how to start a thriving solo practice
TRANSCRIPT
#ClioWeb
Business of LawHow to Start a Thriving New Solo Practice
A Clio WebinarJohn Corcoran – Corcoran Law Firm
Joshua Lenon - Clio
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1. My Story: from unhappy associate to thriving solo (5 minutes)2. How the changing legal industry is affecting today’s law firm (5 minutes)3. How to evaluate whether to start your own law firm (20 minutes)4. How to navigate business cycles (20 minutes)5. Advanced training option (1 minute)6. Q&A (9 minutes)
Agenda
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3-question quiz: 1. What do you love about your practice right now?
2. What do you hate about your practice right now?
3. If you could design your ideal law practice, what would it look like?
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ABOUT ME
Over $127,000 in law school debt
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• 2007: Graduate from law school• 2007-2011: Associate at two small law firms• 2011: Launch The Corcoran Law Firm
Who is John Corcoran:
My one-sized-fits all “strategy” for getting clients: networking, joining boards, volunteering, advertising, blogging, etc.
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• Tried it all: networking, joining boards, volunteering, advertising, blogging
• Wanted to work with business clients, but struggled to close them.
• Doing low-profit “short sale consults”• Struggled to define my niche & attract clients• 2012: discovered a much better approach…
The Corcoran Law Firm 1.0
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• Redefined practice – from real estate/short sales to focus on working with business owners & entrepreneurs
• Developed a “Stand out strategy” through writing• Restarted the business law section• Organized events for business lawyers• Increased revenue & worked less • Created SmartBusinessRevolution.com & 6 Figure
Law Firm training program• 1st 3 years: over $500K in revenue
2012 – onward: Continual improvement
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CHANGING LEGAL INDUSTRY
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Changes to the Legal Industry:
Be prepared for disruption
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“Uber,-the-world’s-largest-taxi-company,-owns-no-vehicles.-Facebook,-the-world’s-most-popular-media-owner,-creates-no-content.-Alibaba,-the-most-valuable-retailer,-has-no-inventory.-And-Airbnb,-the-world’s-largest-accommodation-provider,-owns-no-real-estate.-Something-interesting-is-happening.”--
D The-Battle-Is-For-the-Customer-Interface,-March-3,-2015
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Other industries & companies that are being disrupted: • Taxis (Uber)• Travel agencies (Expedia, Orbitz, etc.)• Tax preparation (TurboTax)• Newspapers (Craigslist)• Dictation & proofreading (Dragon)• Booksellers (Amazon)• Job recruiters (LinkedIn)• Hotels and motels (Airbnb)• Manufacturing (3D printing)
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The Enterprise Legal Management Trends Report (2013): • more work is shifting from large law firms to
smaller law firms • Firms with 201-500 lawyers doubled their share
of High fee litigation matters (matters with over $1M billed) – their portion of high fee work went from 22% in 2010 to 41% in 2013.
• The share of U.S. legal fees paid by clients to firms with more than 750 lawyers dropped from 26% to 20% between 2010 and 2013.
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How technology is changing the legal industryThen vs. Now
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How technology is changing the legal industryThen vs. Now
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How the Legal Industry is Changing• Cost of starting a firm much lower• Cloud Practice management software like Clio• VOIP vs. expensive telephone system• No longer need a secretary • LegalMatch, Lead referral services• Social networking• A.I. - Artificial Intelligence • Self-help legal document sites• Virtual law firms like Axiom
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“What-scares-me-more-than-competition-from-traditional-big-firms-is-competition-from-Axiom-Legal.-Axiom-is-different.
They-handle-fairly-routine,-but-complex-legal-matters-for-corporate-clients-– compliance,-litigation,-and-transactional. At-rates-like-$130/hour-for-regulatory-compliance-matters-or-$150-an-hour-for-litigation,-there’s- simply-no-way-that-I-– or-any-solos-I-know-for- that-matter-– can-compete.”
DD Carolyn-Elefant
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“DeepMind burst into the limelight last year when it published a paper in Nature that showed how a computer could be programmed to teach itself to play Atari games better than most humans.” YouTube video:
Bitly.com/breakoutvid15
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What can you do about the changing legal industry?
• Keep track of changes • Monitor what other successful lawyers are doing
(not just loud complainers)• Look for opportunities – blogging, podcasting, video,
etc.
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Follow the innovators:
Law Offices of Jacob Sapochnik – 118K Facebook fans
Jeena Cho - @Jeena_Cho on Twitter
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WHETHER YOU SHOULD START YOUR OWN FIRM
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How to Evaluate Whether You Should Start Your Own Firm: • Measure and track incoming referrals• Begin meeting with senior attorneys in your
practice area• Elevate your profile through writing,
speaking, getting involved with Bar Associations
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The Wrong way to start your new firm: • Lock yourself into an expensive lease• Prepay for expensive legal research systems• Buy top of the line office furniture• Start a new practice area immediately • No savings
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The RIGHT way to start your new firm: • Find month-to-month shared office space, work
in exchange for rent, or work from home• Use free research sources (i.e. law library + my
report)• Use cloud-based software systems (lower up
front costs)• Repurpose computers & furniture• Create a 3rd “rainy day” fund to pay your salary.
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When you start your firm, there are 5 basic things you need:
1. Somewhere to work2. A practice or business management software3. The ability to communicate with people4. Billing or payment software5. The ability to do research
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How to Make $10,000 in your First
Month
$10,000 $250 = 40 hours/month
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10 HOURSper week
That’s just
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1-2 CLIENTSper week
That’s just
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HOW TO NAVIGATE BUSINESS CYCLES
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How to Navigate the Business Rollercoaster
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How to Navigate the Business Rollercoaster
1. Forge Key Relationships2. Consistency
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Forge key relationships with high-value clients & referral
partners
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You work too much to networkYou have a familyYou live in a small town
You need to be efficient and laser-focused on which potential clients to target
Problem: “No time” Disease
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Typical “time management” advice:
1. Download a new app
2. Read another book
3. Try a new productivity system (which doesn’t work)
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Solution:
The Conversation List Strategy
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Your Conversation List is a list of the 50+ people who you want
to deepen a relationship with over the course of the next 12
months.
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3 parts to the Conversation List strategy:
People Organizations
Events
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Create a “Conversation list” of the 50+ people who you want to connect & deepen
relationship with.
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Who should be on your Conversations list?• Other attorneys• VIPs, influencers• Potential & existing clients• Your friends’ friends & connections• People who understand reciprocity
system• People who you connect with
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Strategy #2: Be Consistent over time
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How do you deliver value later to deepen a relationship?
How do you avoid feeling like you’re “selling” or being “salesy”
How do you communicate without bothering someone?
How to Deliver Ongoing Value and Deepen a Relationship
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Evolution of a Relationship
Initial Meeting
Time
Follow0up (Deepening
Relationship)
No relationship
Intro
“Warm up”
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Solution: Be the Value-Delivering Tortoise, Not the Hare
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Two parts:
1.) Deliver Relevant Value at the Right Times
2.) Use Tools to Scale Your Efforts
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What is Relevant Value at the Right Times?
Look for opportunities to help (new business, new book, family member looking for a job, etc.).
Use Powerful Relevant Introductions
Send articles of interest
Your most relevant value to a person may not be your encyclopedic knowledge of the Rules of Civil Procedure.
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Step 2: Use tools scale your efforts:
A CRM ProgramIntro.netA BlogAn Email Newsletter (Advanced)
How to set up Contactually: SmartBusinessRevolution.com/follow-up-networking
Put Your Conversations List in Contactually
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To connect your CRM systems:
Set up Automatic Reminders
How to use blog posts
How to use email newsletters
How to create email newsletters: SmartBusinessRevolution.com/start-here/
I want to ask you an
important question…
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Are you passionate about your practice TODAY?
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How would you feel?
If you do not love your practice, what canyou do today that willmake your tomorrow
better?
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My challenge to you:
What is 1 action you will take based on the strategies I covered today?
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Exclusive offer for attending this webinar
3 “Checklists” for following up with Past clients, potential clients & key referral partners
To get your 3 checklists, sign up for a Clio trial here:
SmartBusinessRevolution.com/Clio
Your Free Gift
I will email you a 10-page guide on tools and
technology you can use to start your own law firm, including Google Voice,
MyFax, Hello Sign, Clio, and Google Scholar.
If you are interested in learning more about my 6 Figure Law Firm course, click “yes” now and I will follow up.
+ Exclusive offer for Clio: 20-min KickstartCoaching Call with me.
John Corcoran
The Corcoran Law FirmSmartBusinessRevolution.com
Watch for your free report on tools & technology you can use to start your firm
QUESTIONS
Better Billing for Law FirmsJune 30, 2015 11:00 AM PT
http://gocl.io/betterbilling
