Debt: The Silent Killer

[sakky]

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This analogy really doesn’t merit a response,

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<p>Yet you responded anyway? </p>

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They’re likely to file complaints and, as I said, the bar isn’t going to look favorably on your advertising practices when they see them. At the very least, clients are not going to refer anyone to you or retain you ever again, which will hurt your business.

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<p>Well, those law firms that have been advertising their Harvard credentials seem to have been doing it for awhile now. I don’t see any signs that they’re going to stop (or go out of business). </p>

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But the point is to loudly advertise the Harvard connection. It shouldn’t be hard to find these firms, but you couldn’t find any that were using it really disingenuously.

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<p>Wait, so you expect law firms to publicly state that they are using advertising disingenuously? So basically you want me to find some ridiculously stupid law firms, but who also happen to have Harvard attorneys on staff. </p>

<p>I think the number of such firms is probably zero. I think anybody with half of a brain is not going to be stupid enough to publicly announce in a traceable manner that they specifically plan to use marketing in a devious manner. They’re just going to do it quietly. </p>

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Which is exactly why they don’t want to waste their time and money hiring you, just to have you leave. It makes absolutely no sense to think that someone who makes more demands and is more likely to leave will get the job over someone who will work their butt off to stay employed.

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<p>Really? See below. </p>

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It’s not low for a small firm.

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<p>Uh, just a receptionist probably costs $30-40k a year. Yet plenty of small firms hire receptionists. And many receptionists leave after only a short stint; it’s well known that that’s a temporary job for many people. </p>

<p>In this case, you’re not expecting to make any more than the receptionist is, and you may not be working for the company for any longer than the receptionist will be. I think that’s entirely reasonable. </p>

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Except the number of firms that have tried to “co-brand themselves” by hiring a part-time Harvard associate is zero. The fact that companies try to co-brand themselves doesn’t mean that every ridiculous, poorly-thought-out scheme will work.

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<p>What are you talking about? All of the firms that were mentioned are effectively co-branding themselves with the Harvard name. Some of them may or may not be doing so with a part-time attorney, we just wouldn’t know. {And obviously those law firms are not going to tell us which of their attorneys are part time and which aren’t.} </p>

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Again, it’s a huge leap from “co-branding schemes exist” to “this ridiculous plan will work”. Even in the extremely unlikely event that you could find someone who thought the Harvard brand was worth way, way more than the rest of the market did (remember, some people don’t even bother using it for free), and could actually afford to pay for it, why would they? They would be bidding against themselves, since nobody else thought it was worth anywhere near as much as they did. If you thought a '99 Civic was worth $40K, there would still be no need for you to pay that much, since you could out-bid any other buyer well below that price.

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<p>And exactly how would you be bidding against yourself? The HLS grad is going to be doing actual full-time legal work for you. That, by itself, is worth at least $35-40k a year. The Harvard brand would then be found money. </p>

<p>Again, why not? Like I said, the Southwestern University Law grads who enter the private sector are being paid an average of around $90k a year. One could ask - why are they being paid such “ridiculous” salaries if they’re not producing sufficient value? Yet if they can paid those wages, then is it really so outlandish for a HLS grad, even working part time, to be worth $40k? Really? </p>

<p>I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. Law firms pay their receptionists, heck, they probably even pay their janitors $30-40k a year. Yet they can’t pay a HLS grad that sort of salary for actual attorney’s work, even if part-time? Really?</p>