Introduction
Having worked with lawyers for nearly twenty years,
I can tell you there is a common belief which resonates
clearly in the hallways of most law firms: “I
didn’t go to law school to be a salesperson!”
However, billing time and generating new business are
the two primary activities separating the private practice
of law from that of working for the government or working
in a corporate legal department.
The Path to Partnership
Assuming the readers of this article are lawyers in
private practice, the following tips have been written
with the assumption that you will progress through the
logical law firm path from new associate to senior associate,
and then be considered for partnership after six to
eight years.
That having been said, one thing must be stressed.
As you proceed through your first two to three years
after law school, your primary “mission”
is to transfer the theory of law school into the actual
practice of law. During this time, it is imperative
to develop the skills as a lawyer that you will ultimately
market to clients. However, during this practical learning
phase, you can concurrently hone your skill in the art
of providing exceptional service—to the partners
or shareholders for whom you work.
What Does “Marketing” Mean When You’re
an Associate?
At this juncture in your career, marketing has a different
meaning than it would for an established partner or
shareholder.
It means…..learning to deliver exceptional service
to your clients—the partners of the firm. Everything
you will EVER need to know about client service you
can put into action today.
It means….. beginning to lay the foundation for
how you plan to attract clients to the firm and starting
the process of building strong relationships.
It means…..doing great work with a focus on achieving
personal and professional excellence.
It means…..practicing your client service skills
with your internal clients.
The Importance of Building Relationships with Partners
One of the most important keys to your future success
in marketing is to learn the art of building strong,
enduring relationships. Following are some tips designed
to help you practice your client service and relationship
building skills with the partners in your firm:
- View the partners as your primary client at this
juncture of your legal career.
- Be available to them and willing to pitch in when
needed on a big project or case.
- Use the partners to “practice” your
relationship building skills.
- Take a partner to lunch to find out more about his
or her practice and to solicit any advice s/he has
on helping you to build yours.
- Let them know what you have to offer clients and
the firm; talk about a recent transaction or case
that exemplifies your capabilities and interests.
- Let that partner know you would like to work with
(or do more work with) him or her.
- Understand the partner’s expectations upfront.
- Never miss a deadline (When is this due?).
- Return phone calls and email messages immediately.
- Discuss budget (how much time should this take?).
- Keep them informed on the status of the work you
are doing for them (How would you like me to keep
you up to date on this?).
- Ask for help and guidance as you need it.
- Show you’re interested in working with them—that
you appreciate their “business.”
- Ask for feedback on your work. Don’t wait
for your annual performance review to do this. Let
the partners know you want to build not only your
substantive skills as a lawyer, but also your client
service skills.
- Try never to say, “NO—I can’t
do this for you…. I’m too busy.”
You don’t want to create a reputation of not
being a team player.
- Focus on your client and do all you can to meet
their goals and expectations of you.
- Establish a high degree of trust and confidence
with partners by making your relationship with them
a priority.
- Partners, associates—and clients—will only
refer you into additional opportunities if they trust
you, respect you and have complete confidence in your
abilities.
- During this time it is critical to have an unwavering
focus on detail. Only submit a project to a partner
if it is truly your best work.
- If you let a partner down it is highly unlikely
you’ll be given a second chance, particularly
if something you’ve done requires an explanation
or apology to a client.
In Closing - - - on Partners as Clients
Everything you do in this area will benefit you when
you begin to directly serve clients of the firm. In
fact, if you practice the concepts presented above on
the partners with whom you work, you will be well on
your way to putting skills in place that will benefit
you your entire career.
Creating a Foundation: Manage Your Contacts!
There are some additional activities you can pursue
as an associate to create the foundation upon which
you will ultimately launch your own marketing plan:
- Don’t lose track of your law school and college
friends. Make a point of staying in touch with people
you connected with (liked, trusted and respected).
They will be the legal services decision makers of
tomorrow. Meet them for lunch a couple of times per
year—make it a priority to stay in touch. Practice
developing client relationships by developing the
contacts and network you currently have.
- Develop and continue to build this A-level group
of contacts—now and throughout your legal career.
These contacts are the key to your future success
in marketing—they will become clients or referral
sources for you and for the firm.
- Think about not just people who could become clients,
but also those who could develop into referral sources
for you.
- Ensure those on your list receive a holiday card
and are added to the firm’s database to receive
what you feel they would be most interested in (newsletters,
seminar invitations, etc.).
Build your Expertise, and Market your Firm!
You can’t market individually until you really
have something to market. Master the practice of law—learn
from the partners with whom you work. During this stage,
however, when you personally don’t have the experience,
you can market the depth of experience of the firm and
its partners. Practice your marketing skills by marketing
the firm. A few additional tips include:
- Acknowledge strategies that will ultimately work
best for you in marketing may not work for the person
sitting next to you. You need to determine what marketing
activities (writing, speaking, networking, etc.) you
really enjoy and build your practice around those
areas.
- Become involved in at least one trade association
in addition to the national, state and county bar
associations—that attract clients in an industry
of interest to you. Go to the events—meet people—volunteer
to serve on a committee. Make a commitment to becoming
a high profile member of at least one non-legal trade
association.
- Learn from the Masters! Solicit advice from the
partners in your firm who have successfully figured
out how to attract new business—learn from the
rainmakers.
- Participate in opportunities you might have with
partners to attend a “real” marketing
luncheon with a client or referral source (Partners:
invite associates to these events with you!).
- Offer to work with a partner to draft an article
for publication.
It is our hope by providing the proper perspective
on how associates can build the foundation upon which
their future marketing efforts will be based, marketing
and client service will become as important to you as
the substantive areas of law you practice. Remember
that by focusing on honing your client service and relationship
building skills, you are best positioning yourself for
your future success in marketing.
Terrie
Wheeler is president of Professional Services
Marketing, Inc., a firm serving the legal industry for
the past ten years with creative and cost-effective
marketing strategies. In addition, PSM offers Your
Personal Marketing Coach program designed to help
lawyers individually build rewarding and lucrative practices.
Ms. Wheeler has a Master of Arts degree in business
and marketing, and prior to founding her company worked
for three large Twin Cities’ law firms as a Marketing
Director. She conducts marketing and client service
training for firms in Minnesota and nationally.
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