Stakeholders in the legal business practice are constantly in need to expand their business operations. The competition amongst firms remains high. Prospective clients have options to choose from, which cannot be said for law firms or lawyers.
There are ways to position a firm for growth.
- How do you position yourself to be the first option for prospective clients?
- Did you get the client? What tools do you need to retain the clients?
You should know.
According to Ugonna Oguagu, a senior associate at Aelex Practitioners, the following are ways a law firm like his remains relevant.
- Referrals: in any business and law firm inclusive, this is one of the oldest methods of getting new clients. So, if you intend to get new clients, ensure your current clients are satisfied because they could become your potential salespersons.
They market themselves by:
- Submitting firm profiles to target clients.
- Having partners and senior associates speak at Webinars and seminars to showcase expertise.
- Publication of articles on various platforms and to showcase our expertise.
- Conduct free legal training for target clients with the hope that they will become returning clients.
- They conduct legal clinics for entrepreneurs and small-scale businesses.
These methods are not new. The most important thing to note is that these methods work.
You are less likely to get new clients if your firm is not findable. In the year 2021, it is paramount to have a digital footprint.
What is findability? How can you benefit from it?
As earlier stated, you won’t get more clients if you don’t find new customers for your law firm or if the customers cannot see you.
Simple questions to ask. Where are your ideal clients? Where can they be found? You have to be where your ideal clients are looking for lawyers and where they’re looking for information regarding their legal challenges or needs. And here’s where they look:
- Google–Top of the page
- Google–organic search results
- Law Firm Directories like Lawyard.com
- YouTube–looking for answers to their legal questions
- LinkedIn etc
Prospective clients are less likely on Instagram in search of lawyers.
Again, this depends on your ideal client, and you could find those anywhere.
Internet Advertising
Internet advertising is a form of being findable and is key to the success of lawyers and law firms.
Developing a captivating website, blog or social media page that discuss everyday legal issues can drive people searching for answers to their legal questions to contact you.
Develop an actual sales process to convert your leads
It’s no good converting your website into a 24/7 lead generation machine if you can’t convert these leads into sales. That adds up to spending money on marketing for very little end product.
Marketing helps you in generating leads. It helps to strategically position your firm for when potential clients need legal services. However, it is one thing to market and another to close a sale.
A sales process is an area that many law firms find challenging. It is crucial to discover when a marketing lead becomes a sales-qualified lead.
Many potential clients approaching you will start with informational inquiries to evaluate the services you provide. When they are ready to hire a lawyer, they may pick up the phone or email you. That’s when your sales conversion expertise comes into play.
You must be ready!
Now you have the client, what next?
For many lawyers and firms, this happens to be a challenging aspect of dealing with clients. If you handle post-conversion interaction properly? You not only have a retainer but a potential salesperson who gives you other clients based on referrals.
You Should Know
Customer retention is the most crucial stage in a sales acquisition cycle.
Customer retention strategies ensure you can extract more value from your existing clients.
The clients you worked so hard to get, losing recently acquired clients is daunting.
Prioritization of customer experience determines client retention.
Here are a few ways Law firms can improve client retention:
- Get a CRM tool: A technology backed firm functions better. Having a CRM tool will establish client relationship structures in the firm. Legal CRM tools which work best for law firms reduce the tediousness in following up with clients and ensuring that engagement with clients is consistent and efficient. An example of a recommended CRM tool is the NextCRM by NextCousel Limited.
- Offer optimal service: Clients do not enjoy changing service providers. They only do so when they are dissatisfied with the service rendered. Providing Top-notch service ensures client retention.
- Stay in Touch: Most clients do not want to be remembered when they make payment. Keeping in touch and genuinely caring about clients makes the client-customer bond more interesting.
- Reward Loyalty
Keep in mind that focusing your time and energy on improving the experience for your clients trumps always trying to find new customers.