This episode focuses attention on a topic the hosts have talked about before – developing a client-centered practice. By recalling things that have happened in their practices, Oscar and Scott discuss steps they have implemented to make sure they are always mindful of their clients’ needs and expectations. As lawyers, it can be easy to fall into the habit of believing that you know best how to handle the attorney-client relationship. But the hosts remind listeners that from the outset, it is the clients’ goals that matter most. For example, the first step is making sure that from the first meeting, you and the client are on the same page as to the level of communication the client wants and what you will commit to. From then on, it is up to you to maintain that promise and build the kind of relationship that will bring you more business.

The podcast hosts were both influenced in their businesses by Seth Godin’s book Tribes: We Need You to Lead. In his book and in Ted talks on the subject Seth Godin discusses that a tribe is “any group of people, large or small, who are connected to one another, a leader, and an idea.” This podcast talks about how Seth’s ideas can be applied to building your law practice by thinking of yourself as the leader of a tribe that will follow you by writing and talking about certain topics from a consistent, strong viewpoint. Scott and Oscar break down the steps a lawyer can take to try and become a leading voice in particular legal niche and by doing so, enhance their practice.

Development of a niche practice has been a key focus of Reboot your Law Practice since its inception. Podcast host Scott Limmer talks about his attempts to develop a practice in Cannabis Law. At a recent trip to a Cannabis Convention in Las Vegas, Scott realized it was time to pull the plug on trying to start that niche area and move on to something else and devote more time to his current practice areas.

The hosts talk about what Scott learned in the process and why it’s important to know when to walk away from something that isn’t working. The hosts also discuss how even a failed endeavor can reap rewards for the growth and development of yourself as a lawyer and of your practice.

This week Oscar and Scott discuss how to decide how much to put into your marketing budget. While industry surveys report that law firms average between 1.5-3% of gross revenue for marketing, Oscar and Scott discus how the numbers can be deceptive. Firstly, the surveys usually involve big law firms so the numbers will not be applicable to solo or small firm practitioners.

Before deciding how much to spend, you have to decide who your target audience is and where can you reach them. Spending money on marketing without a precise game plan as to what kind of business you seek to attract is just throwing money out the window. The hosts also discuss that you should take parts of your current budget that you may not consider to be marketing but which should be used to develop your practice so that the numbers involved are applicable to a marketing budget. For example:

• Bar association dues
• CLE classes
• Tickets to certain fundraisers
• And of course – your website costs

All of these items should be keyed toward developing business and are proper items to include in your marketing budget.

Oscar & Scott talk about the importance of remaining authentic to yourself and your practice in all of your social media outlets. Starting with your website, don’t pretend to be something you’re not or make promises you can’t keep. Your site is usually the first thing that will pop up when prospective clients search your name on the Internet. The hosts talk about some issues they discovered in lawyers’ websites and online communications that must be avoided at all costs. Examples include using a picture of someone other than yourself and giving wrong information on a substantive law issue.
Remember that the Internet is forever and a poor social media presence can be devastating to recruiting business and referrals. Listening to this podcast will help you avoid some common and dangerous pitfalls.

This week we talk about tried and true big business ideas that you can use for your solo or small practice. Scott read a few business books and he and Oscar talk about how to apply the methods he learned about to your practice.
They discuss the following books

The E Myth by Michael Gerber
http://www.amazon.com/The-E-Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses/dp/0887307280
The E-Myth discusses the differing, oftentimes conflicting, roles of a business owner as he must take on the duties of the entrepreneur, technician and manager of their small business. Scott and Oscar agree that you must wear many hats as a business owner and you must put time and effort into ll aspects of your practice.

Traction by Gino Wickman
http://www.amazon.com/Traction-Get-Grip-Your-Business/dp/1936661837/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8
What Scott took away from Traction is that the key to growing your business is to plan. Create a Vision statement. Identify Core processes. Create Measurable priorities.

Zero to One by Peter Theil
http://www.amazon.com/Zero-One-Notes-Startups-Future/dp/0804139296/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8
There were two points in in Zero to One that resonated with Scott. The author wrote about the need to run your business like a franchise. Create systems so that your business could run without you. The author also discussed how secrets fuel businesses. Oscar and Scott discussed determining the secrets you know and translating it into value you can give to a client.

In this episode the podcast hosts talk about developing and transitioning into a new practice area. Scott has Oscar take listeners through how he made a transition into a new practice area when his main practice field –criminal defense - began to decrease. Oscar explains why the need arose and how he adapted and developed as he transitioned. The podcast hosts apply lessons learned from this experience into tools listeners can use and apply to their own practices.

Podcast Host Scott Limmer recently attended Above the Law’s Academy of Private Practice Conference and reports on some valuable insight and information he obtained at the conference. First and foremost, Scott mentions that lawyers have to get comfortable with the current and coming tech boom affecting lawyers and their practice. This has been a running theme on the show and the ATL APP conference just further solidified the need for practitioners to get up to speed – not just with tech for the office and staff but tech such as branded portals that put up clients’ needs and seek legal help for them through these special websites, like Upwork. Lawyers need to think about their practice areas as these sites proliferate and do things like wills; corporate start-ups; and document production. While these things will give people more access to legal services at a low cost – it will financially impact solo and small firms. Some tips to rise above the coming cyber-law-practice model:

- Focus on areas where personal interaction is still needed and highly valued
- Make sure you are marketing your expertise and giving confidence to prospective clients
- Take advantage of your skills and experience to add value to clients who may be thinking about going cyber for their legal needs
- Automate your documents and templates – following the Lean Law suggestions from prior podcasts – to make yourself competitive

The hosts continue talking about Getting Lean by discussing how Lean Law relates to your client management and development. Ken Grady, Lean Law Evangelist at SeyfarthShaw, discusses different pricing models for legal services and the price sensitivity that is creeping into the legal profession.  Part of the way that we can provide quality of service at a lower fee is by getting Lean in our practice so that what used to take you 2 hours now takes you 30 minutes. That allows you to: 
 
• Use the extra 90 minutes to do something else that is profitable
• Pass the savings onto the client which keeps them happy 
• Be more flexible in how you charge clients 
 
The Good News that Ken is helping us spread is that “Getting Lean” only requires basic tools: paper, pencil, post it notes, and some tape. It’s not a resource heavy activity. The basic method is to map out the sequence of things you do to fulfill a particular process – say preparing a complaint. Then create a checklist of those things to see which can be eliminated or consolidated. It also allows you to streamline the process by not having to cycle through the preliminary steps that are common to each complaint. This methodology Ken says can be applied to every process in your law firm to make you more efficient and more profitable. 
 
Ken’s evangelism on this topic extends to law schools arguing that law students should be trained in Lean Law before they graduate so that they can bring these practices into small firms. Surprisingly, Ken does say that solo or small firms should be cautious about investing in expensive and fancy software as the rate of return on that investment is slow and prohibitive to a small firm. In our discussion Ken recommends what software and programs solos and small firms should make parts of their practice to make them more Lean. 
 
In concluding our two part discussion with Ken Grady he tells our listeners to focus on spending time on the things in your practice that make you money and bring satisfaction to your clients. We can begin to do that by cutting out those inefficiencies and redundancies that bog down the various processes we all engage in. 

This week Reboot Your Law Practice hosts Ken Grady – “The Lean Law Evangelist” in the first of two part episode discussing how you make your practice “lean” so that it can withstand economic downturns and be less of a monetary roller coaster.

Ken is in charge of the Lean Law Practice at Seyfarth Shaw which helps the national, multi-faceted practice assist its clients in making their businesses leaner. Ken’s prior experience helped form his Lean Law Practice in that after being a partner in a BigLaw firm, he moved in-house to be corporate counsel for various Fortune 500 and Fortune 1000 corporations. It was at these corporate positions that Ken first began to encounter “Lean Thinking” in the business world. He then joined Seyfarth Shaw where he serves as the consultant to their Lean Law Practice.

“Lean Thinking” is a business process improvement brought over to the states by Toyota in the 1980s that focuses on efficiency; cost control; and quality improvement. About 10 years ago, Seyfarth Shaw developed it for the practice of law. These methodologies when applied to legal services helps the firm better serve its clients and helps the firm develop best practices for things like conflict analysis; document production; and time management.

The focus is on an approach to make some things about your practice standard and organized so that you spend more time doing those things that are directly applicable to clients and which make money. The idea is to eliminate as many wasteful activities as possible to streamline the work you perform. While some software that is available in the market place can help you to do that, Ken advises that much of this can be done without buying expensive software.

Ken reminds us that lawyers are not quick to change. The systems we use now are basically the same systems we used in the 1900s when most of law was practiced by solo practitioners or two lawyer firms. Relying on those antiquated systems now – without focusing on efficiency and time management will make it much harder to compete in the current marketplace.

Next week Ken will finish his discussion with Oscar and Scott by talking about some specific things small firms and solo practitioners can do to get “Lean.”

This week Oscar and Scott discuss how solo and small practices can decide on when its time to bring on a new associate. Hiring another lawyer is a big commitment and not just because of the additional salary. It means you have to evaluate your space, your malpractice coverage and your time.
There are some steps you can take before hiring a lawyer to make sure you are ready:

- Will a non-lawyer addition help? Can you start by just adding a part-time paralegal or secretary to help with some of the administrative or lower level tasks that are taking up your time?
- Is the current workload something that will be a steady presence or is just a temporary influx of business that can be alleviated by farming some of the work out?
- Would my workload be eased by hiring per diem or project lawyers as independent contractors to help me with the work
- Maybe even writing to a law school for some part-pay part intern basis

These steps will allow you to see if you are truly ready to hire a new associate and will let you operate on a “test-run” basis. Remember the goal of bringing on staff is to free up your time from tasks that are not profitable and to allow you grow your business. With that in mind, small firms and solos should also look for candidates that can understand the basics of the legal business and look for ways to develop their own business. Bringing on new staff especially a new lawyer is a huge commitment and it should always be done with an eye towards helping your business grow.

Join Oscar and Scott this week as they discuss the process Scott went through to add the niche practice area of College Disciplinary Law to his legal practice.

Listen to find out how Scott determined if this was a viable practice area. Here are some of the considerations you must evaluate when looking to add a practice area to your law practice;

- Is there a need/market for the niche?
- Is this practice area an authentic extension of my practice and of myself?
- Can I provide value for clients?
- How will you get clients in this area?
- Do you have the time you have to put in?
- Do you have a passion for this area?
- Do you have the skills or is there a steep learning curve?
- Can you distinguish yourself in this new area?

We will check in with Scott from time to time to see how the practice is progressing and discuss the challenges he faces.

This week Sam Glover from Lawyerist.com joins us. Sam is the founder of Lawyerist.com which provides daily online content about the practice of law, touching upon subjects such as practice management, tech and marketing.

Sam is a strong advocate of attorneys being technologically competent. He joins Oscar and Scott and they discuss the necessity of attorneys having an understanding of such varied topics as;

- How to communicate securely with clients
- How to safely use public wifi
- An attorneys obligation to advise clients as to the security of their communications
- how lay a foundation to admit social media into evidence
- the duty to google
- how to use Word and Dropbox
- how files are encrypted

They also discuss how you can add value to the attorney client relationship by advising clients how to keep their data and communications safe.

Please visit Sam at Lawyerist.com
Download Sam’s checklist of the knowledge and skills that make up the basic technological competence for lawyers at https://lawyerist.com/downloads/basic-tech-competence/

It’s painfully obvious to state that the modern lawyer trying to grow his practice needs a great website. So why do we devote a whole podcast to the subject? Because it’s no longer enough to get a domain name and throw up a basic template law firm website. You have to tailor your site to the demographic and client base you are trying to get as clients.

Oscar & Scott talk about the thought process and planning you need to get into before you even start talking about the actual design of the site. The hosts discuss Search Engine Optimization and how SEO has changed over the past few years. The podcast provides specific advice and ideas on how to make your website appealing to your potential client base. Essential website areas discussed during the show are:

- What should be on the home page
- Photos
- A Thought-Out Tag Line
- Blog
- Contact Information

Episode 26 - Mentoring and Coaching

What does it mean to have a mentor? Most people think of an elderly person who provides sage advice and guidance to a young protégé. And while that certainly is one aspect of mentoring, in this podcast the hosts discuss that he benefits that all lawyers – young or old; experienced or fresh out of law school – can obtain from a mentor. Scott and Oscar talk about their own personal experiences mentoring lawyers and also discuss how they found the people they rely on to bounce ideas off of or to simply help vent their frustration. The hosts discuss how to find a mentor and approach them about filling that role. For lawyers trying to reboot their practice having a person they trust and can count on to help them through the process is an invaluable tool.

Best places to find a mentor/coach:

(A) Your social circle of lawyers or business people you know, admire and trust;
(B) Bar association;
(C) Law school;
(D) Family           

Leaving a firm to start your own practice is a scary proposition. In this episode Oscar and Scott give vital steps you should take that will lead to a successful practice.

1. You must start planning far in advance by thinking about the makeup of your practice (type of practice, type of clients, type of law) and looking at the viability of each possibility.

2. Will you be able to bring in enough business to support your practice?

3. Start setting up your support system of mentors and get a feel for what solo and small practice life is like.

They also talk about how right now might actually be the best time to start a new practice. 

In this episode, Oscar and Scott welcome writer Cathy Reisenwitz. Cathy who writes on a number of law-related topics for Capterra Legal Software Blog, Above the Law and other sites recently wrote an article for Lawyerist entitled “The Legal industry is About to Get Ubered Hard.”

The hosts discuss Cathy’s article with her and what it means for lawyers unwilling to adapt to technological changes in the practice. Cathy explains that, like cab drivers, lawyers have been protected by legislation and regulation limiting who can practice law. This lack of competitive pressure has kept law nearly unchanged over the last hundred years. However, technological innovation makes it cost effective to offer new ways to serve the market, motivating entrepreneurs to go around protectionist legislation.

Lawyers who fail to recognize this major change in how lawyers and consumers interact – or even how consumers are interacting with business in general- are doomed to having their practices fail on the vine. Scott and Oscar discuss how prior podcasts have encouraged lawyers to look carefully at their social media; their use of technology; and changing consumer expectations about lawyers are affecting their practice. Cathy and the host talk about some specific steps lawyers can take to adapt to the current technology and marketplace.

You can find Cathy on Twitter at @CapterraLegal
and you can read her legal blog at http://blog.capterra.com/author/creisenwitz/

The hosts discuss how small and solo firms need to focus on being organized in order to be successful. As lawyers, we all take deadlines very seriously – appearance dates, statutes of limitation, etc. So we should treat the business goals and “to do “ list” items we set for ourselves as importantly as we treat important dates in our legal matters.

Scott and Oscar talk about what works for them and which strategies they employed that helped them get organized and stay focused on business development. It can be hard for those of us who are not keen on technology to learn new methods of law firm management, but the podcast discusses why it’s essential and offers tips on getting it
done. 

Prior podcasts have discussed the importance of your online presence. Well, your website is the axis around which all of your online presence revolves. Finding the right web site developer is critical to the success of your website. Join us as we discusses what to look for in a website developer, what pitfalls to avoid and what should the contract between you and the developer involve.

We discuss why you may not want to choose a company that “specializes” in law firm website development. You must look to find the right fit, as you will need to have a website person who is responsive and willing to let you manage the content and look of the site. We also touch on topics such as SEO, Google analytics, and other areas that you will need to familiarize yourself with as you enter the digital marketplace

The hosts discuss developing good client relationships with Matthew Chan. Matt is a client of Oscar’s and he has had the opportunity to see litigation and lawyering from a variety of positions – as a pro se plaintiff and defendant, to a business owner who has had to hire lawyers for litigation and even from the perspective of a litigant before the Georgia Supreme Court, the State’s highest court. Seeing law at all these levels has provided Matt with insight into what clients and litigants like and don’t like about lawyers and lawyering.

Matt describes that ultimately what clients want is someone who is a real problem solver and that can explain the issues and the possibilities. The vast majority of clients want something done sooner rather than later and want to feel that their lawyer is on the same page and not looking to just pad the bill.

Some Don’ts for Lawyers from Matt’s perspective as a client:

• Don’t bill lots of hours for research – clients hired you because you know the law, billing for research should be reserved for specific issues that may come up, but clients don’t want to pay for your continuing education
• Don’t nickel and dime clients – Do you really need to bill for every email or five minute phone call?
• Consider giving a free consultation because many clients won’t go to a lawyer if they are charging a significant consultation fee.

Things Matt looks for in an attorney when he is shopping for legal services:

• Relevant experience – while many newer businesses or younger clients may need to go to a young lawyer based on price, clients want to go to the most-experienced lawyer they can afford. Experience gives clients confidence and reassurance
• More and more he looks to a lawyer’s online presence and “tech savviness” as that gives him confidence that the lawyer is up to current standards
• Lawyers with people skills – clients who need lawyers are in serious stress and a lawyer’s bedside manner and how they relate and respond to you is critical in the relationship.
• Good communication and regular feedback is key as well. Ask a client how he prefers to communicate and how often are they expecting to hear from your lawyer.

The hosts talk with Matt about the need for lawyers to be flexible to a client’s needs and expectations as well and discuss that early on in their relationship. Discuss these issues and goals with clients so everyone can be on the same page. The podcast provides objectives and goals for any solo or small firm that can help them develop better client relationships so that they can grow their practice from a client-centric perspective.    

The hosts discuss a recent Above The Law article about getting clients. The author of the article discusses how she thought about the steps she took when she selected a professional to hire. She applied what she did in those situations and what was important to her in developing her practice.
The first step most folks do in selecting a professional is seek suggestions from their referral network. They then will check the person’s credentials, give them a call and examine their responsiveness.
These are steps that your clients will be taking when selecting a lawyer so you need to examine how you would be judge by this criteria.

The authors also discuss keeping your name and services on top of your client’s mind by using newsletters, blogs, and emails. It’s not easy - it takes planning, patience, attention to detail and consistency but keeping contact with your clients and keeping a strong online presence is a necessary step in rebooting your law practice.   

This week we welcome Stephen Furnari of lawfirmsuites.com. Stephen Furnari is a self-employed corporate attorney and the founder of Law Firm Suites. Law Firm Suites is a professionally managed shared law office space for solo attorneys and small law firms based in New York City. Through Law Firm Suites, Stephen has helped dozens of attorneys launch and grow successful law practices. He is the author of several eBooks, including “7 Deadly Mistakes that Prevent Law Practice Success” and “An Insider’s Guide to Renting the Perfect Law Office”. Stephen has been featured in the ABA Journal,Entrepreneur, New York Daily News and Crain’s New York. He can be connected with on Twitter (@stephenfurnari) or Google+.

Stephen explained that his business model is not merely the rental of or sub-rental of office space to lawyers. Plenty of lawyers rent out part of their suites to other lawyers. His business requires tenants to agree to a collegiate atmosphere that encourages cross-referrals. The model is to form a cooperative environment where lawyers form different practice groups can work together, share costs and refer each other business outside their own practice areas.

The hosts discuss with Stephen how his business model fits perfectly into the Reboot philosophy that the best way to develop a self-sustaining, fulfilling practice is through networking and creating a reliable referral program. The podcast discusses the details of Stephen’s company and how young or struggling lawyers can benefit form participating in a positive, collaborative environment.

Stephen has set up a special offer for our listeners. Go to www.lawfirmsuites.com/lawreboot to get a free copy of his guide: The Ultimate Guide to Maximizing Referrals in a Shared Law Office Space

Episode 17 Developing a Niche Practice – Part 2


The hosts continue their discussion of how to add a niche practice of law to your business. They remind listeners that it may take time to grow, it will not happen overnight. Scott and Oscar give some specific details of how to start such a practice. It starts with setting goals and creating a business plan. Selecting the right area is key and it may take more than one attempt to find the right niche. It’s best to look at areas that you already have a potential to get business in that area. Some pointers:
• Start by deciding the large practice group – Family Law, Criminal Defense
• Look for narrow topics within those larger areas –private adoption for example in Family Law or Forfeiture Proceedings in Criminal Law
• Research the field and see what it is that clients will be looking for; analyze the market place to see if that niche is already glutted with lawyers. Are their associations you can join that will expose you to businesses and entities that may need the services you a relooking to provide?
• Develop social media around the niche area including a separate web page entirely or at least a strong section on your current website devoted to the niche area. Write an article or two in that field before you start marketing yourself.
• Continue networking but focus on establishing yourself as the go-to lawyer in that niche area.

Remember that the whole point is to differentiate yourself from other lawyers and to have clients who are looking for lawyers in that niche area find you and hire you. Patience is key, take time to decide on the right area, put the social media in place directed at that area before you start marketing and networking and then go out and channel your networking efforts in trying to attract business in your chosen niche area.