Thursday, May 8th, 2008
In this crazy world of competing deadlines, priorities, sound bites and instant communication technology it sometimes seems harder than ever to nurture the important relationships in our lives. We are all under such pressure to perform and to achieve there is little time left in the day to reach out and show someone that we care. For a list of tips on how to keep in touch with the important people in our lives check out my article on Slaw.ca this week. And please, if you have some additional tips to share with the readers post a comment here or on the Slaw site.
Posted in Client Relations, Marketing, Solo and Small Firms | Permalink | No Comments »
Monday, October 15th, 2007
Clients want lawyers with niche expertise.
At a client panel I took part in last month one of the big themes that emerged was that clients want to hire a lawyer who “gets them” - who has a depth and breadth of knowledge of their industry, their profession, their business, or in essence their issues.
So a great way to build your practice is to focus on developing some niche expertise and getting known for it. The question for a lot of lawyers is how do I find my niche?
Kevin O’Keefe of Lexblog has a helpful post on finding your blog niche (which was inspired by a freelance writer’s post on finding your writing niche). In addition to his handy niche questions I have a few to add of my own:
Think about your background. What jobs did you do before becoming a lawyer? What degrees do you have? Does your family run a business? I was working with one client who casually mentioned his parents, his uncles, and his brother were all in the same type of manufacturing business and that he had worked for them before becoming a lawyer - that became his niche.
Kevin says “find what inspires you.” I agree. What is it that fascinates you? How might you draw the connection with your legal practice? Here in British Columbia one lucky lawyer dominates the ski hill business and another has secured the winery niche. There must be some nice perks with clients like those.
Another question to consider is what kind of clients do you like working with most? What do they have in common?
Ultimately finding your niche is about discovering what you like best about your legal practice and getting more of it. And for associates it’s an effective strategy for gaining ground rapidly, raising your profile, and securing your own clients.
Posted in Client Relations, Marketing | Permalink | No Comments »
Tuesday, February 6th, 2007
I had the good fortune to attend a panel discussion today held by the LMA Vancouver Chapter on “How Public Sector Counsel Select Their Outside Counsel.”
It was a dynamite session. Paul Reynolds of 2nvision consulting moderated the discussion. He spoke with three public sector in-house counsel on the factors influencing their retention of external counsel, what distinguishes the great lawyers they have worked with, and why they fire some firms.
Doug Jasinki, from Skunkworks Creative, and I are developing a five minute podcast with highlights from session for posting to the LMA Vancouver website. In the meantime here’s a brief excerpt from my notes on the session:
The best lawyers are:
- Responsive. They are prompt and respond in a timely manner to requests.
- Pragmatic. They work the file appropriately.
- Aware of context. They repeatedly invest in learning about the organization, not just for the initial sales call, and are sensitive to the organization’s particular requirements
- Team players. They work closely with in-house counsel, communicate well, and keep counsel well apprised of what is going on in a file
- Flexible. They are able to work at odd hours and on short notice when necessary.
- Pleasant to deal with! They are well mannered, and treat their clients with respect.
Listening between the lines today it seemed to me that the panelists had experienced some atrocious examples of bad client service. Here’s my take on the five easy ways to get fired:
- Don’t meet deadlines. If the client requests the Opinion for their very important meeting at 2:00 pm then hand it in at 4:00 pm.
- Communicate with the client as little as possible. Keep them in the dark. Don’t keep them updated on the file. If nothing happens on the file for weeks or months, you don’t have to contact them! Better to just let them wonder what is going on.
- Bill the client for the friendly chat you had with them on the phone.
- The client is a public agency and under public scrunity – but who cares?! Advocate as aggressively and sharply as possible, regardless of any negative media fallout.
- Be as arrogant as possible. When the CEO enters the room don’t stand up, don’t shake his hand. Turn up late for meetings and act like you are doing everyone a favour for being there.
The panelists were refreshingly candid and many of us left with a stack of notes on such topics as how to structure your business development approach, how to respond to RFPs, how to stand out as great counsel, and what are the most effective marketing tools.
The feedback I am hearing about the event has been overwhelmingly positive. As one lawyer concluded, it was great to have the opportunity to get “find out the answers to those questions that lawyers typically don’t have the guts to ask!” (Guts is my word. He used a more descriptive one!)
Posted in Client Relations, Business Development, Marketing | Permalink | 1 Comment »Wednesday, December 20th, 2006
The best place to invest your non-billable time? With existing clients. This is the rule, tried and true, which I learned many years ago as a fledgling legal marketer, and it has not changed since then.
Michelle Golden has a great post on this subject. Here’s an excerpt:
As we coach professionals of all levels on their individual marketing efforts, it seems like we constantly need to emphasize the importance and benefits of spending a greater percentage of energy or effort on nurturing existing clients (versus new biz development). Existing clients should receive this heavier focus for many reasons:
- increasing the level of service to increase the level of satisfaction/delight;
- affect longevity in customer relationships;
- inspire referrals from current customers; and, oh yeah,
- increase the number of project opportunities relative to meeting customer needs–needs you won’t know about or be able to help them with if you aren’t TALKING with them.
I agree with Michelle and would just add that “talking” with clients means asking questions about their business and spending most of the time listening to the answers.
Visit your client’s place of business. If your client runs a pulp mill, then put on your hard hat and head down to the operation and have a look. This is the best place to invest your non-billable time. There is no faster route to new files.
Posted in Client Relations, Business Development, Marketing | Permalink | 1 Comment »Wednesday, December 13th, 2006
‘Tis the season for client entertaining, gift giving, and social functions. Here’s a quick list of some great resources for anyone looking for pointers on how to make the most of the season.
First, visit Allison Shield’s holiday networking tips.
Next, take in Tom Kane’s Holiday Gift Ideas.
And finally for holiday card innovation read Seth Godin’s post on the Young Issac cheque is in the mail holiday cards - truly an innovative approach to the season of giving!
Posted in Client Relations, Marketing | Permalink | 1 Comment »Tuesday, December 12th, 2006
When it comes to clients the question to ask yourself at each point of interaction is: “How am I showing this person that I care about them, and appreciate their business?”
I just received a great email from a lawyer I know about holiday cards. Of all the lawyers at his firm, his stack of cards is the tallest. He sends out hundreds of cards. Even though he has so many, he takes the time with each and every one to write a few personal lines, extend an invitation, and wish the family well. Every year he gets calls from his clients and contacts thanking him for his card. And every year he receives a number of new files as a result of the holiday card contact.
It’s easy at this time of year to think of cards as a meaningless ritual, another chore to be dealt with, but it is essential to keep the purpose in mind. These cards are about showing our contacts, clients, and friends that we care and appreciate them. Make the most of the opportunity!
Posted in Client Relations | Permalink | No Comments »
