Stop chasing signatures: What your law firm can do instead

Gathering client signatures is a crucial part of legal transaction management. When signatures are delayed, it affects the whole deal. Chasing client signatures is not an efficient use of time. Instead, what could you be doing to better benefit your firm?

Improve client retention rate

Begin by improving your client retention rate. Focusing on client retention over an 18 to 24 month period can increase your firm’s revenue by up to 80%, reduce customer acquisition costs by 30% and increase your total number of clients by 1.5x.

Clients’ referrals are the best way to acquire new clients. When existing clients recommend your firm to someone, they are speaking highly of your service and capabilities. No need to exert additional effort in building rapport with potential clients! Furthermore, loyal clients will invest more time and money in you, leading to increased revenue in the long run.

To improve client retention rate, give your clients what they want from your firm—transparency.

Collecting client signatures steals the time and energy that could be used to develop relationships with and provide transparency to your clients. A deal management platform can improve client retention rates by giving your clients the convenience of 24/7 portal access to track their deal’s status using a live project agenda. Obtain instant signatures by auto-notifying clients that a transaction signature is required.

These time-saving tools will allow you to better interact with your clients, respond to their queries and help them with their other legal needs. By engaging with your clients you increase the chances of keeping their business

Develop an online presence

Building an online presence for your firm is a way to network and grow your business. When purchasing a product or a service, people conduct online research. Potential clients are weary of businesses that don’t have any information available online.

Aside from building a first impression, having a strong online presence also helps you position your firm as the authority in your industry. When a client has a legal problem, your firm will be the first to come to their minds.

According to the 2017 ABA Tech Report, 69% of lawyers use social media for career development and networking while 59% of lawyers use it for client development. 74% of consumers visit a law firm website before taking action. As part of a larger business development plan, most law firms have a strategic marketing plan, which includes building an online presence using website improvement and social media strategies.

Spending less time collecting signatures gives you more time to expose your brand to new and potential clients that your firm can collaborate with. Make a presence on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Connect and learn from other lawyers and industry professionals.

Work-life balance

Working long hours for long periods of time is crucial for meeting targets, cementing client relationships and impressing your clients — or is it? Actually, a healthy work-life balance proves the opposite. Long hours can lead to burnout, which hinders work performance. In reality, long hours cannot always be avoided. But when overworking becomes the norm, problems may arise in all other aspects of a lawyer’s life.

Generally, lawyers work longer hours because they are spending excess time doing non-legal tasks, such as signature collection and document assembly. Transaction management softwares such as dealcloser streamline these laborious tasks in the deal management process allowing for a more productive use of time.

Are you ready to stop chasing signatures? Schedule a demo to experience for yourself how we can support your firm today!