Gideon Legal

Automated Intake for Law Firms

intake process

Marketing, Technology

Touch Point: How Much Personal Effort Do You Need to Put in to Lead Conversion?

Most lawyers value what they describe as ‘high-touch’ interactions with legal consumers.

Now, there is decidedly value in that; but, many attorneys take the concept too far.

Instead of applying those high-touch, truly personalized efforts to high-leverage situations, like initial consultation meeting, attorneys are leveraging themselves across the entire client intake process.

But, I got news for you: Attorneys should divest themselves of all of these sorts of high-touch efforts in rote operations, because their potential clients don’t want or need them.

So, you don’t need to schedule an appointment with your leads – because your leads just want speed, and will happily use an automated calendaring tool, if it means being able to speak to you faster.

You don’t need any of your potential clients to come in to sign anything, or be there when they do: esignature tools have you covered.

Neither do you need to take a check.  That process can be simplified through the use of an epayments program.

At every stage of the intake process, there are basic operations that attorneys can devolve to staff, or (better yet) technology.

So, holster those valuable in-person interactions for when they have the highest value to your practice.

Marketing, Messaging, Technology

What Everybody’s Chatting About – How Chatbots Are Revolutionizing Law Firm Intake | Part 4: How to Build a Chatbot for Maximum Client Engagement

In this 6-part series, we’ll address how chatbots are changing the game for law firm intake.  This is part 4, where we’ll discuss how to build a chatbot for maximum client engagement. In part 1, we defined what a chatbot is. In part 2, we covered common chatbot features. In part 3, we addressed why chatbots are so essential for modern law firm intake.

At this point, you’re riding the chatbot train.  You’re down with the conceit.  You understand why the tool is so essential for legal consumers and why it’s so effective for law firms.  Now, you’ve got to build one that actually works in the law firm environment.

Now, hopefully, you’re working with a provider that will help you to build out a chatbot specific to your practice niche(s).  Ask for templates — if they’ve worked with enough law firms, your preferred vendor should have some available.  And, if you don’t want to use what they’ll provide, you’ll at least have an example from which to work.

The nuts and bolts of design are pretty important, so stay tuned:

-Don’t ask for contact information right away.  Consumers don’t want to be made to feel like marketing collateral.  Don’t jump right in, and skip dinner.  Make an introduction.  Allow the consumer to tell you/the bot something about their situation first.  Then, collect contact information later.

-Ask qualifying questions.  What specific practice area is the lead interested in?  What specific characteristics of a claim can the lead confirm?  Does the potential case conform to your jurisdictional limitations?  Is the lead interested in talking to a specific attorney, or in visiting a specific office location?  Drill down into the most basic questions.

-Because the idea is to qualify your potential clients, you’ll want to develop a classification structure to undergird the conversation that will take place.  If the lead is located in Georgia and you’re licensed in Alaska, this might not be a fit.  What is the severity of the case?  Is this an emergency situation?  Set up labels to create classifications in order to route leads to the correct staffperson or attorney in the appropriate timeframe.

-Even if you don’t lead with an ask for contact information, you should capture it at some point later in the conversation.  After all, you’ll need it to get back to your lead later, or to send a notification following the chat conversation.  At least grab an email address.

-In the case of a homepage chatbot, your conversational structure should be brief, and should not exceed 7-10 questions.  Acquire the basic information.  Offer your lead a chance to type in their own version of events.  And lastly, create a call to action.  Consumers complain that lawyers don’t tell them what to do next, or what will happen next.  So, have your lead schedule an appointment via the chatbot, or let your lead know that you will reach out soon.

Chatbots can create lengthy question sets, and dive down deep into branching dialogs.  And, in some cases those use cases will be essential for your process.  A chatbot on a specific attorney’s page may have a different set of questions and length than a homepage chatbot.  Similarly, a chatbot on a practice area page, or at a directory profile, may look and feel different.  If you ultimately decide to run your full intake form through a chatbot, that may be a secondary or follow-up conversation, and one that represents a highly involved interaction — which nonetheless allows you to take advantage of intake features to qualify lead or client responses.

. . .

Now you know how to build a chatbot for maximum engagement.  We’ll focus next time on how to collect and manage data via a chatbot.  Stay tuned, right here.

Marketing, Messaging, Technology

Fill in the Blank: Contact Forms are the Worst

I hate contact forms.  I don’t like tabbing.  I don’t like clicking into fields.  I don’t like trying to figure out wonky signature tools — should I use the stylus or my finger?  But, does anyone know where the stylus even is?!?!  

I hate taking my kids to the dentist worse than my kids hate going to the dentist because I am routinely treated to a long form intake (on a cheapo tablet that’s not even an iPad), that is truly a pain in the ass to click around in and authorize things in.  Not that I’m hating on my kids’ dentist’s office — they’re good at what they do; but, like most businesses, they are good at being dentists and not great at managing the practical aspects of running a business.  (So, please keep taking our appointments!)

Law firms utilize contact forms on websites almost ubiquitously.  Even the shittiest law firm websites have the shittiest contact forms on them.  There are several problems with traditional contact forms, however, a smattering of which follow: 

-in order to be viewable on one screen, they can’t be used to collect anything beyond basic information

-they’re static, and not dynamic . . .

-. . . which means that engagement is limited . . .

-. . . and, there are limited options for directing users

-navigating fillable boxes can be annoying . . .

-. . . it’s hard to incorporate workflow management (including document signature and payment processing) into traditional contact forms . . .

-. . . and, for most contact forms, it’s hard to build out a discernible call to action

If modern client intake in law firms is about reducing barriers for potential clients, then old school contact forms are a speed bump you need to flatten.

Look instead for dynamic intake solutions that promote engagement.

LIKE I DON’T KNOW MAYBE A CHATBOT.

Marketing, Data Security, Technology

Great Barrier Reef: Modern Customer Service is About Breaking Down Barriers

You may have heard that there are now a majority of states that have adopted new legal ethics rules insinuating that a lawyer’s competence includes knowledge and understanding of legal technology.  And, although you’d probably never hear this from anyone on any accredited CLE panel, this seems to also include technology for marketing, inasmuch as that extends to data retention and security.

But, the broader idea of a lawyer’s competence extending to marketing technology is a new concept.  Does it also mean that an attorney should understand how to wield marketing technology effectively?  Maybe, maybe not.  But, you should treat it as such anyway — because for most attorneys the thing that’s going to put you out of business is not that you undergo an ethics investigation, it’s that you don’t make enough money, often enough.  That’s directly related to your marketing strategy and tactics, of course.

And, while the notion of generic technology competence is something lawyers have had a difficult time wrapping their heads around, marketing technology competence is a little easier to understand — to wit: In order to be a competent legal marketer, you should always be seeking to reduce the number of steps a potential client needs to get to you.  For example, if you can reduce a step in your intake process, do it.  If you can make it easier for your clients to pay you, do that too.  And, if you can create a more compelling payment arrangement by fixing costs, and taking the guesswork out of calculating lawyer rates, do that thing also.  Of course, in some cases, it may be appropriate to add steps to reduce barriers, like when you build out an effective client journey, for new law firm clients who may never have interacted with a law firm before.

Modern law firm consumers are more impatient than ever.  They don’t have time for your accolades; they just want someone who is going to solve their problem.  So, position yourself as a solution point; and, then continue to educate your client through the course of your relationship.  This is not about burnishing your war chest; it’s about focusing on helping people.  And, isn’t that why literally everyone went to law school?