Client Relationship Management: Why Your Law Firm Needs a CRM

4 min read

Here’s what you need to know about customer relationship management (CRM) systems.

Positive client relationships are paramount to maintaining your law firm’s reputation – and its profitability. But as your firm grows, managing client relationships becomes more difficult as you have less time to devote to each individual client. That’s where technology can help. Modern customer relationship management systems, or CRMs, are making it possible for law firms of all sizes to maintain a personal touch with clients while reducing time spent on non-billable activities. Here are just a few of the benefits of CRMs in law – and how your firm can leverage a CRM to improve client service, increase profitability, and reduce unbillable time.

Customer Relationship Management: What CRMs Are and How They Work

A customer relationship management system, or CRM, is a piece of software that – as the name implies – makes it easier to manage client relationships. According to Lawyerist, the most basic elements of a CRM are a client contacts database, a to-do list, and a calendar.

When used properly, a CRM streamlines client communications in a way that makes for better, more meaningful communication. It’s a centralized storage space for interactions with current and potential future clients, an analytics tool for measuring revenue, and an intake system, all-in-one. With a CRM, you can easily manage all of your client interactions from within a single application where you can view everything you’ve ever said to a client.

Benefits of a Legal CRM

Perhaps the strongest advantage of a CRM is the fact that you can see every client interaction, listed out by client, all in one place. That means you can easily view which team member said what to which client and when, making it easier to manage client expectations and meet deadlines.

CRMs also make it possible to automate data entry when new leads contact you, registering them as contacts in your system without the need for manual data entry.

Plus, you can build out a robust (and fully digital) client intake process with customizable templates and forms that your clients can fill out and digitally sign from anywhere in the world. This sort of client intake process translates to better client satisfaction and a superior client experience, which can improve your firm’s reputation.

CRMs also make for scalable client relationships. As a small boutique firm, it’s easy to give each client a personalized experience and one-on-one attention. But as your firm grows, it becomes more and more challenging to give that same treatment to each client. With a CRM, though, you can ensure each individual client still receives the white-glove treatment no matter how many clients you take on.

CRMs even make it possible to schedule meetings and issue reminders from within the same platform you use to message clients – no more switching apps.

Finally, legal CRMs enable you to automate marketing communications and make informed decisions about marketing based on real data. CRMs can give you valuable data insights like email open and clickthrough rates, helping you to determine things like which email newsletter topics are most appealing to your audience.

Choosing a CRM for Your Law Firm

Choosing a CRM for your law firm can seem like a daunting endeavour. After all, there’s no shortage of legal CRMs on the market, each of which claims to be the best one. Complicating matters is the fact that there really is no single “best” CRM. The best CRM for your firm will depend on your specific situation and needs. 

First and foremost, though, you’ll want to focus on security compliance as a primary concern. A secure CRM will comply with major security regulations and will hold certifications like “SOC2 compliant”. Since your CRM will be handling sensitive information, you’ll want to ensure any CRM that makes your shortlist has robust data protection features.

You’ll also want to look at integrations to ensure your CRM can import and export data to and from your existing tools.

Finally, it’s important that you look for a CRM that’s been designed for law firms. There’s no shortage of general CRMs on the market, but these CRMs may lack some of the specific features that law firms need.

Some top contenders that meet these requirements include Lawmatics and Law Ruler.

(For more information on software procurement best practices, check out our FREE e-book, The Busy Legal Professional’s No-Hassle, No-Fear Guide to Legal Software Procurement.)

Client relationships matter a great deal. As your firm grows, it’ll be essential for you to maintain a personalized approach to client relationship management, no matter how many clients you’re juggling. The key to success? A robust CRM that centralizes your contacts, your calendar, and your client communications. With a CRM, you’ll never have to worry about an important email to a client falling through the cracks.