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The First 7 Quick Hits to Business Development

Written by Allan Colman on . Posted in Attorney Marketing, Client Retention, Law Firm Leadership, Practice Group Leaders.

For those clients who ask us for immediate client targeting, managing, contacting, meeting, training and evaluation, we work with them to:

A. Build additional services into current engagements;
B. Consult recent clients;
C. Target new lead sources who should be using your firm;
D. Revisit clients who have NOT selected your firm;
E. Customize your initial approaches, proposal options, etc.
F. Gather and prioritize input from your colleagues.

Note that most of these first “quick hits” focus on those who know you, clients and significant prospects. In the next column, we’ll add to this list. Go to www.closersgroup.com/services to learn more.

In 2015, Will You Have Tunnel Vision or FUNNEL VISION? 6 More Questions

Written by Allan Colman on . Posted in Attorney Marketing, Business Development, Law Firm Marketing, Marketing for Law Firms, Practice Group Leaders.

In our last column, the first 4 questions were presented to really understand your firm’s business development future. Here are the other 6 priorities.

5. Is your firm conducting “tactical” business development training sessions?
6. Do you provide a format for building a long term pipeline of leads and opportunities?
7. Have you maximized the impact of proposals and pitches?
8. Does your firm leadership complete a success/rejection analysis of past pitches and proposals?
9. Are you actively measuring and reporting results?
10. Is your firm closing new business at the needed rate?

Our rapid Strategic Business Plan service continues to be available. Schedule a call.

COMBAT COACHING

Written by Allan Colman on . Posted in Allan Colman, Attorney Marketing, Law Firm Leadership, Law Firm Marketing, Practice Group Leaders.

At the Closers Group, we talk a lot about our CLOSING ZONE approach to business development. We focus on the importance of having your strategies and tactics practiced and ready so that, when you meet face to face with prospects, you’ll be ready to close the sale. Marketing Guru Jay Abraham calls this
COMPETITIVE COMBAT COACHING. It is considered to be a professional but more aggressive and productive way of looking at growing successes.

As the competition for legal services intensifies and client budgets fight to stay stable as time goes on, doesn’t it make sense to look within your organization and build on what you already have? In the next blog, we’ll examine the first 5 tactics we employ to strengthen business development efforts.

9 KEYS TO GROWING NEW BUSINESS – Your Elevator Pitch

Written by Allan Colman on . Posted in Allan Colman, Asking for Business, Attorney Marketing, Business Development, Law Firm Marketing, Marketing for Law Firms, Practice Group Leaders.

You now know the 5 questions to ask in order to improve your Elevator Pitch. Now you have to use it! Here are some “platforms” that may not have occurred to you. Give it :
1. To another parent on the playground or at the dog park;
2. At a charitable or business dinner where others at your table are business professionals;
3. At the first meeting with a new client;
4. To the person sitting next to you on an airplane;
5. In the courtroom hallway;
6. At the car wash;
7. At your church or temple;
8. At the supermarket;
9. Any time you have about 60 seconds to speak to another person.

Once you get the hang of it and achieve a comfort level talking to people you meet daily, you will find more opportunities to deliver your pitch. AND, don’t forget to provide an opportunity for people you meet to deliver their own elevator speeches.

www.allancolman.com

8 Essential Business-Growth Questions

Written by Allan Colman on . Posted in Allan Colman, Asking for Business, Attorney Marketing, Law Firm Marketing, Marketing for Law Firms, Practice Group Leaders.

Here are the first 3 of the questions you must ask yourself and your team if you expect to have an impact on growing business. They are not the usual questions you may have heard before.

1. WHERE do you currently fit into the organization’s structure and how decisions are currently being made?

2. WHO are the people to build relationships with? You can’t be all things to all people, including those who are competing with you.

3. WHAT communication media and methods are available to you to sell your message? Internally, look for opportunities to get face-to-face. Externally, know where they go, what they read, where they play, what community or non-profit groups they are involved with, and see them there!

Our next column will tackle questions 4-6.

Go to our services page for more detail at www.closersgroup.com/services.

2015 – WILL YOU DEVELOP NEW BUSINESS?

Written by Allan Colman on . Posted in Attorney Marketing, Business Development, Law Firm Leadership, Managing Partners, Marketing for Law Firms, Practice Group Leaders.

Is your firm really ready to grow new business next year? All too often we find firms where their lawyers are ready to go but the firm’s support structure inhibits growth. Our new BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT RAPID ASSESSMENT provides an overview for a firm, practice area or office of:

* What is currently effective?
* What is not utilized?
* How to enhance impact?

Within 2 weeks of your completing 15 confidential questions, our Group will provide a strategic analysis focusing on maximizing your firm’s current Marketing and Business Development:

* Structure;
* Assets;
* Underperforming assets;
* Underutilized opportunities;
* Business Growth enhancements.

A confidential written Assessment will be returned to you within 2 weeks and includes a conference call or in-person meeting. Following that discussion, we will provide a timeline with specific tactics to build new business, grow prospects and begin establishing a long-term pipeline.

For a minimal fee, your firm, practice area or office will have a STRATEGIC BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT ACTION PLAN for 2015.

Click on the “contact us” button on this website, or send to acolman@closersgroup.com.

PRACTICE GROUP LEADERS – "Know Thy Client" II.

Written by Allan Colman on . Posted in Allan Colman, Asking for Business, Attorney Marketing, Law Firm Leadership, Marketing for Law Firms, Practice Group Leaders.

In addition to the 6 questions from our last column, we urge practice group leaders to ask their group members these additional 5 .

7. Have they asked ahead of time who else will be at the meeting?

8. Do you and your colleagues offer clients periodic review meetings re: budgets, billing, timeliness of engagement process, format for sending reports in non-legalese to management?

9. Do they know “clients’ pain? what keeps them up at night?

10. Have they asked how the retention decision will be made?

11. How many prospects do they have in their pipeline.

For more clues to make your practice group successful, go to www.ownthezonebook.com

Practice Group Leaders – "Know Thy Client"

Written by Allan Colman on . Posted in Allan Colman, Asking for Business, Attorney Marketing, Business Development, Law Firms, Marketing for Law Firms, Practice Group Leaders.

When working with Practice Group Leaders, we have a group of questions they need to ask their colleagues. From the answers, we help them build a more successful business growth program.

1. Do they know who the final decision maker is?
2. Do they know what other competitive firms/companies their clients and prospects are using?
3. What is the last time the client/prospect hired a new firm?
4. Do you know how they prefer to communicate, by phone, email or report?
5. What has been done recently to build the relationship?

More questions in the next column or go to page 90 in OWN THE ZONE for the complete list.

PRATICE GROUP LEADERS – Is Your Group Asking For Business?

Written by Allan Colman on . Posted in Allan Colman, Asking for Business, Attorney Marketing, Law Firm Leadership, Managing Partners, Marketing for Law Firms, Practice Group Leaders.

Your competitors are asking for new business. Is your team?

Is your group bringing in new business from clients and prospects?

Are they selling but not seeing results?

Where are their opportunities?

Can they be expanded?

Do they really know how to communicate effectively with their prospects?

Go to our new website’s Services page for tips and tactics – and download a free chapter of

OWN THE ZONE.

PRACTICE GROUP LEADERS — The 4 Most Important Questions to Ask

Written by Allan Colman on . Posted in Asking for Business, Attorney Marketing, Law Firm Leadership, Managing Partners, Marketing for Law Firms, Practice Group Leaders.

If you are or about to be named head of a practice group in your firm, and are tasked with making Business Development a top priority, here are 4 questions that must be asked, answered and acted upon.

1. Do you have underperforming assets?
2. Where are the overlooked opportunities?
3. Can you find hidden assets?
4. Is your group undervaluing relationships?

Law firm managing partners, practice group leaders and partners-in-charge of offices will find that bringing rigor to answering these questions will chart a direct path to growing your business. Our STRATEGIC ACTION PROGRAMS are designed to help answer these questions and bring rapid success and will new business.