This Month let’s talk rainmaking with Tom McVeigh, Managing Director at Murdoch Lawyers.

VUE: What qualities do you see in a successful “rain maker” at a Professional firm? What skills have they developed in their career to help them become successful at business development?

TMcV: Our business development is driven by a focus on existing client repeat work, existing client referral and centre of influence referral. So a successful rainmaker for us is able to create strong relationships with people, and have an ability to provide quality work with excellent service. Listening to people, having empathy and achieving commercial outcomes are all skills that help.

VUE: How do you measure and promote business development activity by your staff within the business? Is it tracked, discussed or assessed?

TMcV: Junior staff concentrate on developing their legal expertise and service delivery (clients are surveyed during lengthy matters and on completion of the file matters to rate their experience). The senior team members have bd plans whereby contact is made regularly with COI’s and major clients and we meet monthly to discuss this and various projects like newsletters, seminars etc. Skills such as seeking referrals (Thankyou David!), better engagement process etc have been developed and results monitored.

VUE: Do you have any suggestions on how a Business or Practice can help upcoming Professionals transition from being purely service/WIP focused to developing additional new business/lead generation skills?

TMcV: If the practice has a similar strategy to ours, then it is fairly obvious a focus on the client rather than yourself is fundamental. Finding out what is important to the client and what they are trying to achieve, and then either assisting them or referring them to someone else who can assist will build a long term ‘trusted advisor’ relationship. Once you have such a client, develop skills around having that client promote you to friends and associates.

VUE: How important is your website and/or social media (Twitter, LinkedIn) to your business development strategies? What have you found to be successful or useful with your online business development?

TMcV: Whilst our primary focus is on building and cementing relationships with existing clients and COI’s and referrals from those sources, with some investment in SEO we have had good results from the web site for several areas of law (whilst the web is the lead generator, we then concentrate on building the relationship). We are looking at Linkedln as a platform to better communicate particularly for COI’s, and we will need to look at the opportunity to use other social media to support our overall strategy!

VUE: What’s your #1 tip for “rain-making” – for generating more consistent new business? What tactic, secret or idea have you found to be particularly successful or useful?

TMcV: Again in a business like ours, I think better engagment with the client is fundamental. If you don’t have the skills or practice ways of improving that (listening, find out what is important, set expectations etc.) all subsequent activity (seeking more work from the client, seeking referrals etc) will have limited success.

VUE: Time for your “stadium pitch”. You are standing before 30,000 people and have 30 seconds to get them to come and have a coffee with you at Murdoch Lawyers. You step up and say…

TMcV: Make mine a decaf! ....30,000 prospects that’s a lot of coffee if I get it right!!!!

For any of you who have used legal services before and have been less than impressed, my promise to you is that your Murdochs experience will different and for the better.

As part of our “Client Service Charter ” (did your other firm have one?), our commitment is:

1. At the outset find out what are you looking to achieve and what the important things are for you in achieving that. We then write them down to ensure that they are addressed.
2. If we are able to assist you, we will set out what we will do and likely time frames and what we ask you to do by when. It is then clear for each of us what is to happen to achieve the result you are looking for. If we are unable to assist you, we will endeavour to refer you to someone who can.
3. We will discuss with the fees and costs involved up front ensuring that you are able to decide if we are value for money. We are flexible in how we charge including fixed fees.
4. At the end of the matter, we will review the results with you ensuring that you have had the best possible result for you circumstances.

Thankyou.

Thanks Tom! You can check out all the areas of legal expertise and advice available from Murdoch Lawyers at www.murdochfamilylawyersbrisbane.com.au