As a lawyer, you don't practice law, you serve clients. If clients don't recognize the benefits of what you do, they will become dissatisfied with you and no amount of marketing effort will retain them. Find out what is necessary and why it is important to improve your communication with clients.

The real definition of marketing or business development is simple: identify the people most likely to hire you for the work you want to do, let them know who you are, develop close relationships with these people to help them achieve their goals, and constantly communicate with them to ensure that you are meeting their needs.

 

Communication and Satisfaction

As a lawyer, you don't practice law, you serve clients. Without clients there is no reason to be a lawyer. You must provide a quality service and work product that clients find useful and beneficial. If clients don't recognize the benefits of what you do, they will become dissatisfied with you and no amount of marketing effort will retain them. Surveys show that the two biggest reasons for client dissatisfaction are unhappiness with law firms' service performance (not the same as legal advice), and failure to keep pace with clients' changing needs. Such law firms generally fail to communicate with their clients to learn what clients want, how they want to hear about it, and where the client's business or personal needs may be headed.

A while back I read a study contending that doctors talk three minutes longer with their patients (clients) than other professionals (lawyers) and that doctors are sued less than lawyers. The article contended this extra communication lowered malpractice risk. The premise may not be completely valid, but it is true that professionals are judged on more than their technical competency ‑ they must show they understand the wants and needs of those they serve. If the two sides are in agreement, there is little likelihood of problems in the relationship.

Communication Failures

It's a fact of our profession that most disciplinary actions filed against lawyers are from their own unhappy clients. The majority of those involve poor communication. Here are five common examples of communication failures that clients uniformly say they find disappointing and distressing:

• Unresponsiveness, particularly a consistent failure to return phone calls and respond to letters or faxes, is the number one client complaint. No matter how valid your reason for not contacting a client quickly, including being in court, it's not a good excuse. Clients want to be assured that their matter is being dealt with. They don't want to feel ignored. If you are unable to respond personally, have a secretary, paralegal, or other lawyer ready to step in and say that you are presently unavailable and will return the call or letter by a certain time or date.
• Clients hate voicemail limbo, symbolized by the increasingly standard process of asking clients to leave a recorded message, or (even worse) to press number keys to leave a message. All of this may save time or money in the short run, but it exponentially increases the clients' frustration level ‑ and can create a tense situation when voice contact is finally made. The best solution is to have a real person ‑ even if it's a virtual assistant and not a full‑time employee ‑ answer all initial calls to the firm. If you're available, you can take the call. If you're not available, then the same person gives the caller the option of leaving a voice mail or written message. Each option empowers the client through dealing with human beings.
• Misunderstanding at the time of the initial engagement agreement is a consistent communication problem. If both sides don't agree up front about what the engagement is to achieve, the danger exists that the client will come to believe that the lawyer hasn't achieved and never understood the desired results ‑ making for an unpaid bill and possible malpractice suit. From the very start, when drafting the engagement letter, focus your communication on understanding the intent, desires and wants of the client. If they are in harmony, and the client understands what to expect, there is little likelihood of a problem. Going through this process of detailing and negotiating to prepare the engagement letter enables you to avoid a client with unrealistic expectations or demands.
• Lawyers have a consistent tendency to focus on the task at hand, without communicating what they are doing for the client. You may be doing a great job with documents, the court, or the opposing party, but the client is never told. No matter how successful the end result, the client doesn't understand what you accomplished, and may refuse to pay the bill when it comes due. Clients appreciate communication; the more, the better. Show your clients that you're doing your job by sending them copies of documents, by writing, or calling them. "Paper" clients, keep them informed and tell them what's happening at every step.
• A bill that only says, "For legal services rendered," or that is inaccurate or confusing, is a recipe for disaster. Clients need to be told the value, and not just the cost, of the services you provide. Start in the initial client meeting by explaining what and how you are going to bill. Then explain the billing process again, in writing, in the letter of engagement. Be complete in your billing statements. Use action verbs to describe your services. Clearly indicate the specifics of what was accomplished. This gives clients an appreciation of the effort expended and the successes achieved on their behalf.

 

Communication Strategy

There is a basic principle involved with the common communication problems and their solution: show your clients how highly you value them by how much you communicate to them and interact with them. Take a customer‑service approach to dealing with clients, just like your favorite shops or restaurants (businesses ultimately not much different from law firms) take with you. Even the simplest steps to accomplish this can pay big dividends:

• Return phone calls the same day, either yourself or through a staff member. This can't be repeated often enough. Unreturned calls remain the single most frequently registered complaint against lawyers with bar associations across the country.
• Make sure your staff members know the names of your clients. Give everyone the client list so that they never have to ask the spelling of a name when taking a message or appointment.
• Reach out proactively to your clients. Don't wait for them to come to you. Send them copies of all relevant documents about them that come into the office, or provide status reports on a regular basis. Demonstrating your work is the best way to ensure that relations are harmonious, and that you get paid.
• Make your clients feel like part of the team. Seek out their opinions, ask them what they want to accomplish, explain the reasons behind your advice.
• Visit clients at their home or business. You'll get a better understanding of what is important to them, and they'll develop greater trust in you. Don't charge for the visit ‑ but be sure it shows up on your next statement as a "no charge" item.
• Solicit client feedback. This doesn't require an elaborate questionnaire; simply meet them over coffee and ask, "How am I doing? Should I be doing something different? Is there an issue that concerns you? Does my staff treat you courteously?" Given this opportunity clients will provide you with honest answers. And if there's a problem, it's better to know now than when there's an unpaid bill or a disciplinary charge against you.
• Show that you care. Put your clients on a pedestal for providing your livelihood and giving you an interesting and challenging professional life. Do you use your clients' products or services and tout the benefits to others? Do you ever call them just to say "thank you" for the privilege of serving them? If not, you don't truly communicate that you care about your clients ‑ and they may well start looking for a lawyer who does.