How Compatible Are You? Ask Your Clients to Take A Survey
They say opposites attract - and that may be true when it comes to lovers but hear me now when I say there is no room for opposites when it comes to collaborating with your clients. Knowing a little about how your clients are using technology can really help strengthen your relationship with them.
I spent seven years working in the I.T. departments of large law firms. I spent as much time in the training room as I did at the Help Desk. Here's an example of a typical exchange with a secretary while trouble-shooting a corrupt document:
- Hi Adriana, its Lisa. I just received a file from RussellRiley and every time I try to open it Word freezes up.
- What what word processor are they using?
- Hm, that's a good question. I don't know.
- Lisa, haven't they been a client of ours for over 5 years?
- Yes.
Bang-Bang-Bang my head on the desk. Five years of documents flying back and forth and she's never asked. We (the tech department) spent a lot of time dissecting issues that could have been more readily resolved had we a little, wee, tiny bit of information. Many times, the attorney wouldn't want to ask the client a simple tech question for fear of looking technically incapable or inferior. This, of course, only made me furious and worse, made me waste too much valuable time. So I came up with this tech compatibility survey that I hoped we might send to the client during the engagement process. In my dreams we would have kept this info in our CRM (yeah, I dream big, baby!) or just a simple database that we had at hand. I also looked at it as a great way to form a bond with the client.
Consider what banks have done to foster long-term relationships with their clients. They've got it all figured out. I do my banking on-line (and so should you) with Wachovia . I invested quite a bit of time inputting the details of numerous payees into my personal, business and savings accounts. They have all of my info, I talk to them, they talk to me - we COMMUNICATE. And unless Wachovia cheats on me then runs off with my cat and money - I'm not going anywhere. They've got me by the furballs.
Well, the firm I worked for never adopted my master plan (Congress was between sessions) but I haven't stopped dreaming. I don't see why more law firms aren't using technology to leverage their client relationships in the same way as banks. So I'm putting it out there for you. If you're a solo or a small firm, you can start using something like this TODAY. Maybe it will be you that makes my dream come true. Just be sure to let me know so I can cross this one off my list.
The document is a simple form asking some basic tech questions. It's a template, a suggestion, an idea. If you have some thoughts about additions to the form or comments about how to make it better - leave a comment. Perhaps together, we can create The Perfect Compatibility Questionnaire.
Heather! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave me a note. I'm so glad you liked the idea. You know, you put things out there and just never know how its going to go. Please keep me posted about your progress (or not) and especially if you have any suggestions about the form.
~Adriana~
Posted by: LawTechPartners | 02/18/2006 at 06:22 PM
What an excellent idea, Adriana! I'm implementing this right away! By the way, I've been following your blog for a while now and I find it most informative. I see that others are mentioning it frequently, too. Good for you. Excellent work.
Posted by: Heather Acton | 02/17/2006 at 11:20 AM