Building a successful practice hinges on your ability to develop and nurture Lifetime Relationships -- with both clients and other referral sources within your Centers of Influence.
Too often attorneys allow their practices to become purely transactional. I once spoke to the managing partner of an estate planning firm who told me, "I have no need to communicate with my clients. Their plans are already done. I need to reach new clients." This attorney was shortchanging both his clients and his practice. Estate planning is a lifetime process, not a one-time event. Accordingly, building your practice is a lifetime process as well.
The long-term success of your practice certainly is not hinged on any single event, referral source, client or marketing strategy. While reaching new clients (and referral sources) is a vital component of any marketing strategy, a sound plan also includes longer-term strategies that pay off over time. Your client base is one often-overlooked natural resource for the long-term growth of your practice.
Lifetime Relationships with your clients result in additional opportunities as events impact their lives and the lives of their loved ones; as they refer you as a trusted advisor to their friends and relatives; and as you work with the next generation for whom you helped preserve and protect an inheritance.
There are three basic rules for developing Lifetime Client Relationships:
- Know Your Business
- Stop Selling
- Communicate
We'll look more closely at each of these over the rest of the week. Stay tuned!
In the meantime, please call us if you need help dealing with any of these in your practice. You can reach us toll-free at 1-877-850-7472.
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