As the new decade rolls around, you’ve likely already set some ambitious goals for expanding your law firm. In keeping with that theme, I want to suggest a tip that isn’t very glamorous but is very effective. To experience greater growth for your law firm this year, do more of what is already working for you.
It’s a simple principle, really. If you’ve come across a strategy that is producing results in one area, repeating or expanding that strategy should land you even more good results. You don’t need to reinvent the wheel or turn your law firm upside down chasing the latest popular trends. Just amplify the things that are yielding results, and you’ll see more of them.
One reason why so many good lawyers miss this basic principle is that the stuff that’s working isn’t all that interesting to us. It’s boring, in fact. When something runs smoothly, we simply let it run in the background while we focus on the negative aspects of our business—trying to fix our problems and pain points. As a result, we keep looking for fresh answers to our problems when the solutions might actually be lingering right under our noses. The solution to that problem might be something you’re already doing right in some other area.
What Does It Look Like?
To illustrate what I mean, let’s look at some concrete examples of what it means to do more of what works.
Example 1: As an estate planning attorney, you’ve helped a client develop a financial strategy that fully protects his wealth while helping him grow his net worth passively by 15 percent per year. If it worked for that client, it will work for 20 other clients in a similar financial position. Instead of starting from zero for each client, find a way to replicate that strategy for each of them.
Example 2: Your latest email drip campaign generated 50 percent more leads than the last marketing tactic you tried. Instead of trying to “fix” the marketing strategy that failed to produce, devote more energy to building on that drip campaign and expanding it to other segments of your mailing list.
How Do I Know What Is Working?
Remember—sometimes the stuff that’s working gets lost on our radar because we tend to let it run in the background. What can you do to hone in on these working strategies in order to expand them? I recommend taking an inventory of the inner workings of your law firm, asking yourself two basic questions:
- What are we doing that gets the best results in the shortest amount of time?
- What are we doing that gets the best results with the least amount of effort?
Look—I’m an idea guy. I’m all about exploring new concepts for growth, new marketing techniques, and all the rest. But new strategies should only replace strategies that aren’t working for you. If those shiny new strategies distract you from things that are working, that’s actually counterproductive for your firm. At least one-half of a good expansion plan for your firm should involve amplifying what already works. Once you’ve made those expansions, then look at new approaches to replace things that aren’t working. For more specific help in honing your law firm growth strategy this year, give us a call at 888-207-2869.
