In a very weird walk down the Yellow Brick Road to the Emerald City to ask the Wizard for new clients and matters, members of the executive committee of Gale, Scarecrow, Tinman and Lion, LLP, a 100+ lawyer firm are chanting “Pandemics, Politics, and Recessions, Oh my,” over and over again through their masks. James […]
Rainmaking Recommendation #218: Follow the Yellow Brick Road – An Allegory for Rainmakers
September 16, 2020 by Leave a Comment
Rainmaking Recommendation #203: It’s ALWAYS About Communication
May 6, 2020 by Leave a Comment
Business development, aka Rainmaking, has been and will always be about communication and trust. You need exceptional communication skills to build trust and confidence in your abilities to help your clients and potential clients. And never has this been truer than at this time in history. The global pandemic has only emphasized the need for […]
Lawyers Using Referral Marketing as a Revenue Stream? Not so Fast!
March 2, 2020 by Leave a Comment
Recently I read a post which suggested that attorneys should use referral marketing as a revenue stream – that attorneys should refer cases they cannot or will not take to other attorneys for fees. Not so fast! It’s not as easy as I give you a new client you pay me a referral fee because […]
Rainmaking Recommendation #193: It’s About Them!
February 12, 2020 by Leave a Comment
For almost 20 years as a Rainmaking Trainer and Coach, I have been saying the same thing: It’s not about you. It’s about them. “Them” being the prospective, current and former clients. It’s always been about them, but every year there is a proclamation about the fact that lawyers and law firms must become “client-centric,” […]
Enlightened Rainmaking: Personal Development AND Business Development
November 18, 2019 by Leave a Comment
It’s no surprise to see all of the articles, podcasts, videos and blog posts on attorney mental health these days. We have been told that there is an epidemic of depression, drug and alcohol addiction and other mental health issues plaguing our profession. And, while it is wonderful to see that the industry is taking […]
Lawyer Communications with Clients: “What we’ve got here is a failure to communicate”
November 8, 2019 by Leave a Comment
With all due respect to one of the best prison movies (besides, in this humble blogger’s opinion, The Shawshank Redemption), Cool Hand Luke, the oft-repeated quote in the title of this blog is very apropos to the legal industry. Did you know that the number one reason most clients give for firing their lawyers is […]
Rainmaking Recommendation #162: You Don’t Need to Take Every Client
June 6, 2018 by Leave a Comment
I’m in a facebook group with a lot of really great attorneys. And recently, there has been a spate of posts which detail the obnoxiousness that some attorneys face with potential clients who are contacting them. Many lawyers, particularly small firm and solo attorneys, are working with the notion that if they don’t take every […]
Lawyers Need to Ask the Burning Questions!
February 28, 2017 by Leave a Comment
For years, Thomson Reuters Legal Executive Institute has held the Marketing Partner Forum bringing together thought leaders in the industry to help law firms learn the benefits of, and techniques for, marketing their services. Okay, that explains it in the simplest of measures, but it is a very high level conference. I have never actually […]
Rainmaking Recommendation #138: The Robots are Coming! The Robots are Coming!
June 15, 2016 by Leave a Comment
There is a lot of chatter lately about whether the legal industry is going to be taken over by technology. Are lawyers in danger of becoming obsolete? In 2016, the answer is no. However, that doesn’t mean that certain tasks in which attorneys are currently engaged won’t be taken over by the rise of the machines. In […]
Rainmaking Recommendation #131: The Psychology of Referrals
March 2, 2016 by Leave a Comment
In the last Rainmaking Recommendation, I mentioned that there is one sure fire, free way to grow your book of business – referrals. I also said that I would continue this conversation so that you create a systematized way to get the best referrals from clients, prospects and referral sources. However, in order to move […]