Social Media: the Ultimate Business Development Tool or Huge Waste of Time?

I had the pleasure of speaking on a panel at the recent Futures Conference hosted by the College of Law Practice Management, of which I'm proud to be an elected Fellow, and American University Washington College of Law.  I was joined by Steve Matthews, founder and principal of Canadian-based web marketing company Stem Legal, and our session was moderated by Dan Pinnington, Director at PracticePro, the Canadian-based Lawyers' Professional Indemnity Company and editor-in-chief of the ABA's Law Practice Management magazine.  Presumably I was invited to participate because I grew up on the shores of Lake Ontario, just south of Ontario, so I'm an honorary Canadian! We were challenged to provide practical feedback on the use of social media in a law practice.  What are lawyers doing well?  What can they do better?  Is the whole Facebook/LinkedIn/Twitter/blogging game a huge waste of valuable time, or can it actually aid in the development of new business?  We covered quite a bit of ground, but I'll provide just a couple insights here from my remarks.

Is Social Media overhyped? Of course it is.  Many pundits speak of social media as the panacea, the solution to generating new business when all other efforts have failed, or in lieu of any other efforts.  It should come as no surprise that those touting social media as the best answer to all problems are those who tend to profit from social media.  Consultants and vendors who offer services in this space tend to over-promote.  Needless to say, as a former legal management consultant and now a vendor whose organization offers social media tools, I have some standing to make this claim.

But let's not throw the baby out with the bath water, as it were.  One reason why social media is so compelling to so many is that is indeed effective in many ways.  Can social media be both overhyped and under-utilized?  Sadly, yes.  At its core, social media are merely tactics, tools to be used to further one's strategy.  Any business, law practice or other, should have a clear and rational view of which clients to target, which services to offer and how to reach these potential clients.  Much of professional services marketing involves creating awareness of your offering and demonstrating expertise in the subject matter, and social media can be a multiplier in these efforts.  A good analysis of social media will measure whether tools such as Twitter, blogging, Facebook fan pages, a robust LinkedIn profile and the like will have the potential to reach more of the target audience.  And if so, will it provide a conduit for the lawyer to demonstrate credibility.  If we can establish which social media tools can be helpful in this regard, then it's a question of cost -- can these tools generate a greater return as compared to alternative investments, say, sponsoring and speaking at client industry conferences, or authoring articles in traditional media, and so on.

So many lawyers haven't embraced social media because they're dazzled by the technology, or jaded by the noise -- silly games on Facebook or celebrity bloviating on Twitter, for example -- so they fail to properly assess whether these tools can be helpful.

Should a lawyer keep his or her business and personal social networking separate? Without question, lawyers should recognize that their political rants among like-minded friends on Facebook, if made public, may turn off potential clients with different political views.  Similarly, potential clients or employers may find the Spring Break pics from five years ago an exercise in poor judgment.  Unfair?  Of course.  The plain truth is that there's a blurring of the lines between our professional and personal personas.  When I opened a Facebook account it was intended for close friends and family only.  But like you I have a number of close friends in my professional life and they were natural additions to my community.  As time goes on, acquaintances slip in until suddenly one's network is full of distant acquaintances or, in many cases, particularly with the younger crowd, complete unknowns.  Today's youth tend to make connections as flippantly as my generation used to trade phone numbers.  You may call, you may not, but there's no harm in passing out your number.  All of which is to say, you can try really hard to separate your business and personal personas but through your own actions or through the actions of your connections who have less rigor, you will very likely expose more of your personal life than you probably intend.

So be sensible.  Mom's rule about keeping mum if you have nothing good to say applies here.  That doesn't mean you can't engage in harmless tomfoolery, bantering with pals or posting pictures of your kids, but treat such actions as you would a business trip at a sunny location where you stayed a few extra days and brought the family, knowing that some clients would be doing the same.  Act is if a client or potential client is watching, even inadvertently.

But don't overlook the simple truth that buyers buy from people they know, like and trust.  Buyers, like potential friends, size you up pretty quickly and make decisions on whether they'll like you based on a number of factors, only some of which are your subject matter expertise and accomplishments.  This is a tough lesson for lawyers trained in logic:  I went to the right schools, I've earned numerous professional honors, I have domain expertise in the legal issues you're facing, so naturally you should hire me... and so what if I contribute to a political party that rejects all of your political beliefs.  On the other hand, all other professional credentials being equal, a buyer might hire the lawyer who seems family-oriented, is clearly proud of his hobbies and who has an opinion or two about whether his team should have gone for it on fourth down or kicked it away.

For more insights on my social media involvement, see my discussion of what social networks and resources I find valuable.  Also, one of my favorite legal peeps, Ron Friedman, is also a Fellow of COLPM and live blogged our panel discussion, so check out his thoughtful insights here.

Also, for an excellent practical guide to incorporating social media into a law practice, run, don't walk, to buy Jayne Navarre's social.lawyers: Transforming Business Development (West Publishing, 2010).  Jayne is a veteran legal marketer, former Board member of the Legal Marketing Association and a consultant I've turned to for advice time and again.

Social Media Update

One of the most popular and heavily visited blog posts I've published is the summary of what social media I read, visit and engage on a daily basis. Those who know me are quite aware that I incorporate social networking in my professional and personal life, and the most common question I'm asked is, "How do you possibly find the time?" Well, simply put, I make the time. I've always felt that weaving together disparate points of information, connecting dots that others don't see, has given me a strategic advantage in my professional life because occasionally I see trends and opportunities before others. I also find value in connecting people when such a connection benefits both parties. And so I read a lot, from many sources. I'm not as consistent as I once was, but I try to spend a little time every day, usually in small doses throughout the day, staying on top of news and developments in my field, updating and sharing some of these tidbits with my networks, and skimming what others in my network have shared. When viewed in the aggregate, it can be a daunting and exhausting effort to stay on top of it -- it's not uncommon, for example, to open my Google Reader on a weekend after a busy week and find over 1,000 unread items.

But I learned a lesson long ago that has helped me immensely. I have always been reluctant to start a book or magazine unless I'm prepared to finish all of it, which means I need both the time and the inclination to dive in fully committed. But I eventually learned that this is a dumb rule. So now I happily pick up a magazine and read the one or two or ten articles that interest me rather than read it cover to cover. If I'm three chapters into a book and I simply can't muster the energy or interest to continue, it goes on the shelf. I no longer feel any guilt putting something down and moving on. This has freed me to skim a large volume of sources, selecting those which interest me for further investigation, and literally scrolling past the rest.

But an unexpected downside of incorporating a high volume of reading materials into my daily life is that I'm more desensitized to what others may find unusual or interesting because when I've seen twenty references to some tidbit in fifteen different sources over the course of two weeks, it may appear commonplace to me when in fact it's still on the fringe and weeks (or months or years!) away from common knowledge. For example, I vividly recall conducting a Legal Project Management workshop for a group of law firm partners a couple years ago, and not only were they unaware of this growing trend, they didn't even know what the terms meant. I had forgotten that many lawyers look to precedent to learn, rather than look outside their own experience.

Nevertheless, I'd rather read too much than too little. But choices must be made. And so I divide my time across a variety of social networks, reading multiple news sources and blogs, never knowing which might be valuable to me today. Following is a list of the social networks and reading sources I visit daily, or as close as I can get.

LinkedIn - I maintain a robust profile here, having achieved 100% on the completeness meter, for whatever that's worth. I tend to research my business connections, such as clients, prospective clients or people who send me resumes. The fact of the matter is everyone will research you and me sooner or later, so I feel we might as well put our credentials out there for review. As for contacts, I now have over 700 connections, of which I have instant recall of probably no more than 70%. I tend to invite attendees at my workshops and speeches to connect with me, which means my network is full of people I don't really know. But LinkedIn provides a handy notes tool which allows me to capture a few thoughts about each contact. Lastly, I will readily offer my network to those interested in finding a job or making a connection, as in "Review my connections and if there's someone you'd like to meet let me know." Few do, suggesting that networking is still a scary proposition whether online or virtual.

Facebook - I spend a few moments on here each day, typically posting some inane comment about what I'm doing, skimming what my friends and family are doing, and occasionally offering comments. I never ever play Facebook games. I can't imagine why anyone would care that last Saturday I played two hours of basketball at the gym, folded four loads of laundry and watched a soccer game on TV. But it amuses me endlessly that others find this interesting and so I continue to share. Facebook has turned into a proxy for class and family reunions and annual birthday phone calls, because now I know what my friends and family are up to, even the distant connections I haven't seen in twenty years, so we don't need to catch up. Being more aware isn't the same as being closer, however.

Twitter - I have over 800 followers on Twitter, and I'm listed as a "must read" on several lists of legal industry pundits, but I don't actively attend to this network like I used to. I don't believe in the "If you follow me I'll follow you" trend, so I follow only 350 or so, and of these I really only keep track of a few dozen. I like Twitter, and it's a very handy search tool as well as an invaluable tool when attending (or not attending) a conference, but it takes time to navigate through the noise and at the moment it's not capturing my attention as in the past.

Legal OnRamp - I'm a big fan of this network and I've spent time with its founder, Paul Lippe. I had the good fortune of being part of the Counsel Connect team, which was a social network for lawyers in the early '90s, well before its time, so I'm a fan of the format and LOR improves upon the model in many ways. This network is fantastic with robust content, good debates and a number of compelling private offerings for member firms. I don't participate so much lately as lurk, but I do enjoy the spirited discussions.

Martindale Connected - I like this network too, though it was late to the party and therefore it hasn't really ever entered my daily regimen. I've participated in a few discussions, and I was invited to offer feedback on the last redesign, but -- and I could be totally wrong here -- it seems to skew more toward the small firm audience, whereas I spend most of my time with big firms. Martindale-Hubbell has always offered excellent networking tools, and its shift from directory to social network has been somewhat lengthy and painful, but I have every reason to believe this network will become ever more robust and engaging over time.

LMA Connect - This is the official online community of the Legal Marketing Association. Several years ago this particular configuration replaced an easy-to-use email listserve with a somewhat clunkier online interface, which seemed to inhibit usage. I believe at the time the organization also chose not to automatically enroll all members in the online community, preferring to allow members to self-select which forums to join. The net effect is that traffic is much lower than it once was, but it really is a must-read forum for all topics related to legal marketing and business development.

Lawmarketing Listserve - This is one facet of the robust online community created by legal marketer turned entrepreneur Larry Bodine. I've been a member of this listserve since 1996 and with few exceptions I've skimmed every posted comment by every legal marketer on every topic for the last fourteen years. I can think of few better ways to stay on top of the pulse of legal marketing than to listen to legal marketers.

Google Reader - I use this as my RSS reader, and it works equally well on my PC, my Blackberry and my Android PDA. I love the simplicity, which allows me to quickly skim hundreds of news articles or blog posts in a very short period of time, marking some for future reading, sharing or saving.

Here are the feeds that I monitor daily, with explanations where the content is not self-evident:

News Wall Street Journal Financial Times ESPN CNN MSNBC New York Times Rochester Democrat & Chronicle - My hometown newspaper

I also read two local print newspapers each day, the Trenton Times and the Trentonian. (I also do both crossword puzzles, typically within 20 minutes, except for the syndicated and much harder weekend editions!)

Legal News Law.com - Legal Technology Law.com - Newswire Wall Street Journal Law Blog Above the Law - a fascinating and unashamedly narcissistic legal tabloid that essentially lampoons Biglaw from the perspective of lawyers-turned-journalists

Economics Freakonomics - From the authors of the popular books, here one finds anecdotes of economic theories in use in daily life The Becker-Posner blog - One a noted University of Chicago economist, the other a noted Federal Judge, these two debate topics of the day from an economics perspective. Pour a cup of coffee and don your thinking cap before reading these articles MacroBuddies - A blog authored by my favorite macroeconomics professor, Farrokh Langdana of Rutgers University, and his MBA students and alumni

Law Departments In House Rants - written by an anonymous corporate lawyer, he or she shares frustrations with outside lawyers and their reportedly poor service and business skills. I very nearly deleted this because the author is sporadic and at times not very constructive... but then the title should have been a clue! InHouse ACCess - authored by The Association of Corporate Counsel leaders and member contributors. An excellent, constructive, rich source of information about the challenges of in-house counsel with practical guidance to outside lawyers on how to better serve their clients InHouse Blog - Law.com's collection of news and information for the in-house counsel community Law Department Management Blog - the gold standard in providing information to the in-house community, Rees Morrison offers a tremendous volume of insight from book reviews, to critical analysis of surveys and products, to thoughtful discussion of metrics and other operational issues for General Counsel

Management Financial Times Management Columnists - a roundup of the FT's management experts. I'm particularly fond of Stefan Stern

I've added and deleted quite a few sources from this Management list. There should be plenty of rich sources that fall between the Harvard Business Review and some anonymous rant, but I have difficulty finding good ones that help me grow as a manager and a leader. All suggestions welcome.

Legal Blogs - This is the real heart of my online reading, and I've added and deleted quite a few over the years. Again, all suggestions for good sources are welcome. 3 Geeks and a Law Blog - an enjoyable tour of topics from three legal professionals, one a Knowledge Management professional, one a Law Librarian and the other a lawyer/marketer Above and Beyond KM - written by V. Mary Abraham, a Biglaw Knowledge Management professional and lawyer, a great source of practical information about legal technology and its potential for improving the practice of law Adam Smith, Esq. - hands down one of the top blogs for anyone interested in law firm management. If you aren't reading author Bruce MacEwen's excellent insights, then you can't possibly be serious about improving your management skills and insights Bill's Blog - This blog is authored by American Lawyer Media CEO Bill Pollak and though it was originally intended for his employees only, he's developed quite a following of industry insiders who are as interested in his management style and use of social media from the board room as they are in his company Brand Thinking - interesting insights on law firm marketing from well-known law firm branding and advertising guru Burkey Belser College of Law Practice Management blog - this blog published by this prestigious group of legal industry thought leaders should be more robust, but alas many of the vocal Fellows (of which I'm one) publish their own blogs, so I keep this handy more for its potential than for its practical use at the moment Cotterman on Compensation - I've long been a fan of Altman Weil consultant Jim Cotterman's insights into law firm economics and finance, and as the world of associate and partner compensation is changing his insights are invaluable Decent Shred - a helpful smorgasbord of topics on legal technology, knowledge management and marketing by consultant Shy Alter Enlightened Tradition - a collection of UK legal KM manager Mark Gould's posts about knowledge management Get Creative - Merrilyn Astin Tarlton's musings on creativity, innovation and leadership Global Growth Guru - Consultant Doug Johnson's thoughtful insights on legal marketing and legal business management Hildebrandt Blog - Consultants from Hildebrandt Baker Robbins offer insights into a variety of legal industry topics Hubbard Perspective - commentary, insights and links from legal marketing technology leader Hubbard One ILTA blog - the feed from the leading association of legal technologists In Search of Perfect Client Service - Biglaw refugee Patrick Lamb launched his own small law firm focused on offering value in innovative ways to clients. His commentary here lampoons the traditional mindset of Biglaw lawyers and offers helpful tips for adding value in your own firm Inside Legal - Legal PR experts at Envision Agency offer news and commentary primarily about legal service providers Larry Bodine LawMarketing Blog - the aforementioned legal marketing veteran offers commentary gleaned from his consulting practice Law Consulting Blog - Veteran lawyer turned management consultant Cordell Parvin offers insights and commentary on the changing legal profession Law Firm 4.0 Blog - my longtime friend (and now competitor!) Deborah McMurray offers her usual insightful commentary on legal marketing Law Firm Competitive Intelligence - veteran legal CI expert Ann Lee Gibson offers occasional insights into the world of CI, gleaned from her many years helping law firms win competitive bids Law Firm Web Strategy - noted web marketing agency Stem Legal offers insights into legal marketing trends Law21 - The second on my absolute must-read list for anyone serious about law firm management. Jordan Furlong is a veteran journalist turned management consultant and his insights are informed by constant observation of law firms, their leaders and their foibles and successes. If my list weren't alphabetical this blog would be listed at the top LawBizBlog - Ed Poll is a lawyer, management consultant and mentor/coach to a long list of successful lawyers. I enjoy his writing more than his quirky videocasts, but his soft-spoken, well-informed commentary is perfect for lawyers who need advice but are afraid to ask for fear of being ridiculed. Ed is even more engaging in person. (Ask him about his 1968 Airstream trailer!) Legal Blog Watch - Two columnists rotate informative and often amusing commentary on legal news of the day Legal Current - from Thomson Reuters, news and links about the legal industry Legal Marketing Blog - veteran legal marketer Tom Kane, who's had stints in several Biglaw firms, preaches what he practices on this blog, a guide to help legal marketers and lawyers improve their business generation efforts Legal Marketing Canada - this blog might be labeled Jasinski on Legal Marketing, but I go by the name of the RSS feed. Lawyer and legal marketer Doug Jasinski offers insights particularly suited to Canadian lawyers and marketers Legal Marketing Reader - journalist Amy Campbell created this site to aggregate legal marketing articles. A great idea with a nice archive of very informative articles, though it isn't updated nearly enough Legal Process Outsourcing - an executive at outsourcing giant CPA Global offers insights into the growing LPO field Legal Transformation Blog - Lawyer turned consultant Joshua Kubicki offers excellent insights into the changing world of law firm operations Lloyd Pearson Blog - veteran legal directory editor turned law firm marketer turned consultant assists law firms with their communications and legal directory strategies. Here he occasionally provides insights into the ever-present and growing world of legal directories Martindale Blog - Martindale-Hubbell's face to the market offer insights into its offerings, social networking and other legal marketing topics Progressive Marketing - veteran legal marketer Russell Lawson offers his unique take on the state of legal marketing Rainmaker VT - good friends Mike O'Horo and Craig Levinson recently launched an innovative online approach to teaching business development skills to lawyers. In his blog they discuss legal business development tips and techniques Real Lawyers Have Blogs - former lawyer turned serial entrepreneur Kevin O'Keefe has been leading the charge on legal blogs for years. His stream of consciousness blog posts are an informative and often amusing look into how he thinks Strategic Legal Technology - Another must-read favorite of mine. Ron Friedmann has been involved in law firm technology since the days when "tech savvy" meant having a secretary with access rights to the one PC owned by the firm. His accumulated wealth of knowledge coupled with his personal experiences inside law firms and as a vendor to law firms is an incredibly valuable resource The Client Revolution - Jay Shepherd breaks new ground in practicing law with the client's needs in mind rather than his own billable hours. His insights are very helpful because they're based on his own experiences operating a law firm in a new way The Common Scold - a colleague from my days at American Lawyer, Monica Bay is one of the most respected legal technology journalists, serving as longtime editor of Law Technology News. Her insights on the state of legal technology, to legal vendors (never sell "solutions!") to her love affair with the New York Yankees are must-read, as making her "people on the move" update is a badge of honor The Legal Watercooler - Law firm marketer Heather Morse Milligan is a career counselor to hundreds of legal marketers who enjoy learning from her experiences and seeing the world of law and legal marketing through her eyes The Non-Billable Hour - Matt Homann makes you think outside the box, and even if you think you know it all, he'll help you learn something new. A fascinating guy with a fresh outlook on life and learning, his blog is a good consolation when you can't spend time with Matt in person The PR Lawyer - Philadelphia lawyer turned PR counsel Gina Furia Rubel practices what she preaches, using social media and traditional PR to promote her practice of helping law firms and small businesses promote themselves Thoughtful Legal Management - I really enjoy Canadian lawyer Dave Bilinksy's writing, in part because he's a veteran journalist, in part because his consulting practice and experience gives him a ringside seat to the many changes in law firm management and technology Virtual Marketing Officer - longtime friend Jayne Navarre offers her insights into legal marketing, particularly social media, gleaned from years of experience working inside and consulting to law firms. In fact, my own blog exists as a result of her very kind assistance Zen & the Art of Legal Networking - The International Lawyers Network has a tremendous resource in Lindsay Griffiths, who employs her impressive social media chops both promoting this association and discussing the use of social media

Other - a handful of sources that aren't easily categorized elsewhere @ErikJHeels - my old friend Erik is a lawyer, musician, technologist, who served as a legal technology journalist for a dozen years or more. He writes on all sorts of topics, from baseball to patent law to music to how he synchronizes his Gmail and Outlook Contacts (with diagrams) to housing rates in Eastern Massachusetts. An engaging writer, you never know what to expect The Dilbert Blog - If all you know of Dilbert creator Scott Adams is that he's a lousy artist, then you're missing out on a fascinating mind who writes from his perspective as an accomplished economist, cartoonist, technologist, atheist and hypnotist. While often funny, his writing more often makes you think Dr. B's Blog - I've retained Dr. Linda Burrs for multiple projects having to do with organizational dynamics, team work and selling skills. She has a corporate trainer background, and now helps businesses and people operate more effectively. I have hired her to conduct a practical Myers-Briggs workshop for every new team I've managed for over a decade... and I will do so again Musings on (Marching) Music - my kid sister Colleen Corcoran writes about her love of music and teaching music, particularly marching band (she's a drum corps national champion). I tell her she should write about how hard it is to find a job as a high school band director and marching band instructor when it seems like every school district has even more incompetent personnel policies and procedures than the last!. But she laughs it off and prefers to write of what she loves rather than what she must endure to pursue her passion. I envy her restraint! Seth's Blog - marketing guru Seth Godin offers frequent pearls of wisdom and occasional self-important drivel. He has a knack for forcing one to ask, "Why do we do things that way when there are far more effective approaches?" Set in Style - I very much enjoy writing coach Mister Thorne's often acerbic but always informative approach to urging lawyers and legal marketers to hire professionals to do their non-legal writing. You can't help but laugh when he points out the inefficiency of complex legalease when simple editing will produce more concise, effective prose The Pursuit of Arete - from the "people surprise me" department, my longtime friend and my former public relations consultant Daryn Teague offers some fascinating insights into politics, history, culture and the American way. We've shared many a beer over the years and I have a great respect for his intellect, but not once did I suspect he had these interests tins : Rick Klau's blog - I've known Rick since his first job out of law school, and since then he's been a rising star in whatever game he's played. Currently a rising executive at Google, Rick has been blogging for a very long time on topics that interest him, and since he's usually a couple years ahead of the curve they will probably interest you too eventually Tom Glocer's Blog - I began reading the Thomson Reuters CEO's blog a while ago, long before joining the company, because I'm fascinated by CEOs who take the time to engage the public. I've met more CEOs afraid of their own employees and terrified of customers, so finding one who's willing to engage so openly is refreshing (see Bill Pollak above)

Humor - There are about a dozen feeds which provide an endless stream of laughs. However, humor is a subjective thing and some may not be appreciated by my readers. Suffice it to say that an RSS reader can provide plenty of amusement in addition to education.

If I were more organized, I'd publish a list of what I've stopped reading, and why, because the list does change over time. But alas, interested readers will have to conduct this comparison on their own. You can read my previous social media updates here (2009) and here (2008).

Marketing Your Law Practice With A Blog

"In a world where a claim of expertise is often indistinguishable from actual expertise, it's critical as a lawyer to clearly exhibit subject matter expertise to your target market, notes Timothy B. Corcoran, a senior consultant with Altman Weil. One effective method of establishing such expertise, says Corcoran, is with a blog. He discusses the benefits of blogging and also some of the basic issues that can arise, such as how often to post and whether outsourcing is a good idea." See my article from Marketing the Newsletter reprinted at Law.com here.

Don't Tell Me What You Think I Want to Hear, Tell Me What I Need to Know!

Have you ever been placed in a situation where someone protected you from a painful truth, but in so doing left you at a disadvantage because you couldn't make a fully-informed decision?  A common complaint I hear from in-house counsel is that outside counsel often don't share small problems, and some of these grow into big problems.  This applies whether it's a budget overrun or a curve ball in the legal matter they're addressing. I've written previously about the critical need for in-house counsel to budget accurately for legal matters -- matters that from the perspective of corporate chieftains are no less variable or uncertain than global supply chain costs or revenue projections.  At a recent discussion on the topic, a Chief Legal Officer explained the impact of a cost overrun in her legal department.  As a big box retailer with profit margins in the mid-single digits, there is very little excess spending in the organization from which they can divert funds to address cost overruns.  As a result, some cost overruns are distributed as a sort of "tax" on sales, or in other words, for every $50,000 overage in the legal department, the organization must sell an additional $1,000,000 of product above forecast.  And since there are incremental costs associated with additional sales, and in some cases revenue cannot be fully recognized immediately, the actual surcharge is something on the order of $2,000,000.

Think about that for a moment.  Imagine the GC addressing her peers in the boardroom in late Q3 of the fiscal year.  She claims that because legal matters are so uncertain there's no way to submit a proper forecast, and as it turns out she'll need an additional $50,000 in her budget, maybe more, and so Sales must step up and deliver an additional $2,000,000 in revenue.  Someone's going to be eating alone in the executive cafeteria.

Of course this applies to legal matters that start out small but grow into big hairy complicated messes.  If the outside counsel doesn't provide early warning that the matter is growing beyond the expected scope, the GC can't properly re-assess the situation.  Since legal matters are, at heart, business issues, it's critical to inform business management how new developments impact expectations.

Does the discovery of a smoking gun during document review warrant a fast reversal of course in the SEC investigation?  Will previously unknown IP infringement claims that surface in acquisition due diligence alter the calculus in a make vs. buy decision?  The earlier a GC knows of the potential issues, the better she can advise business management.  This is not to say outside counsel routinely and purposely withhold information, not at all.  But when project scope is ill-defined in advance it sometimes takes too long to understand when the scope has materially changed, and this lag time is unacceptable.  For help on defining scope, look into Legal Project Management.

As with many of my life lessons, I learned the hard way.  I vividly recall a product development project for which I was an executive sponsor.  Each month for nearly two years the development team provided progress updates, sought additional funding, looked for guidance on feature/function decisions and otherwise adhered to the development schedule.  However, two months before launch, long after we had incorporated significant new revenue streams into our current year forecast, the development team advised that they were six to eight months off schedule.  They had hoped to make up time and they didn't want to deliver bad news, so they hadn't raised the alarm earlier, but other projects interfered and now there was no way to meet the deadline.  As executive sponsor I wasn't necessarily expected to be sitting with the developers each day, looking over their code and analyzing their progress, but I was expected to know if the launch date would be delayed into the next fiscal year, putting all of our revenue projections at significant risk!  I ate lunch alone quite a bit that year.

Let's close with an unrelated anecdote.  Because of my heavy travel schedule, much of it at hours when others in my time zone are fast asleep, from time to time I hire a car service to take me to and from the airport.  I grew fond of one car service owner-operator and hired him exclusively for several years.  Needless to say, I was a lucrative client for his small business.  For one return trip I had a tight schedule:  land at the airport, dash to the car waiting at the curb, try to shave off some time on the hour-long ride to my home, and make it to my daughter's band concert a few minutes late.  There was no room for error, such as an unanticipated (but quite common) traffic jam, so I also consulted the train schedule.   I could take a train and almost certainly have no delays, but I would miss more than half the concert.  I gambled on the car service.

When I left the plane, I called the driver to alert him that I was walking to the airport exit.  He said he was slowly circling the airport, as is his custom so he doesn't have to park.  The flight was long so I needed to visit the restroom and it was maybe 20 degrees (F) outside, but instead I waited outside for 10 minutes knowing the airport police would shoo away the driver if he approached and I wasn't there.  After a few minutes I called back, and the driver revealed he was actually pulling into the airport now and would be there momentarily.  Another ten minute delay.  I called again and as the driver was telling me that he drove by but didn't see me, I heard a toll booth agent in the background.  The driver then sheepishly admitted that he was just exiting the nearby interstate highway, and now he really was about 10 minutes away.

You know how this ends, don't you?  By now I had missed my train.  There was no way I would see even a moment of my daughter's concert.  I had been standing in below-freezing weather for nearly half an hour expecting the driver to arrive at any second, and, not to put too fine a point on it, I was in dire need of a visit to the restroom.  So I told the driver I would no longer need his services, then I went inside, visited the restroom, bought a Starbucks and headed to the next train.  A week later the small business owner sent me a letter scolding me for throwing away our cozy relationship merely because he was a little late.  And, by the way, he claimed I owed him for the trip since I didn't cancel in time.

The real error was not giving me the information I needed.  I could have visited the rest room, secured a hot beverage and stood inside the door.  I could've taken the train -- and I still would've paid the driver for his time.  In other words, I could have explored my options.  Instead, his misguided effort to protect me from the truth eliminated all of my options, leaving me furious, cold and in search of a new business partner.

I'm presently conducting several client satisfaction interviews for law firm clients.  Often we hear about poor communication and poor budgeting skills.  Sometimes my Biglaw partner clients will dismiss these as one-time easily-explained situations that are blown out of proportion, certainly not the sort of issue to derail a longtime relationship.  I caution them to put themselves in their client's shoes.  Are these the comfortable loafers of a well-informed client?  Or are these shoes hopping from one foot to another, trying to stay warm in the absence of information?

Timothy B. Corcoran delivers keynote presentations and conducts workshops to help lawyers, in-house counsel and legal service providers profit in a time of great change.  To inquire about his services, click here or contact him at +1.609.557.7311 or at tim@corcoranconsultinggroup.com. – See more at: http://www.corcoranlawbizblog.com

Law Firm Cross Selling Basics

In today's vignette, let's react once again to search engine key words that have led recent visitors to my blog.  Law firm cross selling is a search term that quite frequently appears in my search logs. Most lawyers perceive cross selling as the other guy's job.  "I told them what I do, now it's their responsibility to introduce me to their clients."  This is a waste of time, whether due to apathy, or busy schedules, or -- in large firms in particular -- the inability to really know what everyone else does.

So many firms, or the firm's marketing team, create elaborate Intranet sites and internal newsletters where success stories are published and deal lists and practice descriptions are housed, so that each lawyer may spend time perusing his or her colleagues' area of specialty.  But no one really does this.

Let's assume for a moment that there is no financial disincentive, such as a compensation system that rewards isolationist behavior or at least fails to reward collaboration.  These systems exist, but like wallpaper they're a big pain in the neck to remove and replace, so they remain.

Why, then, do so many lawyers fail to go out of their way to cross sell?

First, many lawyers are bad at math.  If every lawyer is more fully utilized, and we're doing more work with existing clients (or, in other words, our cost to acquire new work is lower than it would be to seek new clients) then the firm overall will be more profitable and all shareholders will benefit.  Instead, many tend to focus on their personal performance and origination.

Secondly, many lawyers fail to recognize that cross selling is MY job.  If I want my colleagues to recommend me to their clients, then they need to know what specific problems I solve, and what specific triggers or flags should lead to an introduction.  Vaguely advertising that I do real estate work is less specific than educating my colleagues that, for example, any client with distressed assets in need of protection or disposal, or clients conducting an acquisition that includes real assets with unknown liabilities, should speak to me.  It's incumbent on each of us to educate our colleagues about the top two or three problems we solve, and how to identify one of these problems in the making.

Yes, yes, I know that if we limit it to two or three problems, then we'll be completely overlooked by our colleagues when a separate but equally lucrative issue comes along, and since we didn't identify it they'll recommend that their client seek another law firm with more relevant experience to handle it.  Or so we think.  Have you ever gone to a steakhouse with a vegetarian? She doesn't starve! Or to a seafood restaurant and ordered a steak?  Just because we promote one or two or three compelling ideas doesn't mean we can't or won't provide services outside this range.  So narrow it down, make it easy, and trust your colleagues to know you also do other work in this field.

Finally, cross selling requires familiarity and trust.  We've heard the maxim that clients buy from people they like and trust.  This applies within a law firm too.  So make time to get to know your colleagues.  I've been in law firm practice group meetings where two partners had never met in person, yet they practiced in the same group for a couple years, and presumably attended the same annual practice group offsite meetings, but their schedules had never really coincided.  In today's growing law firm, it's hard to get to know everybody.  But try.  Work from another office periodically.  Pick two or three colleagues you don't know, even if your clients have never had a need in this area, and take them to lunch this year.  When traveling to a client site, if there's a satellite office nearby, drop in and walk the halls.  Your colleagues will refer business to you when they trust you, and they won't generally trust you until they know you.

This is also why every law firm retreat I'm asked to organize includes some pub time, or golf time, or spa time.  This is sometimes eliminated due to cost or optics, but in fact it's critical to spend time off the clock with your colleagues.  Work the room, get to know people.  You'll be amazed how frequently your name will come up in their client meetings when they know you, know what problems you solve, and how to spot the issues when they arise.

Good luck!