After seeing a couple of post in the last few days about client satisfaction, I got to wondering how many posts I have made on this blog over the past 10 years that touched on the subject. So I went to my trusty search box above and entered “client feedback.” Having preached over and over
business development
Make Reporters Your Luncheon Buddies!
By Tom Kane on
Posted in Marketing Tips, Prospecting for Clients
There was a time, in the early days of legal marketing (mid-80’s) that hiring PR firms was what BigLaw management thought solved this “marketing thing.”
At that time law firm’s PR efforts were NOT very successful. Reason: Whether they were just bashful or afraid of repercussions from the state bar, some lawyers wouldn’t even cooperate…
How to Be Effective at Getting Referrals
By Tom Kane on
Posted in Marketing Tips, Prospecting for Clients
Seventy to 90% of lawyers’ business comes because of referrals from clients and other contacts in your network. You are more likely to get more, if you concentrate on enhancing your network.
Mary Taylor Lokensgard has a post on Attorney at Work that provides good ideas on getting referrals. She suggests 3 steps:
1. …
Treat Staff like You (Should) Treat Clients
By Tom Kane on
Having covered how crucial staff is to the practice of law numerous times several times over the last 10+ years on this blog, a refresher on some issues may be in order.
For example:
- Receptionist. I have argued that the receptionist should be the highest paid marketing person, because of his or her being
…
Develop the Clients and Practices You Enjoy!
By Tom Kane on
Lawyers should do the kind to work they enjoy and for the clients they like. Duh, you may say, thinking that that is a simplistic and obvious statement. Not so fast. That may be the ideal, but not often accomplished. According to David Maister in his famous book True Professionalism (pages 23-24) he found in…
Share Bad News with the Client ASAP
By Tom Kane on
Posted in Client Communications, Marketing Tips
A post on Attorney at Work by Wendy Werner suggesting ways to share bad news within the office about a member of the firm or about the firm itself, got me thinking about how important it is to share bad news with a client at the earliest opportunity.
It should be self-evident that clients –…
Lawyers’ Biggest Marketing Problem: Implementation
By Tom Kane on
In my 30 years in this business, I have found that lawyers are pretty good at planning marketing activities. With guidance, even in the early days, some were enthusiastic about putting a plan together. Maybe it was the challenge, possibly, as time went on, more attorneys recognize the need for developing business, as they realize…
What the Heck Does “Adding Value“ by Lawyers Really Mean?
By Tom Kane on
Posted in Client Communications, Marketing Tips
There’s a lot of talk these days about lawyers adding more value to their client representation. Particularly because of competition, client demands, and the state of the legal industry, adding value REALLY is important. Just providing a legal product is not enough. But it begs the question what adding value really means.
Client Letter to New Outside Counsel – Part II
By Tom Kane on
Last week I wrote about the fictitious client letter sent to the recently retained outside law firm, wherein the general counsel sets forth his expectations. As noted in that post, the “letter” was brought to us by Bob Denney in one of his Legal Communiqués. ’s Legal Communique, wherein the law firm is admonished/warned…
Client Letter to New Outside Counsel – Part I
By Tom Kane on
Ran across a fictitious letter written by a fictitious general counsel to a fictitious law firm he just retained. The letter sets forth his expectations for the new firm; and was crafted by Bob Denney of Robert Denney Associates as one of his famous Legal Communiqués. Although it is nearly a year old, it…