The transition from student to professional life can be a complicated process. It is common to hear the concern of recently graduated professionals when facing the difficulty of attracting clients or finding a job in a Law tutors. There is even a paradoxical situation: young professionals seek experience to develop themselves but law firms are only interested in lawyers with already acquired experience.
To resolve this situation, it is necessary to make yourself known, market yourself. It is clear that the best marketing is exceptional customer service. But what do you do when you have not had the opportunity to serve clients to demonstrate the quality of the service?
This questioning is what motivates this editorial. Starting from the approach: How to attract clients?, 4 key steps are presented to begin the construction of one of the most important assets of any service company: its clients.
Customer acquisition, also known as Rainmaking, is an art. As such, it must be learned. In this edition, based on multiple books and articles, four essential elements are proposed to achieve effective Rainmaking.
STEP 1: CREDIBILITY
Credibility is the cornerstone for attracting customers. This must be built on two main axes, credibility as a professional and credibility as a person.
As a professional, credibility is achieved with training. The lawyer must demonstrate to his colleagues in the profession that he is at his level, that he has the knowledge and tools, theoretical and technical, to perform his work with excellence. Experience must be added to this knowledge, this is not acquired over the years, it is acquired with the work done; Therefore, to develop professional experience it is necessary to work as much as possible. In this process it is important to have adequate direction, so having a mentor is highly recommended.
As for credibility as a person, it is a question of integrity and consistency. In many cases, the lawyer becomes a partner of his clients, he becomes a trustworthy, integrated and reliable person.
STEP 2: IMAGE
An excellent legal professional once said “the habit does not make the monk… but it distinguishes him.” As a professional, when entering a meeting for example, his image should project that he is the lawyer, not the owner. This is why on certain occasions casual Friday is not recommended, much less other casual days.
Furthermore, if you want the office to stand out in a particular branch, it is necessary to reflect it, project it without the need for words. For example, if you were dedicated to commercial matters, the office and its image must evoke a commercial environment; If you are dedicated to renewable energy issues, recycle in your office, show the ways in which you make your energy consumption more efficient. In short, your image must convey a clear message that allows the client to associate it with the profession and, if possible, with the particular issues that you address.
STEP 3: SERVICE
This is the most important point of all. The main elements of service in the exercise of the legal profession should be, mainly, integrity, the establishment of clear rules and the search for client peace of mind; Differentiate the output (the legal results in favor of the client) from the outcomes that the client really receives (trust, peace of mind, etc.).
Regarding integrity, the lawyer must advise the client in a professional and responsible manner; The priority is not to charge for a service to make money, but to fulfill the commitment that has been made with the client.
The integrity of the professional generates loyalty in the client; Rather than charging for work done, it is better to keep a client who will bring more work. Finally, the caveat must be made that not all people who seek the services or to whom it is highly recommended.
As for clear rules, there are three essential elements that the client needs to be fully aware of, these are: times, risks and fees and expenses.
Finally, the result of good service is customer peace of mind. When he can rest easy because he knows that his lawyer will take care of his affairs, then good service has been delivered. This shows that the lawyer is the client’s trusted person, and as such he must honor him with the same constancy.
STEP 4: MARKETING
In an article it was published that, for a lawyer, “out of sight” equals “out of mind.” That is, if a lawyer wants the client to think about him for his legal services, this must be present in his mind, not daily, but he must remember it.
This is achieved through extraordinary service that transcends what was requested and exceeds expectations, then consistency is added, which distinguishes it from the rest.
In this way, a reputation is established that spreads through referrals from third parties, finally achieving the positioning of the professional and his or her brand.
On the other hand, professional positioning is reinforced by being present in the media, attending conferences, teaching courses, publishing articles, having a presence in directories, among others.