LegalMatch prevented COVID-19 from shutting me down and in fact has made me more successful than ever.
LegalMatch is without a doubt, my primary source of new client intake and business development. In fact, I use LegalMatch to the exclusion of almost any other business development pipeline, because I frankly wouldn't be able to handle any more volume. LegalMatch has allowed me to quickly and easily acquire as new leads. That has allowed me to operate my solo practice more efficiently and more successfully than I ever have in the past. This is the first time in my eight-year practice that I have a steady flow of new clients and cashflow that allows me personal and professional freedom.
COVID-19 hit a lot of businesses hard and created a lot of uncertainty in business. That meant that business attorneys felt transactions would dry up and our businesses would slow. This happened about the same time I joined LegalMatch. I've been with LegalMatch during that year that we've been going through COVID-19 as a country. I have seen my business grow to greater heights than it ever has before. So, I almost didn't feel the impact of COVID-19 on my legal practice, thanks to LegalMatch.
Now I have other businesses where they did suffer because of COVID-19. So, I understand what clients are going through when their business is impeded by COVID. I've seen it from both angles, but on the legal side, LegalMatch prevented COVID-19 from shutting me down and in fact has made me more successful than ever.
I love the whole LegalMatch process of client intake. I don't have to lose time pursuing clients who want to go a different direction. On the other hand, clients who are really eager and excited to go can quite instantly sign up for a free consultation. So that process is so streamlined and so fast, thanks to LegalMatch’s app and smart technology. It's revolutionized the way I've taken in clients.
I get the most out of my LegalMatch membership by following the streamlined process for client intake. Leads are allowed to answer questions about the nature of the work they're looking for and the estimated value of that work. I evaluate those responses and if it's in my wheelhouse, I send them a message through LegalMatch form templates that I've already prepared, which I can send out to everybody with one button. Then I send them a text message script to do scheduling. Finally, I send an email, again a script that I'm able to copy and give to most clients that is well-crafted in advance and includes a link to scheduling.
If I wanted to be more aggressive about client intake from there, if business is slow, or if I feel like I have capacity, I can also call them immediately. That really does substantially increase the rate of people who would sign up for a free consultation. I almost couldn't handle the volume of potential clients. I take a more let-them-come-to-me approach.
I receive new leads from LegalMatch daily, anywhere from two, to as many as five or six in a day. About half or a third of them end up with a free initial consultation, and that might seem low, but that's screening for the clients that I don't pursue. Including clients that I think aren't serious about what they're looking for or maybe are in the wrong practice area.
Close to 90% of those who come in for an initial consultation become clients..
LegalMatch positively compares with other lead generating systems in three ways. The first is sheer quantity of leads. Because of this, even if only 20% ultimately become clients, that's plenty for my business. The second way is that the dashboard has such incredible features that are all so streamlined. I get an alert on my phone with the touch of a button. The third is the pricing model. A lot of the other lead generating sites are priced per lead. That's fine to a point, but I do think it makes calculating ROI a little bit harder.
You have to have a much higher percentage of engagement and higher value transactions in order for pay per lead to be worth it. There are certainly good things about a pay per lead model, but I really like that LegalMatch just has a flat fee each month based on my practice area and my geography. That makes my costs predictable. I think about cashflow for my business knowing the flat fee, as opposed to paying per lead, and this makes it easier to manage my cashflow.
I know how to get the most out of a free initial consultation with anyone. I've streamlined my engagement letter and my retainer processes as well with the LegalMatch client intake system. It's that simple. That is a procedure I follow like clockwork every time and it'll take out the guesswork, the uncertainty of how to acquire leads, how to close leads, how to approach free initial consultation, how to do it every single time. I like the steadiness that comes with that.
The thing I would say to anyone wanting to get a LegalMatch attorney membership is you need to ask yourself if you have the motivation and the tools to take the most advantage of a LegalMatch membership. If you're going to follow up with leads regularly, if you are going to streamline your intake process, if you have capacity for a lot of new clients, if you know what client value is, and you know what your success rate could be once you talk to new clients -- if you know and you're willing to work on these things, then LegalMatch is going to be a great investment for you. There's no question about it. If you do otherwise, I think it's not going to help you any more than any other business development pipeline would. You need to be in a position to take advantage. If you feel like you are, this is going to be the best bang for your buck.
LegalMatch staff is incredibly responsive and helpful. I have an account manager who will help me manage the backend dashboard if I need help with things like clearing out old leads. I've had a lot of help from everyone from the marketing to billing, including the people who originally signed me up. Everyone has been very nice to work with.