Do The Work, Get The Work

Law Firm Client Relations: How To Get Client Feedback That You Can Use

Existing clients can provide valuable information about your law firm and the legal services you provide.

lawyer-technology-legal-tech-300x207Existing clients can provide valuable information about your law firm and the legal services you provide. Tapping into that information can help you improve your business and attract more clients. At Smokeball, we love to hear from our clients based on their experience with us or the support they just received from our team. We find it valuable to continue providing our clients the best experience by getting feedback from them whenever we can. Let’s take a look at how you can get client feedback that can take your business to the next level.

Ask The Right Questions

When seeking feedback from clients, you must ask the type of questions that will give you insight into your practice. Below are just a few examples.

Why did you choose our law firm? Finding out the client’s motivation behind working with you is important. That motivation can help you understand what about your law firm stands out. For example, someone who chooses you because of your low fees may have a different perspective than someone who chooses you because you were highly recommended by a friend or business colleague. It’s important that you uncover the overwhelming motivating factor for clients when they choose you.

How did we meet or exceed your expectations? This question will help you understand where you really shine and are valued for.  For example, if most clients say that you exceeded their expectations in how quickly you resolved their legal issues, then that’s something you may want to emphasize when marketing to new customers.

In what areas do you think we need improvement? Many lawyers are cautious about asking for negative feedback. The fear of opening up Pandora’s Box of negativity is strong. But if you don’t ask, there’s really no way to find out the truth. Unless things have gone terribly wrong with a client, most people are not going to bring up any negative feedback. You may think this is a good thing, but it’s not. You need to get negative feedback so that you can identify areas of weakness then aim to improve them.

Would you recommend us to others? One of the most important questions you can ask when seeking feedback is if the client would recommend you to others. If the answer is no, it’s definitely a sign that something went terribly wrong with the interaction. Your goal should be to win repeat business and referrals which is the best way to grow your law firm.

Collecting Data

As easy as it may seem to get feedback from clients, it can be a real challenge. People may feel that they don’t have time or the energy to provide feedback so you want to make it as easy as possible. Below are a few ways you can get feedback from clients.

Exit Interview – Once a client has ended their relationship with you, conduct and exit interview where they answer the basic feedback questions. These conversations can take place over the phone or face-to-face, but they should never take more than about 15 – 20 minutes.

Online Survey – Once you near the end of your case, ask the client to fill out an online survey. There are many easy and free to use online survey tools such as Survey Monkey. And it’s easy to include a link to the online survey in any email communication you have with the client. You can also make the survey anonymous just in case the client is shy about candidly sharing critical feedback.

Paper survey – It’s also possible to include a short, paper survey the size of a large postcard. They’re more expensive (printing and postage) but can be just as effective as electronic or verbal surveys.

Get the data you need about your law firm, make getting client feedback a part of your process.

Don’t be shy to ask for feedback, you will never know until you start giving the option to your clients to provide you with some feedback.

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Smokeball - Lynn_ProfessionalLynn Luong is the Digital Marketing Manager for Smokeball, a case management software that increases productivity and efficiency for solo attorneys  and small law firms to become more profitable.  Lynn has over 8 years of experience in marketing with a focus on digital by developing successful strategies and managing many areas of marketing.

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