A lot has changed since the Covid-19 pandemic hit in early 2020, and a lot will never be the same after it ends. Among those things that have changed forever is customer experience management for law firms—and, frankly, for every other industry, as well. As much of our lives were forced online this past year, many things were lost…but some things were gained. The ability to show clients true, sustained, and tangible empathy through exceptional digital experiences counts among the gains, and now that folks have had a taste, there is no going back.
Customer Experience Management: Four Post-Covid Lessons for Law Firms
1. Digital Transformation is Urgent
Experts have long recognized that we are in the midst of a fourth industrial revolution and if your firm is not up to speed, it is in the process of being left behind. Keeping pace with the present moment could be the subject of a book—not just a short article—and yet key elements which require urgent attention (and which improve customer experience by leaps and bounds) include:
· Taking a digital-first approach
· Implementing a mobile-friendly website
· Gathering comprehensive client data to offer bespoke service
· Making appropriate, strategic use of AI technology
2. Feedback is Now Virtual
Customer journey mapping is a familiar concept to those firms most successful in converting leads. Over the past eighteen months, the ability to provide virtual feedback has gone from an important to a crucial part of this process. Recent studies show current and potential clients alike value responsive, user-friendly virtual feedback mechanisms far more than their in-person alternatives. Naturally, then, firms that provide such services attain these clients, while those that don’t…simply don’t.
3. The Competition is Doubling Down on Customer Experience (and You Need to Do the Same)
An updated understanding of customer experience mapping is just the tip of the iceberg. Your client research tools must also reflect state-of-the-art approaches and, of course, time and money spent on outdated methods need to be axed. Customer experience management can no longer be a bloated, wandering arm of your firm but must instead be as sharp and refined as your legal services, themselves.
4. You Need Help (and That’s Fine)
You are trained in law, not customer experience management. As customer-centered business practices become increasingly important to law firm success, your lack of expertise becomes an increasing liability. An experienced legal consultant can not only help you correct course, but also ensure that you direct your time and energy to where it is best spent: providing top-tier legal services.
To be blunt, in the post-Covid legal world, where digital services are increasingly refined and clients are evermore discerning, cutting corners is a death blow.
Learn more about improving customer experience through the services of a qualified law firm business development consultant by booking a call with Hiring & Empowering founder Molly McGrath today. Get caught up before it’s too late!
