For any business, winning over a client’s trust is difficult, but it’s even more challenging for law firms to retain the trust.
The problem with many law firms is that they don’t prioritize client retention with their client service. This causes the perception that as you continue to invest your resources and time into growing your business, the less of these you have to extend to your current clients. However, if you want to increase your firm’s reputation, you will need to win over clients and retain them.
It is essential for law firms to have strategies in place for them to retain their clients if they’re going to succeed. When you satisfy your clients, they are very likely to come back for a consultation and will find it easy to refer your firm to other people within their network. This brings a chain reaction that helps the firm grow.
Irrespective of your legal specialization as a firm, client retention is critical. It even helps you to win over more clients, especially if your clients are well established and connected in their industry. Losing them would mean you are also losing their clique or network, as retaining them allows you to work with their network. At the same time, you need the skill to find and convince the right kind of clients. You also need more critical skills to retain them. The lack of consistency and coordination from law firms regarding customer service is why client retention is more challenging and almost absent. This will cause an additional loss of revenue.
On the part of the client, they have many legal service options due to the internet. So, you will have a considerable advantage over your competition if you are able to retain clients. It’s one thing to win a law case and make your client happy; it is another thing to build your rapport with them to trust you even further and continue to reach out to you whenever they have legal needs.
The fear of many law firms is not how to win new clients but how to retain the clients. It’s a serious problem for many, but it has its solutions. Here are some tips that you should try.
Provide An Exceptional And Valuable Service
People hire law firms because of how exceptional they are with their legal acumen. The more you can provide them with outstanding legal services, the longer they will remain with you. This is more than just replying to their emails or returning their calls. What counts as exceptional to each client varies. So you need to understand their expectations and needs first to be able to provide them with outstanding service. When you work for people, they have to be sure that they are getting the value for whatever money they are paying. When your service is value-centered, the focus would be on the steps you’re taking to ensure your clients’ long-term success and not just the time you spend interacting with them. Some ways to add value to your clients are to provide initial free consultations, provide contingency fee services, and make them beneficiaries of your extended network.
Be Accessible And Responsive
Your firm must be accessible to your clients at all times. While you might take their case as one of many others, for them, their life might depend on it. The best way to show your firm’s empathy and willingness to help them is by being there at all times. Make sure they can reach you whenever they try to. They shouldn’t have to wait up to 24 hours for a response from you. Also, it is ideal that you have multiple ways for them to reach you.
Make Yourself An Industry Thought Leader
Your website and blog posts are the right avenues to boost your reputation and retain your clients. Create content that puts you in the position of a thought leader in the legal industry. Use different content types, including text and video, to address questions and issues giving people legal dilemmas. Take advantage of social media for this as well. When your social media page or website becomes the go-to place to find answers to legal questions, you will win more people over. This is the ammunition your potential and current clients need in order to trust you more and see you as one of the best.
Update Your Clients Regularly
Always share information that is important to your clients, especially when it involves their case. Communication between both parties is essential. The clients would often reach out to you as they are the most affected party, so you should make yourself accessible. However, it would be best to inform them when there’s a new development concerning their case. Follow up with them regularly and update them about necessary details. This transparency makes you more reliable and trustworthy.
Build Good Relationships With Them
Building relationships with your clients is essential for the growth of your firm. This is how to ensure that you retain them and remain relevant and successful for long. While you can spend time and resources marketing online, you also need to take your time to build strong relationships in real life. According to legal writers at thesis writing service, building relationships and making sure your clients are happy is crucial to retaining them.
Inspire Client Loyalty By Modernizing Your Legal Service
It is impossible to talk about retaining clients without talking about offering the best service they can get anywhere. The best way to inspire loyalty from your client is to be the best at what you do. In an industry as competitive as the legal industry, the worst way to stand out is to provide below-par service. Clients will never return as they have too many options to stick with a bad one. However, you can inspire loyalty from them by being the best at what you do. We are in a modern age, and this has to reflect in the way services are rendered. For starters, your law firm must have a functional and attractive website. Having a site that is built professionally and attractively helps you give an excellent first impression. There are also many CRM tools that your firm can use to manage your customer base, especially after they reach out for the first time. Follow the flow of technology. Make it possible to schedule appointments and meetings through your websites, and so on.
Take Advantage Of Word-of-mouth Recommendations.
You can get many referrals through word-of-mouth recommendations, so you should use it to your advantage. While this is good for client acquisition, it also works for client retention.
Always ask your clients for referrals. If they trust you enough to refer to you, then they will also come back to you.
Conclusion
Customer retention is more critical for many businesses because it is easier and less expensive than getting new customers. The same thing applies to law firms. While it is more difficult for law firms to retain their old clients than trying to acquire new clients, it’s a must if they want to be successful. The tips in this article are some of the easiest ways for your firm to retain its customers without necessarily going the extra mile.
Author Bio
Tiffany Harper is a training guru who’s been working in the corporate sector for over a decade now. She is a management graduate and loves to share her experience through blogs and articles. For her love of writing, she also provided freelance consultations with Dissertations Today and research paper writing services in the UK while working with EssayMama site. Please do not hesitate to contact her.
