11/11/2025
Why You Should Market Yourself as a Lawyer (The KLT Principle Explained)
Welcome to this new series on how to acquire new clients as a professional, especially if you’re a lawyer.
In our previous video, we discussed how to create a simple cover photo for your law firm’s page. All these lessons are part of one big goal — learning how to market your legal profession effectively.
Today, we’ll be diving deeper into why you should market yourself or your law firm — ethically and professionally.
The Secret to Getting Clients: The KLT Formula
One powerful lesson I learned early in my digital marketing journey is something called KLT.
Before any transaction can take place — whether you’re selling a product or a service — KLT must be complete.
So, what exactly is KLT?
K = Know: People must know you. They need to know who you are, what you do, and that you exist.
L = Like: They must like you — your personality, your style, or your professional presence.
T = Trust: Finally, they must trust you — believe that you can deliver results.
Only when these three — Know, Like, and Trust — are complete can someone confidently do business with you.
How KLT Applies to Lawyers
As a lawyer, you’re not selling a physical product — you’re selling your services.
For someone to hire or consult you, they must first know you. Then they need to like you. Finally, they have to trust you enough to believe you can handle their case professionally.
These three things — Know, Like, and Trust — must all be in place before you can truly call someone your client.
Why You Should Market Yourself as a Lawyer
Let’s take a simple analogy to explain this better.
Imagine a set of concentric circles, with you at the center. Each circle represents a group of people and how much they know about you.
1. The Inner Circle — Your Family
Your family members know everything about you — your birthday, your background, your life story. They completely know and trust you. Referring you to a client or helping you get a job is not a problem for them because they already believe in you.
2. The Second Circle — Your Schoolmates and Friends
These are your classmates or old friends who know a lot about you but not as much as your family does. They know your town, your village, maybe even your parents.
They can still recommend you or refer clients to you because they know enough to trust your competence.
3. The Third Circle — Your Neighbors and Social Media Connections
This group includes people who see you around — your neighbors, people in your street, or followers on Facebook.
They might know what you look like or recognize your face, but they don’t know much about what you do. Some might not even know that you’re a barrister.
4. The Outer Circle — The General Public
This circle represents people who don’t know you at all — the wider society, the country, or even the world. These people have no idea you exist, so there’s no trust or relationship yet.
The Key Insight: People Who Know You Are More Likely to Hire You
From this simple model, one truth becomes clear:
The more people know you, the more likely they are to hire or refer you.
As a professional, your goal should be to increase the number of people who know you and know what you do.
Now, this doesn’t mean you should advertise yourself unethically or directly solicit clients (which goes against legal ethics).
Instead, it means you should market yourself professionally — build visibility, credibility, and trust.
Who You Know vs. Who Knows You
Here’s something important to note:
The people you know don’t matter as much as the people who know you.
Think about it — everyone knows celebrities like Davido or Tinubu. You know them, but do they know you? No.
So, when it comes to marketing, your focus shouldn’t be on how many people you know, but on how many people know you.
That’s what marketing yourself as a lawyer is all about — increasing awareness so that more people know you, like you, and trust you.
