I’m able to write about marketing and building a law practice, provide you with information and resources you want and need, answer your questions, inspire and entertain you, because I have been in your shoes.
I feel your pain (and desires) because I’ve had those pains and desires.
The question is, do your clients believe you can say the same thing about them? Do they believe you feel their pain?
For many attorneys, the answer is “no” because, frankly, they don’t feel their pain. They understand what their clients are going through, but understanding isn’t the same as feeling. And how you feel about your clients is key to how they feel about you.
You can build a practice with good marketing based on features and benefits, offers and outcomes, but business is about people, and how people feel about you is essential to long-term success.
And how they feel about you starts with how they believe you feel about them.
How they feel might not be the reason they hire you initially, but is a big part of the reason they hire you again, and recommend you. Logic and value and outcomes are clearly important, but ultimately, how people feel usually determines what they do.
But this doesn’t mean you have to build relationships with all of your clients, or any of them.
Many attorneys don’t. Their work is transactional. The client hires them; they do the work; they get paid. It’s fair and rational and pays the bills, but take note: building a practice is easier and more fruitful when there is a connection between you and the client that goes beyond the work.
That is the point of client relations, after all.
If you don’t have relationships with your clients (and business contacts), and you want to, start by paying attention. Watch and listen to what they say and do, talk to them about their life and business, and be willing to talk to them about yours.
You may come from different backgrounds, but if you can imagine what it feels like to be in their shoes, you will have a big head start on building a relationship.
