Friday, April 26, 2013

Tune Up Sign 7: Up and Coming Rainmakers?

It is unclear which of the firm’s associates will be the firm’s next generation of rainmakers.

What does this indicate?

If true, this indicates the lack of an effective business development training and coaching process for associates. In addition, it can indicate the presence of overly burdensome hour requirements, poor communication in the firm, lack of an effective mentoring program, or confusion as to the activities and habits which produce the best results.

Firms that pay attention to succession and long term growth tend to invest early and continuously in the success of their associates. Regular training, mentoring and open communication about the skill development of the associates enables firm leadership to identify the associates which will be the next generation of rainmakers. Identifying and supporting the next generation of rainmakers is especially important in a firm who’s senior, rainmaking partners are nearing retirement age.

This is the seventh in a ten part series explaining signs that indicate that your firm or personal marketing program could use a tune up.

Tomorrow: What does Exit Panic indicate?
 
As always, if I can help you fix the ‘kinks’ in your business development, give Eric a call at 502-693-4731. You’ll find that I am an eager resource and that it costs nothing to talk.

Thursday, April 25, 2013

Tune Up Sign 6: Low Client Expansion

Successful client expansion initiatives (proactive efforts to increase the number of practice areas a client uses) have occurred in less than 10% of the firm’s clients.

What does this indicate?

If true, this indicates a lack of a formal cross marketing program and training. It may also indicate low trust levels among attorneys, a high incidence of one-off matters, a poor understanding of the practice synergies between practice groups and/or poor communication between practice groups.

Cross marketing and entrenching client relationships is the low hanging fruit for firm growth. Often there are inherent obstacles to successful cross selling built into the cultures of many firms which must be removed before the culture fully adopts the transparency and teamwork required in cross marketing among attorneys and practice areas. If your firm struggles with effective cross marketing, it is worth examining these obstacles and training the attorneys in effective cross marketing initiatives.

This is the sixth in a ten part series explaining signs that indicate that your firm or personal marketing program could use a tune up.

Tomorrow: What does not knowing your next rainmakers indicate?
 
As always, if I can help you fix the ‘kinks’ in your business development, give Eric a call at 502-693-4731. You’ll find that I am an eager resource and that it costs nothing to talk.

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

Tune Up Sign 5: Kissing Up, Kicking Down

Hearing your culture described as ‘kissing up, kicking down’ makes you chuckle nervously or groan in agreement.

What does this indicate?

If true, this may indicate a counterproductive hyper-competitiveness in the firm. It may also indicate incentive systems which are too narrowly structured or which do not reward equally for the various contributions to the firm. It may also indicate cultures which put too great of an emphasis on the recommendations of key leaders and too little on peer level reviews. Lastly, this could indicate a lack of communication among the various levels of attorneys in the firm to address social and personal development issues in the firm.

Hyper competitiveness in law firms results in lower revenue growth, structural fragility, reduced morale and increased attorney churn. In today’s economy and changing client expectations, this type of eat-what-you-kill structure can actually do more damage than good.

This is the fifth in a ten part series explaining signs that indicate that your firm or personal marketing program could use a tune up.



Tomorrow: What does low client expansion indicate?
As always, if I can help you fix the ‘kinks’ in your business development, give Eric a call at 502-693-4731. You’ll find that I am an eager resource and that it costs nothing to talk.

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Tune Up Sign 4: Random Acts of Marketing

You can characterize the client development efforts of your non-rainmaker partners as ‘random acts of lunch, travel and chicken dinners’.

What does this indicate?

If true, this indicates an underdeveloped understanding in the firm as to which activities are the most productive initiatives in which the firm should participate. It may also indicate a lack of focus or decision making accountability, compensation systems which reward business development activity more so than results, or a lack of business development training.

Optimizing business development in law firms begins with ensuring the activities undertaken make sense, are fully optimized to ensure their effectiveness and likely to produce results. Activities as basic as attending conferences, public speaking and sponsorships, among others, all have strategies which can improve their effectiveness. Basic instruction in how to maximize these activities can pay off handsomely down the road.

This is the fourth in a ten part series explaining signs that indicate that your firm or personal marketing program could use a tune up.


Tomorrow: What does 'kissing up, kicking down' indicate?
As always, if I can help you fix the ‘knocks’ in your business development, give Eric a call at 502-693-4731. You’ll find that I am an eager resource and that it costs nothing to talk.

Monday, April 22, 2013

Tune Up Sign 3: Low Referral Volume


You rarely receive referrals from peer attorneys or clients.


What does this indicate?

If true, this indicates the lack of a structured referral management program in the firm and training in how to request referrals from peer attorneys and clients. It may also indicate a poor understanding of how referrals work, how to position attorney practices and the use of specialization and niche practices.

Referrals are the coinage of an attorney’s practice. Yet many firms do not specifically instruct attorneys in the best way to generate referrals. There is an art and a science to generating referrals and the more attorneys understand the psychology and behaviors of referral generation, the sooner attorneys will generate more of their work through referrals and less through expensive investments in other marketing tactics.

This is the third in a ten part series explaining signs that indicate that your firm or personal marketing program could use a tune up.


Tomorrow: What do 'random acts of marketing' indicate?
As always, if I can help you fix the ‘knocks’ in your business development, give Eric a call at 502-693-4731. You’ll find that I am an eager resource and that it costs nothing to talk.