What Can You Say in 128 Characters?

Mark Twain once wrote a letter to a friend and apologized for its length, saying, “I’m sorry to write you such a long letter, but I didn’t have time to write a short one.”

Short is better. And pithy, concise writing does take a little more work. Yet, while there are few Mark Twains among us, almost anyone, with some care and a modest amount of effort, can deliver a clear, effective message in a very limited space, such as a law firm’s Internet banner ad.

A FindLaw TopSpot, for example, provides room for a law firm’s name, city, phone number and 128 characters of text.¹ What can you say in only 128 characters? More than you might think. “Brevity is the soul of wit,”² to choose one famous phrase, has only 29 characters, including the comma and quotation marks.

Even a brief message in a banner ad can help differentiate one law firm from another whose ad offers only a name and a phone number. A well-crafted message can capture a Web site visitor’s attention and provide an incentive for that person to click into a Web site and learn more about a law firm.

The following “Eight Simple Rules” offer ideas that can help your firm can receive the maximum value from its online advertising, and deliver a strong, effective message to prospective clients. 

Eight Simple Rules for Saying More with Less

1. Use specific, descriptive words. Have you ever heard someone say, “I was hit by a motor vehicle”? Unlikely. If your practice focuses on traffic accidents, try something like this: “Helping victims of car, truck and motorcycle accidents since 1989.” (66 characters with spaces)

2. Make it personal. Serious legal problems are rarely “just business.” They’re personal. A straightforward, direct appeal to someone’s personal situation can be powerful. Take this example: “Representing victims of mesothelioma and their loved ones.” Without being overly emotional, this simple message strikes a personal chord with a person who may be facing a life-threatening illness. 

3. Include a “call to action.” “Call to action” is an advertising term that means just what it says. A call to action asks the reader to do something: “Protect your rights.” “Visit our office.” “Call us today.”

4. Target your audience. Is there a specific group of clients you want to reach? Then speak to that group directly. For example, “Successfully representing railroad workers for more than 30 years,” or, “We can help you craft a fair and effective pre-nuptial agreement.”

5. Don’t overcapitalize. Sometimes you see capital letters dropped in for emphasis anywhere and everywhere. This works occasionally, but more often than not, it’s simply confusing. Too many capital letters make it hard to see where one sentence ends and another begins. A good rule of thumb is to capitalize only your practice areas e.g., Wills, Real Estate, Personal Injury. Remember, if everything is emphasized, then nothing is emphasized. 

6. Dig out “buried” verbs. Instead of “Offering representation to clients in Nashville,” say “We represent clients in Nashville.” Instead of “Helping find solutions to problems,” say “Solving problems.”

7. Be brief, but not cryptic. In order for people to read your message at a glance, it needs to be immediately intelligible. Don’t abbreviate or use legal jargon unless you are certain that your potential clients will readily understand what you’re saying. 

8. Include a law firm slogan or tagline. Are you trying to build “brand” recognition for your law firm? If so, a banner ad is a good place to present your firm’s slogan or tagline: “This is all we do and we do it well,” “Defending the defenseless,” or, “Know your rights.” 

To get the most out of your online advertising, contact your FindLaw Account Manager or your local FindLaw Client Development Consultant. They can help you put these “Eight Simple Rules” to work for your law firm.

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¹The character count refers to the total number of characters including spaces. That means that a space between words, as well as any punctuation marks, count as much as a letter in a word. If you use the Word Count function in Microsoft Word (under the Tools menu), it will tell you exactly how many words, characters, and characters with spaces there are in any selected block of text. 

²Hamlet, II ii