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The Trap of Observable Metrics
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Doug was six years into his legal career when he decided to get serious about building his practice.
His approach seemed logical: maximize visibility through measurable activities. Doug became a prolific content creator. He published client alerts within hours of regulatory changes, carefully tracked his LinkedIn analytics, and proudly reported to his practice group leader that his posts had generated 100,000 impressions the prior month. At networking events, he collected business cards like a kid collecting candy on Halloween.
Doug’s numbers were impressive. Website traffic to his attorney bio page increased 150%. His social media following grew steadily. Doug felt he was on the right track - these observable metrics offered concrete evidence of his business development efforts.
However, Doug couldn’t shake a nagging thought: “Why isn’t this working? My numbers are great!” Despite all the visibility, few actual clients materialized.
Meanwhile, his colleague Sarah took a different approach. She published less frequently but spent hours ensuring her content addressed specific pain points for targeted industries. Rather than collecting stacks of business cards, she focused on having three meaningful conversations at each event she attended..
Two years later, her practice was thriving. Sarah understood that trust isn’t built overnight; it's earned slowly through genuine interactions. She chose quality over quantity every time.
What Doug missed was that building a legal practice is fueled by invisible metrics that rarely generate immediate feedback. These metrics include:
The depth of trust built through consistent, thoughtful interactions
The genuine connections formed when you listen more than you speak
The reputation developed when you deliver solid legal work wrapped in exceptional client service
Observable metrics—views, likes, followers, connection counts—provide the comfort of immediate validation. Don’t get me wrong - it’s great to build visibility and momentum through marketing. Visibility is important - but insufficient.
Rainmakers understand this distinction. They recognize that invisible metrics drive real results. They know when a single conversation with the right person outweighs a thousand impressions on a LinkedIn post.
This doesn't mean abandoning measurable activities. Rather, it means using them thoughtfully (but not exclusively)—ensuring they serve your deeper strategy of building lasting relationships and demonstrable expertise.
Jay Harrington is president of our agency, a published author, and nationally-recognized expert in thought-leadership marketing.
From strategic planning to writing, podcasting, video marketing, and design, Jay and his team help lawyers and law firms turn expertise into thought leadership, and thought leadership into new business. Get in touch to learn more about the consulting and coaching services we provide. You can reach Jay at jay@hcommunications.biz.