Lawyers – Generate a Million Dollars in Extra Income for your Law Firm

Website design By BotEap.comToday’s lawyer is so focused on getting the message across that he will persuade the potential client to call the firm; the lawyer does not look within to see if a change in thought process, management, or product delivery can create new clients. From someone who spends a lot on marketing, I’ve become an expert on how to generate free customers.

Website design By BotEap.comTraditionally, the client used to have a lawyer who handled everything. Then, due to fast-paced technology, coupled with a much smarter client, lawyers couldn’t depend on repeat business. The advent of lawyers marketing cheaper fees or other hooks knocked the old family lawyer off the top rung. Those lawyers are still trying to figure out what went wrong and how to change the practice to satisfy the 21st century consumer client.

Website design By BotEap.comBusiness marketing today has to be more than yellow pages, television or other media outlets. Firms simply have to figure out what the client wants and deliver it in such a way that they become small salespeople for their law firm.

Website design By BotEap.comToday’s client wants more than just a lawyer. I don’t recall a client asking me where I went to law school, what my class rank was, or even if they could see my law license. Clients sought me out to be at their level, to talk to them and to be available to them.

Website design By BotEap.comI am a statistician, and it became clear when we implemented our strategic plan in 1997 that my most valuable asset was my high customer relationship rate. A good deal of my business came from clients who really liked me and told everyone about me long after their case was settled.

Website design By BotEap.comOver the years, I began to notice that there was a big difference between ‘just satisfying’ the client with the right results, and developing a relationship with the client that lasted well beyond the resolution of the case. Therefore, I created and designed a client loyalty program within my firm that accounts for approximately 33% of my new clients, many of whom were referred by clients I represented over 15 years ago. Ask anyone at my company and they will confirm that my development of customer loyalty vs. customer satisfaction is non-negotiable. I don’t care how much money you make, you’re tasked with building customer loyalty.

Website design By BotEap.comCUSTOMER LOYALTY IS NOT THE SAME AS CUSTOMER SATISFACTION!

Website design By BotEap.comAs you know, excellent service leads to customer satisfaction, which is an essential element of customer loyalty. A customer may be satisfied with the results but still not feel any personal connection to you or your company.

Website design By BotEap.comCustomer loyalty is a concept that includes five things:

Website design By BotEap.com1. The overall satisfaction of the client’s experience in doing business with a law firm.

2. The willingness to build a relationship with you and your company.

3. The willingness to be a repeat customer.

4. The willingness to recommend you to others.

5. Reluctance to change law firms.

Website design By BotEap.comCLIENT DISCONNECTIONS:

Website design By BotEap.comClient rejections arise when employees (and I mean lawyers and non-lawyers alike) don’t communicate well, both verbally and non-verbally. Some examples of customer rejections are:

Website design By BotEap.com1. Not greeting or even smiling at a customer.

2. Not seeing the client on time.

3. Inaccurate information given or lack of knowledge transmitted.

4. Not paying full attention to the customer, whether on the phone or meeting in person.

5. Rude or indifferent attitude.

6. Inappropriate, dirty or unkempt appearance in the workplace.

7. Any communicative message that makes the client uncomfortable.

Website design By BotEap.comSurveys completed by the US Bureau of Consumer Affairs revealed these interesting facts (customer and client are interchangeable in this article):

Website design By BotEap.com1. One customer in four is dissatisfied with some aspect of a typical transaction.

2. Only 5% of dissatisfied customers complain to the company. The vast silent majority would rather change than fight. They just take their business elsewhere.

3. One dissatisfied customer will tell 10-20 people (12 is average) about a company that provided poor service. Some people will say hundreds or even thousands.

Website design By BotEap.comHow does this affect our business? If 25% of our customers are unhappy or unhappy with our service, but only 5% of those 25% bother to complain, the impact can be devastating.

Let’s take a typical injury law firm that records 1,000 clients per year. If 250 customers are not happy but we only hear from 5% of those 250, which is about 13, that might sound good to everyone until they realize that the calm 237 will probably tell 2844 people (237 x 12 = 2844 ). Conversely, if a customer is completely satisfied, she can tell 1-3 people or an average of 2.

Website design By BotEap.comIn 2004, my statistics showed me that there were three main sources of customers at my company, broken down as follows:

Website design By BotEap.com421 cases or 41% were VT

140 cases of 14% were from our website

340 cases of 33% were from personal references

Website design By BotEap.comNow let me tell you the cost of getting those referrals. Television costs approximately $900 per customer in real dollars. The website is about $500 per box to get them to the front door. And last but not least, personal referrals cost absolutely nothing. What kind of recommendation do you think I want?

Website design By BotEap.comWhat’s also important to note is that out of the 340 personal referrals we registered, we only had 823 referrals, which means we had a 41% success rate registering personal references. In television advertising we had 2,333 calls and we registered 421 new cases. This was a conversion rate of 18%. Our website generated 1,268 visits and only 140 registrations, which represents only an 11% conversion rate. You can clearly see that personal referrals are already sold on our services when they search for us. They are not simply looking for lawyers or trying to find information. They come to us wanting our services. This also costs the company less time and money in turning these calls into real cases. Now I ask you, what do you think is the most profitable form of advertising that we do in the company and also gives us the highest conversion rate? It’s clear… the personal references of our former clients and people with whom we do business.

Website design By BotEap.comNow let’s get to the actual cost in dollars for a dissatisfied customer. As I said earlier, out of 1,000 customers, based on the national average, we have approximately 250 customers. Of those 250 customers, 95% never express dissatisfaction, but also never return or refer a customer. So we have 237 people who could have talked to at least 474 people and referred us, which on average would have converted 41% or 196 customers. In actual costs, just look at the following:

Website design By BotEap.comIf we were to replace these customers with TV ads, the cost would be $176,400. But better yet, let’s think about lost revenue. If we average $4000 per fee and lose 196 leads, then we will have lost approximately $800,000 in revenue per year.

Website design By BotEap.comBASED ON THE ABOVE, IF WE FOLLOW THE NATIONAL AVERAGE, THE LOSS OF INCOME WOULD BE GREATER THAN $1,000,000.00