The attorney-client relationship is a cornerstone of the American legal system for decades. No surprise that when entering into a legal relationship with an attorney, individuals are often hesitant to put their trust in them until they are convinced that the attorney will act in their best interests. However, as any lawyer can tell you, this trust is not simply given but also earned. To establish and maintain this trustworthy relationship, both attorneys and clients should adhere to certain principles which will help enhance the therapeutic atmosphere within the chambers as well as improve their long-term outcomes. In this blog, we take a look at some of the most effective tips for building trust with your client so that you can enjoy a fruitful collaboration.
1. Be an Active Listener
Active listening is an important factor that helps build trust with your client. When you actively listen to what your client is saying, you are actually receiving their message. By omitting your own thoughts and ideas, you are “listening” to what they have to say and not just what you want to hear. When you are not only listening but also responding appropriately and transparently to your client, they are more likely to feel comfortable speaking to you again and sharing similar experiences.
2. Streamline The Documentation Process
One of the most important factors in establishing trust with your client is ensuring clarity in your communication. This is due to the fact that lack of clarity can lead to miscommunications, misunderstandings, and incorrect information. To help your client stay informed, begin the documentation process by creating a transparency checklist for all interactions with your client.
This checklist should include information such as what information is needed, why it is necessary, and how it will be used. Be sure to keep these documents safe and accessible should you need them during the relationship.
3. Ask Your Clients for a Feedback
Often lawyers don’t open up their doors to feedback as they fear what they might get to know, some don’t have enough time to get going through the feedback procedure. Feedback is a vital part of any law firm, asking clients how they are doing and how you could make things better is an essential part of any growth strategy.
Taking feedback regularly is very important, making a dedicated feedback form, and even better if you could make it anonymous. This way with positive feedback clients can give negative feedback without hesitation and give you the scope of improvements.
4. Communicate Strategically & Thoughtfully
It’s important to consider key aspects of your client’s journey, not just the end. Just after the client is onboarded, communicate strategically and thoughtfully right from the start. Talk about the needs and how they would want their case to be dealt with.
From the starting point where they have just visited your website, to when they are onboarded and the attorney is assigned to the very end where the final bills are paid. Being at every staff and taking care of clients is something which is going to come with a long period.
5. Zero Assumptions Policy
For creating a better client experience and an immersive client journey it is very important to look at things completely from your client’s perspective. Create a true picture of your client’s journey, what are things that need a further look at, how are they feeling, and all related points.
Staying updated with your clients can give you space to get insights into their client experience. To get more comfortable, do a coffee session with your clients, prepare an email campaign for the holiday season and you can also reconnect with your past clients to know about what’s happening with their cases. This will make them happy and certainly will give you insights into your work.
6. Embrace The Communication Gap
In the past few years, legal tech has advanced itself more than ever, there is a tech solution for almost everything. To begin with, being more client-centric it’s important to have enough time to strategize and communicate with your clients.
Try hiring extra support staff or adapt to legal tech solutions to automate relative and administrative tasks, automating such tasks will free up your time and give you enough time to put in more value-adding work.
For example, legal tech solutions like case management software can simplify document management which takes countless hours when done manually, such solutions also assist in client communications as they have features like client portals which are effective in communicating regularly and actively.
Summing up
The attorney-client relationship is a vital part of the legal system. It is a common misconception among new lawyers that they have to lock down a long-term agreement with their clients. However, the best way to develop a trusting relationship with your clients is to build upon their trust and establish a regular and consistent relationship. Hope is blog helped you and added value to your business.