Software developers have long been focused on customer-centered innovation, continuously improving the user experience (UX). Lawyers looking to improve their law firm growth strategy should consider doing the same, creating the best possible client experience by leveraging the latest legal tech. This legal experience (LX) is the sum of all interactions a client has with your law firm – the entire journey – from hearing about your firm to closing their case. An improved LX enhances client relationships and leads to internal efficiencies that improve the bottom line.
Legal practice management software enhances LX by providing a constantly connected communication pathway between the legal team and the office, improving that connection and the client. When coupled with the automation of common administrative tasks, such as document creation and calendaring, these tools keep clients engaged throughout the legal process, increasing their overall satisfaction while driving internal efficiency and cost-effectiveness for your firm.
How to grow your law firm using client-innovation techniques
The challenges of 2020 fundamentally altered how the world works. Increases in remote working arrangements, virtual meetings, and flexible work hours combine to create a need for new and improved applications and technologies.
And while internal upgrades to processes and workflows are crucial, clients want to feel heard and taken care of at the end of the day, and if those improvements aren’t felt downstream by clients, there should be a concern.
Growth comes from establishing and maintaining client relationships
Innovative, client-centric firms understand that bottom-line growth flows from long-lasting client relationships. These firms focus on two questions:
- What does our client actually expect from the legal experience?
- What tools and processes can we use to provide the best possible client LX most efficiently and profitably?
From large, sophisticated corporations to startups, mid-sized businesses, and solo practices, almost all legal clients share certain expectations. They want the LX to be simple, responsive, and open to communication with their attorneys. They want cost-effective solutions. And, of course, they desire success.
Client-centric firms focus on maximizing satisfaction at every step along the way, not just on the final result. By adequately managing all stages of the client LX, and managing expectations, you’ll minimize client dissatisfaction. Attentively ensuring a positive, productive experience working with your firm and people, you stand a better chance of maintaining the relationship-building solid, long-lasting relationships, often independent of case resolutions.
Innovating around the client’s legal experience
The pandemic presented law firms with an ideal opportunity to rethink every step in the client’s legal experience. Firms are already finding ways to work efficiently with remote workforces. Can they leverage innovative solutions to meet the needs of a more diverse and remote workforce while also improving client LX?
Absolutely. Cloud-based practice management solutions and client portals help streamline the LX, create engagement with the client and simplify collaboration while also creating efficiencies for the firm, whether accessed from the office, at home, or on the road. More productive, efficient work is more satisfying and more profitable. And, as well all know, more engaged clients are more satisfied clients. It’s a win-win.
So, what makes legal practice management solutions effective, efficient and engaging? Well, for starters, they need to be:
- Widely accessible
- Simple to use
- Easily integrated with existing tools
- Useful for communication and collaboration with clients
- Always reliable
- Highly secure
Practice management solutions make improving client LX simple
Let’s see how CARET Legal meets the requirements mentioned above.
Anytime, anywhere access
Being cloud-based, CARET Legal is available on the go and anywhere there is an internet connection, so accessibility is never an issue; it is designed with security in mind. It benefits from extensive cybersecurity features and multiple data redundancy levels that ensure that data is well-protected against both hackers and disasters.
Simple case and matter management
Creating new matters is a simple task in CARET Legal. Once a matter is up and running, it is equally simple to utilize the client portal to share information and collaborate on documents. This is perhaps the vital area for client focus. Clients require effective and timely communication about their legal matters, whether case deadlines or case budgets. It’s an effective way to collaborate on documents easily and effectively, with 24/7 access.
When clients can effortlessly access information independently, they have less of a need to contact their legal team. This streamlines overall communication, minimizes tedious back-and-forth, and reduces potential dissatisfaction from an unanswered call or email response that takes longer than the client prefers.
Document management and automation
The attorney decides what to share with their clients, but clients have a secure entry point where they can view documents, upload documents, view appointment details, and communicate with their legal team in an encrypted and far more secure environment than email or Dropbox.
Besides, document collaboration is easily accessible from within the portal. When you notify the client that a document is available for review, they simply log in to the portal, check out the document, make any changes and send the document back for your consideration.
Simplified billing and payments
Clients also have easy access to billing and payments through the portal. Making all information about a matter available in one location reduces burdens on the client. Easily track billable time against clients and cases with to invoice, and utilize integrated payment processing to help your clients make online payments with a click of a button.
Now there is no longer a need to call the lead attorney about a date, email an associate about a document or call accounting about a bill. Plus, with payment online, collections are simple, straightforward, and transparent.
Applying customer-focused innovation
Amid the chaos, there is also opportunity. Challenging times require different solutions, but they also offer opportunities to innovate in new and valuable ways. Applying a client-centric focus to your law firm growth strategy, implementing practice management tools, and automating some of your firm’s traditionally manual processes will enhance the client’s legal experience, improve your relationships with them and grow your overall efficiency and profitability.
Everything you do and everything you bill revolves around client matters. CARET Legal gives you a full 360-degree view to keep them engaged and satisfied. Jump into a free trial or get a free demo.
