Reboot Your Law Practice

We're all busy and we all have different demands on our time. But for attorneys trying to reboot or develop their practices going to a practice development conference can be key. You can learn about new technologies; meet people in a similar position as you; meet folks who have been where you are and have grown their practices. Let's face it, law school may teach us the law but it does not teach us the practice of law. The podcast hosts discuss how these conferences can be crucial to building your business and talk about what they have learned from them and applied to their practices.

This podcast discusses something many of us take for granted – our phones. But let's face it, this is how our clients come to us; yes they may email us first or message us from a website, but they will always want to call in and speak to someone live. Scott and Oscar talk about what systems they use to not just answer and return calls, but to mine the data and information they can get from the calls being made.

We are all inundated by pop-ups and email messages from various sources telling us how to grow our practices using technology and social media. What's real and what's just hucksterism? This podcast focuses on what has worked and not worked for the hosts and what core messages we can take from those ads that are telling us what basic areas we need to focus on to expand our client base and income. Scott and Oscar discuss specific steps they have taken and how they have tailored their social media to attract more of the clients they want. The bottom line is that you need to spend time and energy thinking about using tech and not just follow every carrot placed in front of you

The podcast hosts talk about their woes in dealing with client communication. Some clients who after spending a lot of time with you, don't retain you; others who don't want to hear the information you are giving them; and still others who simply want to take up all of your time talking about things that are perhaps important to them but which don't relate to the case at hand or advance their cause. Solo and small firms have to make sure to balance giving your clients enough time and opportunity to communicate with the other time demands facing your firm.

This episode discusses whether listeners should offer a free consultation to prospective clients or charge for them. Host Oscar Michelen recently started charging for initial consultations while Host Scott Limmer offers free consultations. The hosts engage in a spirited back and forth discussion as to why they chose each particular method and why works for them. Listeners can gain insight from the talk as to which method would work best for their practice.

Oscar gets the discussion going this week talking about what he learned from a review of old files from his prior firm that had been in storage in his house for the past seven years. In talking about it with Scott, he discusses what he should have been able to see about his practice and its marketing efforts had he paid attention. That leads to the hosts talking about the need to be mindful and to analyze what you are doing in your marketing efforts. Don't just keep trying new things without putting in the effort of looking at what you have done before and what worked and didn't. When starting a new marketing effort, don't do it unless have you thought about:

• Who am I trying to reach? Leads? Referral partners? Paying clients? All of the above?
• Will this plan reach them?
• Will this content be meaningful to them?
• How much will it cost and I can I carry it if it is unsuccessful?
• How long do I need to run the campaign for me to be satisfied that I have given it the full time that it needs?

There are many sources of information available to you to help you grow your practice: books, magazine articles, blogs, podcasts like this one. The hosts talk about sources they use to get thoughtful advice on business development. The material does not have to be law-firm related, in fact its better that your first foray into reading to improve your practice not be law-related. Books on entrepreneurship, money management and organizational methods are the most helpful at first to get you in the right mind set. Apply thought to your re-boot and look for advice that's out there waiting for you to find it.

This week's episode finds our podcast hosts both comfortably rested from Anguilla vacations and once again pondering what "The Next Big Thing" is for law practices. Scott and Oscar talk about how the Hollywood industry and Las Vegas both rose out of nothing, filling a void no one saw that was there to be seen. While in some sense LegalZoom and Avvo have done that for the practice of law, there really hasn't been a "Sea change" in the way law is practiced; these examples tell us however that such an event may be right around the corner. Will you be ready? Will you even recognize it? More importantly, perhaps its best to focus on what the big change to your practice maybe that is right there for you to find if you just take the time to look.

Clichés become clichés for a reason – they're true. This week's podcast analyzes the old cliché about "stepping out of your comfort box." When you just do what you have always done and what you know best, you don't get the chance to find out what you are truly capable of. Take a chance, try something new, something you are perhaps nervous or outright frightened to try related to your practice – attend a new networking group, take on a public speaking opportunity, start a new blog. Even if you fail, the odds are high you will learn something useful about yourself and your practice.

What's a young lawyer to do? Every client says they want experience but if you have just started your practice how do get those clients? What about if you are trying a new practice area but don't have any successes in that area to tout? This week's episode discusses ways you can build your practice while you develop the experience clients want. Focus on other areas – customer service, connectivity, price point. What's important is that you be authentic and let the client know what value you can provide in place of experience. It takes time to get experience but there are things you can communicate to clients and provide to clients that are just as important as a long resume.