11 Ways Lawyers Can Broaden Their Client Base and Get More Business by Stefanie Marrone
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was talking to a lawyer recently who shared with me a story I hear too often. His client’s longtime in-house legal team changed when the general counsel left his role. My client was left odd-man-out when the new in-house counsel arrived and brought in his own favorite law firm. Unfortunately, this lawyer hadn’t developed close relationships within the organization beyond the legal team and his main contact, so there was no one to advocate for him to stay on. He was phased out, and as a result he had a difficult 2021. It didn’t need to be like that. If only he had planned ahead. Have you heard the saying don’t put all your eggs in one basket? Well, it’s especially true for business professionals, especially lawyers. Diversification of your client base is crucial for lawyers. Don’t rely on one or two clients for all your work, because change happens within organizations and to organizations every day. People leave companies, needs change, mergers happen. Companies go out of business. You just never know. It’s so important to also make sure that you’re building relationships with many different people at your client organization—not just your main contact—because, again, if one person leaves the organization, you don’t want to be left in the lurch. Although word-of-mouth referrals will always remain one of the most powerful means of attracting new clients, it is out of your control as to ‘when’ these referrals might happen. This is exactly why I always say it’s so important to be marketing yourself and your business even when you don’t think you need it, because anything can happen. This is also how LinkedIn can help you because it’s such a visible and free way of marketing your capabilities and expertise.
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Attorney Journals San Diego | Volume 224, 2022
Speaking and writing can also help you, as well as networking and sending regular emails that are helpful to your clients and referrals. That’s how you keep them warm and that’s how you stay top of mind with them. Here are a few ways to broaden your client base: 1. Make networking a priority. Mix business development into your existing activities. Look through your address book and get back in touch with clients with whom you haven’t done business in a while. Then reach out to referral sources beyond your immediate network. Ask current clients to refer you to others who could use your services. 2. Do a website audit. Make sure the content on the site is client centric. The more you talk about yourself, the more you will turn people off. The more you talk about your clients, the more you will engage them. Make sure your site is optimized for mobile viewing as smartphones now account for fully 70% of total time spent on digital media. Add and edit existing pages and show prospective clients your knowledge about the problems they are facing by creating content that showcases your expertise. If your website doesn’t already feature client testimonials, now is a good time to add those. Case studies highlighting how your company helped clients can attract new business. You can pull some of these from your LinkedIn profile recommendations. 3. Establish a presence as a thought leader through content marketing. Use blog posts, articles, videos, and podcasts to demonstrate subject-matter expertise in your field while improving your Google search results. Value-added content provides you with useful
