Why ‘sales’ shouldn’t be taboo in legal services
A version of this article was originally published by The Legal Intelligencer, Aug. 29, 2024.
I’m a swear-word enthusiast. I actually have that in my LinkedIn profile headline.
To know me is to know my creative use of the F-word — noun, verb, adjective, adverb, expletive.
I love a good unmentionable word.
And I’ve noticed a taboo term popping up lately in legal service marketing — the “S-word”…
Sales.
There, I said it.
The idea that lawyers and firms don’t — or shouldn’t — “sell” to clients and prospects remains widespread.
I think it’s time we change this perspective. It’s neither practical nor sustainable in a legal services marketplace, where competition to keep clients and attract new ones is intense and the ability to stand out from the crowd is increasingly challenging for both lawyers and firms.
It’s also not what clients want or what serves them best in the long run.
The Taboo About Sales in Law
The practice of law has a long history of being regarded as a profession — a noble vocation or a calling, marked by a commitment to justice, public service and the rule of law rather than a for-profit occupation. One enduring tale — perhaps more sartorial fable than fact — illustrates this; it’s said that the robes worn by practitioners of old had a small pocket at the back, intended to allow clients to discreetly place payment so as not to sully the dignity of the lawyer or the profession with monetary transactions.
In law school, we’re taught the intricacies of the law itself — both in theory and in limited practice — but rarely do we touch on the business of running a practice or a law firm. The old adage “Do good work and the clients will come” reflects an ingrained belief that proactive business development — actively seeking out clients — is unnecessary. In fact, it’s only been in the past 15 to 20 years that lawyers and law firms have recognized the marketing and business development functions as vital to their success in the marketplace, and even now that’s not universal.
The reluctance of lawyers and firms to embrace sales is also reinforced by long-standing restrictions on lawyer advertising and stringent rules surrounding client solicitation imposed by state rules of professional conduct. While the ethics rules, which are designed to protect the integrity of the profession and prevent the exploitation of clients, have evolved considerably, they do foster the perception that sales may be at odds with the ethical practice of law. As a result, the concept of selling legal services has often been viewed with suspicion if not outright disdain.
Reframing Sales as Collaborative and Client-Focused
For many people, the term “sales” conjures up images of the hard sell — a pushy person who invades your space, offers up a (perhaps less-than-honest) sales pitch and won’t take no for an answer. Even if not taken to this extreme, people often equate sales with one-way persuasive communication — pitching to and convincing clients to engage them.
Of course, pitching and responding to requests for proposals are sometimes necessary, but they are only a small part of what constitutes sales in legal services. What if we shift our perspective to view sales more broadly as a collaborative effort we engage in with clients and prospects to help them identify and find the right solutions for their legal problems?
It may seem counterintuitive, but from this perspective, clients do, in fact, want to be “sold to” (although they may not think of it that way)—if you’re focusing your efforts on understanding and addressing their needs, building trust and rapport, and providing value to them in the process.
Understanding the Legal Buyer’s Journey
Understanding the legal buyer’s journey is key to transforming sales into a collaborative process.
At its most simple, we can describe the journey from target to client in three stages: “I know you,” “I trust you” and “I want to work with you.” The objective of the sales process is to engage potential clients in order to move them into and through the stages, eventually to engagement.
Before targets even reach the I-know-you stage, they are in what I like to call the “unawareness” phase. In essence, they have not even begun their buyer’s journey because they are not yet aware that they may have a need for legal services. The process of moving targets out of the unawareness phase also serves to move them into the beginning of their buyer’s journey. It involves educating prospective clients about potential legal problems and challenges they may face as well as potential solutions. In providing this valuable information to prospects, you’re also building visibility for your firm, which is critical to moving prospects to and through the I-know-you stage.
Similarly, the I-trust-you stage focuses on building relationships through listening and asking questions, both with specific clients and targets and in the broader marketplace. It also involves providing content that nurtures trust and gives clients confidence in their decision-making as they move into the I-want-to-work-with-you phase.
The legal buyer’s journey — and therefore the sales process — doesn’t end there. Once a prospect becomes a client, the focus shifts to “stickiness,” nurturing the client relationship with the goal of getting more work, and perhaps more kinds of work, from the client. Sticky or loyal clients also become excellent referral sources for new potential clients. In this way, client service — both matter-related and value-added initiatives such as thought leadership, webinars and CLE, and events — becomes an integral part of the sales process.
The Role of Marketing and Business Development
Embracing a sales mindset can be challenging for a lot of lawyers, who don’t necessarily see themselves as, or feel comfortable in, the role of front-line salesperson. Marketing and business development teams can support, guide and enable lawyers to be successful in their client development efforts, including through thought leadership and content creation and distribution targeted to the various stages of the buyer’s journey, market and client intelligence, preparation of pitch and RFP materials, and coaching and training, among other initiatives.
There is also a nascent but growing trend of hiring sales professionals in marketing and business development departments. These professionals provide internal support to lawyers, helping streamline the sales process and ensure that the firm’s business development efforts are both strategic and effective. Some firms have even adopted sales roles that are client-facing.
Developing a Sales Mindset
Developing a sales mindset is not about skirting the rules of professional ethics or treating the practice of law as just another commercial enterprise. It’s about recognizing the needs behind clients’ legal hiring decisions and viewing sales as an extension of client service aimed at meeting those needs.
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