Tag Archive for: Client development

Last week I was in Greenfield, CT, attending my business mastermind meeting.  Once a quarter, I meet with 12-16 other entrepreneurs and business owners working in a variety of fields, and we spend time working on our businesses.  These meetings have helped me to look beyond the day-to-day work and have prompted the development of various programs and products — not to mention the challenge to write The Reluctant Rainmaker.

Who helps you to step back from your day-to-day work and look at the development of your practice?  This is a key function served by coaches and consultants, but you can also get help from dedicated colleagues or even from a set time on your calendar that you carve out for business reflection.  Especially as we head into a new year, make sure you set some time aside to check this year’s progress and to set next year’s plans.  And schedule time once or twice a month to focus on the business of your practice.  You’ll find that the results (especially if you work with someone who can give you feedback, resources, and new ideas) is well worth the investment.

In addition to getting good ideas and feedback from my fellow mastermind members and the mentor who leads the group, I enjoy working with other business owners because it’s just plain fun.  Law is, in many ways, such a competitive profession that it can feel lonely (as a sole practitioner or a member of a megafirm) to work on one’s own practice.  But when you’re in touch with others who are doing the same thing, it creates momentum, offers encouragement, and often produces tight professional relationships.  It also helps to eliminate the “lone ranger syndrome” that so many lawyers (me included!) suffer from.

Your assignment: identify who can hold you accountable and work with you on your business development (or other) goals.  Set specific times to meet and, if you’re joining a peer group, a format that calls for rotating leadership and responsibility for keeping the group on track.  If you’re so inclined, investigate coaches or consultants who work one-on-one with lawyers, or search out professionally-directed groups.  Getting support may be just the kick to keep you moving forward.

Today’s rainmaker activity is a quick one.

You are on LinkedIn, right?  If not, your activity is obvious: get your profile up right away.  LinkedIn has over 38 million users, most of whom are professionals of some sort, and because of the site’s popularity, there’s a decent chance that your LinkedIn profile could land at or near the top of the search results for your name.  If you aren’t on LinkedIn yet, go.  Now.  Get at least a bare bones profile so you have a presence on LinkedIn, and do it now.

Assuming you are already  a member of LinkedIn, what do you do with it?  Have your requested or offered recommendations?  Have you joined groups — to listen, if not to participate?  Do you update your status with a note about something you’re working on?  Do you regularly seek to increase your network?  Do you connect people who should know each other?

If the answer to all of these questions is no, choose one task and implement it today.  Your activity need not take long at all, but it will be a step in the right direction.

One of the comments to last week’s WRA post about checking written materials for client-centric language requested an example of a “good” paragraph and a “bad” paragraph.  Because of my travel schedule, I knew I wouldn’t be able to respond until today, so today’s WRA offers the requested examples.

Please note: these examples are drawn from my own imagination – written while sitting, to be completely transparent, without Internet access at the San Francisco airport.

A “good” paragraph might look something like this:

“As a small business owner, you know that your employees are critical to your business.  What they know and do (and what they don’t do) can make a substantial difference in your bottom line.  Especially if you have previous experience in a larger company, you are probably aware of the value of documents like employee manuals and specific employee policies that speak to the rights and responsibilities of yourself and your employees.  And if you’ve ever had a problem from an employee who claimed that you discriminated against him or her in a hiring, promotion, or termination decision, you know that such claims can pose a threat even to the most solid companies’ operation, pulling time, money, and attention away from your business operations.

At Smith, Jones, and Richards, we understand your concerns and provide the full range of employment law solutions to small businesses.”

A “bad” paragraph speaking to the same area of law:

“The attorneys of Smith, Jones, and Richards have extensive experience in drafting employee manuals and associated documentation, as well as in defending employers against discrimination claims.  Our approach is to deliver the same services to small businesses that other firms offer big businesses, but we do so at a reasonable fee and with an understanding of small business concerns.  The partners of Smith, Jones, and Richards have a total of over seventy-five years in practice and are graduates of the nation’s top law schools.  Our lawyers have been recognized in merit-based directories such as Super Lawyers, Best Lawyers of America, Who’s Who in American Law, and Who’s Who in the World.  You’re in capable hands with Smith, Jones, and Richards.”

Do you see the difference between these two examples?  While the basic operating principle is the same in both (serving the employment law needs of small businesses), the first paragraph discusses those needs from the clients’ point of view.  The second simply references the clients’ point of view but focuses on the firm’s and its lawyers’ credentials.  Credentials are important, but clients are often pulled toward a lawyer who demonstrates an understanding of their concerns and has credentials that indicate competence as opposed to one who “markets” on credentials alone.

So, with these examples, take another look at the written marketing material you selected last week.  Is it written from a client-centric point of view?  If not, spend some time revising it.

If you’re uncertain about the point of view or about how to make client-centric revisions, we should talk.  You can also find more information in Chapters 4 and 6 of The Reluctant Rainmaker (also available on Amazon.com).

Pop quiz: Who are your best referral sources?  List the top 10 of each right now.  If you are a more junior lawyer in a law firm and don’t yet have your own clients, list the senior lawyers for whom you do the most work.

Were you able to make the list?  This information should be at the tips of your fingers at any moment.  If you don’t know who these people are, your activity this week is to find out.

Assuming you know who your top clients and referral sources are, the next question is:

How often are you in contact with them?  One of my clients recently realized that his top referral sources send him at least 5 substantial matters a year, resulting in several hundred thousand dollars of business.  And then he realized that as he’d become busier, he moved away from the close contacts that had helped to build those referral relationships.  Yes, he sent business to them as well and he attended mettings with them frequently, but he couldn’t remember the last time he’d had lunch or played golf one-on-one with these people.

Relationships, like anything else, are always in motion.  Are yours growing closer or more distant?  If you don’t stay in good contact with others, the relationships will grow weaker and you may find that the support that you enjoyed is transferred to others who are more attentive.  There are no bad motives in play, but absence in business rarely makes the heart grow fonder.

Take a few minutes now to set times to check with the people who think enough of you to send you work.  Make it a point to reconnect and to find out what’s going on with them.  At the same time, express your appreciation for their referrals.  And then lay your plans so you can be sure to check in with them at least quarterly.

What kind of language do you speak when you’re talking with potential clients and referral sources?  I don’t mean English or Spanish, but whether you use “jargon” or “regular” language.  As with most anything else, each has its place, but you must select the appropriate language intentionally.

If you’re talking with lawyers or legally sophisticated consumers, carefully sprinkled jargon may have its place.  Those who are familiar with the area of law you’re discussing may expect to hear certain buzzwords.  If they don’t hear them, they may not be confident that you’re fully up to speed and skilled in the revelant area.  Dropping a word or two of jargon (a reference to a code section, perhaps) indicates that you are likely competent in the area of practice at issue.

If you’re talking with laypeople, however, sprinking in even a small amount of jargon may confuse the listener or — worse yet — may come across as if you’re talking down to him.  With some care, you can address even complex issues with clear, simple, and jargon-free language.  No one wants to feel stupid, and potential clients (or clients) may be reluctant to ask questions that reveal their lack of familiarity with the subject.

Lawyers often cross the jargon line in introducing themselves.  Think back over your recent introductions.  Do you use the appropriate amount of jargon?  Do listeners immediately understand what issues you address in your practice?  For the purpose of this week’s WRA, focus solely on the language you use.  Next week, we’ll look at a few other aspects of introductions.