Polish Your Online Reputation

Attorneys: Keys to Your Online Reputation

Do you have difficulty getting new clients? Have you wondered how to get more clients using online services, such as Legal Services Link? Follow these tips from the experts for the best results.

1. Obtain client feedback.

Clients love to be asked for their opinions. It is human nature to be flattered when someone requests your input, so solicit your clients' thoughts and comments soon after the representationis completed. Use a free online survey tool with only a few brief but pointed questions. For those clients who aren't technologically savvy, develop a form that can be printed and mailed back. This serves multiple purposes for any attorney. First and foremost, rave reviews will draw the attention of other prospective clients who are seeking similar services. A less obvious benefit is that it can help you identify any areas of weakness. For example, if multiple clients indicate that you are unresponsive, you should make the necessary changes to become more responsive.

2. Always be reliable, approachable, and transparent.

Meeting clients online doesn't mean the entire relationship is sterile, digitized, and conducted over email. Making a human connection will resonate with most clients and result in better feedback and a higher rating. True professionals communicate clearly and often with their clients—often in person or over the phone--and they always follow through with promises and commitments. Above all else, most clients want an attorney who is approachable and responsive to questions, one who can cut through the legalese, and explain complicated legal issues in common sense terms.

3. Your profile matters.

Your online profile must be fully completed and updated regularly. Set a reminder to review and update your profile weekly or monthly. Be bold about advertising your skills and abilities—let people know what you can do for them and what your capabilities are. Each time you publish an article or put on a presentation, update your profile to reflect that article and/or presentation. If you have a Legal Services Link account, you can actually post your article or presentation to the site and have it linked to you profile, greatly increasing your visibility and you credibility. Pricing and other details, such as areas of practice, your location, your educational history, and your work history, also need to be filled out and current. Additionally, make sure that your profile prominently displays a nice photograph of yourself. Not a photograph of the scales of justice or your firm’s logo, but of you. Clients want to know what the attorney they’re hiring looks like—if you don’t give them that opportunity, you might as well have no online profile at all.

Posted - 08/07/2015