Settle Down: Build a Rate Sheet to Capture More Revenue

The majority of business owners have a very difficult time price setting.  However, much of that effort (meant to define the value for what a professional does) is most often undone by those same professionals.  This is especially true of lawyers, who don’t like to talk with clients about money, and are more than willing to discount their services at the slightest provocation. 



This becomes a significant problem, as attorneys reduce their effective rates via the method of death by a thousand cuts.  Law firms usually bleed revenue in fits and starts, until they begin to hemorrhage it; and, constantly discounting in an inconsistent manner is where it starts.  Plus, clients and referral sources talk about how a particular lawyer can be a soft touch; so, not only does this issue exist in a vacuum, it most often mushrooms over time.  Law firms that staunch the bleeding, tend to make more money overall, and per hour. 

 

The best way to preserve the value of your fees is to utilize and maintain a rate sheet.  Simply put, a rate sheet is a list of your prices, which may include discount rates.  The use of a rate sheet solves for the most common attorney foible in sabotaging settled billing rates -- that is the ad hoc applications of discounts.  Treat the rate sheet as inviolable, including only discounting at the percentages included on that sheet, and you’ll be guaranteed to make more money.  This tactic is especially useful for solo and small firm lawyers, with whom clients know the buck stops. 

 

I’ve written in further detail on this concept here: https://www.attorneyatwork.com/utility-of-the-law-firm-fee-schedule/ 

 

. . . 

 

If you can’t seem to help but discount, we can help you to make what you’re worth. 

Through a unique partnership between the Maine Board of Overseers of the Bar and Jared Correia’s Red Cave Law Firm Consulting, Maine attorneys have access to experienced law practice management consultants at a special discounted rate. 

To get started, visit Red Cave’s landing page for Maine attorneys, and start running your law practice like a business.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Nice and Naughty List: How to Pick New Software

Image
Selecting new law firm software can be a daunting prospect .  There are so many options, that attorneys are often waylaid by a paralysis of analysis, and then don’t end up making any positive changes at all .  This is why a lot of law firms end up relying on old and obsolete technologies, rather than updating to modern tools .  Once again, inertia becomes the single worst enemy of law firms.   But, when lawyers do end up selecting specific softwares , they often do so in a hasty manner, just to ensure the painful process end s quickly .  In that case, the selected software is often not a good fit for the law firm, so that attorneys and staff end up wasting time building inefficient workarounds, that dress up the problem, and make the software just a little more palatable for the law firm ’ s use case.     Neither option is particularly compelling.     And, the truth of the matter is that the process of selecti ng the right software for a law firm is not an easy one , and it takes
Read more

Buried Treasure: What Software Features Are You Missing?

Image
What’s been great lately, is that lawyers are increasing their reliance on technology .  That means that law firms are adding efficiency, and revenue.     This is fantastic , absolutely .  But, there’s still more work to do.     That’s because lawyers may be overpaying for technolog y; and, it’s largely because they’re buying new stuff without looking harder at what they already have.   In fact , there are lots of instances where attorneys will purchase a new product without assessing whether they have that tool already included as a feature in another technology platform .  This often happens with productivity software and law practice management software .  The former can include tools like video conferencing and internal chat as product features (meaning you don’t have to pay any more money to use them); and, the latter can include tools like e signature and epayment as product features .  In some cases, and depending on a user’s subscription level, there may limitatio
Read more

Arrested Development: What Do Modern Law Firm Associates Want, Anyway?

Image
There’s a lot in flux around the legal industry of late .  Work roles, places and preferences seem to be changing constantly .  Yet, law firms continue to require associates to move business forward.     Managing partners often think, in these instances, about what the law firm needs .  But, even if in an employer’s market, it pays to consider what your associates ( and potential associates ) actually do want – especially if you want those associates to stick around for a while, along with all the capital you’ve invested in them.   One of the major challenges of hiring is that those doing the hiring are often a generation (or more) removed from those they are hiring .  There’s lots of barriers there to begin with; and , most of those hiring partners are not going to take the time to learn more about candidate preferences.     So, let’s do a quick crash course on what millennial ( and younger ) employees want out of an associate position:     Flexibility. Especially with the m
Read more