HOW SHOULD LEGAL SERVICE PROVIDERS ADJUST TO SURVIVE COVID-19?

The Coronavirus is a human problem that continues to affect a large portion of the planet's people and businesses. This is a look at how this pandemic is impacting the legal service industry and some recommendations to improve the operational and business aspects.

As of today, economic activities have almost halted globally. This is due to the precautionary measures taken by countries to contain the viral outbreak. We earlier assessed the impact in 10 industries to show a clearer picture of how this outbreak is affecting the world of business.

It is important to have a plan of action prepared; even more crucial is the need to have planned for a period such as this. A few months before the global pandemic hit, we published the need for law firms to commoditise their services to easily sell certain services to the markets/clients that need them. This was part of the content for a Social Media Week Lagos panel session moderated by our Lead Consultant Ali Afegbua. This model may not apply to all types of legal services, but this advice was based on our understanding that systems being operated by many law firms were simply unsustainable.

International experts in the legal industry have agreed that this is not the time to stick to old theories of how markets will react or textbook strategies like the ones deployed during the 2007-2008 recession, considering that old solutions will simply fail if applied to the circumstances of 2020.

In the wake of the outbreak, we observed many businesses as they changed operational formats. Systems got disrupted virtually overnight and the legal industry, let’s just say it will never be the same again. In this crucial time, law firms must pay closer attention to their work processes, employee welfare and how to improve service delivery.

Professionals within the legal industry must consider the business and operational ramifications of the COVID 19 pandemic on their law firms and legal departments. Managing Partners, COO’s, HR Managers and Business Development Managers amongst other key personnel will face very unique hurdles, and we have made some recommendations to help along the way.

Here are some suggestions on making the transition from the Pre-COVID19 to Post-COVID19 era.

Recommendations:

In Lagos Nigeria and Accra Ghana, 80% of mid to large-sized law firms have about 10 years of catching up to do, when it comes to the use and deployment of technology in their operations and business development processes. This is in comparison to the magic circle firms and other leading international law firms with offices in places like Johannesburg, China, London and New York; not to mention the Big 4 with their legal departments. To help with the catching-up process, here are some Business & Marketing recommendations:

1. Assess your business development budget and ensure that you have the numbers down to the tiniest expenses. Now allocate a significant portion (70%) towards online business development which will be your main tool throughout the lockdown period (and in the future). Client Intelligence tools and Customer Relationship Management Systems will help you track down your client information. This should be your main focus. 
2. Focus on cross-selling legal services to existing clients, especially with services that are in high demand owing to the global pandemic. Assess how much impact exists in your client’s industry and identify where they need help outside of what you already do for them. 
3. Send out helpful information via your content marketing platforms and show that you care. The best type of marketing is the client-centric kind. People need to be reassured and comforted. 
4. Convert Thought Leadership content into engaging webinars and pre-recorded courses. Law firm marketing is mainly Thought Leadership, so this means bite-sized formats for easy assimilation. 
5. Integrate all your legal marketing and business development efforts, let them be complimentary. All touchpoints must be carefully mapped out and understood by your team. This includes content marketing, social media and the lead generation/ conversion processes you have. 
6. Client retention must be the ultimate goal. Don’t take for granted the times we are in and how quickly a client will drop your firm if you find it hard to adjust to technology use or your firm’s incompatibility with working remotely. 

To manage your workforce and keep things running, here are some operational recommendations:

1. Remote Working is an obvious recommendation due to the persisting lockdown in most parts of the world. With the economic impact of the outbreak crippling industries, legal service providers must have a plan of action in quickly adapting their work processes to be compatible with technological solutions like virtual conferencing, cloud computing and automation. 
2. Automation of duties/ roles; this is applicable to roles like your customer service operator/ front desk personnel, who can now be converted to support (for instance) your Business Development team in the lead generation, sorting and conversion process. This will apply to your litigation support as well, explore how diverse their skill set is and redirect these to other areas as the courts are on lockdown. 
3. Your IT Team are very vital to your current operational model and they should be considered essential staff. They will need to collaborate effectively with service providers to ensure firm connectivity and access to relevant data to ensure that there aren’t any disruptions in your ability to still operate in the lockdown and such. 
4. This is the time to assess your operational costs with your accounts department and observe how much is being saved from the lockdown. Diverting such savings towards the empowerment of employees as bonuses, Internet subscription costs, or care packages will go a long way in boosting morale and retaining talent after the lockdown.

Remember, this will not be business as usual and your ability to adapt quickly will determine how successful your business can be. Please continue to take care and stay safe!


Ali Afegbua is the Lead Consultant at Nubianette Consulting, we provide Legal Business Development Insight and Marketing Services to Legal and Technology Businesses.