The Lawyer's Field Guide to Effective Business Development

William J. Flannery is the President of The WJF Institute, headquartered in Austin, Texas. The Institute's primary focus is business development, client development, client relationship management, law firm marketing and marketing support programs. The WJF Institute also trains lawyers and provides related consulting services in substantive legal skills, law firm management and leadership. From 1988 to 2006,The WJF Institute has conducted intensive, small group training sessions for over 10,000 lawyers all over the world. Bill graduated from the University of Maryland at College Park, MD in 1967. He started his career in 1966 at the Department of Justice as an instructor. He later joined the Johns-Manville Corporation in their Washington, DC office. In 1969, he joined the IBM Corporation in Washington, DC. While at IBM, he attended the University of Baltimore Law School and obtained his Juris Doctorate in 1973. He also attended the IBM/Harvard Advanced Business Executive Education Institute. His IBM career included assignments in marketing training, product marketing, large account marketing, corporate marketing planning, large system management, IBM corporate executive briefing program, corporate strategic planning, finance, litigation management, personal computer product development and technology for the legal profession. He left IBM in 1988 and founded The WJF Institute. Bill has published numerous articles on business development, marketing, technology and law firm management in law journals and legal publications. He is a frequent speaker at LMA and various legal conferences, marketing and business development forums, panels and various international law firm consortiums.

About the Author... vii Acknowledgments... ix Foreword... xi Preface... xv Introduction... xix Glossary of Terms... xxv Chapter 1 Getting Started 1 Myths versus Facts: Reframing Business Development... 2 Overcoming Negative Attitudes... 5 The Right Behaviors and the Right Skills... 7 Chapter 2 The Business Development Framework 9 Start with Strategy, Especially in the New Normal... 9 Tightly Integrate Marketing and Business Development... 12 Establish a Client Relationship Management Process... 15 Reporting and Reviewing... 16 Chapter 3 The Business Development Process: Plan 19 Know What You're Planning For... 20 Understand Market Trends... 21 iv The Lawyer's Field Guide to Effective Business Development Analyze Key Client Relationships... 24 Segment the Market... 26 Target and Prioritize Clients and Prospects... 28 Research the Client or Prospect... 30 Success Story: A Client-Focused Team Wins through Superior Planning... 33 Chapter 4 The Business Development Process: Interview 37 Identifying Communication Styles/Personality Types... 39 Identifying Styles of Processing Information... 42 Some Notes of Caution... 46 Preparing the Pre-Interview Plan... 47 Twenty Questions You Should Ask in the Interview... 49 Understanding the Needs of Clients and Prospects... 61 Success Story: Winning Trust through the Initial Interview... 65 Chapter 5 The Business Development Process: Design 67 The Essential Elements of a Service Plan... 68 Differentiating on the Basis of Service... 70 Making Service Visible, Tangible, and Measurable... 71 Examples of Extraordinary Service... 74 Success Story: Designing Specific Service Initiatives Tailored to the Client's Aspirations... 75 Chapter 6 The Business Development Process: Solutions 77 Planning the Presentation... 78 A Checklist of Essential Elements... 80 Weighting the Elements... 81 Adapting the Presentation to the Client's Learning Style... 82 Delivering the Presentation... 83 Following Up on the Presentation... 85 Success Story: Winning Business with a Client-Focused Presentation... 87 Contents v Chapter 7 The Business Development Process: Decision 89 When You Win the Business... 89 When the Client Chooses Another Option... 90 Dealing with Rejection and Anxiety... 93 A Final Word... 94 Success Story: Converting a Loss into Victory... 94 Appendix A Business Development for Firms of Differing Sizes and Types 97 Solo Practitioners, Boutiques, and Small Firms... 97 Midsize and Large Firms... 99 Corporate and Government Lawyers... 101 Appendix B Opinion Surveys Can Help Keep Clients Happy 103 Interview Blueprint... 105 Implementing a Survey... 107 Appendix C Gems, New Normals, and Rules 109 Bibliography 113 The WJF Institute's New Normal Sources... 113 Plan ... 114 Interview... 117 Design... 119 Solutions... 120 Decision... 120 Extraordinary, Insightful Reading... 121