Meet Marc Heighway, Online Marketing Consultant

Marc Heighway is an online marketing consultant who lives and works on the south coast of the United Kingdom. He has worked in the industry for over 15 years and specializes in helping law firms generate more business online. He was worked abroad and for some large companies and in this interview offers his insights into the world of online marketing, strategies, and some of his own personal experiences.

1. Could you please give a brief introduction to who you are and what you do?

Thanks for giving me the opportunity! I am English and have worked in the online sector since the year 2000. I currently run a business that provides online marketing services and lead generation to the legal industry. This involves quite a few different disciplines including search engine optimization and in-bound marketing strategies.

2. I know that you worked abroad for a few years--what's your insight into that experience, and do you have any advice you can give to other people thinking about doing the same?

Sure. Before I ran my own business, I was the European online marketing manager for an American company called Garmin. They moved me over to Switzerland to manage all their online marketing, and I ended up living in the north of the country.

It was a fantastic experience for my wife and me. We would wake up and see the Swiss Alps from our bedroom window each morning, traveled extensively, and tasted a very different way of life. If any of your readers are given a similar opportunity, then I hope they grasp it with both hands.

3. Could you tell me a little more about your own business and what exactly it is that you do?

For the last few years, I have run SEO agencies serving a wide range of clients. Many of our clients have been personal injury lawyers and personal injury solicitors. It made sense to start specializing in that field, because I think that you can bring a lot more value as a specialist marketing agency to companies in a particular field.

So with that in mind, recently the parent company of my SEO agencies that I own, FIMA Digital, has started to exclusively work with personal injury firms, in particular the field of online lead generation. On the FIMA Digital website there's a lot more information about how this works.

We provide specialist solutions to them, and help generate millions of pounds of business into the industry each and every year.

This also involves aspects such as an affiliate program which you can read more about on our corporate website. That lets other suppliers jump on board with us and start monetizing their content to visitors which can then go into use the services of the UK solicitors and accident claims companies that we partner with.

4. What does a typical day involve in your offices?

Currently, it seems to involve a lot of phone calls from our clients. My role is really to be the main point of contact for the firms using our services, providing the specialist knowledge to them, whilst the employees of FIMA then action the strategies that I have helped to develop.

No one day is the same.

5. How it the world of online marketing changing, if at all?

Good question. I think that search engine optimization in particular is changing, and has undoubtedly become more difficult over the last two years. This has meant that a lot of the old agencies who didn't really understand it have started to drop off.

Consequently, there is a demand for more specialist support, which is how I view FIMA Digital and how our proposition fits with the aspirations of our clients.

6. One more question! Do you have any tips for aspiring online marketers and have any advice on what they could do?

I started out with SEO, building my own websites which I then ran through affiliate marketing channels. This is a great way to start if you want to dip your toes into the industry. I also think that it's very worthwhile now looking into paid search, because ultimately you don't want to have all your eggs in one basket as can often be the case when relying just on organic search traffic.

Thanks, Marc!

Meet Bob Wilson of Personal Injury Solicitors Bristol

Bob Wilson runs a website in the UK which helps people in the Bristol and Avon area to find a personal injury lawyer to help them with an accident claim. In the interview below, Bob tells us about how his firm of personal injury solicitors in Bristol serve the local area, and he gives us a little insight into the city of Bristol itself.

Learn more about Bob's site by checking out this YouTube video.

1. Can you tell me first how your Bristol personal injury lawyers are different than other legal teams in the area, and what differentiates you from the competition?

Well, first up, in the UK we call lawyers by the term solicitors instead. I know that might sound funny to US readers! Our website, Personal Injury Solicitors Bristol was launched last year and aims to give people in Bristol access to the legal system where they might have previously been barred from due to financial reasons. Readers can visit us by clicking here for our Accident Claimline website should they need more information.

Because we work on a no win no fee basis, it means anyone in Bristol can employ the services of personal injury solicitors without having to worry about incurring any upfront costs. This means that people who might have previously been worried about taking legal action on compensation claim can get the representation that they deserve.

2. What is Bristol like as a place to live and work in? I understand it's a very beautiful place with some amazing history.

Oh, it's fantastic. It truly is. At lunchtimes we like to take time out from the Personal Injury Bristol office and go down the water front on the Bristol Channel--there are some amazing cafes and restaurants down there which do some great food for hungry personal injury solicitors and lawyers!

There's a great vibe in the city; it's well known throughout the United Kingdom as a bit of a creative hub with lots of digital marketing agencies, creative agencies, artists, and writers. Currently the Bristol docks are undergoing a bit of a transformation which is where a lot of the creativity tends to take place.

In fact, the Personal Injury Solicitors Bristol team are thinking about permanently relocating our office space there so we can be more amongst what's happening in the city. Fingers all crossed that will happen in the next couple of months!

3. How does your business work, and how do you attract new customers who need to make a personal injury claim in the Bristol area?

We work purely on an inbound enquiry basis. That means we aren't like some personal injury solicitors who are like "ambulance chasers"--I'm sure you know what I mean by that. Instead, we let potential new clients come to us, whether via word of mouth or through our website.

Once they call our team of experts, we will assess their personal injury claim and see if we can help them with a compensation claim--in many cases we sometimes need to turn people away if the claim seems or appears to be frivolous. I think that's what helps set us apart a little more, as we are building a reputation as very good personal injury solicitors in Bristol and want to keep that reputation intact.

4. So what exactly does "no win no fee" mean in the personal injury industry?

OK, so it's very simple. A client will come to us with a personal injury claim, and we will take the case on without asking them to pay any fees upfront or in advance. Our personal injury solicitors will only be paid upon successful completion of a compensation pay out.

We find that this works very well for our clients in Bristol and means that they can get access to the legal system via a network of expert personal injury solicitors without taking any financial risk. We find that no win no fee works very well for many people in the city and have had some great results from running campaigns such as this.

5. Can you share any strange personal injury claims cases that your Bristol office has had to process since launching?

Unfortunately, we are tied into multiple forms of client confidentiality agreements, so I can't really comment on any particular cases individually. Needless to say, though, we do get some very strange and unusual cases coming through our telephone lines that you would not believe. I wish I could share some of them with you, but I'm afraid I can't do that. Perhaps one day I should write a book once I no longer work in the industry?

6. Finally, what are you plans for the Personal Injury Solicitors Bristol website for the immediate future?

I've recently tasked our social media and marketing team with creating some new videos to use on our website. I think that YouTube marketing is particularly important right now as so many people tend to use it as an alternative to Google when looking for advice on a wide variety of subjects.

In addition to that, we are looking to expand the website out to include new information on aspects such as medical and clinical negligence claims in Bristol--those pages are under development at the moment but should mean that we can serve even more clients in Bristol and offer a more value added service for all forms of accident claims advice.

Thanks, Bob!

Griffel Dorshow Johnson, A Minneapolis Law Firm Specializing in Personal Injury

I have to admit that I enjoy reading testimonials on a website. I think it's the storytelling aspect: I trust a company more when I read true stories from their happy clients. I even have written a testimonial or two in my day, which was my pleasure. All this to say that when I clicked onto the website for the Minneapolis law firm, Griffel Dorshow Johnson, I immediately clicked their testimonials link.

The firm shares several stories from clients. I was especially moved by the story of a young woman who was hit by a motorcycle at the age of 20. As she puts it, "One day I was walking down a small side street near my parents' home when I heard a loud roar... the next thing I remember is waking up in the ditch. The motorcycle had hit me and crashed..." The insurance company denied her claim, somehow interpreting the accident as partially her fault for walking on the wrong part of the road. With the help of Mr. Dorshow, she was able to receive coverage for her claim and financial help as she recovered from the accident.

When it comes to looking for a Minneapolis car accident lawyer, many people have been helped by Griffel Dorshow Johnson; click here for more information. These attorneys have diverse experience but have chosen to practice only personal injury law as a way of offering focused and specialized services.

And by the way, they have cleverly made their web address the same as their phone number, http://www.612law3333.com.