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Bautista LeRoy LLC
A Local Law Firm That Stands Out from the Crowd
How Bautista LeRoy Started & Grew an Award-Winning Personal Injury Law Firm in Kansas City
Bautista LeRoy, established in 2011, is a boutique law firm in Kansas City that handles personal injury cases such as vehicle and car accident injuries, as well as specific types of cases involving train accident injuries or deaths, and nursing home negligence cases.
The firm also works with cases that involve the injury or death of someone who was incarcerated at the time of the incident or who was interacting with a law enforcement officer at the time of the incident.
José M. Bautista and Andrew LeRoy began their journey as entrepreneurs in 2011 when they made the decision to step away from working with larger firms and start their own, smaller firm.
“It started with one little room with a couple of Apple computers and iPhones,” says Bautista.
“We were able to grow the firm to what it is today, which is four lawyers, supporting staff members and a growing practice where we are litigating cases in various states, often highly complex civil litigation.
We were able to buy our own office building here in Midtown KC, which has been nice milestone for our firm and a great way to invest back into Kansas City.”
Old Fashioned Networking in Still Works!
As a plaintiff’s law firm, Kansas City personal injury lawyers Bautista LeRoy relies on consistent networking to connect them with new cases.
“We truly believe that the old-fashioned networking is really the way to initially get some good cases,” says LeRoy.
“We enjoy working with other attorneys on a lot of co-counseling type of work, with attorneys throughout Missouri as well as Illinois, and Arkansas.”
Using network marketing as heavily as they do doesn’t negate their need for strong digital marketing.
In fact, the time and money they have invested into building a website with high quality, informative content supports their networking efforts.
It’s the second touch in their marketing strategy.
“They meet Jose and I, we have conversation about some cases, and then we want to make sure that we have a fair amount of information of what we talked about on our website, that the other attorneys, and other potential clients can access,” says LeRoy.
“Then we also want to make sure that we have a very easy way for them to reach us, whether that be via email or via chat, or a phone call.”
Getting A Digital Marketing Boost
Like many entrepreneurs, Bautista LeRoy had limited funds when they first began their firm.
And like many entrepreneurs, their budget required them to do things themselves that most, larger companies would hire out.
This meant that, from the start, Bautista built their first website himself and wrote the content based on self-guided research on search engine optimization.
Six months in, however, they knew their website wasn’t working for them.
It wasn’t drawing attention to their firm like they had hoped and that’s when they made the decision to invest in hiring a local professional to take over.
“That’s when we approached our current Kansas City web design and digital marketing partner,” says Bautista.
“They put it all together…web design, SEO, content, social media, reviews, videos and integrated it into our web presence. They built us a new website because they had to get results – and over time, it worked.”
Helping Others Succeed & Giving Back to Kansas City
Knowing how challenging starting out as a new attorney or firm can be, Bautista LeRoy made it their mission to help others succeed.
Because they believe so strongly in the value of networking, they created the Bautista LeRoy Entrepreneurial Scholarship.
In addition to covering attendance of the Missouri Small and Solo conference, this scholarship covers membership in the all the specialty bars here in Kansas City.
“When you’re just starting out after college, or after law school, a $2000 investment into the local legal bars and associations, on what you might see only in terms of social or recreational value, may not seem appealing to a young lawyer just starting out,” says Bautista.
“But we believe, especially in a place like Kansas City, where the bars are very tight knit, it is crucial for the development of your career to get out and start meeting people in this profession.
We’ve believed in this for a long time and we know it works.”
Some of Jose & Andrew’s KC Favorites
Contact Bautista LeRoy
Bautista LeRoy Trial Attorneys
3770 Broadway Blvd Second Floor
Kansas City, MO 64111
Phone: (816) 221-0382
Podcast Interview Transcript
Blogger Local: Welcome to the Small Business Super Heroes Podcast. Today we have Jose and Andrew, from Bautista LeRoy. Welcome to the show guys.
Andrew LeRoy: Thanks, glad to be here.
Blogger Local: First, tell us about your company, and what kinds of products and services does your company provide, and what makes you stand apart from the crowd?
Andrew LeRoy: We are a plaintiff’s law firm, we specialize though, in train accident cases. What’s called 1983 cases, which is when someone dies or is injured in prison, or by law enforcement. Nursing home negligence cases, and then insurance bad faith cases. Those are kind of our four specialties, we’ll of course take the normal auto wreck. Every personal injury lawyer will take that type of case. That’s kind of it.
Blogger Local: Okay. Could you provide us with a brief history of your journey as entrepreneurs?
Jose Bautista: This is Jose, how are you?
Blogger Local: Fine.
Jose Bautista: Can you repeat the question?
Blogger Local: Sure, we’re interested in kind of your journey as entrepreneurs, how you got to where you are today and what you love about what you do.
Jose Bautista: You know, so back in around 2011, we decided to jump off from the bigger firms, where we were employed. There were also plaintiff’s firms. But we decided to start our own small shop, back then it was a much smaller shop, it started in one little room with a couple of Apple computers and iPhones. With the help of people like Phil Singleton, and his SEO services, and some marketing, we were able to grow the firm to what it is today, which is four lawyers, staff members, a building and a growing practice where we are litigating cases in various states, litigating highly complex civil litigation.
Blogger Local: Great, here in Kansas City is your business involved in the local charities or causes, or are there any special ways that you participate or give back to the local community?
Andrew LeRoy: We’re very involved in the local Bar Associations of KCMBA, and then the Asian Bar Association, the Jackson County Bar Association. Those specialty bars, our associates is the presidents of the Jackson County Bar Association. Jose, the past president of the Asian Bar Association. I was the president of the Solo and Small Firm Committee at the KCMBA. Besides that, really locally, we both have children. We really focus on giving them our talents with the schools. The Academie Lafayette and St. Peter’s is where our kids go, and we spend a lot of time volunteering there, and helping those organizations in any way we can as well as helping the community there with any needs we can do legally.
Blogger Local: Okay.
Jose Bautista: Additionally, this is Jose again, that was Andrew. Additionally, I would like to mention that we try to help out at Legal Aid of Western Missouri, we feel it’s important for representation for indigent folks, having access to representation, and to the courts for indigent folks, it’s a very important thing. We contribute a lot to that cause, we’re a member there, Legal Aid of Western Missouri. There was something else that I was … I forgot man.
Blogger Local: That’s okay, I think you shared quite a bit. That’s awesome. Okay, so as I mentioned, were kind of curious on how the internet has changed the way you do business, or the way your clients do business.
Jose Bautista: You know, real quick, I just remembered that I was gonna talk about last time, and then we’ll get on to the internet. One other way in which we are kind of contributing to the community, is that we have developed an entrepreneurial scholarship, called the Bautista LeRoy Entrepreneurial Scholarship. We are providing this particular scholarship through all of the specialty bars, so each year Bautista LeRoy funds enough funds into each scholarship for KCMBA, and KC Legal. I believe we also have a general scholarship where we put together enough money for each recipient to go the registration into the Missouri Small and Solo conference, which I think is $700.
Also, the The Bar Conference which also I think is $700. We also provide them with one year membership in each one of the specialty bars in the area, and also to KCMBA. It’s our belief that there’s a lot of talent out there, legal talent and also just really smart young folks coming out of school who just need a little push. When you’re just starting out after college, or after law school. Spending $2000 on bar things, on what you might see as social things, is really the last thing you want to do, but we believe especially in place like Kansas City, where the bars are very, very, tight knit.
Crucial, crucial, for the development of your career to get out and start meeting people. We believe in that for a long time. I think that it’s networking in those specialty bars and getting to know the folks there, has actually gotten us to our previous employers and fostering those relationships that we made in those specialty bars, a chance for the legal community to help us get where we are and continues to allow us to succeed.
Andrew LeRoy: That actually leads to your next question on how we use the internet. We actually have a different approach with the internet then some of our colleagues. While we recognize and use the value of its services to help us with the SEO, we truly believe that the old fashioned networking is really the way to initially get some good cases. We enjoy really working with other attorneys on a lot of co-counseling type of work, with attorneys throughout Missouri as well as Illinois, and Arkansas. To corner that we use our website, it has to be kind of the second touch.
They meet Jose and I, we have conversation about some cases, and then we want to make sure that we have a fair amount of information of what we talked about on our website, that the other attorneys, and other potential clients can access. Then we also want to make sure that we have a very easy way for them to reach us, whether that be via email or via chat, or a phone call. That’s really kind of how I think we use it differently, to access everybody. Seeing it more as a second tier, with the first tier being, truth be told, the best way in our opinion, network and to just get yourself out there.
Jose Bautista: Don’t get us wrong, SEO (search engine optimization) Services and Phil Singleton, they have been critical to helping our firm grow and continue to succeed. The internet is a way to reach everyone, all at once. WE can socialize, and meet with people in the immediate community every day, but we would never in our lifetime be able to reach as many through that method as we would through the internet and SEO Services. We see both as very, very, critical to our growth and success. I tell you, when we were first starting out in 2011, in one room, we believed in that so much, from a marketing perspective, I had the and arrogance to think I should put something together, a website. I spent days if not weeks, late, late, nights thinking I could put something together on my own through one of those, I can’t remember what those platforms are, software platforms where you can build your own website.
I read up on books, FCO and things of that nature. You know, at the end of a two month, it was also to save money. We didn’t have anything at that time. I did it myself, and put all the time into it, got the themes going from the different websites themes. I got tips on FCO and I can’t even remember that platform that everyone uses to build their website. I went through that, and I tell you, the product was….
Blogger Local: You there?
Jose Bautista: I look back, and it was unreadable, it was filled with too much content, too much extraneous content, that no one could ever use. Internally, we found out painfully, six months or a year later, nothing was happening. It’s not like we were rising in Google because of all the things that I tried to do. I struggled with that, I thought of course I can take care of this, again tuberous. I fooled myself, and I talked myself into thinking that I could do this, and finally we decided because of no clear results, and clear failure on my part, to get anywhere on the FCO front.
We need to go to a professional. That’s when we looked around and we were coached by a variety of folks who claim to have the best FCO services in town. They came in all shapes and sizes, but fortunately we got a recommendation from a very good friend, about Phil. The success and the good things that he had done for them, SEO Website wise. That’s when we approached Phil, and our relationship with Phil and his company started. He put it all together painfully with us, did interviews and put a website together. He started all over because we had to. He was honest and said guys, this is a very competitive field, and it’s going to take a while. Once he got on it, he more than exceeded our expectations. It was wonderful, and that relationship has about six years now, that we’ve had Phil. We owe him a ton, it’s such a pleasure working with him. The stuff he does, I can’t even begin to decipher it.
Blogger Local: That’s awesome. So, kind of in the same vein, you touched on networking. Are there any other ways that you market to local businesses, or consumers here in Kansas City?
Andrew LeRoy: We have several outlets. Besides the networking through the bar associations, and through the schools, through the legal aid board that Jose on. We’ve also written a book with other attorneys. A book that is focused solely on how to help people hire attorneys in various practice areas. What we did there, we collaborated with I think ten other law firms, that had different specialties then we had. We all wrote different chapters, and so that book is available on Amazon and we give that out to past and potential clients. In addition, we are heavily involved in attending just the various happy hours, the galas, the various things throughout Kansas City. We like to get out first Fridays, we like to make sure that we’re just always seen out and about in the community.
Blogger Local: Okay, that’s awesome. As I kind of mentioned when we first started talking, we have a couple of questions about Kansas City and kind of what you love about the city, I’m curious, what are your favorite things about the city and what places do you like to go? Are there favorite restaurants you have? Do you follow sports?
Andrew LeRoy: By the way, I would like you to delete out any of Phil’s information because I don’t want anyone else to use him. That’s how we act, don’t tell Phil. You can still find him. You were saying the social scene? What do we like about Kansas City?
Blogger Local: Yeah. What do you like about Kansas City, where do you like to eat? What kind of things do you like to get involved in with your friend or family?
Jose Bautista: Kansas City has surprised me, I’m a transplant. I’m from Los Angeles, then shortly St. Louis. Kansas City, when I first got here in 2001, didn’t seem like it had much of a social scene, even compared to St. Louis. It has grown leaps and bounds. When I first got here, no one was into River Market, there were tumbleweeds Downtown Kansas City at 4 o’ clock every day. Clearly no one was there on weekends. Now you look at it, the whole corridor between the River Market and The Plaza, is booming. It is thriving with restaurants, bars, retail shops, and just activity in general. It’s amazing, I compare that to a place certainly to St. Louis, it’s much better than St. Louis now. I’m in St. Louis frequently, and it even competes I think with some of the bigger cities.
Maybe not LA but Nashville and places like that of similar size. My favorites, I like to frequent Café Roka, who is owned by some friends. They have a place near our home in Crestwood. Another place we like to frequent, we like wine, is The Underdog Wine Company. It’s next door to Café Europa. Then a personal favorite, I’d say for me my personal favorite would be Le Fou Frog Restaurant, which is in the River Market, love that place. Those are sone places. I don’t know if you need to know about bars, I don’t frequent those very much these days. I’m just getting a little older.
Andrew LeRoy: I have a little different perspective, given the fact that I was born and raised here. I definitely believe that Brookside, Crestwood, and Westport is really the only places that anyone should ever live in Kansas City. I believe in the walk ability of the neighborhoods. The restaurants, it’s great now that the street car, we saw it before we moved to our new building, When we were Downtown, we saw what the street car did for River Market and Downtown. We’re excited that the street car is going to be coming down near our new building, and then all the way down to young KC which is next to Crestwood and Brookside where Jose and I live.
To me, Kansas City is turning into a place where you can have a wonderful time basically from 75th Street all the way down to the river. I personally don’t see any reason to leave those areas. When I’m there, I would reiterate with Jose and say Café Roka, that’s in Crestwood and also Union Hill is a wonderful restaurant, and we spend a lot of time there in the morning for breakfast, and the Union Hill one. My wife and I enjoy going there. We generally hold our Christmas party there. The additional dive I enjoy, I enjoy Beer Station, I think it’s a unique concept. That’s right there on Gregory and Rock Hill. Because you can purchase beer and it’s also a bar in the scene. Then I also enjoy KC Bier Co., a little farther out, at 79th and Nall because again, we have some local brewers I think they have good beer. We enjoy frequenting there.
Blogger Local: That’s great, thanks for sharing. Before we wrap up, are there any special offers or is there promotions, or new services on the horizon that you would like to mention?
Andrew LeRoy: I don’t know if we need that.
Jose Bautista: Yeah.
Andrew LeRoy: I don’t think ethically we’re allowed to do such things, solicit that way. If you get injured in a crossing with a train, or your loved one is in a nursing home, come talk to us, we’re happy to talk and we’ll treat you right. We don’t have any specials.
Blogger Local: Yeah, we can just leave that part out. I wasn’t sure if it was gonna be a good set for you guys. We’ve also had a lot of our people say oh we’re so busy please don’t. It’s a good problem to have.
Andrew LeRoy: 99% of our business, and I think for the most part a lot of folks, through my experience, meets by appointment only. I think that of all businesses, not one of those where you take walk ins, it just doesn’t … unless you’re running some sort of business where you’re just doing traffic tickets or something like that. It’s really kind of an appointment type of thing, you not going to have any special offers or anything of that nature, where people randomly walk through the door.
Blogger Local: Right, okay well that’s all I had. Thank you so much for joining us and for your contributions to Kansas City and our local economy.
Andrew LeRoy: Thank you.
Jose Bautista: Thank you.
