Last year was a good year for law firms, especially those in employment law and litigation. Despite the sub-prime debacle, the legal industry as a whole had a respectable profit. The Recorder reported that law firm behemoths Morrison & Foerster and Orrick and Herrington and Sutcliffe each posted 16 percent increases in revenue, to $772 million and $894 million, respectively. Teams of new blood have come in to fill demand. Legal services expand around the globe. Good times, right? Not quite. Warren Buffet is famously quoted as saying, “Be fearful when everyone else is greedy, and greedy when everyone else is fearful.”
 
In the legal field, living like a grasshopper—enjoying the harvest without a care about possible lean times ahead—is a recipe for disaster. Now is the time for law firm marketing and business development measures to be in top shape. Like real estate, the legal field has its ups and downs, ebbs and flows. Don’t take a good run for granted. Use the momentum to solidify existing client relationships and create new ones.
 
It is also a good time to re-evaluate what strategies are in place by the marketing department. Look at what’s working and what isn’t. Are the attorneys the key players, or is the department on a island? What’s the business development strategy? The client retention objectives? When was the last time your firm held training sessions on sales techniques and closing skills? Ask the serious, and sometimes, uncomfortable questions. Hunker down and spread your eggs around the proverbial baskets. And don’t ever get too comfortable.

This entry was posted on Monday, March 3rd, 2008 at 2:34 pm and is filed under Legal Marketing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.