Educating Your Attorneys on the Value of Business Development, Marketing and CRM

Transcription

1 Educating Your Attorneys on the Value of Business Development, Marketing and CRM Maura Brandt, Chief Marketing Officer Miller & Chevalier Deborah Holt, President DH Training & Technology Consulting Rachael Loper, Client Service Manager Nixon Peabody

2 Agenda Law firm business development, what is it? Guiding lawyers to solutions to their business development needs Using technology to make business development initiatives more targeted and more effective Specific technologies that add real value to business and client development strategies IT and Business Development working together

3 What Is Law Firm Business Development? Developing a client relationship with a prospect Expanding a relationship with an existing client Knowing what clients need and want Marketing or sales. What s the difference? Marketing creates an impression in the minds of your buyers Sales is the process of uncovering and endeavoring to fulfill a buyer s specific needs

4 One Size Doesn t Fit All Determine your lawyers business development styles Trusted Advisor - The role many lawyers strive to play Finders - the movers and shakers Minders - budding rainmakers Grinders - technical specialists What paths do they follow to form strong relationships? What s in it for me? Getting lawyers to share Customize your support to fit the needs and approach of the lawyer

5 What Lawyers Need to Know How to stay current with regard to his/her clients and their needs The firm s client base, practice developments, and capabilities Which information can help them start the conversation with the client or prospect and how to get it How to make the best sales call Here s where coaching helps

6 Data, Data, Data Categories of information Firm data Client and prospect data Market data Opportunities for slicing and presenting the data Change at the client merger, sale, someone new at the top Changes in the industry stimulus funds, bankruptcy Changes in the firm new laterals or a full-blown merger

7 Targeted Communication How are you measuring the value of your communications? Use these metrics to demonstrate the value of targeted communications Report back to teams, practice groups and management Make sure you know your jurisdiction s bar rules Rule 7.3 Direct Contact With Prospective Clients (a) A lawyer shall not by in-person, live telephone or real-time electronic contact solicit professional employment from a prospective client when a significant motive for the lawyer's doing so is the lawyer's pecuniary gain, unless the person contacted: (1) is a lawyer; or (2) has a family, close personal, or prior professional relationship with the lawyer.

8 CRM Your Go To Tool Deliver the right message CRM is a practice support, client service and business development work smarter tool Relate it to other industries that utilize CRM CRM is the firm s internal Google It s all about the content Identify key workflow and business development questions to ask attorneys Focus on each attorney s business development goals Easy access to contact intelligence and business development reports

9 CRM Increasing Participation Work with leadership to understand ongoing goals and plans Practice Group education Have practice group leaders promote, use and demo CRM to their practice groups Demonstrate the value with real-world examples Be aware of new developments & initiatives Deliver short, targeted training sessions Continuous, consistent reinforcement

10 Other Technologies That Support Business Development Deals and experience databases RFP generator or database Intranet Webinars and teleconferences Newsletter delivery systems Internal Tikit, home grown Hosted Concep, Exact Target

11 Where Does *IT* Fit In? IT can help build and support a business development program They need to understand the strategic goals of the firm Marketing needs to develop a collaborative relationship with IT Technical support - Who s job is it? Collaboration among IT HR, Library, KM, CI, others

12 Wrapping Up Keep it simple. Tap into technology Customize your approach Demonstrate results and promote your success!

13 Thank you! Maura Brandt, Deborah Holt, Rachael Loper,