Some honest talk about the web, marketing and mediation services

There is a great deal of interest in mediation circles about having web sites and about establishing an internet "presence."

I surveyed some of the people who use the most heavily promoted listing service for mediators on the internet.  Here is what they had to say about what level of response their listings provided them (I've quoted from their e-mails back to me in the order I've received them):

• None-Did get several inquiries, but no business.
• So far, I guess that none. All my e-mails have been received from people having the e-mail address by other means. Any how, I think that patience must pay.
• I haven't put a counter on the page as of yet.
  That's a refreshing question...not many!
• ZERO!.....
• It has only been live for about a week. Ask me again in a while and I will let you know.
• I don't know which listing you mean. I pay for one, but have several others which were offered for free. I do get inquiries from "the internet"- unclear which site- also people say they saw me listed. I have done one or two mediations as a result of an on-line listing. (This mediator is in New York City).
• Aha! THAT listing. To date yours is the first response from the listing. As I recall, I was able to get it for free or a nominal fee as an introductory offer, so I figured it wouldn't hurt. I don't do any other marketing on-line for mediation but I wonder how effective that can be anyway. I get mediations by referral and think that's the best way to get them.
• So far, I haven't had any. I don't know what there is to do improve the situation or how other listers have fared. Will let you know if there is a change.
• Generically, I can say that I get little response at this point. There are reasons. Online presence is most effective, I think, when one is offering a service to a wide (national) geographic area and to a market that tends to use the net to look for service providers. My presence, such as it is now, is for more local mediation applications.
• Simply the listing or the website or both? So far, zero.
• Several from other mediators. None from potential clients that I know of.
• The ... listing started at the end of July at the AFM meeting and I have received, what's the word, "hits". -0- Time will tell. Be glad to share onfo with you.
• I have had several responses from ... although only 1 paying client from about 15 enquiries of all sorts.  
• It depends. Our listing is still young. We've had a lot of hits; obviously not so many inquiries. So far, we have a positive ROI.
• We have had no responses to the online listing to date.
• None so far.

From the sites I've seen that had believable counters displayed, the average number of hits is pretty low. (I ran across a non-content site that claimed 32,000 hits or so a month on the hit counter -- which wasn't showing any substantial movement week to week ...)

My site generates a fair number of hits (over four thousand the week I wrote this caveat). The offices at Union Square have had an internet listing for about a year.  Two out of the four attorneys here have gotten cases as a result (one each).

For me, the site is worthwhile.  I'm a writer and this site allows me to put up works I've published and to make them readily available.  (e.g. one of the articles I've written resulted my being asked for over a hundred copies of it.  Since I've posted it on the Internet, it gets downloaded about a hundred times a week or so and I no longer get asked to make photocopies).  I also find this an interesting learning experience.

I'm also hoping to find other writers and to encourage people to write essays that I can post here or that can be published by mediation oriented journals (such as Mediation Monthly).  I'm hoping to establish a sense of community.  I'm hoping to make an internet experience and experiment affordable and more in line with the level of results that people can expect to receive.

In terms of time, effort and cost, I have serious reservations about the utility of the internet as it stands right now -- especially for those spending more than twenty or thirty dollars a year (e.g. two to nine hundred dollars a month) on a site. Thus this caveat.

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This Website is by Stephen R. Marsh
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