If your business clients don’t feel confident in your law firm, you may be confronting an almost existential crisis. Can you stay in business if your best clients go elsewhere because they don’t trust that you’ll deliver on your value proposition? Here are four common reasons clients have second thoughts about working with an estate planning law firm:
- Too little communication. Clients want to know what’s going on in a particular situation. Not getting back with promised information in a timely manner can cause even optimistic clients to sour on your firm. Their time is valuable, too, and they don’t want to chase you down. If the information they seek isn’t available, let them know, either by phone or email, and give them a timeframe for when you expect to have the answers.
- Ambiguous branding and marketing. Maybe you don’t like to think of your practice as a “brand,” but it is. If your website, social media and other online profiles appear unprofessional or poorly designed, it reflects on you. You need to remind people not just what you do but why you do it and educate them continually on the value you bring to the table. You do this not just to attract the right people but, perhaps just as importantly, to screen out the wrong clients, so they don’t consume valuable firm resources.
- Not learning about their business. Your client expects you to listen to their concerns, and maybe you think you’re doing so. If you don’t understand the whys and wherefores of your client’s business objectives, or talk past your client, odds are they will look for an attorney who listens. Just because you have experience with similar businesses doesn’t mean you understand their business and situation unless you make the effort. Clients can tell!
- Surprise billing. Nobody likes surprises when it comes to bills, and too much nickel-and-diming serves as a dealbreaker for some clients. This is another area where communication is crucial. If your invoices are confusing, you could lose clients who don’t want to – and shouldn’t have to – spend time figuring out the bill.
Business Docx® to the Rescue
Too bad “client confidence in you” can’t be bottled and sold. But the next best thing might just be Business Docx. This powerful business lawyer software can give you immense pride in your documents, which can in turn give you more confidence in other aspects of your practice. Business Docx provides you with constantly updated legal business information, so you know that everything going into your documents is current and accurate. Since you’ll spend so much less time manually drafting documents, you can concentrate more on your clients… and spend your valuable energy troubleshooting all the challenges we discussed. Call us today or contact us online to learn how Business Docx can help you hold onto clients and grow your practice.
