Retaining and growing existing client relationships and building new business. That’s basically the business development strategy on which most firms are, or at least should be, focused. It is a sound strategy indeed, but...more
Driving client engagement is important. With demand for services remaining almost flat, firms are grabbing share of wallet from one another. Not sure what to ask clients? How to build long-lasting trusted advisor...more
Elise, a partner in a Midwest-based global litigation firm, seemed somewhat desperate when I spoke with her. In the past five months she lost two significant clients. Billings for these clients averaged $2 million to $2.5...more
Receiving acknowledgement for a job well done, or for helping another business colleague or contact, or for ongoing work received from a client, is rewarding for the recipient. The inherent message is “you matter.”...more
“Commitment to help.” This is, according to BTI Consulting CEO Michael Rynowecer, one of the top attributes that buyers demand from their law firms. That’s old news; here’s the new news: More and more, law firms have awakened...more
We are seeing demand for legal services remains somewhat flat if not a very slight uptick in demand. New entrants into some of the markets outside of the U.S. and the Big Four accounting firms are focused on grabbing as much...more
A number of scholars have studied relationship development and the science/psychology around building relationships. Whether the perspective is from a psychology viewpoint using tools like Myers Briggs and others or from a...more
A number of factors continue to transform the legal industry, including: a more sophisticated legal services buyer as experienced partners switch sides to corporate law departments, rates creeping up without added value being...more
General Counsel today still report that most outside counsel do not know their clients’ businesses at a level the clients expect. Partners will respond by saying they do indeed understand their clients’ businesses. Here is...more
These are words every lawyer planning prospective and existing client visits needs to take under advisement. Busy lawyers tend to run from meeting to meeting, many ‘winging it’ when it comes to building relationships to win...more
Recent interviews with several firm leaders (business professionals and lawyers) unveil that when it comes to success metrics, especially for the key client teams (aka strategic accounts), revenue matters most. We don’t argue...more
It’s all about the basics. Here are some reminders to add fuel to your sales efforts.
Originally published in PinHawk's Law Firm Marketing Brief - May 2021...more
Below are suggestions for consideration when choosing clients to include in your firm’s client feedback program. When considering these criteria, it is also useful to examine clients/referral sources over a five-year...more
Studies in the legal market consistently show that most client team “programs” are not doing well and that many firms do not even have a focus on key clients. Here are some quick bullet points to…
Originally published...more
In a soon-to-be-published book about strategic account management (sometimes called “key client planning”) for law firms, we have assembled a good deal of detailed technical advice for building and operating a Strategic...more
In tough economic times, business development takes on added importance. Here are some truly simple, yet often overlooked ways of adding some fuel to your business development activities. These tips are for seasoned...more
I was speaking with a salesperson from a law firm a few weeks ago who was concerned if they would be able to attract talent and clients after opening an office in a new jurisdiction in the U.S. Within six months the answer...more
Protecting your firm’s hold on its important clients and talent is more critical now than ever before. Three key areas to focus on: talent, business retention and growth. First, every firm is reaching out to clients and good...more
Ask your clients for a copy of their strategic plan, or at the very least, a copy of the executive summary of the strategic plan. No client has ever said “No” when we’ve asked them if they would be willing to share this...more
Second of two blog posts by LawVision’s Steve Bell, Silvia Coulter and Yvonne Nath In our previous blog post, we noted the emergence in the public accounting sector (and hopefully in the legal profession) of a new era of law...more
A multi-million dollar revenue-generating client deserves a strategic account manager. This is someone who day to day is building relationships across the client organization, helps the lawyers with introductions to C-level...more
Three discussions over the last two weeks have reminded me about the importance of making yourself known and invaluable. The first was a conversation with a client during a client interview. The client said, “You know, my...more
Every lawyer gets it—they need to bring in business as part of their role as a lawyer and eventual business owner of the firm. Until someone literally walks them through the steps though, sales can be a mystery to many. Sales...more
It’s really quite simple and yet over and over we continue to hear that of all professional services firms, law firms—specifically the legal professionals, are absolutely the worst at meeting with clients on a regular basis....more
I feel compelled to write this post about the importance of the relationship partner paying attention to the client relationship. In the past twelve months, I’ve worked with six lawyers who have lost clients worth $2...more