Client Feedback: What 2021 meant for law firms’ business development efforts

As firms across the globe scrambled to be certain the protection of personnel and sustainability of their functions in the course of the pandemic, their in-residence law departments landed squarely in the middle of novel authorized concerns and obviously looked to dependable external authorized advisors for aid in navigating the uncertain landscape.

Whilst regulation firms’ advertising and marketing and organization improvement departments faced unexpected finances constraints, various bold law firms recognized that this surroundings demanded an even nearer alignment with shoppers than before, and so resumed their formal shopper listening systems as a precedence.

In this two-part web site sequence, we reflect on what has adjusted in client feed-back over the previous numerous months, and then search ahead to how consumer comments will continue on to evolve as skilled relationships develop and adjust in the face of new issues and chances.

The 12 months in review

In excess of the past numerous months, 3 most important traits emerged in customer feed-back relating to how it is executed, what thoughts are requested, and how firms’ shopper feedback methods have shifted:

1. Digital interviewing has energized standard telephone interviews

Distant performing has brought a fresh dynamic to the function as third-party researchers not the very least in the way that they perform interviews with regulation organization clients. Though “Zoom fatigue” was a common problem practically as soon as the time period was coined, rapid adoption of video clip conferencing technologies significantly improved the high quality of the interviews that scientists were being able to carry out.

Whilst a telephone interviewing methodology has been exceptionally successful substitute to in-individual visits for quite a few a long time — as it is extra hassle-free for purchasers to program and far more cost-helpful selection for firms — video conferencing permits the interviewer to set up rapport with respondents more speedily, maybe as a final result of the greater accountability and eye get hold of that arrives about when you’re visible on screen.

Certainly, consumer listening is an physical exercise of trust in between all get-togethers. When shoppers are in a position to see and interact with the interviewer, a extra conversational tone can be struck which results in bigger comfort and ease — and delivers richer insight — than a rigorous interviewing format.

As aspect of their expense in client listening, several regulation corporations selected to place their organization enhancement and internet marketing groups by way of their paces in shopper listening coaching programs, which instruct the abilities wanted to conduct expert top quality shopper interviews. And with remote operating becoming an founded norm, virtual interviewing will turn into second nature to regulation firm business enterprise advancement teams and clientele alike as education evolves to meet up with the desires of a virtual audience.

2. The concern of “value” in a much more shopper-centric paradigm

Shopper suggestions initiatives invariably uncover constructive opinions all around pricing, cost preparations, and worth. While fascination in alternate price preparations has been a characteristic of legislation company consumer comments for quite a few a long time now, these days purchasers have pushed legislation firms to feel outdoors the box in purchase to present more benefit to the connection.

All those regulation corporations which have their finger on the pulse of client demand from customers have started to incorporate issues about how they can include value, in addition to issues that aim additional exclusively on pricing. In simple fact, a straightforward extra concern this sort of as, How could we provide far more price to this romantic relationship? prompts shoppers to replicate on facets of their conversation with a legislation agency husband or wife outside of transactional get the job done. This, in convert, generates insights close to options to do much more as a result of information sharing, instruction systems, and organization initiatives around diversity and widening chance.

This emphasis on so-identified as added price endeavours echoes results from Thomson Reuters’ wider analysis all-around the potential of expert associations, which has found that businesses are now trying to get correct partnerships with their outside the house authorized counsel that align with clients’ values and purpose. This is partly a end result of a very similar force in the talent market, in which businesses are significantly acquiring to show that their lifestyle and mission displays that of existing or prospective staff.

3. A strategic target on vital clients… a missed chance?

For the duration of the pandemic, as shoppers sought out their most reliable relationships, a lot of consumer suggestions initiatives coalesced all around regulation firms’ most strategic shopper associations. When these will usually be important shoppers to check with, the effect on what can be taken from the initiative is obvious: opinions reflects the knowledge of shoppers who are a precedence and so really should acquire a firm’s best endeavours when it will come to legal services supply and partnership administration. Issues lifted by these clients typically stage towards possibility to develop a partnership and — ideally — broaden the connection, which is a powerful demonstration of the likely advantages of client listening.

Narrowing the subject in this way to concentration on essential consumers can, even so, hinder a firm’s means to gather responses from a additional agent sample of purchasers which must include things like smaller sized, newer, and even lapsed customers. These companies chance lacking the opportunity to uncover fundamental difficulties elsewhere in the firm or chances to expand a tiny customer with excellent progress probable basically mainly because these purchasers are not remaining asked.

For illustration, one legislation company uncovered an prospect to not only conserve but considerably expand an present connection upon obtaining and acting on adverse comments relating to a certain location of the company. Although this kind of responses may make for complicated looking through, it can establish to be among the most valuable insights to receive — supplied a business is dedicated to act on the benefits by devising a answer and putting it into motion quickly.

All legislation corporations must study a huge range of their consumer base to guarantee they are accounting for the sights of their foreseeable future vital clientele as well as today’s present roster of purchasers.

In the next part of this collection, we will glance at how shopper responses will carry on to evolve in 2022 and further than.