Most law firms utilize a basic intake system – if they utilize anything at all.
Regardless of practice area, law firms tend to develop a single, simple intake form, that offers a smattering of the most basic questions: name, address, phone number, etc. And, sure: it’s important to collect those items; and, it’s great to get contact information, and some further basic information about the potential client. Only, that doesn’t provide the law firm with any real information about the potential value of the client’s case.
So, it becomes important to take this to the next level – to generate intake procedures that relate to specific case types. An estate planning intake is very different from a criminal law, or an immigration law, intake. How does that effect the basic information you’ll want to collect? When and how do you collect asset information, as an estate planning attorney? When do you inquire about past criminal history, as a criminal defense attorney? When do you seek information about someone’s significant other and their relationship when your potential client seeks a green card?
If your law firm simply collects the most basic information, or only offers one stage of intake, you’re doing yourself a disservice, since you’re limiting your ability to effectively and efficiently vet new cases, when they come in.
Running modern businesses is about leveraging data to make better decisions, more quickly. The more relevant and segmented your intake data, the less time you spend deciding whether to take a case, and the more time you spend converting new business.
It’s time to tailor your intake system around specific case types, so you can capture more targeted information.
After all, you can’t have a bucket list, without the buckets.