Marketing Secret: Find Out What Your Clients Value and Give it to Them
This morning I read an interesting piece in my ABA daily newsletter. The title was: “In-House Counsel Vote ‘No Confidence’ in Firms, Shrug Off Talk of New Legal Model.” The writer referenced an Altman Weil study that found: “About 75 percent of CLOs gave law firms low marks when asked how serious law firms are about changing their legal service model to deliver greater value to clients.”
I am not surprised with the survey results. In this economy, clients want more and want to pay less. At the same time, they perceive their law firms are focused on what’s in it for the law firm rather than focused on what’s in it for the client. Many lawyers and law firms are too focused on what they do and not focused enough on what their clients want and need. I laugh about the vision of a law firm web page with the branding slogan: “We Are No Worse Than Other Law Firms.”
So what can you do about this? Begin by focusing on your clients. Ask them to share with you ways you can deliver greater value. Listen to what they say and ask further questions. When you are finished, gather a group of lawyers in your firm and brainstorm ideas on how to deliver greater value to clients. When you come up with a plan, figure out a way to make sure you are delivering greater value and continually ask for feedback from your clients.
One of the most valuable things I did as a practice group leader was to interview our clients for ideas on how we could improve our service. After collecting their ideas, I created our Client Service Goals. If you would like a copy contact Joyce Flo. When we started a new project, or met with a new potential client we gave them the Client Service Goals and asked for their feedback both during and after the project.
