"How did we do?" Why reviews improve your emotional engagement

Emotions in the legal world are often met with some resistance. You’re the lawyer, and they’re the client, right? It’s an easy distinction to make. By keeping your distance however, you’re leaving your clients feeling disconnected, disengaged, and disinterested in promoting your services - here’s how reviews can help bridge that gap.

Reviews are the first step you need to take in order to begin emotionally connecting with your clients. Not only are they a simple and effective way of promoting your firm to potential clients, when clients share their opinions they are putting their emotions on the table - and it’s your job to listen, respond, and match their sincerity. This may be something that doesn’t come naturally. We understand that giving the best legal advice is your forte, it’s what you do and this means you stay disconnected from the other stuff - so let your clients make it easy for you. Collecting your reviews in one place creates a whole pool of emotional resources that are there for the taking. Don’t just bridge the gap, fill it with guidance and attentiveness and show that you can do both. 

If somebody was to ask you why your firm is the best in your area or specialism, it is likely that you could reel off a list of benefits that you have pretty much committed to memory. By simply listing the benefits however, you are replicating the same strategy that every other legal firm is following - and that is no way to connect with your clients. Whilst a generic list of pros shows off your legal intelligence therefore, it leaves emotional intelligence seriously lacking. If you think back to your time at school, everyone had their favourite subject until suddenly you changed year group and your new teacher no longer interacted with you in the same way - your enthusiasm quickly dwindled. It’s the same for your clients. As soon as you make that one error in communication or let your standards of emotional attentiveness slip, the consequences are detrimental. 

So if you are currently following the same format as the fifty other firms you are competing with, who use cost, service offerings and self proclaimed ‘experience’ to sway the prospective client, it’s time to let reviews help you stand out from the crowd.

Think about the last time you made a choice as a consumer. Sure, cost is important but if we exchange this with ‘value’, you would be surprised what people are willing to spend. If you invest in yourself and the way your firm is marketed, people will emotionally invest in you and that gives you a whole lot more than just financial returns. As people, we are driven by emotions and when it comes to legal matters, this certainly overtakes any of the practicalities. It is true that we get what we pay for, but you have got a whole lot more to offer and you can let your clients sway you in the right direction. By simply asking the question “what did you think?”, you’re already showing that you care and that every client matters. If the review they leave is positive, great - you know which behaviours to repeat. If they leave something negative, turn it around - show everyone how attentive you are, offer a solution, and be the voice of guidance your clients need. 

Next up is experience. Of course people want to be sure that you know what you are doing but once the collective amount of years you’ve racked up together in the office makes an appearance, you suddenly sound like every other firm out there. When that’s the case, you just become another needle in the very large haystack of the UK legal market.  

Despite experience seemingly being a commonplace in legal firm promotion however, it is not without its merits - just make sure you are using it in the right way. By reeling off the case law that has allowed you triumphs in the past you are boring your clients with a sea of jargon that they cannot navigate. And once you’ve lost their interest, emotional connection becomes completely unattainable. Your clients have little interest in what you have already done, they want to know what you are going to do - and how you are going to tailor this to them. Make sure your emotional engagement is not hanging by a thread by weaving it into all of your interactions with clients. Reviews allow you to be responsive, demonstrate that you stand for your clients, and show exactly why they should instruct you. Once they feel they are being listened to, respected, and guided to the right solution, the rest will follow. 

Now for your services. If a potential client was to stumble across your website today, they would probably be able to read a list of your offerings but the facts are not enough to make them dial your number. They do not just want somebody to do the paperwork, they need you on and by their side. Having the loudest voice in the courtroom means nothing if you haven’t got your hand on their shoulder too, so reassuring your client that you are the full package is absolutely paramount. With reviews, you can do it all - using your skills to outperform your legal competitors and staying attuned to the emotional investments of your clients. Being the legal solution is easy, it’s what you do - but being the person that guides a client through to finding it themselves is distinctly more appealing.

So, knowing the facts and figures that market your firm by heart is okay, but it is the heart you put behind them that really makes them work. And without your voice of compassion and guidance, they certainly will not do the talking by themselves. If you are used to doing the straight-talking, business-driven spiel, we understand that you might be feeling a bit out of your depth. What you can do however, is ask your clients why they chose you in the first place, and let them fill in the blanks for you. With ReviewSolicitors you can collect all of your testimonials in one place, identifying what your clients already love and why your future clients should be confident that your firm is the right firm to instruct. Amidst the cliches of cost and experience, we think you will be surprised about what they value most.

Get started by claiming your firm’s listing here: ReviewSolicitors.co.uk/joinup