Launching a brand-new law firm takes imagination and optimism. A lot of mistakes are made by aspiring law firm owners. Most aren’t catastrophic, but they can prove to be expensive. Here, we explore how you can launch your new law firm after you’ve set up the name, office, and address.
1. Know Your Why
British-American author and inspirational speaker Simon Sinek said, “There are two ways to build a business. We can go through life hunting and pecking, looking for opportunities or customers, hoping that something connects. Or we can go through life with intention, knowing what our piece looks like, knowing our WHY, and going straight to the places we fit.”
What will you and your firm offer that others don’t? Is authentic client service your mantra? Dig deep. Acknowledge it. Be able to articulate it quickly and passionately to others.
2. Create a Masterplan
Together with your law firm partner or critical leadership team, focus on fleshing out your business, financial, and marketing plan to uncover what is needed, wanted, and how to achieve it. You don’t need a full-fledged document. Things move fast these days, and your plan may change multiple times along the way, especially when you test it out. However, the process of answering the questions that a business, financial, or marketing plan requires will help you make sure you do not forget things.
3. Hire Experts
A team of professionals will be invaluable to help get your new law firm off the ground running. You can either outsource this or hire them in-house. They will help your law firm with everything from taglines to elevator pitches, marketing plans, public relations, landing pages, email marketing, and social media, among others. Your success may rely on how your law firm is positioned and remembered.
4. Make Friends with the Media
Have your partner take an active role in reaching out to trade association publications, law magazines, business journals, or reputable online platforms for exposure. A representative or leader of the firm portrays thought leadership and helps keep the law firm top of mind. Any article quoting the firm can be used as a follow-up piece to attract clients. These media exposures should also be linked to your website to draw fresh visitors and increase the firm’s prominence in search results.
5. Test Everything.
Is your new website live and quickly searchable? Are your social media channels all on point? Are your google ads working? Start seeing if you can land users who will eventually turn to customers who will click the button to contact you for an appointment. Keep tweaking until it works.
Use Google Analytics and social media analytics to understand how your clients behave and help them make decisions through a well-designed site or social media post.
6. All Systems Go?
As a new law firm, you want to ensure that your organization is lean, powerful, and fast. A cloud legal practice management and accounting and billing system like CoreMatter will help you get there. This affordable solution assists in many ways, from scheduling weekly meetings with your team to ensuring that your billing system is efficient and compliant. When your processes and procedures are sound, you can keep your team working together well to achieve your goals.
7. Who Do You Know?
You cannot have a successful law firm if you cannot find the right people. Start identifying who you need, the type of clients or partners, and start securing them. Be exceptionally patient with new clients. Sometimes, it takes 8 to 10 meetings before they become your retainer client. It is because they need to remember you and your services. Thus, reach out to them often with something of value to show that you are thinking of their business. You can even set CoreMatter to remind you to reach out to these prospective clients.
8. Launch
You’ve made it this far. It’s time to celebrate with everyone who worked closely with you. Make this a special launch event for your investors, partners, lawyers, clients, friends, and family. Invite as many influencers and press while following health and safety regulations to get good coverage while keeping everyone safe and healthy. Be sure to tie in many positive emotions with your law firm brand while having fun with those closest to you.
9. Hustle
Your new law firm is officially launched, and now it’s time to take the law firm to greater heights. There will be challenges and issues along the way, but you will be okay. It is essential to keep working at it and moving forward to learn to get better along the way.
It’s ideal if you have the right mentors and system to help you. Find an experienced mentor who can provide advice on the possible challenges along the way, and maybe boost your potential. Getting a proven system like CoreMatter also helps save you a ton of time and money because it makes running your law firm better.
Sign up today for a free demo to learn more about how CoreMatter works!
CoreMatter, the leading cloud-based case management tool in Southeast Asia, frees your firm from the mess of the mundane to focus on what matters most.
