Articles Posted in Expert Witness Marketing

In When the Phone Rings … Twelve Questions for Prospective Expert Witness Assignments, insurance expert witness Kevin M. Quinley, CPCU, ARM, AIC, writes:

In When the Phone Rings … Twelve Questions for Prospective Expert Witness Assignments, insurance expert witness Kevin M. Quinley, CPCU, ARM, AIC writes:

Consultants and expert witnesses are more used to answering questions than asking them. When the phone rings, there may be an attorney or prospective client on the other end of the line. He or she poses questions to the consultant or expert, trying to gauge whether there is a good “fit” between the client’s needs and what the practitioner can offer in the way of experience and expertise.

After answering prospective clients’ questions, effective consultants and expert witnesses may have some queries of their own. In fact, they should. Here are 12 questions that can form the basis of an effective fact-gathering process which unearths aspects of a case to help the consultant and expert witness gauge the degree of fit.

In When the Phone Rings … Twelve Questions for Prospective Expert Witness Assignments, insurance claims expert witness Kevin M. Quinley, CPCU, ARM, AIC writes:

Consultants and expert witnesses are more used to answering questions than asking them. When the phone rings, there may be an attorney or prospective client on the other end of the line. He or she poses questions to the consultant or expert, trying to gauge whether there is a good “fit” between the client’s needs and what the practitioner can offer in the way of experience and expertise. After answering prospective clients’ questions, effective consultants and expert witnesses may have some queries of their own. In fact, they should. Here are 12 questions that can form the basis of an effective fact-gathering process which unearths aspects of a case to help the consultant and expert witness gauge the degree of fit:

(3) Who is the opposing party? (Any conflict?) You can avoid wasting time if you find out up front that you have a conflict, or clear the decks for a possible retention by confirming that you don’t. As an example, I was recently approached about the possibility of serving as an expert witness concerning an insurance coverage dispute. The dispute was between a large medical device manufacturer and one of its excess insurers. I have never represented the medical company, but I do own shares of its stock. I disclosed this quickly to the inquiring attorneys. Neither they (nor I) feel it is a conflict, but I would rather have them make that call early on.

In When the Phone Rings … Twelve Questions for Prospective Expert Witness Assignments, insurance claims expert witness Kevin M. Quinley, CPCU, ARM, AIC writes:

Consultants and expert witnesses are more used to answering questions than asking them. When the phone rings, there may be an attorney or prospective client on the other end of the line. He or she poses questions to the consultant or expert, trying to gauge whether there is a good “fit” between the client’s needs and what the practitioner can offer in the way of experience and expertise. After answering prospective clients’ questions, effective consultants and expert witnesses may have some queries of their own. In fact, they should. Here are 12 questions that can form the basis of an effective fact-gathering process which unearths aspects of a case to help the consultant and expert witness gauge the degree of fit:

(2) Do you represent the plaintiff or the defendant? This can be useful to know if you are trying to “balance” your practice and representation between plaintiffs and defendants. If you can strike a balance, you better the odds against opposing counsel painting you as a biased gun for hire. For example, thus far my insurance claim practice in litigation support has been split almost evenly down the middle – half for policyholders and half for insurers. If you have a preference and comfort level in representing one particular side in your area of expertise, this question brings that factor to the surface, inviting you to weigh it when deciding whether the case is a good fit with your interests and expertise.

In When the Phone Rings … Twelve Questions for Prospective Expert Witness Assignments, insurance claims expert witness Kevin M. Quinley, CPCU, ARM, AIC writes:

Consultants and expert witnesses are more used to answering questions than asking them. When the phone rings, there may be an attorney or prospective client on the other end of the line. He or she poses questions to the consultant or expert, trying to gauge whether there is a good “fit” between the client’s needs and what the practitioner can offer in the way of experience and expertise. After answering prospective clients’ questions, effective consultants and expert witnesses may have some queries of their own. In fact, they should. Here are 12 questions that can form the basis of an effective fact-gathering process which unearths aspects of a case to help the consultant and expert witness gauge the degree of fit:

(1) What does the case involve? This is a threshold question to assess whether the subject matter of the case falls within your area of expertise. If you are a nephrologist and the issue involves hematology, this is a tip-off that the caller may need a different expert. If you are an authority on agent errors and omissions but the case involves an underwriting mistake, it may not lodge in your “sweet spot.” Best for you to know this before investing time burrowing down fruitless rabbit trails. Or maybe the answer will confirm that the matter is well within your wheelhouse.

In Successfully Locating A Business, zoning and land use expert witness John J. Wallace writes on a retailer’s biggest challenge:

Spend time in the center, to take note of who is there during the day, in the evening and on the weekends. Pay attention to the clothes shoppers wear and to the cars they drive. Also read over the shopping center’s own surveys and studies. The sum of these impressions and data gathered should give you a reasonable idea of the trade area and the true shopper demographics.

In analyzing its trade area, shipping center managers often commission surveys. The typical result is a demographic profile indicating, for example, that the “average shopper” is a 44-year-old woman who lives within five miles of the center…and so on. Such a study may be of limited help in selecting a retail site. A more detailed view of a trade area reflects an understanding of lifestyles and how these change over time.

Trademark expert witness William D. Neal is Senior Executive Officer at SDR Consulting and in Modeling Brand Equity, he writes on branding:

Consumers may also see a particular brand name as a contract. A brand’s name may reduce consumers’ sense of uncertainty, allowing them to purchase uncertainty reduction, or trust, thus improving their sense of value.

Promotion of a brand can address either price, tangible brand attributes or intrinsic brand attributes (equities). Brand equity is communicated using consistent visual cues and consistent messages, allowing the consumer to quickly and efficiently distinguish between brands and their intrinsic product attributes. As a purchaser considers the tangible product features in concert with brand equity (and price), they arrive at a set of products in a category which they will consider for purchase (i.e. their consideration set). Thus, a brand’s equity is somewhat dependent on effective communications to the target market(s) and brand equity can often be improved to some extent with improved effectiveness of communications. However, communications alone cannot overcome a reputation for poor product quality, social irresponsibility, a lack of trust, and so on.

Insurance expert witness Jim Leatzow has been educating and insuring professionals about the risks to their businesses for twenty years. At Leatzow.com, he offers a glossary of jargon associated with risk management. Two of the terms defined are:

Claims-Made Insurance A policy written to cover claims “made” or brought during the present policy in effect, regardless as to when the “event” occurred, but subject to several terms including the “coverage period”. The coverage period begins with a Retroactive Coverage Date and continues to the latest Effective Date. If work was performed under a prior policy and those dates have been accepted by the replacement policy through the Retro Date, then the successor policy accepts the former work risk and exposure. Claims brought outside of that time period are generally excluded and denied. Prior policies that have been replaced will also deny coverage as coverage only applies to the policy in force at the time the “claim is made”.

Grace Period Extra time given to renew a life or health insurance policy. Grace periods DO NOT APPLY to property and casualty insurance.

In The Attitude “Alarm Clock” wrongful termination expert witness Charles Conine writes on hiring and motivating employees.

It’s all about mental attitude… When hiring, promoting, training and yes, even disciplining, watch the candidate or employee’s attitude. Some, as we all know, are timid about showing they care; with encouragement, however, they blossom. Others are natural leaders and will pick up every job you throw their way, do it, then ask for the next assignment. Others seem wooden, disinterested, unfocused; this group, needless to say, may not be your best new hires. You’re reaching them too late…

All great performers possess an attitude “alarm clock”. They know when it’s time to add effort and when to let others take the lead… Can we teach employees to possess an attitude “alarm clock?” The subject of much debate, this is. What is very clear, however, is that great attitudes are catchy, and where one resides, others will follow.

In How to Create a Marketing Strategy, marketing expert witness Steven Londre gives sound advice:

In creating a marketing strategy, divide markets into meaningful customer groups (market segmentation), choose which customer groups to serve (target marketing), and create marketing offers that best serve targeted customers (positioning)…

Here’s a recommendation: Make your marketing, advertising and promotion different than your competitors. Be unique with your product mix. Successfully position your product by looking at product attributes, benefits, quality/price, high tech and high touch. And remember your target customer. Customer service is far more important than most marketing consultants give it credit. Company and brand positioning should be summed up in a positioning statement. The statement should follow this form: To (target market and need) our (brand or store or service) is (concept) that (point of difference).