Much has been written over the years about how difficult it is for clients to differentiate between one law firm and the next.
From a client perspective, law firms all look remarkably similar. Trust, reputation and brand generally play an unusually important role in buying professional services. Appearing in directories such as Chambers & Partners, Legal 500 and International Financial Law Review are also important as are word-of-mouth recommendations which has long been recognised to be among the most compelling means of winning new clients.
But what keeps clients loyal? What drives client relationship longevity? Except for the most complex or unique of matters, a range of firms exist from which clients can choose. Those firms are all staffed by highly competent, capable lawyers. Within ranges, all charge roughly similar fees for similar matters. All are highly attentive to service quality. Most engage in at least some form of client listening and try to mould their services and service delivery channels to align more closely with what clients want. But few have transitioned from client listening to becoming truly customer-centric.
I and John O’Connor of Deep Insight have collaborated on an article outlining how “customer experience” (CX) translates into legal services and what law and other professional service firms can do in order to develop real and sustained competitive advantage through innovative and transformational CX initiatives. It is published in the October 2021 edition of Modern Lawyer.