An answering service is a type of professional business that usually receives and answers calls for clients at all times. Therefore, it is the connection between the caller and the attorney you want to get help. An answering service is important for all businesses because it is a strategy to market the business and promote its customer service. The reasons that will make you consider using an answering service for your criminal defense law firm are:
You Are Not Likely To Miss Calls from Your Clients
An answering service allows your clients to make calls at any time, during the day or night. Therefore your clients will still get the service they need even if you are attending another client or taking an off from work. Using an answering service shows a form of commitment because there is no single day that your client will want to speak to you. Customers pay for the answering service; you will not want to disappoint your clients by not attending to them. Receiving and answering calls ensures that the clients get the value for the money paid to get help from your criminal defense law firm's answering service.
To Answer Simple and Basic Questions from Your Clients
When clients are happening to be accused of any criminal act, they tend to look for quick services from attorneys to have their questions answered and hire an attorney of their choice. The clients will use the answering service, believing that they will get the best service despite the communication not being physical. Therefore, the availability of an answering service will help give clients answers with quick and simple questions without being interrupted by the attending issues. The answering service will help your clients get the direction of your location, schedule an appointment, and even confirm a scheduled appointment.
There is Less Interruption with an Answering Service
You cannot afford to lose customers because you cannot pick their calls on your phone, just because you are attending a court proceeding. The availability of a call center will enable your customers to get the information they require using the answering service without interrupting you. You do not have to be physical with the machine to have the answering service work for your customers. You are assured of giving the same service to customers as if you were directly talking to them.
An Answering Service Will Cater to Your Needs
There are two types of services you can choose from for your criminal defense law firm. An internet answering service and a live answering service. The two types of services will serve different clients, depending on what they want. Some clients want direct communication to have their issues solved without using much time and are likely to use the live answering service. Other clients want the internet service because they want to make chats with the law firm. Either way, you will have taken care of your clients or get the service they require full time.
An Answering Service Will Help Your Firm Retain Its Clients
Poor communication is an issue that affects many businesses, especially if the client has to make a physical visit. There are times when you will not be available, and so the client will look for another option, and you will have lost the business. An answering service will engage your clients, and the client does not have to visit the law firm. Because the answering service gives clients answers as soon as the clients need them, they are likely to remain seeking legal help from your law firm due to your full-time commitment.
An answering Service Helps You Stay Organized at all Times
An answering service requires you to keep track of the clients who have made any form of communication, read and understand the issues sent through say messages, and be well organized when answering calls if they choose to make a call chatting.
Compared to using a phone where you have to keep a long log of calls, you do not have to handle many messages to have them answered later. The calls and messages sent by clients can be helpful for one year and are accessible at any time using a login portal that should be secure. Therefore, you can make a follow-up of your clients to determine the type of help they need from you even after some time.
An answering service is Flexile. Your clients will have flexibility in terms of the time they want to look for a certain service. Tits because the answering service will serve then 24 hours a day and seven days a week, compared to a receptionist who will move from the call service desk to attend other issues or take an off and leave the clients frustrated by your law firm's services.
To Make the Clients Feel Value for their Money Paid for the Service
Clients want to feel the value for their money. Suppose they are making direct calls to a live receptionist and will not be satisfied with the service they get. They may look for other firms to have their issues solved because they will have used their resources to make the communication without success. Having an answering service will enable the customers to feel value for the service's money because it will only be spent after communication is made back. Therefore, they will not spend extra money on what they have not used.
Confidentiality of Client Issues
Clients want their legal issues to be handled privately and confidentially. The reason being, disclosing a client’s criminal act may have serious consequences is accessible by a third party. You should ensure that the agents working at the answering service keep the cline information private by protecting the data that comes in every day. Different programs help protect the data for your clients that are not accessible by the public.
Answering Calls from Clients
Answering calls is one of the main reasons why you want to have an answering service for your criminal defense law firm. The agents working for you should be dedicated to providing the best service to ensure that no client's call is missed and that their issues are handled professionally. That will ensure your firm's efficiency, and you will get more clients due to your good services.
Qualities that Clients Look for in Criminal Defense Attorneys
Poor handling of client’s issues in a law firm will mean that you will likely lose clients, who would otherwise be your loyal customers for years. Therefore, there is an importance to understanding the importance of maintaining appealing customer service. Many factors will contribute to you retaining your clients and the law firm. For example, experienced agents will help you effectively run your law firm, and you will have a reputation for good services. What then will customers look for when they want service from an attorney?
Clients Want a Trustworthy Attorney
Good and efficient service will make clients recommend you to others. No client will disclose their information to you if they do not trust you. Most clients look for attorneys who have a five-star rating because they believe the previous clients were well served. You should create a good relationship with your clients, and they will automatically review your services, which would benefit your law firm and improve your business.
Clients Want Expert Attorneys
No client will want to lose in a criminal case due to the severe consequences that they are likely to face. They will look for an attorney who is qualified and has helped many other clients successfully. They will browse through different law firms to see one that is most reputable in terms of experience and go for it. Therefore, you must commit your sent to doing your best to help customers with their legal issues rather than doing it for your interests. If there is an award that you have earned because of your good services, it is crucial to include it in your law firm website for clients to read through. That way, you are likely to be contacted because clients believe that you cannot earn the award without a good reason.
An Effective Communicator is a Determiner
As an attorney, you need to keep in contact with your clients to ensure that they understand their cases' status. An attorney who takes time to listen to a client and understand is likely to maintain a high number of clients. Therefore, you need to show your clients that your communication skills are good to attract new clients.
The clients you have handled previously would review your work and make positive comments if you maintained a good relationship. The agents that you have at the answering service should also be well trained to ensure effective communication.
Clients Will Always Want an Organized Attorney
If you are an attorney who manages clients’ issues efficiently by maintaining good communication, you will have many clients contacting you to help them in their criminal matters. It’s important to keep in mind that most clients that you serve will review your services in the media. The review can be negative or positive, depending on how you served them.
Clients want to have their cases attended to as if their case was the only one. They want full attention to their issues. Therefore, you should have an organized way to handle clients’ issues without letting them know that they have other priorities in their work.
How to Improve Customer Service at Your Law firm
Every client will want to have the best experience in terms of the service they get from any law firm. Some ways you can improve your law firm are:
Learning from Other Companies
A law firm should ensure that it is customer-focused in all ways, answering calls, making chats, or even direct communication. You should ensure that you serve the customer to your best to ensure that you do not face competition from other law firms. Understanding how other top companies operate will help your clients stick to your service rather than seeking help from another law firm.
Understanding the Life of Your Client
You need to walk with your client from the beginning to understand them and their life history better. You should ensure that you understand interpersonal communication and interpersonal intelligence is maintained. Having the skills will help you to identify the feelings and emotions of the clients. That will enable you to respond to their issues professionally.
Make the Best Contact for the First Time
You should ensure that you hire the best team for your customer service agent. It’s because the first impression matters a lot, and if your client is not well received for the first time, he or she will likely look for help from a different law firm. The same customer will review your service, which will affect your work in the future. Therefore, active listening is crucial to ensure that clients’ anxiety is reduced and that their problems are solved soonest possible.
Ensure All the Details are Captured
As an attorney, you need to pay attention to your clients and analyse the information they give. The clients will give a lot of details to you, expecting maximum support from you. If they trust you enough, they will not feel uneasy when sharing their information. If you see a client who has shown interest in your service, you should ensure the client is well engaged and that he or she is well handled. In that case, you may get referrals and increase the number of clients contacting your law firm.
Help the Client Understand Your Law Firm
When a client approaches your law firm for help, you should understand how you operate and the firm's policies. It will help the customer to set their expectations from you. Therefore you will not have issues with the customer in the future about a process that did not go as expected or the money paid is not worth the service given.
Make Callbacks
When a client contacts your law firm, ensure that you call them back within 24 hours. Availability of an answering service will ensure that your clients are served any time they need help. Getting in touch with the customer ensures a good relationship and helps you retain as many clients as possible.
Availability of an attorney answering service ensures good customer service, which helps you grow your law firm.
