New Year, New Clients

Each celebration can be an opportunity to make new contacts and extend existing ones. People are generally relaxed and in good spirits at parties, and so are often receptive to making new acquaintances or getting to know other people better. By taking a strategic approach to your party planning, you stand to benefit greatly from these events.

For some lawyers, invitations pour in via e-mail and snail mail, so you might find yourself having to choose which invitations to accept and which to decline. Other attorneys have a narrower circle of contacts, and can feel as though everyone except them has been invited to or is at some fabulous party. And then there's your firm's sponsored events ' how do you make the most out of these already-paid-for extravaganzas?

Insider Networking
At Your Own Events

Attorneys who work for AmLaw 100 firms seem to have it made. Usually, there are lavish events to which they can invite clients and prospects where the environs are highly conducive to wining and dining key people. To take full advantage of these opportunities, however, prior planning is very helpful

Adele Hogan, a partner at White & Case LLP's New York office who specializes in securities offerings, mergers and acquisitions and other corporate work, says that preparation is the key to extracting optimal results from her firm's events.

'Before the firm's events, I obtain the guest lists, pull bios of key guests, and call guests I have invited ahead of time to ensure their attendance,' she says of her strategy.

During the party, Hogan says she avoids getting engrossed in deep conversations or weighty topics.

'I try to keep conversations light, upbeat and positive,' she explains.

In addition to relying on the firm's events, Hogan suggests creative alternatives, such as hosting a short tour at a local museum followed by lunch for 10 to 15 clients. She says that it's relatively inexpensive to hire guides for such tours, and that you have more bonding time with your clients because it's a smaller group than would attend a party or picnic or other large event a firm holds. These tours can be done any time of year, but are especially effective around holiday time when people are upbeat and may be more willing to attend social gatherings than at other times of the year.

Event Ideas for
The Solo Attorney

Many lawyers, especially solo practitioners, don't have the luxury of fancy firm-sponsored parties or seminars to which they can invite guests. Instead, they need to be a step ahead when creating their own gatherings, or in attending events sponsored by associations, clients or other entities.

Solo tax attorney Marcel Florestal threw his first-ever holiday party at the end of last year; it was an elegant dinner and fundraiser with a select client invitation list. Florestal designed his party to reflect his personality and to project the image he wanted others to have of him.

'My holiday party was elite and small ' that was intentional so people can meet each other,' he says. 'Two people hosted ' me and a trusted colleague of mine who facilitated people meeting each other. Our aim was to keep the gathering very intimate and high-end.'

Self-employed lawyers can sometimes find their independence a bit isolating. Because they are not attached to a large firm, they may find themselves scrambling to fill their calendars, especially with events where they can hand-select the attendees. This challenge lends itself to innovative do-it-yourself solutions, though.

Evans Legros is a real estate, immigration and entertainment lawyer with his own practice. In December 2004, Legros teamed up with a fellow attorney to begin the 'Solo-Practitioners' Holiday Party' in New York City. But this party isn't for attorneys and their clients; instead, it is for solo practitioners only, so they can meet, greet and fill their lawyer-referral pipelines.

Legros says that when organizing the Solo-Practitioners events, he never invites his clients ' the goal of the party is to meet other self-employed attorneys.

'Many solos hail from prestigious law firms and made the decision to start their own practices,' Legros says. 'With the once-guaranteed holiday party no longer in place, they find their holiday calendars bare.'

Legros says that attorneys forge new business relationships with one another at the party, and then refer their clients to specialists in other practice areas. Most of the attorneys offer each other a financial incentive to colleagues for these referrals, so there's an added bottom-line benefit to the networking.

But Legros issues a major caveat to solos and to attorneys in general that the otherwise business-savvy practitioner might forget in his or her holiday event-inviting zeal.

'Never mix clients and colleagues who are potentially the competition,' he says. 'That is the best way to lose clients. Attorneys follow a code of ethics and probably would not steal a client from you, but clients follow a different code and may approach the attorney directly without your knowledge.'

Instead of inviting his clients to the solos' party, Legros handpicks certain ones to attend a huge blowout bash given by Select Office Suites ('SOS'), the shared space where he has his office. At SOS, he has an office alongside several hundred professionals and entrepreneurs. The office party includes all occupants and their circles of contacts, too. Legros reports that bringing clients to this party gives him the opportunity to showcase the space, meet new business prospects, and reinforce his commitment to current clients. Also, by having clients on his own turf, Legros maintains control over the situation and doesn't jeopardize contacts by inadvertently introducing them to competitors.

Choose Events Wisely

In addition to dealing with your own parties, you'll get invitations from associations, clients, business associates and personal connections. How do you decide which ones to attend, and which to politely decline or ignore? For attorneys, time is literally money, and you'll also have personal commitments cluttering your calendar, so you want to be sure to make the most of whichever events you attend.

Hogan makes an effort to attend parties to which she's invited, especially if there will be businesspeople and attorneys there.

'If I have conflicts, I will go to parties where I feel I might eventually have the possibility of providing legal services,' she says.

Legros says: 'If you're invited, it's important to at least show up if you can to let the clients know that you appreciate their business. That goes a long way.'

Florestal recommends attending at least one party where you can meet other attorneys with different skill sets, like a bar association event.

'You never know where business can come from,' he notes. 'The actual event may not result in business directly, but a contact can snowball into a host of future opportunities.'

Six Practical Tips for
Effective Event Networking

Here are some pointers to help guide your event-networking efforts. Each tip comes from an attorney, and all of them can improve your client-development efforts:

1. Avoid bringing a coat or briefcase to a party so you won't be standing in coat check lines when you could be mingling with clients and prospects.
2. When going to several parties in one night, plan transportation carefully. Have transit information, directions, garage locations, car-service data and other elements that will facilitate you getting to your destination in a timely manner, along with alternatives in case your plan gets derailed.
3. Arrive at the event early or before peak time. Hosts tend to be there early or on time, so you can be sure that they know you came, and you'll get more meaningful time with clients and colleagues. Also, you can ask the host to introduce you to others if you have one-on-one time with the host at the beginning of the event. What's long been said about first impressions is true ' that they're lasting ones, and few approaches beat having the host, the designated VIP of the gathering, introduce you personally to guests.
4. Don't forget the importance of personal notes and gifts to thank clients and event sponsors, when appropriate, for their business, and to remind prospects that you're standing by, ready to work with them. Remember, too, that including your business card with the mailings can be perceived as tacky and presumptuous. Also, if your cards are preprinted with your signature or name, consider handwriting a personal note (in pen) for especially important contacts; that personal touch makes a lasting impression, too.
5. Relax, be yourself and don't think about the hard sell when you're at a party. Concentrate on making a memorable, friendly and professional impression on everyone you meet. After all, as you've heard so often ' likely at a holiday party or other social/professional gathering: You never know where the business can come from.
6. Resolve to try to attend events selectively through the year that you think are likely to bring you solid contacts and business prospects. Keep in mind ' especially if you're a solo practitioner ' that you can't connect if you're not near a connection, and you won't know where they might be if you don't find them. One effective way to do this is to make the best effort you can to get the most of membership dues for associations you've joined that might hold mixers, mini-conferences like lunch-'n'-learns, and wine-and-cheese gatherings.

The chance to expand your business book is the best New Year's present you can give to yourself ' and to your firm. Why not ring in the New Year with a bunch of new contacts and potential clients? Strategic networking tactics done right can lead to an enjoyable and profitable year ' and for a stretch beyond ' for all concerned. So line up those invitations and make your plan to network your way through the coming year. Get going!.

It's a brand new year ' and, with a little luck and some persistence, maybe you made the most of the holiday season's networking opportunities and now you're poised to follow up with a flood of new contacts.

But if you felt like your holiday season was hectic and didn't yield much client-development success, not to worry. Consider making it your New Year's resolution to make the most of events you attend in 2008.

Association and client parties are not just about overpriced venues and open bars. As an attorney, if you are smart about where you spend your time and how you prepare to do it, then these festive events can also be about networking, business development and building relationships with people important to your law practice ' past, present and future. What's particularly good for lawyers who are also niche practitioners, like e-commerce counsel, is that they have a nearly tailor-made smaller network ' a subculture of sorts ' and fewer contacts in that e-commerce realm with whom to hobnob than do their primarily general-counsel counterparts, or than they themselves would at general events for lawyers. In other words, the client- and relationship-hunting opportunities are great.

Each celebration can be an opportunity to make new contacts and extend existing ones. People are generally relaxed and in good spirits at parties, and so are often receptive to making new acquaintances or getting to know other people better. By taking a strategic approach to your party planning, you stand to benefit greatly from these events.

For some lawyers, invitations pour in via e-mail and snail mail, so you might find yourself having to choose which invitations to accept and which to decline. Other attorneys have a narrower circle of contacts, and can feel as though everyone except them has been invited to or is at some fabulous party. And then there's your firm's sponsored events ' how do you make the most out of these already-paid-for extravaganzas?

Insider Networking
At Your Own Events

Attorneys who work for AmLaw 100 firms seem to have it made. Usually, there are lavish events to which they can invite clients and prospects where the environs are highly conducive to wining and dining key people. To take full advantage of these opportunities, however, prior planning is very helpful

Adele Hogan, a partner at White & Case LLP's New York office who specializes in securities offerings, mergers and acquisitions and other corporate work, says that preparation is the key to extracting optimal results from her firm's events.

'Before the firm's events, I obtain the guest lists, pull bios of key guests, and call guests I have invited ahead of time to ensure their attendance,' she says of her strategy.

During the party, Hogan says she avoids getting engrossed in deep conversations or weighty topics.

'I try to keep conversations light, upbeat and positive,' she explains.

In addition to relying on the firm's events, Hogan suggests creative alternatives, such as hosting a short tour at a local museum followed by lunch for 10 to 15 clients. She says that it's relatively inexpensive to hire guides for such tours, and that you have more bonding time with your clients because it's a smaller group than would attend a party or picnic or other large event a firm holds. These tours can be done any time of year, but are especially effective around holiday time when people are upbeat and may be more willing to attend social gatherings than at other times of the year.

Event Ideas for
The Solo Attorney

Many lawyers, especially solo practitioners, don't have the luxury of fancy firm-sponsored parties or seminars to which they can invite guests. Instead, they need to be a step ahead when creating their own gatherings, or in attending events sponsored by associations, clients or other entities.

Solo tax attorney Marcel Florestal threw his first-ever holiday party at the end of last year; it was an elegant dinner and fundraiser with a select client invitation list. Florestal designed his party to reflect his personality and to project the image he wanted others to have of him.

'My holiday party was elite and small ' that was intentional so people can meet each other,' he says. 'Two people hosted ' me and a trusted colleague of mine who facilitated people meeting each other. Our aim was to keep the gathering very intimate and high-end.'

Self-employed lawyers can sometimes find their independence a bit isolating. Because they are not attached to a large firm, they may find themselves scrambling to fill their calendars, especially with events where they can hand-select the attendees. This challenge lends itself to innovative do-it-yourself solutions, though.

Evans Legros is a real estate, immigration and entertainment lawyer with his own practice. In December 2004, Legros teamed up with a fellow attorney to begin the 'Solo-Practitioners' Holiday Party' in New York City. But this party isn't for attorneys and their clients; instead, it is for solo practitioners only, so they can meet, greet and fill their lawyer-referral pipelines.

Legros says that when organizing the Solo-Practitioners events, he never invites his clients ' the goal of the party is to meet other self-employed attorneys.

'Many solos hail from prestigious law firms and made the decision to start their own practices,' Legros says. 'With the once-guaranteed holiday party no longer in place, they find their holiday calendars bare.'

Legros says that attorneys forge new business relationships with one another at the party, and then refer their clients to specialists in other practice areas. Most of the attorneys offer each other a financial incentive to colleagues for these referrals, so there's an added bottom-line benefit to the networking.

But Legros issues a major caveat to solos and to attorneys in general that the otherwise business-savvy practitioner might forget in his or her holiday event-inviting zeal.

'Never mix clients and colleagues who are potentially the competition,' he says. 'That is the best way to lose clients. Attorneys follow a code of ethics and probably would not steal a client from you, but clients follow a different code and may approach the attorney directly without your knowledge.'

Instead of inviting his clients to the solos' party, Legros handpicks certain ones to attend a huge blowout bash given by Select Office Suites ('SOS'), the shared space where he has his office. At SOS, he has an office alongside several hundred professionals and entrepreneurs. The office party includes all occupants and their circles of contacts, too. Legros reports that bringing clients to this party gives him the opportunity to showcase the space, meet new business prospects, and reinforce his commitment to current clients. Also, by having clients on his own turf, Legros maintains control over the situation and doesn't jeopardize contacts by inadvertently introducing them to competitors.

Choose Events Wisely

In addition to dealing with your own parties, you'll get invitations from associations, clients, business associates and personal connections. How do you decide which ones to attend, and which to politely decline or ignore? For attorneys, time is literally money, and you'll also have personal commitments cluttering your calendar, so you want to be sure to make the most of whichever events you attend.

Hogan makes an effort to attend parties to which she's invited, especially if there will be businesspeople and attorneys there.

'If I have conflicts, I will go to parties where I feel I might eventually have the possibility of providing legal services,' she says.

Legros says: 'If you're invited, it's important to at least show up if you can to let the clients know that you appreciate their business. That goes a long way.'

Florestal recommends attending at least one party where you can meet other attorneys with different skill sets, like a bar association event.

'You never know where business can come from,' he notes. 'The actual event may not result in business directly, but a contact can snowball into a host of future opportunities.'

Six Practical Tips for
Effective Event Networking

Here are some pointers to help guide your event-networking efforts. Each tip comes from an attorney, and all of them can improve your client-development efforts:

1. Avoid bringing a coat or briefcase to a party so you won't be standing in coat check lines when you could be mingling with clients and prospects.
2. When going to several parties in one night, plan transportation carefully. Have transit information, directions, garage locations, car-service data and other elements that will facilitate you getting to your destination in a timely manner, along with alternatives in case your plan gets derailed.
3. Arrive at the event early or before peak time. Hosts tend to be there early or on time, so you can be sure that they know you came, and you'll get more meaningful time with clients and colleagues. Also, you can ask the host to introduce you to others if you have one-on-one time with the host at the beginning of the event. What's long been said about first impressions is true ' that they're lasting ones, and few approaches beat having the host, the designated VIP of the gathering, introduce you personally to guests.
4. Don't forget the importance of personal notes and gifts to thank clients and event sponsors, when appropriate, for their business, and to remind prospects that you're standing by, ready to work with them. Remember, too, that including your business card with the mailings can be perceived as tacky and presumptuous. Also, if your cards are preprinted with your signature or name, consider handwriting a personal note (in pen) for especially important contacts; that personal touch makes a lasting impression, too.
5. Relax, be yourself and don't think about the hard sell when you're at a party. Concentrate on making a memorable, friendly and professional impression on everyone you meet. After all, as you've heard so often ' likely at a holiday party or other social/professional gathering: You never know where the business can come from.
6. Resolve to try to attend events selectively through the year that you think are likely to bring you solid contacts and business prospects. Keep in mind ' especially if you're a solo practitioner ' that you can't connect if you're not near a connection, and you won't know where they might be if you don't find them. One effective way to do this is to make the best effort you can to get the most of membership dues for associations you've joined that might hold mixers, mini-conferences like lunch-'n'-learns, and wine-and-cheese gatherings.

The chance to expand your business book is the best New Year's present you can give to yourself ' and to your firm. Why not ring in the New Year with a bunch of new contacts and potential clients? Strategic networking tactics done right can lead to an enjoyable and profitable year ' and for a stretch beyond ' for all concerned. So line up those invitations and make your plan to network your way through the coming year. Get going!.