In a cut-throat legal environment, losing clients to other law firms is one of the biggest barriers to growth. But when the basic services you offer are essentially the same as those of your competitors, how do you differentiate yourself to make sure you maintain your current client base and grow it at the same time?
It is essential to develop a competitive edge to gain an advantage over rivals – but what is it about your firm, the way you work or the services you provide that makes you stand out? Is it your exceptional talent? Your innovative, top-of-the-line technology? Your five-star client experience? Whatever your answer is, the question naturally follows: what more could I be doing to punch above my weight and stay ahead? Often, technology is the key.
What makes you different?
Differentiation can take many forms, and the way you use your points of difference to your advantage is critical. For example, you may have true diversity of legal talent at your firm, which can help make you appealing to a broad client base. You may have a particular focus on specific industries or specialisms – making it easy for clients looking for a lawyer in those areas to associate your firm with their requirements.
The way services are offered can also set you apart, and this has been highlighted more than ever since the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Personal service has always mattered in the legal field, but increasingly, clients also want to be able to access self-service options, particularly for simple requests. In a rapidly evolving, technology-driven world where many people continue to work remotely, meeting clients where they are and catering to their needs is vital. That is where the right tech tools play a pivotal role.
Innovation and technology are at the heart of success
Keeping clients happy is essential to retaining them – simple as that. Knowledge sharing, timely and relevant advice and efficient, effective service are at the top of the list for what clients want. Improving responsiveness, increasing productivity by reducing manual and labour-intensive administrative tasks and enabling clients to get the advice and information they need, when they need it, is vital.
At the heart of achieving all of this is having the right technology in place. By implementing well-designed tools to support your business, you offer room for innovation by reducing the need to constantly focus on repetitive, mundane and low-value tasks.
HighQ helps you to automate administrative tasks for improved efficiency, while helping deliver a personalised customer experience through a separate, secure portal for each client, which increases customer satisfaction.
Self-service options allow clients to access billing information, matter status, documents, and files quickly and easily, as well as enabling them to communicate with your firm through secure and compliant channels to make them feel more engaged and creating a sense of trust and loyalty.
Workflows can be automated to reduce manual processes and human error, while colleagues can also collaborate more effectively – all of which streamlines effort and further fuels productivity. The result is faster, more efficient, high-quality service.
Stay ahead of the game
At the end of the day, no two law firms are the same, and no two clients are identical either. So, what does a competitive advantage mean to you? Whatever it looks like, client engagement must be a high priority. Clients today want access to information, visibility into the status of their legal matter, and the ability to interact and collaborate with their lawyers easily to drive results.
What can you do to improve customer engagement and increase your competitive advantage? Explore HighQ’s customer stories to see how other firms have embraced technology to consistently satisfy clients, outperform the competition and find ways to put them ahead of the game.
