Business development is about relationships, first and foremost. What goes around comes around. Treat people right or pay the consequences in missed opportunities, broken relationships, burned bridges, and bad word of mouth….Remember: Most people, however well behaved and well brought up, talk about other people. Don’t give them something to talk about, other than your finer qualities and achievements.
A webinar veteran, I recently went multimedia and recorded my first podcast, at the invitation of Stephen Seckler, who regularly interviews lawyers and legal professionals on Stephen Seckler’s Counsel to Counsel. Stephen asked me to speak about one of my favorite topics, the range of ways in which lawyers can (and should, if they can see the long game) use social media and blogging to build relationships and drive business. Please listen in!
Every client worth having wants a lawyer who understands her business, one who’s studied the industry and markets in which his company competes, and one who speaks the language of business, whether in contract negotiations or the courtroom. [Previously published in the ABA Magazine, Student Lawyer Edition.]
ABA Webinar: Speaking the Language of Business, on the critical importance of financial literacy (and, better, financial fluency) for lawyers in all practice areas, to assure superior legal work and robust practice and revenue growth.
ABA Webinar: Social Media Networking Strategies to Gain New Clients. This webinar on social media for lawyers includes live demonstrations on how to leverage Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook to build your personal brand while expanding your business.
Any rainmaker will tell you: Giving and helping are everything. The ideal way to build and deepen your rapport with your clients, prospects, colleagues, referral sources and other important contacts is to learn as much as you can about each person and identify what he or she needs to be successful and fulfilled. Once you’ve done that, things get very simple. You just need to help meet those needs.
ABA Webinar: Making it Rain to Grow Your Business, on networking, relationship building and business development.
Catapult Your Career: Networking and Relationship Building Strategies for Junior Associates and Law Students
5 Ways for Associates to Prepare for Partnership
No lawyer (in fact, no service professional) can prosper, especially in the current economy, without a rich strategic network and a first-rate reputation, in both his or her law firm and community. These goals cannot be achieved solely by billing hours and going through the standard “marketing” motions. They cannot be reached by crafting the quintessential “executory contract” with your beleaguered practice group manager (that two-page “Marketing Plan” she distributes once a year). No-you’re going to need a plan, and the discipline to create and implement a strategic business development plan. It’s your career. Take charge!