Un-Billable Hour: Business Management Strategies for the Busy Lawyer Around the Community Table

For guest Jason Levin – author of “Relationships to Infinity” and founder of the firm Ready, Set, Launch – keeping in touch with past connections, friends, and mentors is a lifelong passion and the bedrock of networking and relationship development. Through his work, Levin has developed an intense interest in helping people develop and maintain personal and business relationships. Business, after all, truly comes down to who you know. Levin’s firm Ready Set Launch applies corporate brand management principles to personal and corporate relationships. It’s the stuff they don’t teach in law school but is a pillar of any successful law firm. Hate networking? Learn to overcome. Think you are doing a great job at networking? Maybe you aren’t. Levin helps professionals make new and maintain lifetime connections. Keeping in touch is foundational. “Let’s do lunch” and “keep in touch” have become meaningless phrases, but the art of maintaining relationships has never been more important. Go beyond social media, events, and transactions and start getting real with steps you can take right now. Today is the day. Special thanks to our sponsors LawClerk, Alert Communications, LawYaw, and Scorpion.

Host Christopher T. Anderson meets with lawyers around the country to discuss issues they are currently facing in their practices. Featured on this episode: How should I market two different areas of focus for my law firm? How do I find the right call intake employee to hire? What is the best use of marketing dollars when starting a practice in a new state? What are the pros and cons of training a new hire vs. hiring an already-experienced candidate? How do I deal with understaffing as I’m about to go on maternity leave? Special thanks to our sponsors LawClerk, Alert Communications, LawYaw, and Scorpion.

This special episode of Un-Billable Hour goes to the heart of your firm’s existence: attracting and signing new clients in a digital world. Guest Jason Hennessey of Hennessey Digital built his company through reverse engineering the Google algorithm. He’s a respected leader in law firm marketing and offers valuable tips you can put to work today. Learn core principles successful firms use to climb Google search rankings. Embrace the variables that help them adapt and shape their marketing to reach more potential new clients. Hennessey’s book, “Law Firm SEO” explains how search engine optimization works and empowers firms when they look to hire a marketer. The book is written for the layperson, explaining in plain language the principles of SEO. If you don’t want to do it yourself, at least hold the teams you hire accountable. Confused by SEO vs. Paid Search? It comes down to understanding marketing spend and outcomes. Learn what potential clients are looking for and how to hook them. Plus, insights into website functionality, purposeful content strategies, and brand awareness. Attract more prospects and convert them to clients. Special thanks to our sponsors LawClerk, Alert Communications, LawYaw, and Scorpion.

Our first episode of 2022 is kind of about everything. It’s about trends, helping law firms leverage tech, outsource routine tasks, and grow their business. Guest Chad Burton is a highly-regarded legal practice futurist. Through his work with Modern Law Practice and CuroLegal, he works one-on-one with practitioners to help them understand what they need and how to engage existing solutions to move them forward. Understanding the capabilities of today’s tech isn’t intuitive. It takes work. Burton shares insights into emerging trends in 2022. Hear what he thinks will happen with non-lawyer owned law firms and the introduction of non-lawyer licensed legal practitioners in specific legal sectors. Other trends include alternative business structures (ABS) such as LegalZoom, Elevate Services, and fee-splitting providing legal services to a vast pool of underserved Americans. He also offers thoughts on outsourcing routine work through emerging enterprises such as Lawclerk, UpWork, and GetStaffedUp, not only outsourcing tasks but offshoring them. Special thanks to our sponsors LawClerk, Alert Communications, LawYaw, and Scorpion.

We know the pillars of marketing: acquisition, production, and purpose. But in this episode of the Un-Billable Hour, class-action guru Gerald Maatman gets down to basics and talks about your marketing bedrock: your brand. Building your practice starts before you ask for a client’s business. It’s about your brand, what you’re already known – and respected – for. Hear how developing expertise, building knowledge, public speaking, and thought leadership earns you the business before you even make the call. There’s a lot to work on here, from giving every case your all, to learning to see the challenge from your client’s perspective, to creating lasting relationships. It’s not easy, and it’s not fast. But a thriving law practice is not about luck. It’s about hard work that never ends. Learn valuable lessons from a true business leader. Special thanks to our sponsors LawClerk, Alert Communications, LawYaw, and Scorpion.

Struggling to find joy and fulfillment in her work at a prestigious law firm, guest Ali Katz thought striking out on her own was the way to go. But she found herself battling the same demons, too busy producing paperwork to achieve work/life balance and find satisfaction by fully serving her clients. Then it hit her. There’s nothing wrong with the legal profession, what’s wrong is the way lawyers run their practice. Author of the new book, “The New Law Business Model: Building a Lucrative Law Practice That You (And Your Clients) Love,” Katz teaches lawyers how to reinvent their practice, build enduring client relationships, and bring the love back to lawyering. Learn the difference between “money debt” and “time debt.” Explore new ways to engage clients and show them the value you provide. Stop doing things the old way and focus on superior client outcomes. Special thanks to our sponsors Law Clerk, Alert Communications, LawYaw, and Scorpion.

With today’s tight, post-pandemic labor pool, trained, quality legal intake professionals are scarce. Law firms are increasingly turning to outsourced intake, receptionist, and onboarding services. Jeff Mosler, CEO of Nexa Receptionist Holdings LLC (you probably already know their Alert Communications brand) explains how law firms leveraging the flexibility of a turnkey, pretrained outsourcing platform can maximize marketing investments, answer calls in just three rings, and carry potential clients from a curious call to a signed retainer. Stop wasting marketing dollars on lost leads. Even for established firms, an outsourced platform – with the ability to engage by phone, web chat, email, and text – can help firms engaged in one-time, mass tort cases as needs ramp up then scale back. For big firms or small, a trained, on-call pool of legal intake specialists could be the answer. Special thanks to our sponsors Law Clerk, Alert Communications, LawYaw, and Scorpion.

Guest Mark Rockwell helps lawyers and law firms build purpose, passion, and profit. Learn the five biggest – and crazy simple – mistakes lawyers make every day that undermine their business. Rockwell helps lawyers understand what they want, who they are, and where they want to go. Without structure and vision, what’s the point? When lawyers find themselves spinning their wheels, busy without achieving goals, Rockwell helps create structure and processes that build order and direction. For the first 10 listeners to reach out at (503) 784-7205 or [email protected], Rockwell offers a free one-hour coaching session. He also offers a free e-book, “Five Mistakes Lawyers Make That Kill Their Career,” at www.CoachRockwell.Com. Special thanks to our sponsors Law Clerk, Alert Communications, LawYaw, and Scorpion.

Initial prospect consultations are lost hours if the prospect doesn’t become a client. Guest Theophan McKenzie is a professional sales consultant who helps attorneys and law firms across the country learn a better way to stop wasting time and stop letting prospects walk out the door. McKenzie’s innovative, nontraditional sales techniques teach attorneys to turn off their “lawyer brain” and build immediate, lasting connections with prospects. Learn how to stop selling yourself and start listening to the prospective client. Special thanks to our sponsors Law Clerk, Alert Communications, LawYaw, and Scorpion.

From the football field to the boardroom, talent development expert Ben Murphy has learned a few moves critical to building a motivated and productive team. Host Christopher Anderson and Murphy discuss how law firms can better hire, train, motivate and retain a team. Murphy explains why 56% of executives fail within 18 months of being hired and how to avoid these common pitfalls. He also details how managers can effectively manage a team working remotely and manage across generational divides. Ben Murphy is vice president of Titus Talent Strategies. Special thanks to our sponsors, Scorpion, Lawclerk, Alert Communications and LawYaw.

Giugi Carminati reveals the lawyer traits that show lawyers desperately need legal project management, yet still resist. Special thanks to our sponsors, Scorpion, Lawclerk, Alert Communications and LawYaw.

Entrepreneur Jaclyn Foster compares contract versus full-time paralegal services from cost to efficiency and battling turnover. Special thanks to our sponsors, Scorpion, Lawclerk, Alert Communications and LawYaw.

Success coach Ken Hardison shares what it takes to assemble an A-team for a lucrative and satisfying law practice. Special thanks to our sponsors, Scorpion, Lawclerk, Alert Communications and LawYaw.

Do lawyers need more client leads? Legal marketing expert Kara Prior has an answer you might not expect.

How business development relates to marketing, sales and client acquisition for lawyers.

How to embrace your role as the CEO, from developing a plan and first hires to keeping control of the roles you enjoy most.

Tracers President Erik Pickering offers a five-part strategy to thrive post-pandemic and shares how data research can make or break a case.

Family lawyer Jenny Bradley shares how a profit-first financial strategy increases profits, saves time, and improves business relationships.

De Novo Review’s lawyer staffing experts discuss growing practice areas amid Covid-19 and increased demand for support during periodic surges.

Legal AI entrepreneur Tom Martin shares how automation adoption by lawyers is accelerating out of necessity and because their clients demand it.

While the pandemic paralyzed many leaders, Michael Mogill offers tips for adopting a growth mindset that will lead you on a path to success.

Eric Farber offers strategies for developing a healthy culture in your law firm.

Tom Lambotte discusses the key tenets of his Optimize Method framework for lawyers.

David Neagle shares tips for developing a mindset that can help bring businesses through difficult economic circumstances.

Kimball Parker discusses solutions to common problems faced by law firms struggling to adjust to remote work.

Scott Wallingford discusses strategies for maximizing per-client profitability in your law firm.

Marco Brown highlights the importance of prioritizing billing for your law firm.

Clio’s Jack Newton discusses his new book and the lessons he’s learned over the last ten years studying successful law firms.

Moshe Rosenblum-Amsel shares strategies for optimizing your firm’s finances.

Greg Garman offers guidance for the future of small firm business models.

Greg Garman shares insights on legal business models and current supply and demand trends in the profession.

Karin Conroy offers guidance for connecting with the right clients for your law firm.

Liz Goddard, co-owner of Cc: My Admin, discusses how virtual assistants help lawyers increase efficiency and grow profits.

Jacob Slowik offers insights for lawyers on how niche specialization can lead to career successes.

Helen Bukulmez explains how investing in the interests of your team creates a culture of unity in your firm.

Sales minus expenses equals profit, right? Wrong! This formula may not be as correct as we thought. Small business profit guru Ron Saharyan joins Un-Billable Hour host Christopher Anderson to discuss how putting profit first helps lawyers be more focused on their clients’ needs. Ron explains the importance of setting aside money for profit, pay, and taxes; then using what is left to run your business.

Host Christopher Anderson is joined by Deborah Farone to discuss how smaller law firms and legal process outsourcing providers are well positioned to eat the lunch of larger, less nimble firms. They also cover a wide range of subjects including key changes in the industry facing small and midsize practices, the shocking lack of strategy in a large number of firms, and when it’s appropriate to bring on a Chief Marketing Officer.

Are you wasting marketing dollars by not converting prospects into clients? Following up on last month’s discussion about marketing, host Christopher Anderson tackles the equally important subject of sales with the help of Liz Wendling. Together they discuss the many ways attorneys are sabotaging their own efforts to convert prospects into clients, explain how to rethink your approach to closing a sale, and provide invaluable practical tips on how to improve your consultation style.

Host Christopher Anderson talks to Conrad Saam about how lawyers can take full ownership of their firm’s marketing and website. They discuss how the decline of legal directories has reduced visibility for some lawyers, and offer strategies for lawyers to take charge of their online presence. They also outline the best practices for ownership and talk about the benefits of WordPress.

How can artificial intelligence be applied in small law firms, and what are its dangers and benefits? In this episode, host Christopher Anderson talks to Alex Babin and Ryan Steadman of Zero, a company that applies artificial intelligence and smart automation to the most pressing operational challenges of the legal industry. They discuss what Zero can do to save lawyers time, give their clients a better customer experience, and increase security in email processes.

What do Silicon Valley tech companies do that law firms should consider implementing in their business practices? In this episode, host Christopher Anderson talks to Sarah Schaaf, CEO of Headnote, about the key things law firms can learn from tech companies to improve how they operate. They get into the details of how firms can consider data, speed, and ongoing streamlining to allocate firm resources responsibly and efficiently.

Christopher Anderson talks to Bryan Miles, CEO of Belay Solutions, about his book “Virtual Culture, The Way We Work Doesn’t Work Anymore, a Manifesto.” They discuss the challenges of the traditional workplace and outline how Belay Solutions has grown up as an exclusively virtual company. They give advice on how to develop virtual culture in a firm and discuss how virtual assistants can help lawyers focus on what really matters.

How effective is your law firm in its communications? Responsiveness is key, and utilizing a virtual receptionist may help your firm increase efficiency and boost customer satisfaction. Host Christopher Anderson talks to Maddy Martin of Smith.ai about steps small law firms can take to improve their communication. They discuss the many ways virtual receptionists can enhance the capabilities of small law firms and how these services can be customized to serve each firm’s unique needs.

Host Christopher Anderson is joined by Dr. Teresa Albizu, founder and co-president of the R-A Pinnacle Group and Dr. Gerardo (Gery) Rodríguez-Menéndez, co-president of the R-A Pinnacle Group as they discuss attorney wellness, how to see the signs, strategies on how to cope with stress, and when an individual should seek help.

Host Christopher Anderson talks to Andrew Lechter about how lawyers can be wise about leasing their work space. From maintaining a healthy relationship with your landlord to trends in the real estate market, there’s a lot that goes into leasing your own office space. Andrew shares tips about what lawyers should look for in a law firm lease, how to maximize the space you have, and what to do with office space that isn’t working for your business.

Hiring the right employee involves a lot more than looking at a resume. Host Christopher Anderson talks to Molly Hall about the best ways to find and hire quality employees. She shares tips on how to conduct interviews, weed out ill-fitting candidates, and compete with larger firms for talent. She also discusses best practices when letting go of employees that don’t fit.

More clients for less ad spend seems like a distant ideal, but artificial intelligence (AI) may be the tool lawyers need to get their ads in front of the right people. Host Christopher Anderson talks to Keith Dyer about how law firms can use AI to improve their marketing efforts. They discuss the three different types of AI (robotics, natural language processing, and machine learning), their capabilities, and how they could impact the future of legal marketing.

All lawyers want to get paid but keeping track of billable hours can be a challenge for solo and small firm lawyers. Inevitably, some hours may through the cracks resulting in a loss of potential money. Host Christopher Anderson talks to Alan Tuback about techniques and tools that can help lawyers keep track of their billable hours. They also discuss using practice management software to track time and other easy-to-implement software solutions for an overall efficient firm.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is vital if you want your website to be found by the right clients. But SEO can be difficult to understand to those who don’t specialize in online marketing. Host Christopher Anderson talks to Seth Price about the four main components of SEO including high quality content, authoritative links, correct coding, and local. They also discuss the advantages and disadvantages of taking on a website redesign and identify the differences between good and bad links.

Host Christopher Anderson talks to Tyler Todd about the access to justice problem and how blockchain and other technology could be the key to solving it. They discuss the common issues within access to justice like lawyers not being able to connect with consumers, and how blockchain addresses these issues with transparency, efficiency, and accountability.