Growing your firm in 2022

As we enter a new year, it’s a good time to make a fresh start and review ways to grow your practice. Justin Purcell offers some top tips.

growth business

In today’s economic climate, running a law firm is hard work, and growing that firm is equally challenging. In a nutshell, if you want your practice to grow, you need more clients. To grow your firm, you will need to be proactive, delegate to the right people, adopt new technologies and – above all – develop a business and marketing plan.

Learn to delegate

Delegating can free up significant amounts of your time, giving you the opportunity to plan and work for growth. Delegating can be challenging when you would prefer to do all the tasks yourself, but you won’t be able to grow your practice alone.

Assess your current work tasks, and ask whether you are the one who should be doing them. Come up with a list of questions to ask yourself if you are unsure that a task can be delegated – for example:

  • Can someone else do it adequately and/or faster?
  • How much will it cost for me to complete the task?
  • How much for a staff member to do it?

Create efficient systems

Your practice needs to avoid wasted time and resources, and also create a positive environment for clients and staff. Efficient and clear systems are the answer. For instance, do you have a clear system for commencing new clients and a clear line of responsibilities for staff members?

Hire when the time is right

Without the right people, growing a law firm is an uphill battle. Don’t be afraid to build a team that can support the business, even as the business is growing. Don’t wait until you have too many clients before hiring more staff. As you take on more clients, you need to be proactively hiring or sourcing new talent before you become overloaded with work. In some instances, it may be better to outsource. Using part-timers, freelancers, or consultants can reduce your workload and control your costs.

Use technology

Firms that use and adopt new technologies grow faster. New technologies can also improve automation. Not all delegation means hiring people – you can leverage technology to help you automate or streamline repetitive tasks:

  • Case and accounts systems can help manage clients and streamline routine payments and data entry,
  • Automation tools (such as online scheduling, online intake forms, and e-signatures) can simplify your firm’s client intake process,
  • Virtual receptionists can handle the work of answering client calls,
  • Court diary systems can manage court dates and motion changes, and
  • Dictation tools can help with efficiency.

Invest in marketing and branding

Develop an annual marketing plan and calendar with actions and activities. Daily, weekly, and monthly investment in a content plan and marketing communications is essential. Assign a person in the office to take responsibility for making this happen. Some of these marketing activities may require financial investment in human resources and communications. Develop both online and offline marketing campaigns. Produce content that can be submitted to publications. Your practice needs a clear identity to successfully market it. Ensure that marketing offerings are consistent and regular. Examine whether you have a branding guide, and an effective logo and colour scheme for your firm.

Don’t forget your social media presence. You will need to develop this to be capable of effectively marketing to your target audience. Develop a weekly social media marketing calendar and communications plan. Social media posts should be regular, across a variety of social media platforms, to build your following.

Establish a lead-generation process

With the right strategies, you can set up a system to attract potential clients to your firm through online and offline leads, word of mouth, and referrals. Ultimately, it is essential to convert those potential clients into new clients. Ensure you have clear ‘contact us’ forms and contact details. Be clear on the services that you can offer.

Put yourself out there

You and your staff will need to network in person or online. Never underestimate the power of being friendly and putting yourself on people’s radar. Take time to network with groups and to attend local networking functions. Seek out online networking opportunities via Local Enterprise Offices and chambers of commerce.

Reach out to clients. Being willing to reach out, help (sometimes for free!), and nurture that relationship can be an investment in future firm growth. Call your existing clients and ask them how business is. Be available to talk with them about the business decisions that they’re making. This will help to build your client/practitioner relationship in the longer term and add more value to that relationship. Being proactive with your client relationships is also key when thinking about how to grow your firm. Occasionally call your clients and ask them for a referral or a reference, with the hope of getting an initial consultation.

Be responsive and empathetic

It important to be responsive when existing or potential clients make contact. Try to respond within a 24-hour period. Clients need you to be responsive in order to alleviate their anxiety about their legal matter. Remember that your clients are human – dealing with legal issues is stressful for them. Show that you care. Answer phone calls and emails in a timely fashion. Give clients your mobile number. Try get to know your clients.

Adapt to new opportunities

When focusing on growing your firm, it’s important to be attuned to new opportunities and to adapt accordingly. What growing areas of law is your practice suited to? Do some research and talk to other solicitors and groups about potential new areas. Regularly scan newspapers and articles to see what areas are growing, and consider courses and further learning in these.

Build a network and a culture

You are likely to be more successful if you are able to reach out for help and guidance when you need direction. Talk to other solicitors and to clients, and try to get some mentors.

Likewise, a strong culture, filled with people that you trust, is essential for legal practice growth. Law firms need to have people, working together for an end goal.

Believe in yourself

Taking on the task of growing a law firm is no small feat, so have confidence in yourself and stay focused on your practice – and don’t worry about what your competitors think. Getting more clients, growing your practice, and becoming a success story takes work, strategy, and some luck and determination.

Key points

Much of legal practice growth boils down to strategic delegation. Try creating or updating a business plan, and prioritise marketing to bring in new clients and a system to facilitate growth. Nurture your client relationships, and be proactive and responsive. Don’t be afraid to hire or outsource staff and take advantage of tech to automate tasks where you can.

 

Justin Purcell is the Law Society’s small practice business executive.

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