← Personal Injury Mastermind w/ Chris Dreyer
Personal Injury Mastermind w/ Chris Dreyer
351. Stop Coasting. Start Creating. It’s Never Too Late. w/ Manny Ibay
00:35:29
Find Your Spark of Reinvention, even after 28 years.
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- [00:00]
A
Hey there, future vip. I'm Kinsey, your on site concierge for Pemcon. The personal injury Master Rhyme Conference, October 5th through the 8th. When you go VIP at PEMCON, you're getting the full experience. Luxury accommodations included at the five star Phoenician resort. $250 in resort credit for the spa, golf course, or wherever your mood takes you. A private VIP dinner and exclusive access to the biggest names in personal injury. Grab your VIP tickets while you still can at Pemcon. That's p I m c o n.o r g. See you this fall in Scottsdale.
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B
Not everybody wants to be out on a billboard and on Sunset Boulevard, but that's something I always wanted to do.
- [00:46]
A
After 28 years and a successful practice, Mani eBay could have kept coasting. Comfortable in Beverly Hills. Steady caseload, no pressure.
- [00:54]
B
I didn't think that personal injury lawyers could be stars.
- [00:57]
A
Then everything changed.
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B
But then after seeing Mike Morris and Amanda Demanda, I'm going, hey, I could do that.
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A
In just one year, he's rolled out the superhero lawyer brand. He's on billboards, bus raps, he's writing books and launching a podcast. Showing up on social and making friends with the same lawyers he once thought as the untouchable stars. This is personal injury mastermind. I'm Chris Dreyer. Today's episode is proof that sometimes all you need is the right spark. Manny found his and it reignited his whole career. This is a candid conversation about how to fall back in love with your practice and execute on a bigger vision than yourself. Let's go, man. You've had a big year. Bus wraps, billboards, the brand rollout. You just gave me another update on a book series that you're writing. Let's start out with the wins. What's lighting you up right now?
- [01:44]
B
Well, I mean, I'm very excited about the superhero lawyer brand. You can kind of see in the back. You can't see my two superhero heroines in the back. They're probably a little bit better looking than me, so you probably should show that. And, you know, it's just the beginning. It's only been. They're only been up for six months. I mean, the conference we went to was September. Right. And that's where the whole thing, the genus of it all. I mean, I went to that conference kind of because, you know, I've been a lawyer for 28 years, and yeah, I'm doing okay. I'm doing fine. I could have just stayed in my Beverly Hills bubble and taking it Easy instead of, you know, go in and Maybe listen to SEOs and sitting in a hotel lobby. But then somebody said, hey, you know what? You probably need to do this. You need to do more stuff relating to the law because just kind of coasting. So I went to your seminar and it was nothing what I expected. I thought, I'll get a few hacks and maybe a few tricks of what I can do to my website or something like that. But really what I felt from your conference was the excitement and the star power. I mean, I didn't think that personal injury lawyers could be stars. But then after seeing Mike Morris and Amanda Demanda, that's really the highlight for me because I'm going, hey, I could do that. I think I'm a little cuter than Mike Morris. I think I can be up there. And I gotta. My personality is just as good and Amanda's great. So I thought, okay, you know, I gotta start thinking along those lines. And yeah, I went through the conference. It was good. Very entertaining. Lots of fun stuff.
- [03:20]
A
Quick pause here. Did you catch what Mati just said? He's been practicing law for 28 years, coasting, and then he comes to PIMCON, the personal injury Mastermind conference. And it lit the fire that launched his superhero lawyer. Brand billboards, bus wraps, even a book series. That spark started our event, the one based on this podcast. If you're listening to this before October 5th, there's still time. PIMCON 2025 is happening at the Phoenician in Scottsdale, Arizona, October 5th through 8th. If you've been thinking about how to stand out, how to create your version of the superhero lawyer, this is where it happens. Go to pimcon.org right now. That's pimcon.org, lock into your spot today. Don't coast. Come get your spark. All right, back to the show.
- [04:02]
B
On the plane ride back on the way, probably somewhere over Arizona, I thought, okay, I gotta at least start with a billboard. So I'm thinking about the billboard lawyers in LA and the two that stand out, of course, Karl Jacob and Sweet James. So I thought maybe I can kind of ride on how popular they are and, you know, create a billboard that is funny and kind of pokes fun at them. So I created this billboard called, you know, call Manny instead. He's sweeter. And I had it all designed. It was all laid out. I had a really good looking picture of me up there, and I already had the billboard company the perfect spot. I submitted it, paid the money two days before. It's supposed to go up. They said, hey, you know what? You got to take that line out about he's sweeter because he's like our biggest client. We don't want to take a chance. So, of course, I'm very discouraged because I said, there's no way I can do that billboard without that. That's the kicker, right? So I just kind of, you know, went back and was sitting around for a couple days, and I was kind of depressed because I'm like, I don't know what I'm going to do now. I thought it was. That was it. But then I was thinking about one of my heroes, Hugh Hefner. And I saw this documentary which was called Mr. Playboy. And in that episode, the first one, they talk about how he had his whole magazine laid out. They were a week away from printing the first magazine, but at the time, the name of the magazine was called Stag Party. And then he got a letter from a lawyer representing Stag magazine who gave a cease and desist. And he basically got scared. And he was like, oh, my God, what am I going to do? So then he and his friends, and I think it was Eldon Sellers, who was his mom, worked for a company called the Playboy car company in the 40s. They can't. They just said, playboy. And it clicked, and look where we are now. So I kind of thought, maybe this is my Playboy moment. And I just started thinking. And I got this review. I saw a review just randomly on Google, and it was one of my clients. I mean, obviously she wanted to say something nice. So she said, man, he got me a great settlement. He's my superhero lawyer. And I thought, hmm, that sounds interesting. I don't think anybody else is using that term. So I looked it up. I checked superhero lawyer dot com. I didn't see anything. So I reserved that domain. And then Halloween, I went out as my costume, kind of dressed up in a black suit, you know, and tie and a cape, a Superman cape. And it's like, people are like, hey, that's cool. So then I started playing with AI And I think it's funny, I started on it the day after the election because I was kind of like, I'm not watching the news, so I'm just going to focus on this. I spent the entire day learning how to do AI Then creating some kind of rough draft for what you see behind, and laid it out and came up with, you know what I came up with? And boom, I got a guy who really put the finishing touches on it. And I can honestly say that I probably have the most entertainingly memorable billboard in America for lawyers. That is. And thanks. That's your term, by the way, that I'm copying. It's from your personal injury book. Thank you. So I just thought I'd plug that in there because I see it, I read your book. So take it. It started like that.
- [07:16]
A
That's incredible. First I gotta applaud you. A lot of people go to conferences and they don't execute, right? They have these ideas and you know, I think ideas are diamond a dozen. You probably had a friend that said, hey, they had the Facebook idea or whatever, but it's the people that execute. So, you know, I'm, I'm seeing the superhero brand behind you. I've seen it on social media and, and so you went and executed. Let me ask you this, you know, taking a step back, why now? Why did you do this and why not in the past? Did you think it was. Did you not understand or think about the impact? I mean, you've seen Imran, his upside down billboards and Sweet James has their style of marketing. And you know, you saw them on the stage, but what was it about? It said, okay, now is the time.
- [07:56]
B
Well, when I see those billboards, probably just like everybody else, you know, you look at and go, okay, you know, that guy's marketing, he's doing what he's supposed to do. But you don't necessarily think that it's for you because you're not really feeling it. The Pimcon was really an experience because you're there and you're seeing, you know, regular guys. I'm sure they're wonderful, but you know, they're regular guys like me and you. And you know, they came up with an idea and Mike's story was great about how he had 70% of his business pulled out from under him. So he had to figure out, hey, I gotta figure out a way to survive. And that's kind of what he did as far as getting into the whole advertising thing. So for me, I was coasting. I mean, I've been doing fine. I mean, a very happy, comfortable life. But it wasn't like I was getting up every day like, oh my God, what am I going to create today? Or I need to make more money. I mean, it was kind of like it would be nice to make more money, but I wasn't there for that. I've been doing this for 28 years. I mean, maybe, hopefully it doesn't show on my face, but yeah, 28 years. I've been doing it look great, thanks. And then it's just you're there in the moment and the excitement, I mean, you just need the excitement. I think what really got to me, and it's probably my LA Hollywood thing, is when I saw those guys, I saw them as stars and I thought, I want to be a star like that. I think it's cool. Not everybody wants to be out on a billboard and on Sunset Boulevard. But, you know, it's something I always wanted to do. I mean, I watched Entourage and I know that whole the fame thing, it's nice, especially when you're in LA and I. And that's part of the excitement. I don't think it's going to be for everybody. I think some people will just be like, oh, yeah, that's not me. But maybe they'll get something else and maybe their marketing will be different, you know, But I just needed that spark. I, I really wasn't even thinking of anything.
- [09:46]
A
You know, the brand's courageous because it's different.
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B
Right.
- [09:49]
A
You know, it hasn't been too long ago since you could use trade names and, and people would, you know, take a different approach to marketing. A lot of times it was the lawyers in front of the library bookshelves, you know, like in the stuffy conference room. And yours is different. Like you're pushing the edge on social media as well with your, you know, your other staff, the women involved. Right. You know, so when did you start to realize, like, hey, like, you got this out here, you got some billboards and the wraps. Like, when did you start to notice, like, oh, this is having an impact? Like it's, it's starting to generate interest.
- [10:23]
B
I mean, it's really just starting now. I mean, it's. You don't put up a billboard and then the next day you get like this million dollar case. I mean, I'd say it's. They've been up for six months and the business that's come in, I would say is probably just enough to pay for them. I mean, it's not like it's going to happen overnight. There was another guy at your, at your conference. I don't remember his name right off hand, but he's from Omaha and I was sitting at his table. He was John Barry. John Barry. He was great. That guy's awesome. So he's, he's the other star that I remember seeing there. And he was sitting at the table with me at lunch and we were talking about the billboard things. He goes, don't plan on Doing billboards, unless you're thinking long term, that's like a five to seven year plan. Like you're not going to get it in six months. And I've actually had that confirmed. There's a guy here in la, his name is the Amigo and he's got, you know, a good number of billboards here. And fortunately because of this, he spotted me on Instagram and we got in touch and he actually took me out to lunch and it was very important to hear what he said. He's like, yeah, you know, now I've got maybe 50, 60 billboards out there. But you know, first two years you barely got any business out of it, but now it's just everybody knows them. And sometimes when I'm talking to people or somebody's asking me about my billboards, they, they go, oh yeah, you know, the only other billboard I remember is the Amigo. I'm like, oh great, that's my friend. And I got his. He's definitely out there. But for me it hasn't. It's not just necessarily the direct money of it all because, yeah, we're out there and hopefully we're going to get enough business to pay for the first year. So, yes, it might be a break even thing in the beginning, like John Barry said, but there's other effects to it. Like one, I mean, I got to meet that guy who, the amigo who found my billboard and then he got to tell me, like, I got to hear it straight from somebody who actually had to pay for billboards and wait for return. Another interesting story is that one of your prior guests who's like super big time, and he was going to be the keynote last year, but couldn't make it. Mike Alder, he found me on Instagram and we've become great friends. I mean, he's super nice. He actually, he. Well, we started talking and he invited me to go to Mastros and sit in his luxury box at Crypto to see a Laker game and we went to a Dodger game. So I mean, these are like things. And, and also I've gone to his seminars, which I never would have gone to because I, I was a little bit lazy about those kind of things. But then after seeing how great he is and how he knows about everything personal injury wise, I went to a seminar and yeah, I think I learned a couple things regarding Uber and Lyft cases, which I didn't know. And what's great about him is that he says, and it's not just me because we know Each other. He puts it out there to all of the people who go to his seminars. Hey, if you have a question on a case, feel free to text me. If I can. I will. And usually he responds really fast. So, I mean, I got to meet him from that. I thought I'd give Mike a plug here. Cause I know he's probably listening. I know he's been on some podcasts.
- [13:26]
A
That's great.
- [13:27]
B
But he's taught me a lot of things.
- [13:29]
A
Mike's an amazing guy. I've had several conversations with him. Expert, you know, litigator. Had Gene on as well. Let me ask you back to, like, the billboard stuff, because some people don't want to share these. And if you're open to it, I'll let you punt the question. We can even edit this out. It's like you're talking about, like, hey, it may not get the investment back in the first year. Like, what are we talking for per billboard? Like, what does an investment cost for billboards? Yeah.
- [13:53]
B
Okay, well, I mean, let's take the design cost and putting it together, that might just be like 2,000 to hire somebody if they're going to do it. But as far as the per month, I mean, there's two sizes that I'm using. There's the large size, the. The typical size, and then there's like a medium. The large one is 14 by 48. The one that I'm paying for on the 10 freeway and overland, that's 5250amonth. So. And you usually have to sign up for 12, 12 months. And then there's another one that's above this place called the vegan joint, which is half. This is 12 by 24, and that one is 3100ish. And then the buses, which I think are actually the best deal for the bang for your buck from the coolness standpoint, too, because you see them all over town. Those are only like a thousand each per month. So if I had to do more, I probably would do buses just for me. Because literally the bus drives past my office and I can see it from the window, which is so funny, especially when the girls in the office see it. I think at first they're like, I don't know about these billboards. But then when you see them out there and it's kind of cool, you know, they kind of warm up to the idea.
- [15:03]
A
Yeah, that's great. I've always wondered that. I know there's different options, like the Carver ties, like, has the car wraps, but, you know, I'D been in the office with a PI attorney and they're like calling the firm and saying, your driver's driving terrible.
- [15:19]
B
Blah, blah, blah.
- [15:21]
A
That's not my driver. That's the. You know, that's so and so. So I've seen the negative side of that. You know, I think they have. I think Carver High is a great company, though. I think they've got, you know, the, the different technology for foot traffic and things like that. So I really appreciate you sharing the numbers too, because it's interesting to get that aspect. And I guess another question on the billboards is, you know, you could have taken the remnant approach and probably went the cheaper route. They probably even painted the picture of the, you know, more impressions for the Remnant. Is there a reason, like, what was your thought process going behind this selection of hey, I want these. Static, I live here. I know this. Like, I want these versus maybe the remnant for, you know, I'm putting air quotes around more impressions, but maybe less. Less cost.
- [16:08]
B
Part of this whole billboard thing is it's fun to see that it's kind of an ego thing. I mean, I've purposely made them right around my office and my house. So it's nice to hear your neighbors talk about it. It's nice to hear the guys at the gym. It's like, oh, there's the superhero lawyer. I mean, I have a billboard on Sunset Boulevard which is a good 15 minutes from my place, and I'm sure it's great over there. But the fact that I don't see it every day or I don't feel the vibe from people, I mean, there's some value to that because there just is. I mean, you just have this different kind of energy when you're walking around and like, everybody has seen you. So I think that's part of it. It's also, I've also put those billboards very close by to the two gals. I should say hello to those guys, Aiko and Victoria. Aiko's the blonde. Victoria is the brownish haired brunette. Although her hair has changed at least four times since then. So I don't know how she's going to look if we go to pimcon.
- [17:11]
A
Most agencies sell promises. Rankings delivers proof. We've taken firms from invisible to number one in the toughest PI markets while others are still scrambling to figure out ChatGPT. We're already optimizing for AI search. So your firm is the answer the clients see first. Don't wait while your competitors eat your lunch. Visit Rankings IO and start dominating Search today. You know, first of all, I appreciate the candor and the transparency. I don't think many people would say that, but there's something to it. And like, look, me being vulnerable and transparent, part of the reason why I opened a legal marketing company was because I wanted to tell my friends and family that I was helping attorneys grow their practice. Right. And not just any business. So I was the same way. I think if people are being honest, there's the status and the ego and things that come involved, I think that's okay. You know, kind of continuing on this. The wraps, we talked about the bus wraps, and now you got the podcast. So talk to me about your strategy on the podcast. And then I also. We got to talk about the book, too.
- [18:07]
B
Well, as far as the podcast, that's actually getting finalized now. So after putting up the billboards and the buses, you know, and doing some crazy, sometimes fun, sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. On Instagram reels, I thought, you know what? I'm gonna. I should probably do some kind of YouTube channel. You know, I think I learned from either your book or hearing it directly from Mike Morse that He does a YouTube channel where he just basically walks around and reviews pizza places. And then you had the other guys on your show who, the three lawyers who were talking about sandwiches. Well, I didn't think I'd want to talk about something to eat. At first I was going to do mani. EBay's reviewing all of the hot happy hours in Beverly hills. But after three, four episodes, I'm sure people would get sick of it. So I thought I going to do something different. I thought instead of talking about food, I would talk about life, improving life. Because I've written a book in the past called thank you Tony Robbins, which is personal development book. And I had this other book that was sitting around for like the last three years that I actually started in Paris called becoming your most attractive self. But I just. Things happen. You just don't get to it. But then after this brand came out, I thought, wow, this is the time to finish that book. So I finished it really fast. It's already on Amazon if anybody wants to check it out. And then from that book, that wasn't the end. I mean, it's interesting. I don't know if this is common, prevalent thing for authors to do, but I just had this idea, hey, you know, maybe I should download my manuscript on ChatGPT and hear what ChatGPT had to say as far as a review. And I did that. And then I Got a little crazy and I started asking for Joe Rogan's and Oprah's and Good Morning America and Barack Obama. So, you know, you could do so much. And it's interesting. It's interesting not just to get kind of patted on the back about how good the book is, but they give you a lot of ideas. This is the best thing I found about AI is that you ask for a question like that. And the thing that they came back with is they said, hey, you know that chapter 13 title that should be on a hoodie? That should be your next book. And the Chapter 13 title is called Discipline is the New Sexy. And I was thinking, well, you're right, that could be like. And they said it could be an Equinox next slogan in case Equinox is out there and wants to buy that trademark from me. But so 20 chapters later, I got the second book from just from the AI reviews. I didn't even think about it. So I did that one. And then after that was done, I thought, hey, you know, everything, everything great in this life, like Star wars, they've got a trilogy. So I was trying to come up with a third book and I was thinking, what comes after that? And then I thought, I really can't think of anything after because I've already written up to today. So I thought, you know what, I need some kind of prequel. And I thought, I've always had this dream after seeing Back to the Future that my current self would time travel back to my 15 year old loser self in high school and give them all these tips. And now it's like I have all the tips from the first two books. So I pretty much wrote a book called what I'd whisper my 15 year old self using the information on the first two books. And I think it's actually going to be the best one of all. Just because I'm so passionate about it. I, I mean the people in my office, Madison, Gabby, Rafaela, those girls always have to hear about my loser high school stories. And I thought, this is my chance to fix it. This would be my rescue mission to that 15 year old Manny. So I wrote that book as well. And I'm going to have a whole bunch of material for the podcast. I just been so busy writing, haven't been filming, but really all of it stemmed from the creativity boost that I got from your seminar. I mean, I don't think that's going to happen to everybody, but before then, seriously, I just dissettled personal injury cases in the day 4:35 o', clock, I'd be at stake 48, having drinks. That's my typical day before. Not that I don't do that now, but now I'm, I've got all this creativity that just came out in the last nine months. So I wanted to thank you for that by the way.
- [22:23]
A
You know, like I said, I. The ideas and everything, it's you that are ex. That's, that's executing and it's exciting to hear that you've got this, you know, this revitalization, all this creativity happening. And you know, I think not only the chat GPT, but it's like, now I've got ideas. Right, so the other day for you, I was looking at distribution. The first of the top five most visited websites in the United States, number one's Google, number two is YouTube, number three is Reddit. Now surprisingly so, let's just say the top three are Google because that's the reason Reddit's number three. And then you got Facebook number four and you got Amazon number five. Well, what's interesting is Google Ads has an ad platform. Meta, of course does. So does Reddit. And it's like, well, how do attorneys, it's the fifth most visited site in the United States, but how do they get visibility? How do they. And I was just thinking about this. I'm like, well, attorney writes a book, right? You're now on the channel. You can do Amazon ads behind it. You can at least, you know, depending upon how you're going to use it from a strategy perspective. So I think that's unique. I don't think very many people do it and I applaud you for it. So I think it's, I think that's awesome.
- [23:33]
B
I wasn't even thinking about that, Bart. But that's a good idea.
- [23:36]
A
Yeah, I think, you know, there's just so many things that you can do with it. You know, hand it to a potential prospect. You know, it lets them understand you and you know, develop that trust, that rapport. The other thing, I gotta just ask, you know, with the superhero brand, I mean it's probably natural for you to continue to lean into that. Have you thought about doing a comic book? Maybe you settle a case with a parent and then they have a child and then you're like, here's the comic book. Have you thought about maybe leaning more into the direction of the superhero side?
- [24:09]
B
You know, that's interesting because we were thinking about doing some kind of comic book style coffee table book, just as a handout. When people came in here. I mean, now, the current book that I have, which you should be getting in the next few days, it has a picture of the billboard in the back of the book. So it's nice to hand out. And yes, it isn't on the topic of anything legal, but people will be like, hey, my lawyer who just settled my case, he's also an author. Anything like that adds to you and differentiates you from everybody else. That's a plus. I mean, also, there's so much to talk about. You know, we can. We don't have to be talking about the legal stuff all the time.
- [24:48]
A
Yeah. And I think also the. The legal a lot of times has this negative connotation, and it. But, you know, on the flip side, you tell people you're an author, it's.
- [24:56]
B
Like, oh, well, I mean, I got to tell you, being a lawyer, the superhero lawyer on billboards and then having three books out, I got so much to talk about sitting at the bar, and I'm just like, the most attractive person there. I mean, what's the way? It's. I mean, that's just what I've been working toward. So I feel good that I finally got to put it out there and express it such that I have a lot to say about everything. And it's. And it's interesting to people.
- [25:23]
A
It is interesting because it's so different. And by the nature of being different, you automatically stand out. Right. It's like everybody else is doing this. It's a two or one lawyer on the billboard. Most of the time it's blue because the PI. That's the color in the space. And then it's like most of them just say, you know, injury question mark or accident attorneys. And it's like, oh, wait, it kind of catches your eye. And even the. You know, the kids, even in the car may say, hey, look at this, and bring the attention to the driver, too.
- [25:53]
B
But I would say if I had to think of one thing that I got from your seminar, which you really can't put in terms of dollars. And it's not that I came up with the brand or the books. The feeling that I have now as far as how I feel about work, like, I'm very excited about it. I could never say before your seminar that, hey, I mean, I just love this whole being a lawyer thing. Like, yes, I have an easy setup. I have my own office. I like the people that are working here. Everything's great. But I never had that kind of Steve Jobs, freakishly interested in every detail of the product or creating it, but. But I have that now. I mean, it's funny because there's this picture. One of my favorite pictures is of Steve Jobs holding his Macintosh. And they've got a really nice one at the Hotel Bel Air Bar. And as soon as I got my billboard up, I framed it. And I was sitting in a similar position with the frame thing on my lap, thinking, hey, I created this. I know it's not like the Macintosh, but I felt that creation. And now, of course, with the book. So, you know, it's that excitement about what you're doing which was missing from my life. I mean, one of my friends who's a dj, I always thought, wow, that person is so excited all the time about, like, one working, talking about it. So I thought, nah, you know what? I'm missing that. But, hey, I'm a lawyer, so maybe I'm never going to have that. But it turned out I just needed that spark. And then now I'm super excited about it. I mean, you don't want to sit next to me at a bar and have to listen to me talk about all this stuff. It gets a little out of hand, especially with, like, three gin martinis.
- [27:37]
A
You know, the. Today with these LLMs, the ChatGPT you mentioned or Claude or what have you, too. It's like a lot of people are trying to get these Wikipedia listings, and Wikipedia is like, well, you gotta be a person that's notable or have something that's noteworthy. Well, you do. Like, you have. You know, so you have all these different things that you've designed and brought into this world. And then now I just imagine that. And then when people, you know, the news potentially talk about a billboard or this or that, it's just going to set you up for even access to something like that where maybe previously it would have been more challenging to get listed.
- [28:14]
B
Okay, so that's another thing I learned from you, Chris. I didn't even think about the Wikipedia thing. I never even looked at that before. But now that you mentioned it, I'm going to be looking at it as soon as we're off this call.
- [28:23]
A
Yeah. And. Cause it's tough. It's tough. And like, not a ton of people have listings on there. And so, you know, you automatically stand out, too. This just. It's less saturated. Cause it's harder to get a listing.
- [28:33]
B
Yeah.
- [28:33]
A
You know, I think it's fun to think about this. And I imagine since you're in this creator mode, let's just talk about this. Let's just say if budget were like no issue and you're just like, oh, this is what I want to do. You know, is it tv, is it radio? Like what's kind of like the gist? Oh, this crazy idea that I would execute on and then we'll have to follow up with you to see, you know, down the road once you've executed it.
- [28:57]
B
Well, we thought about doing some kind of animation with the superhero lawyer character and of course his two sidekicks. We just haven't even got there. It's so new. I mean, we just put the first billboard up in January and I'm just, I'm not even even up to the podcast yet. It's like I did that and then, then the books and you know, of course still doing the legal practice because as I say on my reels, I don't know if this is 100% true, but I say, or the people who are doing my podcast, it's like, here, call superhero lawyer. He's the only lawyer from a billboard you're going to actually speak to. Like, I actually still talk to all the new clients and I try to stay in touch with everybody. The only ones I don't stay in touch with 100% are the Spanish speaking onlys. Other than that I'm talking to everybody. I'm settling their case. I'm the one there, the first in the beginning. So I still do that too. So that is true what you hear out there.
- [29:50]
A
And that's different. I, you know, because it's high touch. Most people aren't used to that and you have this celebrity factor if they did see you on the billboard. So it makes them excited to work with you. It's going to lend itself to maybe referrals or reviews more easily than, you know, if you don't have that personal experience where it's kind of like, I don't want to say the bait and switch because you know, large companies have know, maybe a person to, you know, that just does this, the case manager perspective or just does that. But. But yeah, I think that's an awesome tertiary benefit too.
- [30:21]
B
One thing that I did think about, which I actually was going to throw this out there to you, is that I don't know how great this brand is going to be. It seems like it's good so far, but the one thing I thought would be great would be if I could find someone to help me make this brand national. And by national, I don't mean that I'm throughout around the country. What I wanted to do is at least if we're talking about big plans is I'd want to sell the superhero lawyer concept to, like, Superhero Lawyer Atlanta, Superhero Lawyer Philadelphia. And what this person's going to get is for somebody who's just sitting around their office and says, I don't know what to do about marketing. Well, this is what I can sell them. You're going to be on a billboard like this with those two beautiful superhero girls, and then your face is going to be in there, and you're going to be all over your city. And, hey, it can only help your business, most likely if you're. If you're not doing anything. So that's kind of an idea to franchise it, if that ever happens.
- [31:22]
A
I think that they're. You know, I would say the Law Tigers people, the. The Cochrane firm, Top Dog Top James would be another person to talk to. I think those would all be great people to talk to. Dave Thomas over at Law Tigers. So I think there's something to that. I think the. Yeah. If people don't have a brand, there's a reason why there's multiple hammers.
- [31:45]
B
Right?
- [31:46]
A
Right. There's a reason why multiple people use the one call. That's all. It's because it works. Also the same for Salino and the repeater numbers and things like that, where he kind of pioneered the 888 and the jingles. So I don't think there's anything wrong with that. You hear Sam Walton, you know, used to copy, you know, the. The things that Kroger did and would implement them because they worked.
- [32:09]
B
Right.
- [32:10]
A
So I think there could be something to that.
- [32:12]
B
See, the. The way that I'm gonna be, it's. I'm not just selling, like, the Top Dog brand. Like, that's great. And he's doing wonderfully, and he actually gave me the idea for this, and I thought, I'm not just selling them the name. I'm selling them the opportunity to be a superhero. So all of those lawyers there with these secret childhood fantasies of putting on the cape, they can easily do it. So Superhero Lawyer Atlanta or Philadelphia, I'm sure you'll have my number after this. Anybody who wants to be on a billboard, we can do it.
- [32:40]
A
Amazing.
- [32:40]
B
Amazing. Think it'll be exciting.
- [32:42]
A
Love it. Love the idea. Manny, this has been a lot of fun. You know, one final question for our audience that is listening, that has more questions related to what we talked about or wants to be the next Superhero Atlanta. How can they get in touch with you?
- [32:56]
B
Well, they can call me directly on my cell phone at 310-903-0077 and I give that out because, you know, Mike Alder, he's super busy and famous, but he lets people text him and it's been a great contact. So I think that anybody wants to text me with any kind of questions, they can do that as well.
- [33:16]
A
Amazing. Manny, thanks for coming on the show.
- [33:18]
B
Well, thank you. It's been great. I'm going to see you in Arizona.
- [33:23]
A
Let's do it. Manny's story shows what can happen when you stop coasting and go all in after nearly three decades of practice. One spark at pimcon set him off, and now he's on billboards, writing books and building a brand that stands out in LA's most competitive market. If you're ready for your spark, join us at PIMCON 2025, October 5th through 8th at the Phoenician in Scottsdale, Arizona. Don't wait around until next year. Go to pimcon.org and lock in your spot. That's it for today's episode of Personal Injury Mastermind. I'm Chris Dreyer. See you next time.