Leak 5 – Freebies

Law firms:  Making more money is easy when you stop the leaks.

In this continuing series I am sharing 8 short blogs on the leaks I have seen in law firms where they are needlessly losing hundreds of thousands of pounds.

Law firms: Look I’m not saying you should never do anything for free, I’m just saying, you shouldn’t make an unconscious habit of it, otherwise you are throwing money away unnecessarily and making a rod for your own back.

When you work for free, the client doesn’t really value it, because they may not even notice it or if they do, they don’t consider its true value.

If they are a regular client, it then just becomes the norm and will be expected.

A habit is created which is very hard to break without outside, professional support.

NB: I am not saying never do anything for free. There may be occasions when this is warranted. However, it should be done in a way, so as not to be taken for granted.
Here’s my suggested approach.

A client asks for something extra, and you know it will take very little time to do it. They are a valued client and you’re happy to do it without charging. You say:

Normally, I would charge for this but as you are such a valued client, I am happy to do it for you on this occasion without charge.

However, can we just explore the value to you of me doing this?

That way, the client is very clear that

🟣 they are important

🟣 you don’t make a habit of doing stuff for free and

 
🟣 they understand the value of the extra work you are doing.

This is very different from an automatic habit of saying yes without any discussion. The former is born out of fear and the latter comes from a place of confidence.

Let me help you help your lawyers renounce working for free.