The econonomy has changed, clients expectations have changed, have you changed too?
I meet some amazing people on my travels from one solicitor practice to another many times a month. Some solicitors really understand that the legal market place has changed dramatically and will always continue to do so. They embrace new opportunities to communicate with their clients and to offer more value to them.
Others, however, long for the old days, when clients frequently walked through their door without any advertising, when referral fees did not exist and the world was a much brighter place. Solicitors could charge very healthy fees and there was much less competition so it was much easier to secure new instructions. Solicitors could generate a “client for life” simply by “being there” and doing an adequate job. That really was largely enough.
Those halcyon days are now gone, and gone forever. Clients expect, demand and most importantly deserve a lot more, and if you are not prepared to give it to them they will go elsewhere; fact. And why shouldn’t they? Why should they go to a solicitor who does not make the effort to ‘woo them’?
Every business has seen dramatic changes to their market, the way they present their services and how they look after their clients.
Look at hotels, for example. Some years ago you would be happy to have a bed and a shared toilet many yards along the corridor. However, soon everyone wanted a little bit more. First an en-suite bathroom became the next requirement, then a television was expected as the norm. next people demanded a television with premium sports and movie content. Now people also expect to be able to have wireless internet access as standard. All of these extras were nowhere to be seen in the past, yet now hotel customers expect them as part of the service they receive.
When it comes to providing your legal services, and marketing your legal services to new clients and prospects, what can you do to improve the service for your clients?
How can you make your service more streamlined, more friendly and less stressful? What can you do to make the whole experience of visiting your legal practice more friendly?
The starting point here is to examine what you really provide. If you think it is just legal services it might be worth thinking again. You provide a service that ultimately either makes something happen (ie moving house or providing a will), or takes away a pain (family law, business disputes etc). Therefore, if you start from the position that you provide a stress relieving service, how can you make the whole process much less stressful for your clients?
Home visits could be a standard, or you could make your offices far more relaxing and stress free. One dentist I know of provides food and drinks to relax his patients.
How can you make your communications better? Can you stage payments of your bills to make your service more affordable?
You need to consider the supply of your service from your clients’ eyes. Only then can you start to see how you can improve the service and stand out from the crowd.
Ready To Take Action And See Results Now?
Please call 0117 290 8555 to arrange a mutually convenient time for a telephone discussion, Email me or complete a Free Online Enquiry. There is no cost or obligation. We will have a chat about where you are and where you would like to be and I will suggest some things you can do to get there quickly.
