LegalMatch is the nation’s original attorney-client matching service. As one of the most effective providers of leads for lawyers, we understand how crucial client leads are when it comes to growing your legal practice.
To ensure a consistent stream of new potential clients, small and solo law firms have several options these days. But they’re not all equal. To help you understand your choices so you can pick the best source for legal leads, we’ve done the comparison research for you.
This article covers everything you need to know about leads for lawyers and where to find them.
Is LegalMatch a reliable source for legal leads?
Yes! Here’s why …
As an attorney, you have two ways to find strong leads for compensable cases. The hard way involves handling all the marketing, intake, and client interviews yourself. The easy way is to let LegalMatch do the up-front leg work of locating people who are actively seeking legal representation in your area, gathering their initial case details, and then giving you the information you need to review their information at a glance and then follow-up with only those leads that interest you – saving you both time and effort.
As a LegalMatch subscriber, I get lists of people who need attorneys and I can go straight to looking at their cases, rather than spending a lot of time networking or searching for clients some other way. – David Sadegh, Houston, TX, Consumer Law and Personal Injury Law
The LegalMatch platform lets you easily read through a steady stream of case leads so you can contact only those who have the most promising cases to fit your practice goals. As a LegalMatch member attorney, you receive all the information relevant client leads submit to our platform. Case details are kept confidential, and all leads are presented to you in a way that makes it quick and easy to vet them as they come in.
I joined LegalMatch to find leads on cases. The interface is responsive and easy to understand. In addition, the support people assigned to my account have always been very helpful and wonderful. – Thomas Ryan, Chicago, IL, Employment and Labor Law
We’ve been helping legal clients find the right lawyer for more than 20 years, and 6 million people have submitted case details through our platform during that time. Whether you have a new law firm or an established firm with a long history, LegalMatch is here to help you find clients that have the kinds of cases you want to take on.
LegalMatch has been great for me. When I first opened my business in 2020 I didn’t have any clients, didn’t know where to get them, or anything about marketing or advertising. A representative from LegalMatch reached out to me not too long after I opened my business saying, ‘We can help you. This is how it works. Let us help you get clients.’ I have over 100 clients at our firm right now. About 80% of those clients have come from LegalMatch. – Cody B., Raleigh, North Carolina, Family Law
Instead of developing a whole new set of marketing skills so you can get consistent legal leads, why not let us do the heavy lifting so you can focus on the more personal aspects of client follow-up and conversion that only you can do?
What are legal leads?
If you’re just starting out, you may not have given much thought yet to how you will grow your clientele. To do this successfully, you’ll need at least one reliable source for legal leads. These are the people or entities who need legal representation for help with specific torts, criminal cases, or other legal issues.
In the simplest sense, legal leads are your potential clients.
Potential legal clients can find you in a variety of ways including contact forms, newsletters, online content, webinars or events, social media, or word-of-mouth referrals. These strategies are all examples of legal marketing, which many solo or small practice attorneys find overwhelming.
This is why LegalMatch exists, to handle the marketing so you can focus on the lawyer-ing.
Why do you need legal leads?
If you want to expand your professional reach and make a meaningful impact with more clients, you need legal leads. Beyond immediate casework, these connections can help strengthen your reputation, refine your expertise, and open the door to future referrals. Even if a lead doesn’t convey instant value to you, they can be beneficial in the long run as a source of personal referrals for your legal practice.
Legal leads are the “lifeblood” of a thriving practice, helping to cover overhead costs, generate revenue, and maintain law firm profitability. Legal leads allow you to sustain your practice, grow your reputation, and focus on what matters most—serving clients and advancing justice—without the burden of constantly seeking new cases.
We know it took years of education and experience for you to hone your legal skills, and we also know most lawyers receive little to no training on how to attract and engage clients. Law school teaches legal principles, practical skills, and specialized areas of law – but not how to market your services or grow your legal practice. In fact, lawyer’s weren’t even allowed to market their professional services until 1977. Which is why today, most practicing lawyers – even if they had the time – don’t really know where to start.
I hadn’t a clue how to reach potential clients, and LegalMatch came to me literally within a few months of me launching my firm. It was just synchronous. LegalMatch taught me how to market and brings me potential clients. And the LegalMatch marketing team helped me to understand how to cultivate that relationship to get hired. – Randy K., South Florida, Intellectual Property Law
If you are one of the rare lawyers who feels comfortable with marketing and capable of generating your own legal leads, there are several reasons why you still might prefer to invest in professional support including the capacity to:
- Access specialized knowledge, skills, tools, technologies, and resources that might be expensive or impractical for you to acquire on your own.
- Focus on your core strengths, achieve greater efficiency and cost-effectiveness.
- Alleviate stress and reduce the risk of making costly mistakes.
What lead generation services provide
Lead generation services help all kinds of businesses acquire potential customers/clients. This is the “secret sauce” that business leaders have used for decades to grow their bottom line. The primary benefit of a lead generation service is to locate and gather data about individuals or organizations that have shown interest in a specific product, service, or sector.
Much like the work done by a detective or investigative journalist, a lead generation service provider identifies who is worth following up with to achieve your business goals. Interested leads are then transferred to you so you can conduct the highly-personal process of converting these leads into paying clients.
By outsourcing the first step of identifying and connecting with interested “buyers” to a lead generation service, you get to focus all your energy and attention on the more intimate follow-up steps that only you can do effectively.
Legal lead generation is provided by several widely recognized names, including Lawyers.com, Avvo, AllLaw, Nolo, Martindale, and LegalMatch. Of these, only LegalMatch provides an unlimited number of qualified leads in real time without you having to pay for each lead. With LegalMatch you pay a fixed-price membership fee and get a steady stream of legal leads each month.
LegalMatch also gives you a dedicated account manager who can answer all your questions and provide training on best practices and insights. You get an easy-to-navigate dashboard that links and manages case details and communications including documents, scheduling, contacts, and more. It has user-friendly accessibility features such as at-a-glance case details, online scheduling, proven and tested response templates (for ROI/CRO), real-time mobile notification and responses, and a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tool.
LegalMatch helps to reduce your overhead costs by handling the marketing and initial intake. Our case intake system lets you quickly check and hone in on cases that fit what’s most profitable for your practice. We gather detailed information specific to each case, that you can review before you even speak to the client, so you can efficiently identify high-quality leads and increase your chance of a successful client engagement.
No need to spend time and money developing your own website, filling it with SEO content, running online marketing campaigns, or doing any additional advertising. And, we enable you to quickly expand your geographic reach when you’re looking to grow your practice and move into new markets.
LegalMatch’s interface for how they bring in clients is well organized and a lot more detailed in terms of the information. I’d like to know about the client before I decide to reach out to them and contact them and take them on as a client. Other lead generation services don’t offer as much granular detail as LegalMatch does. – Stevens O., Houston, TX, Family Law
Ethical considerations in lead generation
LegalMatch will only connect you with leads who have actively reached out and are looking for legal counsel. This direct approach supports ethical marketing practices by ensuring that client engagement is based on real demand and not aggressive sales tactics.
We protect client confidentiality and handle all private information with care. We also emphasize honest representation, encouraging all member attorneys to accurately showcase their qualifications and areas of expertise.
Partnering with LegalMatch positions you advantageously in the competitive legal landscape while maintaining a strong ethical foundation, and all of our marketing complies with all governing laws and regulations.
Pay-per-lead systems for lead generation
One way attorneys get legal leads coming in is through pay-per-lead systems. Similar to the way Google works for pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, these are generally bidding-based systems – which means whoever is paying the most per lead gets the leads.
Pay-per-lead systems do give you leads – and in some cases (but not all) these are exclusive leads not shared with anyone else – but they also have several disadvantages. You don’t get to know up front in any given month how many leads you can afford, and this approach can cost you up to $1500 per lead. You also pay per lead regardless of quality. In making your bids, you don’t get to know who you’re paying for or any details about their case or legal concern.
In contrast, LegalMatch gives you an unlimited number of leads without charging a fee for each one. These leads are not exclusive, but we give you access to every lead that is relevant to your practice area and geographic location. And we let you review their detailed case submission before deciding whether or not to contact them.
LegalMatch has been a positive impact on our business. It connects us with clients that we would not have necessarily met in our networking circles or via referrals from other attorneys. And so that one-to-one connection has been very valuable. – Colleen C., Scottsdale, AZ, Family Law
How to get started with lead generation
To generate legal leads for your practice, you could rely on word-of-mouth, hustle to deliver seminars or create and promote online content, sign up with one of the pay-per-lead services, or you can give LegalMatch a try and enjoy the kind of success described by other happy member attorneys.
I get around three to six cases a month and these cases can generally range between 2500$ on the low end and probably 10 grand and even higher…The raw numbers on the upfront costs are well better than ten to one. – Christopher F., Saint Petersburg, FL, Family Law
LegalMatch makes it easy to start connecting with the kinds of leads your law practice needs to grow and thrive. We provide you with a steady stream of direct leads you can review and assess to determine their viability for your legal practice. We let you choose the practice area and give you a streamlined dashboard to help navigate the system.
We assign a dedicated account manager to work with you so that you can get the greatest value and use from our lead generation system. Your dedicated account manager will contact you at least once per month to help you maximize the benefits of your LegalMatch membership. The account manager will walk you through the system and train you in its use. If you have any questions or need help of any kind, you can contact your account manager to get the assistance that you need.
LegalMatch places an emphasis on generating quality leads for our attorney and law firm partners instead of just creating a directory service like many competitors. The leads are for valid cases and prospective clients who understand they are required to pay for your legal services if they choose to retain you. We find client prospects who need resolutions to legal matters and will pay for the service.
You can access detailed case-intake information that we compile so that you can closely evaluate each lead and choose the ones that you want to pursue. We ensure each case summary contains enough information to enable attorneys to evaluate the case quality.
Our system enables you to contact the respective leads that you like the most and schedule initial consultations. Your account manager can help to make sure you know how to use the scheduling system so that you get the best results. We strive to make the process intuitive and simple to use, and our open lines of communication with your account manager make it possible to answer any questions that you might have.
LegalMatch has a history of success helping law firms and solo practitioners get more clients with quality cases that are compensable. The best way for you to get started is to contact us today to schedule a demo and learn first-hand why we are the legal industry’s best lead generation service.
LegalMatch has had a positive impact on our business. It connects us with clients that we would not have necessarily met in our networking circles or via referrals from other attorneys. And so that one-to-one connection has been very valuable. – Stephanie Smith, Washington D.C., Real Estate and Estate Law Attorney
When you partner with LegalMatch, you can simplify your client acquisition process and realize your practice’s potential, leveraging the support of your dedicated account manager to answer any questions and provide training. Concentrate on optimizing your lead management by consistently evaluating income case information, using the intuitive dashboard for efficient case management, and establishing strong connections with clients. Request a guest pass now to review real case examples we can offer in your practice area and location.
