When you own a small law firm, you’re practicing law and running a business. And what every successful small-business professional knows is that it’s several times more profitable to retain customers than to attract new ones. Furthermore, Bain & Company, a global management consulting firm says:

• Repeat customers refer 50 percent more people than one-time buyers.
• By increasing customer retention by just 5%, profitability increases an average of 75 percent.

Granted, you may not want a client to come back through your door given their legal situation, but you definitely want them to eagerly provide a referral. Consider these tips to ensure your clients are so happy that if they don’t return, they definitely send work your way again and again.

1. Build and protect your reputation.

Make the most of your skill and talent, and think about how you want to be perceived in the legal community. For instance, do you want to be viewed as:

• A professional and challenging litigator who opposing parties dread going up against?
• A cooperative yet tenacious mediator who rebuilds burned bridges?
• A legal expert who provides exceptional value by making the most of every penny clients invest?
• A combination of these?

As you work with clients, judges, prosecutors and opposing counsel, always keep in mind how you are enhancing or detracting from that reputation.

2. Communicate regularly and well.

This can be challenging, especially if you’re a solo attorney with little support. So manage expectations.  Find out what type of communication the client prefers and how often they expect it. Make sure you can meet those expectations and if you can’t, provide a reasonable alternative.

If you get a call or text from a client and can’t respond, let them know when you’ll get back to them. Are you going to be tied up in court all afternoon, for instance, and will not be able to respond to anyone until the next day? Create a voicemail greeting, an automated text and email response to explain that.

Probably the easiest way to enhance communication is through a secure client portal. These encrypt communication so you can securely exchange messages and documents. Clients can log into it anytime they want to review the status of their case without having to reach out to you. By the way, a client portal is a must-have tool for any lawyer who wants to have a reputation for being highly professional and technologically savvy.

3. Genuinely care.

Even the most stellar lawyers will leave clients cold if they don’t demonstrate a personal touch. The smallest gesture can make a huge difference. Ask them about their family, recall a personal detail they shared or let them vent about their case. Periodically check in to make sure they’re happy with how you’re handling their matter.

4. Send detailed invoices.

You don’t have to say a word to share with clients the time and effort that went into their cases. You just need to send them a detailed invoice. It’s the ideal tool to:

• Demonstrate your value.
  Instead of using general statements such as “conduct research” or “attended a mediation” to describe the time you invested in their case, provide context to help clients appreciate the effort that went into the research or mediation. Furthermore, detail everything you and your team did behind the scenes to move the case forward, regardless of whether you’re charging them for it.
• Build trust.
  When clients can see, at a glance, how you leveraged their investment in you, the transparency will assure them of your integrity and honesty.
• Maintain your reputation
  If clients don’t understand your charges, it could be detrimental to your reputation. According to ABA Model Rule 1.4, attorneys have a mandatory ethical duty to clearly explain fees to clients. To do this, you should avoid legal jargon and send your invoices in a timely fashion to avoid confusion for the client.

5. Thank them

A global benchmarking study revealed that approximately 7 out of 10 customers leave because of perceived indifference.  Fortunately, it doesn’t take much to let clients know you appreciate them. Tell them outright, send a handwritten note, or just send an email.  

While these are just a handful of ways to keep clients referring and returning, some lawyers may still think they’re just way too busy to deal with it. My advice is to make time, because acquiring new client business is a big challenge for small law firms and as I mentioned before retaining customers is a more cost effective strategy than attracting new clients.

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Amy Larson is a Director in Small Law Firm Customer Marketing and Firm Central at Thomson Reuters. She has over 17 years of experience in technology marketing with extensive focus on learning how technology can meet the needs of attorneys. Amy has been involved in numerous product launches throughout her tenure, public relations efforts, interviewing customers and telling their stories, and often writes and distributes information on legal practice management.

[1] Klein, Karen E. “Building Customer Relations by Listening,” Bloomberg, June 1, 2007.