Practice Development is the lifeblood of any professional services organization. Law firms have rainmakers that have massive books of business that every other attorney or firm is trying to emulate.
Most law firms have a “business development” group however this group is NOT tasked with going out into the marketplace, setting up meetings with GCs or doing any actual revenue generating activities. This group supports internal activities like writing RFPs (not well), market research, putting together marketing materials for pitches, event planning…etc.
The actual practice development is done by each individual attorney by reaching out to potential contacts, writing articles, and speaking at conferences. But… there’s more that needs to be done, especially if you are waiting for the phone to ring with a happy potential client on the other end breathlessly waiting to give you their business. We all wish this fantasy was real.
What ends up happening is when attorneys have high-billable hours numbers and internal administrative demands, practice development becomes a secondary focus. Let’s create a plan that is consistent throughout the year and becomes second nature to you.
What I hear the most is “No one told me I’d have to sell.” “It’s daunting and intimidating to think about creating a book of business for $1-2 million dollars.” “How do I ask for work without ruining my friendships?”
Practice Development on its face sounds easy perhaps even common sense, but in practice it’s challenging to ask your friends and past clients for revenue. If you are a minority or don’t golf or are a woman, you don’t quite fit into “normal” buckets, there are ways to tweak your approach that is uniquely yours. How are you leveraging “diversity” to your benefit?
Sage Ivy can help think through your unique qualities to convert your relationships into revenue. We will help in creating a proactive and second-nature approach to practice development that fits each individual’s needs.
For starters, let’s talk about your current approach, ie: Who are your best clients? Why? What’s your strategy to get more of them? What’s your approach to creating new relationships, like someone you met at a conference? How do you follow-up? Relationship development is part of the process. How to effectively create new ones and revive past relationships. Do you take notes on people you’ve met? What’s your current client tracking system?
Further, let’s uncover your strengths, personality, communication style, introvert/extrovert, social media presence, do you cross-sell, what you like to do within your community, organizations you are a part of, what are your interests outside of the firm…etc. Let’s discover areas and clients you have not thought about to personally assist you.
At Sage Ivy, we have an encompassing approach throughout the cycle from creating a unique plan that fits you, to discussing what worked and what didn’t, to steps on closing a client (What’s your style in pitch meetings?) and lastly, what steps to take to not only keep the client but how to expand that relationship.
Just like law school, this can be a learned skill. So, take the first step into investing into your future success!
Wondering how I can help, give me a call and let’s find out.
2810 Jackson Ave., Suite 12V, Long Island City, NY 11101
201-344-6508
2810 Jackson Ave.
Suite 12V
New York, NY 11101
201-344-6508
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