Being A Sherpa In Your Legal Marketing Efforts

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Lawyers are called upon to guide their clients through difficult times, and to bring them into a better place. It is this aspect of your client relations that is critical to marketing your practice, particularly to generate more referrals. Sadly, it’s something many lawyers forget all the time.

As a bankruptcy lawyer I spend a lot of time and resources marketing my practice. Getting that new client in the door is always a monumental task, and there’s always a chance that my marketing efforts may fall flat (yes, marketing is an art – not a science). So getting the client to agree to let me be the one to help is never a done deal until … well, until it’s a done deal.

Our job is NOT merely to do a good job. Our job is NOT merely to end the problem. There are millions of lawyers out there who can very easily get the client from Point A to Point B unscathed.

Our job, I submit to you, is to offer support and comfort to our clients. Empathize. Listen. Offer an ear to bend (figuratively, not literally).

We meet our clients at a tough time, a time when their nerves are frayed and their lives are upside down. We can judge, we can passively accept the task at hand … or we can the sherpa and give them the benefit of the doubt. In other words, we can be gentle and helpful.

Our clients count on us to be their guide. They look to us to be their sherpa, their guide through tough time. When we agree to work with them, we make a promise to show them the way and do so safely and effectively. But we also tacitly promise to be kind. And we must follow up on that promise in every way possible.

Keep your clients in the loop. Send them letters and emails telling them about where you are in helping them out. Pick up the phone and call just to let them know you’re on top of things. Give peace of mind.

And whatever else you do, always remember … no matter where you are in your own life, it’s not that far to get to being in your client’s shoes.

Photo courtesy of Jambuling.

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