Keeping clients happy is not just about providing quality service and results, but also ensuring your fees are fair and your billing is professional and transparent. Avoid Surprises, Avoid Disputes Most clients’ biggest fear is how much they will pay. They’re always afraid of getting a massive invoice at the end of the month. Before they […]

Do you get nervous before speaking in front of people? Even worse, do you have trouble letting go of your performance once it's over? For lawyers especially, it can be hard to shut off your mind. So it’s useful to think about another context where performance is vastly improved the less you think about it: professional sports.

There are several types of security defenses you can put in place to guard your network and data against ransomware and other threats. But there is one defense that focuses on the human side of this vulnerability, teaching us all to be harder targets in this battle of wits: security awareness training (SAT).

The mother lode of content creation is unique content that can be branded as solely belonging to the lawyer or firm. This can be produced and updated quarterly, annually or as news and events require. It establishes the publisher as an authority with its finger on the pulse of its chosen market. Notice I write “chosen” market. This has to be highly focused and should dovetail perfectly with your brand. Let me give you some examples.

In the legal industry, knowledge is power. In its traditional sense, that phrase may conjure notions of a zero-sum game: I win, you lose. In recent years, however, the business world has begun recognizing a new key to success: emotional intelligence. Not only does emotional intelligence increase your ability to be personally more successful, it also can lead to greater team and firm success. Unfortunately, it is often overlooked and seldom leveraged.

An Essential Guide to Select the Right Law Practice Management Software for Your Firm We’ve all heard that lawyers are risk averse when it comes to technology. And it could be easy to draw that conclusion from the most recent ABA legal technology survey report, which reveals that the number of lawyers taking advantage of […]

For this edition of Friday Tech Tips, we asked the practice management technology experts: "What’s your best tech tip for collaborating well with others?" Here's good advice from Jim Calloway, Andrea Cannavina, Jared Correia, Darla Jackson, Dennis Kennedy and Tom Mighell, Catherine Sanders Reach, Deborah Savadra and John Simek.

Why is it so hard to save for “attorney retirement” while you’re building your own firm? You started your practice to have more control, freedom to choose certain clients (and fire others) and potentially, make more money. Hopefully, all or at least most of these are occurring, but I imagine it’s still challenging to save […]

You undoubtedly have heard how important follow-up is to marketing and business development. Clients and referral sources are most likely to refer business to people they have heard from or seen in the prior three months, which means a sustained effort to stay in touch is required. We also know that (depending on who you read) business will come after five, seven or even more quality contacts with a single prospect. Yet few lawyers will make nearly that many approaches. Finally, marketing success involves both time and timing; you often don’t know when people will need your services so you need to be patient and stay top of mind.

As a judge reviews your brief, they’re evaluating your argument and your professionalism. Consider the words of the Hon. Raymond M. Kethledge, a U.S. Court of Appeals judge, in an article he wrote for the ABA.(1) “When I read a brief, the first thing I’m judging is the person who wrote it. How careful is […]