnight or more, awaiting the arrival of our freight at
Kansas City. There were twenty-six wagon, five yoke of oxen to
each, carrying about seven thousand pounds of freight each. There
were no tents, so we slept on the ground, either under a wagon or, if
we preferred it, the broad canopy of heaven.
Captain “Jim Crow” commanded the company, with Rice as
assistant wagonmaster. There was one driver for each wagon, and a
boy of 16, of frontier origin and training, whose duty it was to drive
the “cavayard” or loose cattle, taken along in case any of the teams
should get lame or unfit for service. “Jim Crow,” immediately on his
arrival at the camp, gave the boy the nickname of “Little Breeches,”
suggested by his very tight-fitting trousers, and the name,
abbreviated to “Little Breech,” stuck to him.
While encamped below Westport I was fortunate in purchasing a
first rate “buffalo horse,” a California “lass horse,” that had been
brought across the plains the previous year. He proved his
excellence afterward, was very fast and would run up so close to a
buffalo that I could sometimes touch him with the pistol point.
Camped in our vicinity were several corrals of trains belonging to
Mexican merchants, who used mules instead of oxen, and had lately
come up from New Mexico. These Mexicans subsisted altogether on
taos (unbolted) flour, and dried buffalo meat, while our mess wagon
was filled with side bacon, flour, coffee, sugar, beans and pickles.
I soon got on fair terms of acquaintance with the master of one
of these Spanish trains. He was a successful buffalo hunter, but I
was surprised to find he used a spear for killing them, instead of a
pistol. When a buffalo was found at a distance from the road or camp
he would goad the animal, until so enraged, it would turn upon and
follow him, and in this manner he would get the game to a more
convenient place for butchering, before finally dispatching it.
There were no farms fenced up in sight of our camp at that time,
but the prairie was dotted with the houses of the “squatter
sovereigns,” who were “holding down” claims.
On the 10th day of June we yoked up and started on the long
journey. At the outset everybody about the train, from the captain to
the cavayard driver, was filled with good humor. The weather was
perfect, the view of the apparently boundless prairie exhilarating.
The road having been surveyed and established by the government
before the country was at all occupied, was almost as straight as an
arrow toward the southwest. The wagonmaster would arouse the
men before daylight in the morning and the cattle would be driven up
to the corral, yoked up and hitched to the wagons by the time the
cooks could prepare breakfast, a cook being assigned to each mess
of six or eight men. Some of the oxen were not well broken to the
yoke, and it was a difficult task at the dim break of day for a green
man to select each steer that belonged to his team in the corral,
where the 250 were crowded together so that their sides would
almost touch.
Once on the road the drive was continued for from eight to
twelve miles, the stops being governed by the convenience of
camping-places, where grass and water could be found for the
cattle. Familiarity with the route was essential in the wagonmaster,
who, riding some distance ahead, would select the camping-place,
and when the train came up direct the formation of the corral. The
cattle were immediately unyoked and turned loose, herded by two of
the teamsters. Often it was necessary to drive the cattle a mile or
more from the corral in order to find sufficient grass, that near the
road being kept short by the incoming trains from Mexico and the
outgoing trains ahead of us.
 At Council Grove there was a considerable settlement of Indian
traders. There we found assembled a large band of Kaw Indians,
who had just reached there from a buffalo hunt on the Arkansas. The
Kaws were not classed as “wild” Indians, and I think had been
assigned to a reservation not far off, but when they got off on a hunt
their native savage inclinations made them about as dangerous as
those roaming the plains at will, and whose contact with the white
man was much less frequent.
Beyond the Diamond spring we met two men on horseback, who
were hunting cattle belonging to a train then corralled some distance
ahead. The cattle had been stampeded by Indians in the night and
they had lost fifty head. The train could not be moved without them.
The men had been in search of them for two days and thought they
would be compelled to offer a reward for them, that being found
necessary sometimes, along the border. The Indians and
“squawmen”—white men married to, or living with, Indian squaws—
would stampede cattle at night, drive them off and hold them until
they ascertained that a reward had been offered for them. Then they
would visit the corral, learn with seeming regret of the cause of the
detention of the train, declare that they were well acquainted with the
surrounding country and could probably find them and bring them in,
offering to perform this service for so much a head. After the bargain
was struck the cattle would be delivered as soon as they could be
driven from the place of their secretion. It was not infrequent for a
band of Kaws to strike a wagon master in this way for as much as
from $100 to $500.
Here we learned that Colonel Albert Sidney Johnson, in
command of a considerable force, had moved out from Fort Scott
against the Cheyennes, who were on the warpath up on the
Republican river, in the western part of Kansas, but we missed
seeing the command until months later, on our homeward journey in
September.
 III.
Buffalo.

As we were drawing near the buffalo range preparations were

made for a chase. The pistols were freshly loaded and butcher
knives sharpened. One morning about 9 o’clock, on Turkey creek, a
branch of the Cottonwood, we came in sight of buffalo, in a great
mass, stretching out over the prairie as far as the eye could reach,
though the topography of the country enabled us to see for several
miles in each direction. The prairie in front of us was gradually
undulating, but offered no great hindrance to fast riding. Reece and I
were anxious to try our skill, and Captain Chiles said he would go
along to assist in butchering and bringing up the meat; but, as he
was riding a mule, he could not be expected to take an active part in
the chase. Reece was mounted on his splendid iron gray and I on
my trained buffalo horse, each of us having a pair of Colt’s navy
revolvers, of six chambers in holsters.
We rode slowly until we got within three or four hundred yards of
the edge of the vast herd. Then they began to run and we followed,
gaining on them all the time. Pressing forward, at the full speed of
my horse, I discovered that the whole band just in front of me were
old bulls. I was so anxious to kill a buffalo that I began shooting at a
very large one, occasionally knocking tufts of hair off his coat, but
apparently having little other effect. However, after a lively run of
perhaps a mile or two he slackened his pace, and at last stopped still
and, turning about, faced me. I fired the one or two remaining
charges of my revolvers, at a distance of twenty or thirty yards, and
thought he gave evidence of being mortally wounded. After gazing
steadily at me for a few minutes he turned around and walked off. I
followed, but presently he resumed a gallop in the direction the main
herd had gone, soon disappearing from view over a ridge. So I had
made a failure, and felt a good deal put out, as well as worn out by
the fatigue of fast riding.
Through a vista between the clouds of dust raised by the buffalo,
I got a glimpse of Reece. His horse proved to be very much afraid of
the buffalo and could not be urged close enough to afford shooting,
with any degree of certainty, with a pistol. Reece held his magnificent
horse with a rein of the bridle in either hand, his head fronting
towards the buffalo, but the frightened animal would turn to one side,
despite the best efforts of his master, fairly flying around in front of
the herd. That was Reece’s first and last attempt to kill a buffalo on
horseback.
I rode back towards the train, soon meeting Captain Chiles, who
greeted me with derisive laughter, but considerately expressed the
hope that I would have better success upon a second attempt. As we
were all very anxious to get some fresh meat, he suggested that I
should lend him my horse; that he would easily kill one with a
double-barrel shotgun, which he was carrying in front on his saddle. I
readily agreed to this, and mounting on my horse, he put off and
promptly slew a fat, well-grown calf that proved good eating for us
who had lived on bacon for many days.
That afternoon I turned my buffalo horse loose, permitting him to
follow, or be driven along with the cavayard, in order that he might
recuperate from the exhausting races of the forenoon. The following
morning he was as good as ever, and I resolved to try another
chase.
Having received some pertinent instructions from Captain Chiles,
as to the modus operandi of killing buffalo on horseback at full
speed, I mounted and sallied forth with him, the weather being ideal
and the game abundant.
At the left of the road, in sight, thousands of buffalo were grazing
in a vast plain, lower than the ridge down which we were riding.
Opened up in our view was a scope of country to the southeast of
us, a distance of ten miles. This plain was covered with them, all
heading towards the northwest.