Penetrating Accounts. Building & nurturing long term relationships. Retaining clients. Upselling.
All these terms much like the rest of the terminology of business development is alien to most lawyers. But even though it’s not a part of most law degrees, it is still essential to the working and success of a law practice. The competitiveness and the growth of your law firm is almost directly proportional to enabling strong and stable business development activities.
In all honesty there is no easy plan for Business Development that you can download or find somewhere that would get you more profitable business results. Every law firm, every market is different with a unique set of challenges.
Law school and study programs will equip professionals with vast legal knowledge however for most people law firm business development isn’t a key part of the curriculum. Successfully handling law business development is at the heart of running a winning business. Whether you want to expand the client base of your solo practice or grow a larger firm, you need to nail down the foundations of business development.
Now to most people business development is just an extension of traditional marketing & sales but where it differs is the element of not only targeting new prospects, finding new revenue streams but also cultivating existing ones by proficient account management, gaining and acting to client feedback and creating value for existing clients.
Traditionally law firms relied most heavily on in person networking (quite a nuisance in the current pandemic) to bring in new business, however times are changing and even before the pandemic, top law firms had been embracing modern marketing, lead generation, and automation tools to gain an advantage in this increasingly competitive market.
Global Trends of Business Development
Global tendencies indicate fundamental changes to the way clients have started purchasing professional services which has pushed lawyers to adapt and embrace newer and more modern approaches to business development. What are the implications of these tactics for your practice? Here are some of the most important ones:
- The days of endeavoring to be “all inclusive” are numbered. The newer strategies favor specialist lawyers;
- You must blend online and offline business development practices as a lawyer; and
- Technical expertise and outstanding customer service are no longer sufficient: they are only the entry fee. If your company wants to compete effectively, it must build a strong business development competence.
Here are a few strategies you may want to include as part of your law firm business development plan:
Attend Seminars & Conferences:
Make a yearly commitment to attend a specified number of networking events. Concrete objectives are easier to achieve. Commit to two events per month, at the very least, especially if you’re a small outfit. Go to those events with no preconceived notions and ask others about themselves. Have a good time and make some new friends.
Share Valuable Information Online:
96% of people looking for legal advice use a search engine.
38% of individuals seeking a lawyer use the internet for searching one.
People use the internet to discover solutions to their problems; if you supply them with useful information, you can earn their trust (although a little, but it is good to go initially). They will come to know you by reading the useful information you have offered; this will allow them to put their trust in you because you have demonstrated your readiness to serve them with good knowledge.
Keep in Touch and Follow Up:
Law firms spend a lot of time writing articles, marketing blogs, attending workshops and seminars, and preparing sales pitches. But if they don’t follow up on leads, prospects won’t know about your legal solutions or what you can do best for them.
You must understand the significance of following up and remaining in touch. Connect with prospective customers on social media or networking sites, add them to your contact list, give them your digital newsletters on a regular basis, invite them to lunch to better understand their business or requirements; whatever it takes to make your prospects feel valued.
In conclusion, remember that there is no such thing as a “one-size-fits-all” approach to law firm business development or marketing. Don’t be scared to experiment with a few various approaches. Keep in mind that business development is a protracted game of trust and relationships. The consequences of your actions today could last for years.
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