Bill4Time Staff

Typically, when customers are in the market for a particular type of software, they compare features. Tools with the largest feature-set, best reviews and the lowest price typically win. However, approaching software with a “less is more mindset,” you can find the best legal practice management software that your firm needs to improve performance. 

Why less is more with legal software

The vast majority of customers want more; it’s completely understandable. They’re focused on getting the most value for their money. They want a reliable provider who’s interested are aligned with their own. Features are a good indication of that, right? 

It’s actually the opposite. Features and benefits are a fantastic way to sell software to customers on the front end, but it’s a surefire way to lose them on the back end. 

There are a variety of unexpected factors law firms need to take into consideration. A large feature set exacerbates these problems, because they: 

• Increase transitional pain due to the longer onboarding and training times needed to get up to speed
• Large features spread the ROI out across the features. You’re getting 20 percent of your results from 80 percent of the features. It should be the opposite. 
• More features mean it’s harder for your timekeepers to learn, which means they’re less likely to use it. Timekeepers are forced into no-win scenarios. Hitting their billable hours for the month or learn to use the software you’ve paid for? 
• If your timekeepers are focused on learning how to use all of the features in your software, they’re not producing billable work. That also means your utilization rates are poor. 

All of this from a bloated features list. But most legal customers want a “robust feature list!” How can software providers and law firms get what they want? 

Start with a core set of features 

These are the important features that enable law firms to get their teams up and running in minutes. Time tracking, billing, invoices, calendaring. 

The legal industry is complicated. A good software provider, like Bill4Time, will keep things simple, using conventions your timekeepers are already familiar with and work to minimize downsides. Here’s a simple list of dos and don’ts you can use as a guide.

Your software won’t: 

• Complicate your work unnecessarily 
• Decrease the ROI you’re supposed to receive from your firm
• Overcomplicate things for your employees or timekeepers, they’ll be able to jump in quickly
• Won’t keep your team from working on the details that matter (e.g., billable hours, tasks, events, invoicing, etc.)

Now let’s take a look again at a real-life example of software that makes these mistakes. 

This customer review, and others like it, show that this particular software provider has made all four of these mistakes. How do we know this? Look at the quote at the bottom of their review.

“This program literally has the potential to cause your business to fold, because it is impossible to evaluate success and change your process accordingly without robust, reliable reporting features.” 

Imagine being sold on a tool for your firm and experiencing this kind of outcome. Can you blame this law firm owner for being so upset? 

The best legal practice management software minimizes your problems

Customers want more features. Legal software providers should give their customers more features – at the appropriate time. As a legal professional, you’ll want to focus your attention on providers who can do two things: 

1. Provide easy onboarding 
2. Minimize transitional pain and unnecessary confusion

It’s a counterintuitive approach, and it’s one the best practice management software providers use often. Search for a provider with a “less is more” approach. Test their claims out for yourself. You’ll find the best software providers are eager to show you what their tools can do for your firm. 

If you found yourself searching for law firm website tips, you understand the value a strong website has on your clients impression of your law firm. Client decision making is a process. Your clients all need the same ingredients to make their decision. When your website provides these ingredients, clients proceed to the next step. When they’re missing, clients raise objections or they walk away. 

Your clients use this unspoken decision-making process to determine whether your firm is a good fit for them (or not). Work with them and you’ll attract the kind of high-quality clients your firm deserves. Ignore these ingredients and you’ll repel them. 

Let’s take a look at the top 7 law firm website tips that will create a steady stream of prospective clients.

Tip #1: Targeting clients precisely

If you’re a savvy attorney, you’re targeting clients who meet three simple criteria. 

1. They want your services.
2. They’re able to pay for your services. 
3. They’re willing to pay for your services. 

Simple, right? Any client who fails to meet these criteria should be disqualified (i.e., removed from consideration as a possible client). Finding answers to these questions requires research – sitting down with clients, surveying clients, running split tests, etc.

How does your website fit in? Your website lays out the information that gets clients to qualify or disqualify themselves (i.e., real estate is our only practice area). 

Tip #2: Amplifying your client’s problems

Your clients have problems.  Many of them prefer to ignore these problems, to put them off until completely necessary. When they finally arrive on your doorstep, these clients expect you to create miracles on their behalf. Sometimes you can, and sometimes you can’t. 

When it comes to your client’s problems, your website should do several things well. 

• Explain their problem fully. 
• Grab their attention immediately (i.e., 90% of fathers lose custody of their kids when they make this mistake)
• Outline the emotional weight, suffering and loss associated with their problem. 
• Amplify the consequences of the problem (denial, for most clients, is a self-protective measure that needs to be addressed)
• State the outcomes clearly if they do something vs. do nothing. 

Here’s why this is crucial. 

• Problems create stress and anxiety
• Hiring you gives them a solution and begins to relieve that stress and anxiety

You’ll want to lead with your client’s biggest problems. 

The problem/solution paradigm isn’t the only method, but it is one that gets clients to see their problems as you do; a serious issue that requires their immediate attention. 

Tip #3: Make the solution easy 

Do you provide cognitive fluency? Not sure what that is? You’re in good company. Cognitive fluency is defined as: 

“Cognitive fluency is the ease with which we process information to generate an understanding of what that information means. This ease or difficulty refers not only to the experience of a task or instruction itself, but the feeling people associate with that task.” 

Here’s what this means. 

The “easy” version of our three blind mice story worked well because it increased cognitive fluency. It made the story easy to read, so it took less effort, mental energy and processing power. This applies to visual, written and auditory content. 

Communicating with simplicity, clarity and preciseness means your website easier to process. 

Tip #4: Answer client objections 

It’s common for firms to run from their client’s objections. Questions like “How much does this cost” or “What’s your hourly rate” seem to be avoided by firms until it’s absolutely necessary. Many firms do their very best to avoid client objections until they’re able to get them in for an in-person meeting. 

They hope they’ll be able to “close” them anyway. Most of the time, these clients move on, preferring to work with a firm that faces their objections head-on. 

Why does this happen? 

Objections are the inevitable part of business development and marketing that gets worse if you run. We all make objections to protect ourselves. Objections keep us safe. They protect us from making a mistake (and the embarrassment that follows). When we decide anything, we do our best to justify that decision in our heads. Objections are part of the justification process. We want to be sure we’re making the right choice.

Your clients are no different. 

Your clients may have objections about your trustworthiness, pricing or the timing of the engagement. They may be disinterested but unwilling to tell you. But these objections, whatever the case, need to be addressed fully. Contrary to popular belief, objections aren’t the enemy. 

Tip #5: Online reviews borrow trust

Reviews answer the question of trustworthiness. Online reviews from both happy and unhappy clients painted an accurate picture of the relative trustworthiness of your firm. These reviews have a significant impact on your firm’s sales and revenue.

Northwestern University’s Spiegel Research Center analyzed 57,000 reviews from anonymous consumers and 65,000 reviews from verified buyers of more than 13,500 unique products in diverse categories. Their findings mentioned reviews could increase conversion rates by 270%!
Imagine that! A 270% lift in the number of clients signing up with your law firm. 

Tip #6: Risk reversals remove buyer’s remorse

Josh Kaufman, author of the book, The Personal MBA, describes a risk reversal this way: 

“Risk Reversal is a strategy that transfers some (or all) of the risk of a transaction from the buyer to the seller. The seller agrees to make things right in advance if the purchaser doesn’t end up satisfied. Risk Reversal is a great way to eliminate some Barriers to Purchase.

This strategy may be feel uncomfortable to the seller as well, because no one wants to lose. The difference is that a seller can spread that risk among many customers. The customer can’t do the same.

By eliminating the risk of purchase, you’ll close more sales and eventually make more money than what you’ll lose if some customers take advantage of your generosity.”

Pretty self-explanatory, right? To be fair, this is much more difficult in the legal industry but it can be done. This can be done in a variety of ways: 

• Promises: Our clients have 24/7 access to an associate who’s working on your case
• Warranties: 10 years 100,000 mile warranty
• Guarantees: We’ll return your call within 30 min. or we’ll pay you $500
• Free consultation: We’ll provide you with a free consultation if you’re able to…

I’ll cover this in more detail in future posts. 

Tip #7: Uniqueness shows clients you’re the only firm for them

A strong value proposition meets four distinct criteria in your client’s mind:

1. I want what this law firm is offering
2. I can’t get this specific offering (or combination of offerings) anywhere else 
3. I’m able to understand their message
4. I truly believe you and your law firm are trustworthy.

If your value proposition doesn’t meet all four criteria, you don’t have a strong value proposition. It takes a significant amount of time to come up with something truly unique. The good news is this: a strong value proposition is created; it’s not inherent. 

Here are some examples in other industries:

• M&Ms: Melts in your mouth, not in your hand.
• Dominos Pizza: You get a fresh, hot pizza in 30 minutes or it’s free. 
• FedEx: When it absolutely, positively has to be there overnight

These are classic examples. These businesses drew a line in the sand; they decided to stand for something significant. Something that meets all four of the criteria I’ve laid out above. 

These law firm website tips will attract clients

Provide clients with the resources they need, and it’s easy for them to say “yes.” Ignore these details and you inadvertently repel clients, pushing them away from your firm. 

By using the law firm website tips, you’ll find that more clients are attracted to your firm, value proposition and quality of service you provide.