Summer-approved low-effort BD activities, retendering dos and don'ts, and a must-listen for entrepreneurial lawyers

Welcome to edition #11 of Trifecta and our fourth LinkedIn newsletter. The idea behind Trifecta is simple - we bring you three things (more if you're a Trifecta subscriber) that will increase your BD and marketing knowledge, make you better at BD, and help you build sustainable habits to ensure you don’t drown - all packaged neatly into one monthly newsletter.

Interested in hearing insights from industry experts? Each month, we sit down for a chat with leaders in the field, discussing how they've developed their practice, their business development efforts, and the valuable lessons they've gained.

Sign up for the full newsletter here.

Don't stop BD'ing: Summer-approved low-effort BD activities

It's so easy. You hit the summer period, immediately take your foot off the gas in terms of BD and vow to pick it all back up again in September. The problem with this approach is twofold: 1) if, like us, your practice quietens down, then you've missed out on an opportunity to do some solid BD, and more importantly, 2) you might be setting yourself up for a difficult Autumn if you haven't already built your pipeline.

Having been there already my advice would be to do a few small things well, so you've sown the seeds ahead of the September rush (and you can still enjoy the sunshine).

Here are 6 simple things you can do to keep things moving over summer, which won't eat into your time:

1. Test the waters with LinkedIn: If you haven't already gotten into the swing of posting regularly on LinkedIn, then summer is the best time to hone your skills. It's quieter, and so there should be less pressure to get it perfect. The most important thing is just to start. Read our interview with Sarah Ouis, LinkedIn legal guru here
2. Check in with clients: Summer is an excellent time to reconnect with clients (including lapsed ones). Schedule informal catch-up meetings or calls to see how they’re doing and if there’s anything you can assist them with. This shows your ongoing commitment to their needs and helps keep you top of mind. If you don't know what's coming up for them in Autumn then now is the time to ask.
3. Focus on cross-selling and referrals: As it’s quieter for most people, this is a great time to chat with your colleagues and intermediaries about cross-selling and referral opportunities. Discuss potential clients or cases where you can offer additional services. It's amazing what work you can generate from a few Teams calls. Read our interview with Charlie Lawson, expert unnatural networker, here
4. Review your BD and content plans: Take advantage of the summer slowdown to review and update your BD and content plans (if you have them, if not, create them). Be honest about what has worked so far this year and what hasn’t. What you enjoyed and what you didn't. Tweak your strategies accordingly to align with your goals for the remainder of the year. Read our interview with Kerry Jones, executive coach, on goal setting, here
5. Get prepped for the legal directories season: No one we know actually does this, and we're not sure why. Summer is the perfect time to start preparing for the legal directory submissions. The deadline will come around quicker than you expect and it's often a painful and time-consuming process. Gather your best case studies, key achievements or names of your happiest clients. Early preparation ensures that you’re not scrambling at the last minute and can present the strongest possible case for your inclusion. Read our interview with Simon Christian and Al Marsh, Chambers editors, here
6. Apply the DCM Insights activator research to your practice: This research was revelatory, and as a result, lots of firms are changing their BD training. If you haven't already worked out which personality type you are and how you're going to become an activator then start with checking out edition 3 of Trifecta

6 ways that proactive client relationship management will improve your retendering experience (or even better, avoid the process altogether)

Receiving a Request for Proposal (RFP) for an existing client relationship is often an indication that a client is either unhappy or they've been courted by another advisor and they'd like to see how you stack up.

It's a topic not talked about enough in our minds, but the process itself is usually eye-opening in terms of client relationship management.

RFPs often pop up when firms aren't expecting it, but there are usually telltale signs that a client is unhappy (or not being 'superpleased') well before then that were missed.

Here are some dos and don't when it comes to managing your client relationships so that if it comes to retendering, you start on the right foot:

1. Do be upfront about rates: This is an important one. Your RFP response isn't the time to surprise clients with sudden price hikes. If your rates need to be increased, start talking about pricing early on. It's a difficult conversation that needs to be had sooner rather than later and by setting your clients' expectations, you're avoiding those potentially uncomfortable last-minute negotiations.

2. Do make value adds front and centre (before you get to a retender): We recently supported a client with a retender where, when we assessed the value adds we could offer the offer client and the value adds we thought they were aware of, it was clear we could have and should have addressed this sooner. As with rates, the retender should be an opportunity for you to enhance what you're offering, not surprise the client with lots of nice-to-haves that they've never heard about before.

3. Do cross-sell and upsell: Don’t wait until the retender to mention your full range of services. Talk about what else you can do before it comes up. You want to position your firm in the forefront of their minds so that when the need does arise, they think of you. You don't want to wait until the retender to tell them about all the other amazing work the firm is doing.

4. Don't forget to check-in: Stay in touch with your clients regularly. Ask them how things are going, what’s working well, and what could be better. Fixing issues early builds trust and avoids surprises later. Imagine if the issue that caused them to look elsewhere could have just been a simple and open conversation? This is the goal.

5. Don't let your tech embarrass you: This is a tricky one, and a topic that is often raised in terms of value adds in a retender. The clients themselves are often more tech-savvy than the firm advising it, so you need to have a good understanding of what tech would help them and what's possible for you to offer. Our research shows (see May Trifecta here) that tech was the third most important value add to GCs, so it's important to get it right. Sit down with your tech/ BD teams. Look at what you’re offering now. Talk about new things that could help clients.

6. Do use retenders as a learning opportunity: We mentioned that retenders are an eye-opening experience, and if you don't know your client as well as you think you do, it can be an eye-watering experience too. But that being said, even if the outcome isn't what you wanted, it is one of the best opportunities to understand what you’re doing right and where you can improve. It’s about being proactive so you ace it in the future.

A small note for those in the BD teams: Retenders/all pitch processes will be eyewatering for you as a team if your processes and documents aren't in good shape. Summer is the perfect time to finesse these, as we all know September will be manic!

Keeping clients happy takes consistent effort and a willingness to learn. By showing off what you can do early, listening to your clients being clear about costs, and using RFPs to learn and grow, you’ll make the process smoother and keep your clients happy.

If you listen to one thing over summer...

For us, it's Daniel Priestley's interview with Steven Bartlett on Diary of a CEO podcast.

In our minds, it's an interview filled with absolute gold and there's a lot in there which is applicable to lawyers and building their practice. Read on to find out why. Who

Steven Bartlett, the host of the Diary of a CEO podcast and Dragon's Den investor, sits down with Daniel Priestley an award-winning entrepreneur and author specialising in business growth and personal branding, to discuss scaling and succeeding in business.

What

The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett: The Money Making Expert

Why

Here are just a couple of things we found useful in this episode:

The CAPSTONE Method - a new approach to pitching

According to Daniel, if you want to create a pitch that is captivating and inspiring, follow the CAPSTONE method:

• Clarity – Cleary articulate the ideas and free from any confusion
• Authority – What is your background and how does it relate to
• Problem – Define a problem you are trying to solve
• Solution – Explain the solution
• The why – Communicate why you are the person to drive this forward
• Opportunity – Define the opportunity as to why others should get involved
• Next steps – What should someone do next
• Essence/Emotion – How do you want people to feel at the end of your pitch?

Listen to how he explains it and it all falls into place. The last bullet - essence/emotion is something all too often overlooked in a pitch (or presentation) situation.

A refreshing take on personal branding

"Personal branding is not about becoming an influencer, it’s about using your influence to share ideas, create movements and inspire people to be a part of something bigger than yourself."

Daniel's explanation of why personal brand isn't what the naysayers think it is, and why it's so important really hit home for us.

And so much more, from the basics of how to build demand and test ideas with your audience to a step-by-step process of going from concept to sale. For the more entrepreneurial lawyers among you - this is a must-listen.

Where

Happy listening!

Senior Associates - training opportunity

Are you an associate dutifully churning out articles, attending seminars, and sharing your firm's posts on LinkedIn, but not seeing any results?

Law firms are great at pushing associates to do more and more marketing, which is important but isn't likely to generate instructions or convert clients, because these activities are all aimed at building a profile, aka marketing.

At GFC we're on a mission to educate and upskill the associates that need it the most.

Our BD Basics/Associates Advantage training package is for you, if you're an associate who:

• hasn't had sufficient training or guidance on BD and marketing,
• is expected to contribute to the team's BD and marketing activities,
• wants to have control over your career (whether that includes making partner, or not),
• wants to win new clients, and
• not feel as if you're a slave to unsustainable BD marketing activities.

We have three slots available starting in September 2024. Send us a message if you're ready to invest in your future and want to book one of those slots.

Not sure what to do next?

You have a few options:

View previous editions of Trifecta by clicking here.

Want even more content? Check out the insights page on our website here.

Fancy signing up for our monthly newsletter? Click here to sign up, so you receive the next edition directly into your inbox.