It’s a bit curious how you can vividly recall just a few, brief occurrences in your life that have had an unexpected but profound and long lasting effect on you.
I remember one day speaking with a businessman on a plane about what I do as an estate planning attorney and he asked, “What’s your customer service process?” I was immediately taken aback because I hadn’t thought of what I did with clients as a process, nor could I immediately respond with a detailed description of how a client is touched by and moves through my firm.
He saw I was dumbfounded by his question and before I could craft an answer he completely blew me away with the following statement: “If you can’t describe what you do as a process, you don’t know what you are doing!” Wow!
As soon as I returned to my office (actually beginning with notes I jotted down on the rest of the flight), I tried to place into writing, very clearly and in detail, every step of contact and service that a client goes through, starting with marketing and going all the way to the client’s death (and beyond with his or her beneficiaries). And I then got to work to make sure that my firm had checklists, forms, and written procedures for everything in that entire process, so it would be religiously followed without deviation.
Once I established my firm’s customer service process (and followed up to confirm it was being observed by everyone in my firm), I immediately experienced an incredible return on my investment:
- Work started to be done at all levels more effectively (not haphazardly as it had before)
- Work details and overall quality improved
- Client satisfaction improved (and so did the number of new referrals)
- I was able to more efficiently manage the firm’s activities (and delegate most daily supervision)
- And, perhaps most important, my firm began producing more consistent and predictable cash flow and profits (and has continued to do so for more than 20 years).
I’ve often been asked to go into the step by step details of my firm’s client service process, which is one of the reasons why I put together my 90-minute presentation entitled, “Establish a Firm Customer Service Process and See Your Profits (and Quality of Life) Dramatically Improve!”.
Even if your practice provides different services than mine, or is staffed differently than mine, you can still benefit from my “model” and adapt it as best fits your own practice. At the least, you’ll save a lot of time and expense putting your process together (or will pick up a few things that will improve your process and your firm’s bottom line).
And, best of all, you’ll finally know what you (and your firm) are doing!
RELATED EDUCATION
Find out more about Phil’s 90-minute training program entitled, “Establish a Firm Customer Service Process and See Your Profits (and Quality of Life) Dramatically Improve!”.
Phil goes in detail, step-by-step, through the tested and proven Customer Service Process he has developed and utilized over the last 35+ years and has been instrumental to his law firm’s success. He will even share some of his firm’s invaluable internal checklists and forms. For more information and to purchase the handout materials and audio recording of this training, click here.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Attorney Philip J. Kavesh is the principal of one of the largest estate planning firms in California – – Kavesh, Minor and Otis – – now in its 34th year of business. He is also the President of The Ultimate Estate Planner, Inc., which provides a variety of training, marketing and practice-building products and services for estate planning professionals.
If you would like more information or have a question for him, he can be reached at phil@ultimateestateplanner.com or by phone at 1-866-754-6477.
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