Insufficient Tracking of Retention and Lack of Attorney Buy-in Count among Key Reasons for Mediocre Results
OAK BROOK, Ill.- LAWFUEL – Law News, Law Jobs Network –While all large law firms in a recent survey indicated that they use client retention initiatives, 61% of them don’t know their client retention rate, according to a newly released study report from LexisNexis, a leading provider of client development solutions for the legal profession.
“The Large Law Firm Client Retention Study” was based on a survey of 2,198 professionals at law firms with more than 75 attorneys in the U.S. and Canada. The full report is available for download at http://www.lexisnexis.com/retention.
Among its significant findings, the study revealed that formal client satisfaction measuring is rarely done with any meaningful frequency. More than one-third (35%) of law firm respondents said they do not measure client satisfaction at all, and among those who do some regular monitoring, 33% said they only measure client satisfaction every two years or more. This lack of formal and regular client satisfaction tracking may help to explain why nearly half of clients terminate some of their law firms annually.
The study also probed for explanations as to why so many large law firms struggle with implementing pro-active and strategic client retention initiatives. The leading systematic reason identified by study participants was the lack of participation from attorneys and support staff (67%). This non-compliance could be due in part to a misalignment between compensation practices and firms’ client retention initiatives. More than half of firms surveyed (51%) do not compensate their attorneys for client retention and, of the firms that do provide some financial reward system, only 14% compensate based on the firm performance level.
“While all law firms understand the marketing axiom that keeping a client is easier and less expensive than landing a new one, six out of 10 firms show a clear need for tighter metrics and measurement tools to track how effectively they are achieving this goal,” said David Sosnow, director of consulting services for LexisNexis. “The results of our study illustrate that with proper strategic advice, training and implementation support in client retention, law firms now have a great opportunity to protect their client base and market share.”
The study results and their implications for law firm client retention initiatives will be the subject of a teleconference hosted by LexisNexis Mealey’s on December 6th. For more information or to register for this special program, please call 1-800-MEALEYS or go to http://www.lexisnexis.com/conferences/LegalConference.aspx?cid=58949.
The study was commissioned by the client development solutions line of LexisNexis, which provides industry leading networking and marketing resources to help law firms target clients, build their brand, develop new business opportunities, and provide exceptional client service. Through its four solutions lines – client development, research, practice management and litigation services – LexisNexis offers Total Practice Solutions to ensure that law firms have the tools and services they need to win in the business and practice of law.
About LexisNexis
LexisNexis® (www.lexisnexis.com) is a leading provider of information and services solutions, including its flagship Web-based Lexis® and Nexis® research services, to a wide range of professionals in the legal, risk management, corporate, government, law enforcement, accounting and academic markets. A member of Reed Elsevier Group plc (NYSE: ENL) (NYSE: RUK) (www.reedelsevier.com), LexisNexis serves customers in 100 countries with 13,000 employees worldwide.
