How Site Visits Can Enhance Your Client Relationships

Here's a client development tip for you as everyone heads back to work and gets ready for 2020 - carve out the time in your schedule to do client site visits with your most important clients.

One of the intellectual property lawyers with whom I work recently told me that his new client requires outside counsel to tour its plants and offices before being assigned to a matter. The client said to him, “To really know how to best help us with our legal needs, you need to understand our business and more importantly, our products inside and out.”

I think there is an important lesson here for every lawyer – offer to go to your client’s office/facility/warehouse – whatever it is – to see firsthand how they do business and how they actually make what they make. I think this is very important for those in the IP/patent/copyright area because of the nature of their work, but it is equally important for other industries such as healthcare, entertainment, sports, pharma, financial services and many others.

In addition, while you're there, suggest meeting in person with the individuals at the client with whom you work each day to get to know them better and forge stronger relationships. Putting an actual face to a name really does make a difference. Ask them about their business goals and challenges, and what you can do to help them.

Going the extra mile will demonstrate how much you care about the client and provide you with valuable information about your client and their business that will enable you to do your job better, which is a win win for everyone involved.

[Stefanie Marrone helps law firms effectively tell their stories and find their unique voices. Over the last 17 years, she has worked with some of the most prominent and innovative law firms in the world, developing and executing global revenue generating business development and communications strategies, including media relations, branding, and multichannel content marketing and social media campaigns. She is very passionate about using social media for lead generation and brand building. She has a diverse range of experience in both Big Law and mid-size/small-law firms. Connect with her on LinkedIn and follow her latest writing on JD Supra as well as her blog The Social Media Butterfly.]