Feb 29, 2024
As an immigration law firm, current and past clients are some of your most prized assets. Clients who have had positive experiences, both current and past, are more inclined to return to you for additional immigration help and recommend your firm to others.
Thus, strengthening your connection with your current client base is crucial for boosting new business at your immigration law firm. Indeed, focusing only on acquiring new clients overlooks that potential within your existing clientele. So if you want to tap into that potential, you’ll need to engage both current and past clients.
Client engagement entails providing connected experiences, rather than isolated transactions. Research by Salesforce reveals that 80% of customers consider the experience they have with a company as important as its product or service. Putting it all together means that the quality of client experience directly influences business success potential.
This article explores three ways to fortify client relationships and grow your immigration law firm with business from existing and former clients.
Client engagement plays a pivotal role in cultivating trust and loyalty, ultimately prompting them to want to work with you for follow-up immigration work in the future, hire you for parallel immigration filings, or refer you to others. This foundation of trust not only amplifies your overall sales revenue but also solidifies your law firm's position as a frontrunner in the immigration industry. Here are five ways you can engage with existing clients and build an even stronger relationship.
Even if there haven't been any significant developments in their case, taking the time to touch base demonstrates that they are important to you. Keeping clients informed prevents them from needing to initiate contact for updates, makes them feel confident that things are where they should be in their case, and that you haven’t forgotten about them.
A blog, newsletter, text service or other regular, light communication provides an excellent opportunity to engage clients with informative or even entertaining content, enhancing their experience and fostering connections. You don’t have to write lengthy, in-depth articles either; instead, short, informative posts keeping clients updated on immigration news and policies can be highly beneficial.
Inviting existing clients to exclusive informational or social, whether business immigration clients or individuals with ongoing immigration cases, can provide a touch of exclusivity, facilitate in-person connections, and educate them on various aspects of immigration or other topics that may be important to them. For example, if you’re a business immigration law firm, consider organizing a lunch-and-learn at your office or a nearby venue to discuss industry insights. If you’re a family-based immigration lawyer, consider hosting a webinar where clients can log in, even confidentially, to learn more about immigration news and updates.
Sending a small gift to a client when they get an approval notice, sending a birthday card or other milestone if you’re aware of a family’s birthday, graduation, etc., can create a truly personal relationship with your client. And if you have your law firm’s information tastefully included in the gift, it will help solidify your firm’s brand in their mind as thoughtful, caring, and client-focused, and inspire them to tell their network about you.
Seek feedback from clients to help them feel heard and to show that you are consistently looking to improve and focus on delivering the best possible service. A structured method for sending surveys, e.g., after an immigration milestone, after a particularly complicated step in their process, or otherwise as you see fit, is key. And then take prompt action on their feedback, recognizing both positive and negative reviews. Even better if you reach out to clients who gave you specific feedback that you acted on to show how you’ve taken action.
Remember - positive experiences serve as the foundation for future work, future referrals.
As we constantly strive to service current clients, it’s easy to forget about past clients. Yet nurturing those prior connections is vital for business growth. Reaching out to former clients not only boosts revenue and garners referrals but also keeps your brand top of mind. If initiating contact after a while of not communicating with a prior client can feel overwhelming, here are four tips on how you can do so.
Send a quick email to your former clients to keep them in the loop about any updates at your immigration law firm, like introducing new services, tools, or team members. You don't need to go overboard; a straightforward, short message will do just fine to ensure past clients stay informed.
Sending physical letters via traditional mail is increasingly rare, making it a standout gesture. Enhancing this act by including clippings from newspapers or trade publications where you might have been quoted or where you contributed an article, amplifies the impact. Additionally, remembering past clients' birthdays and sending personalized cards showcases thoughtfulness, leaving a memorable impression.
Providing clients with compelling reasons to return is essential. Encourage repeat business, which can take the form of “hiring you again” business (e.g., 10% percent off a green card filing after doing an asylum application), limited-time-only discounts for certain follow-on services (e.g. 10% off naturalization if they sign up within the next month) or a discount on future services if they refer a friend or family member.
To effectively engage with both current and past clients, leveraging a client relationship management (CRM) system is key. Maintaining relationships with clients is crucial, and a CRM system streamlines re-engagement endeavors. It seamlessly organizes and tracks client data, improving interactions, predicting sales, and automating marketing tasks. By combining these approaches, law firms can achieve personalized engagement and effective management practices.
For streamlined re-engagement efforts, it's essential to maintain a clean and updated client database. Leveraging CRM software streamlines the collection, organization, and management of client data, empowering insights, sales predictions, and automated marketing and sales workflows. Here are four ways that a CRM system can help immigration law firms manage both prospects and clients:
A CRM system provides a central hub for all client data, making tracking and categorization effortless. This organization allows for easy sorting based on factors such as immigration process stage, visa types, nationality, and services utilized, making it easier to determine how to reach back out to what current or past client, what to say, and what to potentially offer them.
A CRM system monitors a client’s immigration journey, assisting law firm staff in pinpointing optimal follow-up moments. These reminders prompt targeted outreach, enabling lawyers to be top-of-mind when it's most advantageous, thus enhancing their ability to best serve the clients and maximize earning potential as a law practice.
A CRM system streamlines communication management, effortlessly handling both internal and external interactions. Through automated logging of emails, calls, meetings, and interactions, it removes the need for manual data entry, automatically consolidating all information within the system.
Regular data collection enables the crafting of personalized messaging tailored to each client's needs. CRM systems make the most of this feature by automatically sending email sequences triggered by specific client actions, ensuring direct communication with your target audience.
Keeping in touch with both current and former clients is essential. Taking proactive steps to reconnect strengthens relationships, increasing the likelihood of them using your services in the future. In the end, effective management of client relationships requires both strategic planning and appropriate tools.
Docketwise is dedicated to creating an immigration case management, forms management, and CRM platform tailored to the diverse needs of immigration law firms of all sizes and practice areas, allowing for more time and attention to client communication. Our commitment to innovation, a client-focused approach, and the pioneering introduction of our open API sets us apart.
Docketwise seamlessly integrates with a number of other platforms, from email to payments and more, simplifying your workflow and providing convenient access for you, your team, and your clients whenever necessary.
If you’re new to Docketwise and would like to try and see if it’s a good fit for your firm, schedule a demo on our website today.
And check-out the official Docketwise podcast, "Immigration Uncovered," and don't forget to subscribe to "Immigration Insights," a quick five-minute newsletter that keeps thousands of immigration lawyers informed and up-to-date!
