In this episode’s discussions around the Community Table:

• There’s a time to take stock and reset. Understanding what you value and your internal motivations will help you guide your law firm’s growth. Think about what gets you out of bed and into the office each day. For most, it’s more than money. Know the difference between growing and truly building. Purpose and intentional goals matter more than billing.
• It’s the holiday season, and who doesn’t want to take off work for an extended period to be with friends and family. But for law firm owners and leaders, the question is how? Set the pieces in place that will allow you to turn over the business to employees, such as an established chain of command and communication expectations. Try a test period to see how things go when others have to step up and run the office.
• And finally, let’s talk about recognizing and coming to grips with “red flags” from a job candidate. Sometimes … you just know. 

Mentioned in This Episode:

Ask us anything for the Community Table. Leave us a question online

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Clio Legal Trends Report

Clio

Cliocon 2025

What can you do to attract more business to your firm? Let’s talk about acquisitions through networking. Guest Janet Falk, Ph.D., is a communications professional with more than 30 years of experience helping small and solo firms get better at finding (and signing) more clients. Falk is the chief strategist at Falk Communications and Research. 

This is a free lesson in media and public and personal relations, from being the “go-to” for news reporters, mastering marketing communications, and acquiring new clients through personal relationships. This is all about meeting and exceeding your business goals. Falk is a frequent author, speaker, and an industry-leading communications consultant. 

How do you shape a news story that boosts your case? Who are you trying to reach in the media, and how do you get out front? How do you keep your firm top-of-mind? How do you present yourself at networking events? 

Even if you’re a secret introvert, this episode is for you. You can “get out there” and build your business, make connections, attract referrals, and tell your story. Learn techniques to prepare and benefit from networking events from the minute you walk in the door. These are valuable tips you won’t find anywhere else (hint, it includes the two things you must bring to any event).

Mentioned in This Episode:

The 2024 Clio Cloud Conference in Review

Five Fast Tips to Maximize a Media Interview, by Janet Falk

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In this episode’s discussions around the Community Table:

• Returning Guest Danielle Hendon, CPA, founder of 4 Corners CFO, explores what lawyers and law firms should, and should not, be doing in the fourth quarter of 2024. Learn the common mistakes firms make as the year winds down. 
• Take the time to understand the story your business “numbers” are telling you. Do you see where your business is going and what you should be thinking about as you forecast for next year? Be intentional about your growth. Don’t let things “happen to” your firm, make them happen. 
• It’s OK to spend as needed at the end of the year, especially if you’re thinking of taxes. But you’ve got to be looking ahead, too. What’s important, how do you manage a budget, understand what’s budgeting and what’s forecasting? Don’t spend just for short term tax advantages, plan for the unexpected too. 

Mentioned in This Episode:

Danielle Hendon, previously on the Un-Billable Hour, “Is Your Small Firm Missing A Chief Financial Officer? Rent One.”

4 Corners CFO, “A Framework to Reveal Your Path to Profit”

The Un-Billable Hour, Legal Talk Network

Quickbooks

Clio Legal Trends Report

Clio

Cliocon 2025

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Let’s talk about technology and how it fits into your practice. Fact is, the old yellow pad and document boxes are no longer your friends. Your clients expect you to use technology to be more efficient and effective. 

Guest Richard “Rich” Dukes Jr. has gone paperless. So has his entire South Carolina law firm. Today’s tech drives efficiency whether that’s in document review, witness preparation, or even courtroom presentation. 

Hear how Dukes evaluates each evolution of tech tools, how he decides if they will truly elevate his productivity, and how easy they will be to introduce to his colleagues and incorporate them into his practice. 

Time is an attorney’s most valuable commodity. Technology can give you more time. Coming next, AI. Dukes has some ideas of where artificial intelligence may upend the next generation of legal tech tools. Put down the pen and pad and start working smarter today. 

Mentioned in This Episode:

Notability

TrialPad 

OpenAI

Perplexity AI

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In this episode’s discussions around the Community Table:

• The ROI of hiring. It’s important. You may think hiring someone, say a paralegal, will cost you money. Successful firms won’t consider hiring someone if they don’t already know they’re going to make money. Firms use benchmarks to weigh the cost of a new hire against anticipated additional revenue. This is math, not “gut feeling,” and you can do it! Listen to find out how.
• Dive into the results of a legal industry “secret shopper” study by Clio. The scientific data shows law firms stink at answering calls, responding to emails, and even monitoring chatbots. The first rule of success? When a potential client knocks, open the door. Can AI help?
• How do you incentivize a high performing team? What kind of rewards are appropriate? And if your team is already firing on all cylinders, what else can you incentivize? Hear how you can help high performers earn more and grow by finding new tasks where they can take over and excel.  

Mentioned in This Episode:

Moneyball, what your firm can learn about ROI from a movie about baseball

Google local search ads, be better

Tips for better Google reviews

Listen to the On The Road episode featuring Joshua Lenon 

Clio Legal Trends Report

Clio For Clients app

Cliocon 2024

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Guest Shaun Jardine is an unapologetic disrupter in the world of pricing and billing by lawyers and law firms. He’s leading the charge to move from traditional billable hour pricing – charging for time – to the emerging revolution of value-based pricing. Charge for the results you achieve for your clients, not the time you spent getting there.

Are you still charging for time? Why not base your pricing on your experience, your wisdom, your education, the outcomes your clients want, and everything you bring to the table. Clients don’t want your time, they want their problems solved.

It’s not “the way we’ve always done things,” but Jardine explains why change is inevitable. As technology, notably AI, accelerates the practice of law, why should a lawyer charge less – fewer billable hours – for achieving results faster and more efficiently? 

The move to value-based pricing isn’t like flipping a switch. It will take effort, and it will involve your entire team, from HR to marketing, to lawyers and paralegals. But in a changing world, sticking with the old ways may not be an option. This fascinating conversation will ignite your curiosity and challenge you to think differently. 

Mentioned in This Episode:

Charles Proteus Steinmetz

“Ditch The Billable Hour! Implementing Value-Based Pricing in a Law Firm,” by Shaun Jardine

American Bar Association Rule 1.5: Fees

RACI methodology of change management (free download)

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In this episode’s discussions around the Community Table:

• Growing pains. As you bring on new clients, it can be hard for an overburdened team of lawyers and paralegals to manage client communications. Hear how texting can help bridge communication needs, how a virtual receptionist can fill gaps, and how a standing schedule of update calls and a task assignment system can ensure clear communications between lawyers and clients.
• ·What is the “rhythm/parking lot” method for managing client communications? Combined with allowing clients to schedule their own appointments online and chat functions, this system can take pressure off your staff.
• Be honest and direct with your clients. Set expectations and ask clients if your expectations and theirs align, so they know how the case will proceed. And if a client “emergency” arises, be sure your staff asks the right questions and fully understands the situation so they can provide clear details to the attorney.

Mentioned in This Episode:

Clio Legal Trends Report

Clio For Clients app

Cliocon 2024 (discount code, “actfast”)

Google Chat

Vonage

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How are you doing? Not you, personally, your business. Do you know? Because many small businesses, including small law firms, don’t have a true CFO, someone who doesn’t just do your taxes, but who helps you understand your business, your bottom line, and your future. 

Danielle Hendon is the founder and CEO of 4 Corners CFO, bringing the benefit of “big business” financial analysis to entrepreneurs and business owners at a cost they can afford. She and her firm are “fractional CFOs,” providing the analysis and planning you need to stabilize your business, develop consistent revenue models, and grow with a goal in mind. 

Hendon helps businesses, like yours, evaluate where they are, how things are doing, what your “real profit” is, and how to set and move toward goals. 

Allocating overhead, hiring, understanding gross and net profit, and growing with purpose is all doable. Hear about “bottom-up budgeting,” understanding cash flow forecasts and how a CFO, even a part time CFO, can help spot red flags and build the pillars that will lift your business. 

Mentioned in This Episode:

4 Corners CFO

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In this episode’s discussions around the Community Table:

• Adding a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) program for your law firm? Hear the struggles one small firm is facing as it looks to automate CRM duties. Start with knowing what you need, how you’ll keep up with clients and follow up on leads. Software is just a tool. Without a plan, it’s useless. Start with a “sequence of contact” (and no BS). 
• “Misfiring” when you hire a new associate can be a headache (and expensive). How do you make sure it’s a good fit before you hire, instead of learning you made a mistake later? Treat recruiting as marketing. Start with a clear message. Know what you want and tell people. 
• Are you offering discounts? Here’s the thing: people don’t always want discounts; they want value. A good deal isn’t about money, it’s about service. Give clients more, don’t charge less. Make them feel special. (Do you know what a lagniappe is?)

Mentioned in This Episode:

Constant Contact

Hubspot

Zoho CRM

Keap

Clio Grow

Lawmatics

“Origin and Meaning of the Word Lagniappe” 

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In this special, high-energy episode, we’re getting down and dirty and talking about fixing your firm. Consider this is a “visit to the doctor.” What’s ailing your firm? Guest RJon Robins is the founder and CEO of the firm How To Manage A Small Law Firm. He fixes things. Get real about the cost of client acquisition, marketing, revenue building, financial control, and finally your life as a business owner. 

Start with knowing that when you hang out a shingle, you run a business. You just happen to be a lawyer. Lots of lawyers have gone through what you’ve gone through. How do you turn your passion for the law into a profitable business? 

Hear how you can focus on the fundamentals of running a real business. Law firms are simple, at their core. Don’t overthink it. Lawyers have been running businesses for a thousand years. Learn the core nuggets that will drive your business. No fads, just the honest realities of business. No excuses. 

Learn how your firm can serve you, instead of you sacrificing for your firm. Get fired up, take charge, and get ahead.

Mentioned in This Episode:

Join the next Community Table live. What’s on your mind?

Profit First for Lawyers, by RJon Robins

RJon Robins Podcast

How To Manage A Small Law Firm, Free Resources

In this episode’s discussions around the Community Table:

• A firm owner dealing with discipline problems stemming from her firm’s understaffing is frustrated. Feeling they have the upper hand, some employees are taking advantage of the situation. How can the owner regain control?
• What’s the best way to staff up? In-office, remote, or even offshoring some tasks? Christopher and guest Joey Seeber of Level Legal share tips about building a team, from in-house to offshore. 
• An attorney wants to know if he should borrow to expand his firm in a competitive market. It’s OK to borrow money, but only if you start knowing how you plan to pay it back and what you expect in return. 
• Evaluating the results of an affinity or educational marketing plan when there’s no direct call to action. It all comes down to new client acquisition and the Five Commandments of Marketing! 

Mentioned in This Episode:

Legal Soft

Join the next Community Table live. What’s on your mind?