According to the 2018 Report on the State of the Legal Market by the Thomson Reuters Legal Executive Institute, the business environment for law firms is more challenging than ever with:
- Flat demand for legal services.
- Declining profit margins and weakening collections.
- Fickle clients — nearly 60 percent are looking to move their business at least annually.
- Loss of market share to alternative legal service providers and more.
Exacerbating this situation, especially for small firms and solo attorneys, is fierce competition. Consider the survey responses detailed in the Thomson Reuters 2017 U.S. State of Small Law Firms report. Half of the respondents say they’re competing with both big and small law firms for business. Furthermore, the competition has expanded to include DIY legal sites — the number of firms competing with them has jumped to nearly 20 percent — an increase of 6 percent since the previous study.
What All These Issues Point to is Commoditization
Just about every other industry has been grappling with commoditization for over a decade. Here’s why: Now, more than ever, consumers have easy to access to more buying choices and more information about them. In a click, they can compare prices, read reviews, make their selection and even purchase. That leaves businesses in commoditized industries two options:
- Race to the bottom by providing the lowest price to attract buyers, or
- Provide value that consumers cannot find anywhere else through a standout customer experience.
Proving Your Value and Boosting Firm Profits
If you can’t afford the first option, you need to make sure you’re delivering the second. Find out how remarkably easy that is to accomplish in this free whitepaper: 5 Steps for Litigation Firms to Prove Their Value to Clients and Increase Profits.
You’ll get must-have insights to help you provide the value that makes clients eager to work with you, even if you’re not the cheapest option. Find out how to:
- Ensure you’re giving clients what they want most.
- Convince them they’re your most important client (even if they may not be).
- Set, maintain and monitor expectations before, during and after a matter —and why that’s important.
- Easily and effectively monetize the value you provide, and much more.
Know that making this effort will pay off, especially if you consider a just-released Price Waterhouse Coopers study of more than 4,000 consumers, “PwC: Consumers Will Pay More for Better Experience.” The study reveals that consumers will pay nearly 20 percent more for a better customer experience. Furthermore, 74 percent want more human interaction. This would indicate that providing highly attentive and responsive service, focused on providing the value that clients crave, will inoculate you against emerging competition like DIY legal sites.
Let the Competition Race to the Bottom as you Rise to the Top
Find out how in 5 Steps for Litigation Firms to Prove Their Value to Clients and Increase Profits.
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