By Katie Gilmore, Founder & CEO

If you are like many law firms or RIAs today, you are extremely busy addressing client needs and answering a deluge of questions because of COVID-19. Law firms are tackling their clients’ operations issues, labor and employment matters, insurance coverage questions, and more. RIAs are focusing on following the markets in this unprecedented time, reviewing client portfolios, and reassuring clients.

But what happens next?

No one knows. And that’s why it’s critical to keep filling your pipeline.

Firms should always be thinking about business development, not just when you look up and realize that you need new business. By doing so, you’ll be prepared to quickly add clients because you’ve been developing and nurturing relationships with prospects and COIs. Remember, it takes time to convert a prospect into a client.

AdvicePeriod for Advisors recently shared three “easy” prospecting techniques that firms can do today that we encourage our clients to be doing now:

1. Get out and meet people

2. Set targets

3. Ask for referrals

There are many components to creating and implementing business development plans, so let’s focus on these three, and how you and your firm can nurture business development, even when you can’t physically get out and prospect in this new economy.

Meeting New People

Meeting new people (as either prospects or referral sources) is an important part of business development for law firms and RIAs. It expands your network and increases your chances of finding new business. Under normal circumstances, you could attend a seminar or luncheon and talk to people face-to-face. But because of COVID-19, people are working from home and most opportunities to meet in person have been postponed or canceled.

Thanks to technology, though, you can still connect with others. Set up a one-on-one Zoom meeting with a referral source to see how their business is going and if there’s any way you can help. Chances are strong your COI will reciprocate and offer to help you. Be prepared to share the types of clients or work you are looking for, so they can send the right people your way.

Consider reaching out to three or four clients who may be in a similar situation and ask them to join you for a virtual meeting on Zoom or another platform. This lets you introduce new people to each other and answer common questions they have. At the end, you can ask whether they know anyone else who would benefit from a similar meeting. An added benefit of this type of meeting is that it lets you see what common issues your clients are facing and can help you pivot your focus to prepare for issues or needs that will arise in the coming months or years.

You can also turn to LinkedIn to find new connections. Join an alumni group or group geared toward professionals in your area. Reach out to someone you may have chatted with via Zoom. Also consider using LinkedIn’s targeted advertising to increase your brand’s awareness and connections with current COIs and prospective ones.  

Set Targets

When it comes to business development, setting specific targets is immensely helpful. It allows you to measure your progress and gives you concrete goals to hit. Knowing that you want to grow your revenue by 10 percent or increase your assets under management by 15 percent helps you to map how your firm will get there.

How many new clients will you need to bring in to reach your goal? After you determine that, then you will need to factor in that you’ll only convert a fraction of your prospects. Are you touching enough people on a consistent basis? If not, evaluate your current business development tools and see if there are additional ways you can reach more prospects.

Ask for Referrals

Sometimes gaining a new prospect to contact is as simple as asking a COI for one. Some lawyers and advisors hesitate to come out and ask a COI for a referral. By doing so, you could be missing out on a significant amount of new business.

Since you can’t take a COI to lunch right now or invite them to join you at an event, turn your attention to phone calls and emails. As we said above, setting up a Zoom meeting with a referral helps keep you top of mind and lets you learn about what types of matters they need help with now. Reach out to your COIs on LinkedIn – see how they are doing and if they need any help.

Look through your referral list and see who needs attention. Send an e-gift card to them for a nearby restaurant or bookstore along with a note to let them know you are thinking about them.

The key to asking for referrals is to first ask how you can help. As you know, COIs often reciprocate when given the chance to help send new business your way if you’ve sent a prospective client to them.

Make Business Development a Priority

It’s easy to push business development efforts to the side when you are dealing with a rush of client needs, but prospecting should always be a priority for law firms and RIAs. While we can’t rely on all of our traditional methods right now, we can adapt them to the current world we are living in.

If you’d like to learn more about marketing and business development in the new economy, reach out to us today.