INFOGRAPHIC: The Rewards of Responsiveness: Law Firm Growth Opportunities from the 2018 Clio Legal Trends Report

The team at Clio outdid themselves this year with the 2018 Legal Trends Report. While last year's report exposed common threads within the scope, cost, and revenue of legal work, this year's report is truly a "state of the union," incorporating data not just on the inner workings of law firms, but also on their relationships with the outside world (specifically, potential and existing clients). If the 2017 report gave us action, then the 2018 report gave us reaction. The 2018 report isn't just descriptive, it's prescriptive.

The full report is 65 pages — far too much content to digest in a single article here, so we've focused on one theme: responsiveness.

What captured our attention was the amount of time, energy, and money that gets wasted when a law firm is unresponsive, or too responsive to the wrong signals:

• If you're booking consultations with unqualified leads, you're responsiveness is misdirected, and you're losing precious time.
• If you're not accepting online payments, you're not responding to the way most clients say they want to pay you, and you're limiting your client base.
• If you're frequently accepting cold calls from current clients, you're overly responsive, and you're derailing your productivity.

These aren't isolated events; they're trends:

• 59% of people didn't hire an attorney even after a consultation
• Out of every 3 hours of billable work, only 2 hours of revenue are collected
• 78% of legal professionals report "often" interruptions from existing clients

But let's not label this report as negative, because it's actually an impetus for positive change.

In the infographic below, we highlight key statistics from the report and identify four ways to run a more successful law practice by improving your responsiveness.

Consider the rewards that await you by making simple, affordable, and accessible changes using software and services, like virtual receptionists. And then explore the full report, to fully grasp the "legal experience" on both the client and lawyer sides, as this tome is truly worth a read.

Improved profitability, professionalism, and productivity are within reach, whether you're flying solo or practicing at a bigger firm. We hope this inspires you!

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If you'd like to explore how Smith.ai's receptionists can help you run a more responsive law practice, we'd be glad to speak with you. Sign up for a free consultation with our team or get started risk-free with our 14-day money-back guarantee. You'll quickly see why our clients say working with Smith.ai is one of the "best business decisions" they've made. We look forward to helping you strengthen and grow your law firm.