Starting a Law Firm | Networking to Get Clients

If there is one constant in any law firm, whether just starting out or established for decades, it is the need for new business. In almost any circumstance, current clients, although possibly returning for services at a later date, will only need your services for a short amount of time (or for a limited need). Once a project or conflict is resolved, then the client moves on and you are left needing a new client.

Getting clients to your new law firm in most cases is not that hard. There is, however, a right way and a wrong way to do (or at least a way that is much more efficient and successful than many others). In almost all cases it involves that ambiguous term called "networking." I say ambiguous because there are many different philosophies related to networking.

Because I want my law firm to be successful, and I want my clients to be representative of me, I have been trying to learn all I can about how to find and then sign up the perfect clients for my new law firm. One of my resources is a book by Stephanie Palmer called "Good in a Room: How to Sell Yourself (and Your Ideas) and Win Over any Audience."

Good in a Room takes a novel approach to networking, based on the author's experiences in the film industry listening to movie screenplay pitches. By hearing over 3,000 pitches, Palmer began to notice some things that worked and did not work, and then took those insights and created this book about networking in general. Although there are chapters on running the perfect meeting (where you are pitching your services) there are also chapters on things like good places to network (not a chamber of commerce meeting), good places and the correct way to pitch your services to someone (not an elevator) and much much more.

A lot of what Palmer has to say translates to starting a law firm and I plan to integrate most of her practices and suggestions.

I'd highly recommend this book to all attorneys responsible for bringing in business, whether well established or just starting out. Building true relationships is the key, not handing out as many business cards as you can. Take a look at this book if you are starting a small law firm. It will not disappoint.

Related Posts:

Starting a Law Firm | Getting Clients

Starting a Law Firm | Challenges of Signing up Clients

Starting a Law Firm | Marketing in a New Way