<b><i>Sales Speak:</i></b> There Are Sales, and Then There Are<b><i> Award-Winning</i></b> Sales

How are the best of the best impacting revenue in their firms?

This year, a new award category launched in our industry: A Sales Category. That's right. The Legal Sales and Service Organization set out to salute the cutting-edge work of individuals and/or teams in law firms playing critical roles in the ongoing financial health of many law firms: 1) retaining an “in jeopardy” client; 2) launching a successful client-facing program (client interviews; client teams, service excellence, or similar client-facing initiative or culture-changing strategy); or 3) developing a substantive new client relationship from contact with the prospect through client acquisition.

The award winner, Ashley of McKenna Long, along with her department members and attorneys at the firm, developed and implemented a firm-wide client-facing program that was second to none.

In 2014, the awarded was asked by the Corporate Department Chair to develop a program for the Corporate lawyers to generate more revenue and kick-start the year. A client-facing program was launched with the primary goal to increase revenue through reinforcing existing relationships and reinvigorating dormant relationships. The program facilitated a way for lawyers to generate new work from existing clients and to make contact with clients outside of billable work.

The 45-Day Client Blitz

The 45-Day Client Blitz program encouraged client outreach, both defensive and offensive. On the defensive, it is critical that the corporate attorneys protect their client relationships as the pool of legal work becomes more and more competitive. On the offensive, interacting with clients can generate immediate new business and provide our lawyers with information that will allow them to better serve clients and take advantage of cross-selling opportunities.

The Client Blitz was designed as a competition: Points were awarded for cross-selling discussions, conversations about fees, client meals and entertainment, bringing associates along to pitch meetings, sending clients articles of interest, inviting them to events, opening new matters, and so on.

There was 80% participation during the Client Blitz, including the chairman of the firm. Following the conclusion of the Client Blitz, the attorneys had opened 59 new matters directly in connection with the Client Blitz, and had reached more than 300 clients. A financial analysis of those matters at the end of the year showed that the firm had received more than $2.6 million in fees from them.

TouchPoints Challenge

The innovative Corporate Client Blitz program morphed into a firm-wide client outreach program, TouchPoints Challenge. The rules were essentially the same, but this time it challenged departments, rather than individuals, against each other. Individual attorney points were still tracked and shown to all of the attorneys for them to see how each attorney was contributing to his or her department's total, which fostered teamwork within the departments ' the contest was designed to reward collaboration and the attorneys took full advantage of this.

During this firm-wide competition, the Corporate Department had 100% participation and reached over 400 clients, a more than 33% increase from the prior competition, due in large part to the success of the previous campaign. In all, the firm generated 296 new matters through the TouchPoints competition.

Lessons Learned

Creating the right kind of social pressure can lead to significant business development activities and ultimately encourage a culture of collaboration and cross-selling. Innovation at law firms can be slow, but McKenna Long's innovative approach to client outreach demonstrates that if you start small and approach change the right way, with the needed buy-in, you can achieve success, create teamwork and generate revenue along the way.

Measuring adherence to your new Sales Program and reinforcing progressive success is what will be sustainable with eventual buy in from your entire sales team, attorneys.

Three Steps to a Successful Sales Culture Change

Step One: Have a Clear Strategy for Rolling Out Your Initiative. Although it seems obvious, firms must carefully plan out each step in its new sales program including bringing the attorneys into the planning process. In order for your firm's attorneys to buy in to any change, they need to feel a part of its design and understand clearly how they may benefit from it.

Step Two: Test Your Process with Champions. As with all culture change, select and enlist your “champions” early. After you have developed the clear rollout strategy for your new sales program, the key is to involve leadership and rainmakers early and solicit their input throughout the entire process. In addition, enlist a beta group to test, refine and retest the process before you unveil a new sales program in your firm.

Step Three: Focus on Progressive Success. No firm will celebrate total adoption and adherence to a new sales program during the early stages of its existence. Don't worry, most attorneys will, but it takes time. As you roll out your sales program, measure and reward the adoption of each part of the new sales process one step at a time ' Just as outlined (above) from McKenna Long.

'

Beth Cuzzone, a member of this newsletter's Board of Editors, is a co-founder and board member of Legal Sales & Service Organization, and is the Director of Client Service and Business Development at Goulston & Storrs.

How are the best of the best impacting revenue in their firms?

This year, a new award category launched in our industry: A Sales Category. That's right. The Legal Sales and Service Organization set out to salute the cutting-edge work of individuals and/or teams in law firms playing critical roles in the ongoing financial health of many law firms: 1) retaining an “in jeopardy” client; 2) launching a successful client-facing program (client interviews; client teams, service excellence, or similar client-facing initiative or culture-changing strategy); or 3) developing a substantive new client relationship from contact with the prospect through client acquisition.

The award winner, Ashley of McKenna Long, along with her department members and attorneys at the firm, developed and implemented a firm-wide client-facing program that was second to none.

In 2014, the awarded was asked by the Corporate Department Chair to develop a program for the Corporate lawyers to generate more revenue and kick-start the year. A client-facing program was launched with the primary goal to increase revenue through reinforcing existing relationships and reinvigorating dormant relationships. The program facilitated a way for lawyers to generate new work from existing clients and to make contact with clients outside of billable work.

The 45-Day Client Blitz

The 45-Day Client Blitz program encouraged client outreach, both defensive and offensive. On the defensive, it is critical that the corporate attorneys protect their client relationships as the pool of legal work becomes more and more competitive. On the offensive, interacting with clients can generate immediate new business and provide our lawyers with information that will allow them to better serve clients and take advantage of cross-selling opportunities.

The Client Blitz was designed as a competition: Points were awarded for cross-selling discussions, conversations about fees, client meals and entertainment, bringing associates along to pitch meetings, sending clients articles of interest, inviting them to events, opening new matters, and so on.

There was 80% participation during the Client Blitz, including the chairman of the firm. Following the conclusion of the Client Blitz, the attorneys had opened 59 new matters directly in connection with the Client Blitz, and had reached more than 300 clients. A financial analysis of those matters at the end of the year showed that the firm had received more than $2.6 million in fees from them.

TouchPoints Challenge

The innovative Corporate Client Blitz program morphed into a firm-wide client outreach program, TouchPoints Challenge. The rules were essentially the same, but this time it challenged departments, rather than individuals, against each other. Individual attorney points were still tracked and shown to all of the attorneys for them to see how each attorney was contributing to his or her department's total, which fostered teamwork within the departments ' the contest was designed to reward collaboration and the attorneys took full advantage of this.

During this firm-wide competition, the Corporate Department had 100% participation and reached over 400 clients, a more than 33% increase from the prior competition, due in large part to the success of the previous campaign. In all, the firm generated 296 new matters through the TouchPoints competition.

Lessons Learned

Creating the right kind of social pressure can lead to significant business development activities and ultimately encourage a culture of collaboration and cross-selling. Innovation at law firms can be slow, but McKenna Long's innovative approach to client outreach demonstrates that if you start small and approach change the right way, with the needed buy-in, you can achieve success, create teamwork and generate revenue along the way.

Measuring adherence to your new Sales Program and reinforcing progressive success is what will be sustainable with eventual buy in from your entire sales team, attorneys.

Three Steps to a Successful Sales Culture Change

Step One: Have a Clear Strategy for Rolling Out Your Initiative. Although it seems obvious, firms must carefully plan out each step in its new sales program including bringing the attorneys into the planning process. In order for your firm's attorneys to buy in to any change, they need to feel a part of its design and understand clearly how they may benefit from it.

Step Two: Test Your Process with Champions. As with all culture change, select and enlist your “champions” early. After you have developed the clear rollout strategy for your new sales program, the key is to involve leadership and rainmakers early and solicit their input throughout the entire process. In addition, enlist a beta group to test, refine and retest the process before you unveil a new sales program in your firm.

Step Three: Focus on Progressive Success. No firm will celebrate total adoption and adherence to a new sales program during the early stages of its existence. Don't worry, most attorneys will, but it takes time. As you roll out your sales program, measure and reward the adoption of each part of the new sales process one step at a time ' Just as outlined (above) from McKenna Long.

'

Beth Cuzzone, a member of this newsletter's Board of Editors, is a co-founder and board member of Legal Sales & Service Organization, and is the Director of Client Service and Business Development at Goulston & Storrs.