Since many law firms rely almost exclusively on referrals to generate business, it’s essential that those law firms tend to the care and feeding of their best referral sources. But, lots of lawyers tend to take referrals for granted, and just assume that they’ll keep on coming in, even if they don’t do anything to maintain the sources of those referrals.
But, even the healthiest of referral sources can drop out of your program, if you ignore them for too long. So, here are a few ways to make sure that your best referral sources stay that way.
-First off, (literally) reward them for referring you cases. Some law firms keep gift cards on hand, to hand over when a referral is made. Others send an end-of-year flower arrangement, or a collection of candies. This is probably the most overt way to make sure that your referral sources seem cared for.
-Next, make sure that you stay in touch with your referral sources, in at least a couple ways: First, maintain contact with your best referral sources, so you can talk to them about how your business is going, and tell them about your evolving clients needs. Second, send them marketing messages on a recurring basis, whether it’s adding them to your enewsletter list or even creating a specific drip campaign for referral sources. Keeping tabs on your referral sources both in-person and online is really useful for ensuring future business.
-Lastly, you should make an ongoing effort to educate your referral sources about the kinds of clients you’re looking. Even if your requirements don’t change, it’s useful to keep reminding the people who send you cases, and about the kinds of cases you want.
Staying on top of your referral sources, means that your baseline business revenue should remain stable, as you add new referral sources and marketing channels.
