A Chicago law firm goes the extra mile to ensure client satisfaction, sometimes even getting on a plane to do so. Like many firms, 37-attorney firm sends out client satisfaction surveys. But unlike most firms, it gets the responses via in-person interviews held at the clients' places of business. The visits are limited to the largest revenue-producing clients, says the … [Read more...] about Chicago firm discovers in-person interviews can sharply increase client service and satisfaction
Increasing profits
The link between technology and your firm’s continued success
Technological innovations and the movement toward specialization are two of the key drivers of change in the legal field today, according to Future Law Office 2020: Redefining the Practice of Law, a new report from legal staffing and consulting solutions firm Robert Half Legal. Three in 10 (34 percent) lawyers surveyed for the annual research project said emerging … [Read more...] about The link between technology and your firm’s continued success
How to improve the value of your practice
"Value Drivers are factors that affect the actual and perceived value of a practice," says valuation expert Ronald L. Seigneur, MBA CPA of Seigneur Gustafson LLP, based in Lakewood, CO. "Potential investors, whether internal or external, look for performance in the two areas—universal value drivers and industry-specific value drivers." Universal value drivers include: … [Read more...] about How to improve the value of your practice
Six ways your firm’s information may be gridlocked
In today's new world of work, organizations rarely lack information. Unfortunately, according to research from Ricoh and IDC, what today's organizations do lack is quick access to their information, which is usually gridlocked and unavailable. Ricoh USA and IDC conducted Web-based interviews of nearly 300 companies in the United States and found six ways that corporate … [Read more...] about Six ways your firm’s information may be gridlocked
Use contract employees and temporary workers to solve difficult staffing issues
If your legal practice is like most, it's difficult to make a case for adding full-time office staff. And it's no wonder. Full-time employee benefits, including Social Security, 401k/403b contribution, disability insurance, health insurance, pension plan, and paid time off, add approximately 40 percent to an employee's salary, according to Salary.com, a leading provider of … [Read more...] about Use contract employees and temporary workers to solve difficult staffing issues
4 reasons your business should be on social media
When they need to make personal connections with the rest of humanity, more and more Americans are doing so via the Internet. A 2014 study by the Pew Research Center showed that 74 percent of adults who go online use a social networking site, whether it's Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or something else. "It's clear that nearly everyone makes an effort to connect some way … [Read more...] about 4 reasons your business should be on social media
The best business plan: Fall back and regroup at a firm retreat
Is the firm retreat a dying exercise? During the current economic downturn, many practices eliminated the annual retreat in an effort to save money. But it's when the revenues and business future are most mercurial that a retreat is most needed, says Robert Denney, a Wayne, PA, law firm management consultant. The firm needs to know how to navigate through the financial waters … [Read more...] about The best business plan: Fall back and regroup at a firm retreat
The art of setting fees that suit prospective clients
There's an art to presenting fees to clients. It's not just a matter of quoting an amount. It's a matter of finding out what result the client wants to see and what value the client attaches to that result. It calls for a lot of fishing tempered by a lot of tact, says Brian Kennel of Performance Management Consulting, a law firm practice management consulting group in New … [Read more...] about The art of setting fees that suit prospective clients
Don’t put your vendor contracts on auto-pilot
It's easy, to say nothing of convenient, to get comfortable with business relationships and not to question what the vendors are doing. But in the meantime those vendors have every ability to slip in added costs the administrator does not notice. Don't just renew vendor contracts automatically. The firm can often save money and get better service by putting those contracts … [Read more...] about Don’t put your vendor contracts on auto-pilot
Is your firm’s website killing your sales opportunities?
Here's how to turn website visitors into clients The website: It's an area where, according to Trey Ryder, a Payson, AZ law firm marketing consultant, "firms spend untold amounts of money for absolute garbage." Many sites, says Ryder "are atrocious," despite the price tags they carry. "If they work, they work in spite of themselves." In most cases, a website's failure … [Read more...] about Is your firm’s website killing your sales opportunities?