GravitationalPullAren’t you a lucky group this week, dear readers? I am bringing you TWO guests posts from Eric Dewey of Group Dewey Consulting while I am off for our Regional Meeting of the Americas!

First up, a post about how the very best rainmakers attract clients.

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Top rainmakers seem to attract clients as if they have an irresistible gravitational pull. They don’t ‘sell’. Instead, clients seek them out. While others are prospecting and selling their hearts out, great rainmakers have more work than they can handle, feed lots of other attorneys and often turn down work that they don’t want to do.

How do they do it?

Research shows that the very best rainmakers share six powerful non-selling disciplines that, when used in combination and on a regular basis, creates gravitational pull.

 

Over more than 20 years of observing, coaching and researching the most successful sales professionals, sales programs and techniques in four professional services industries, I have found six characteristics common among the most successful rainmakers. They share certain competencies and disciplines which appear to attract client inquiries. In combination, these six factors generate what I call a ‘gravitational pull’ of clients to a rainmaker’s practice or law firm. As such, they rarely have to ‘sell’ their services. The work comes to them because, I believe, they consistently apply these six highly-developed disciplines and competencies in their practice.

Clearly there are other factors at play that influence a client’s selection of a lawyer or law firm. And, equally understandable, not every rainmaker will exhibit every quality fully throughout his or her career let alone in every interaction. But these six components were the most commonly observed among legal professional who had a long track record of above average performance. And they have the added appeal of common sense.

Following are the observed competencies high performing service professionals use to create gravitational pull.

  1. They develop ‘T-Shaped Knowledge.’ The term ‘T-Shape Professional’ originated in the engineering industry to describe professionals who are knowledgeable in a broad area of topics (the horizontal bar of the ‘T’) but deeply knowledgeable in one narrow area of expertise (the vertical bar of the ‘T’). For lawyers, my research indicates that this T-Shaped knowledge includes at least three general types of knowledge on the horizontal axis: broad knowledge of business, (specifically basic financial, operational, human resource and marketing knowledge); broad knowledge of legal operations and technology (such as e-Discovery, knowledge management, industry trends, process improvement, legal project management, etc.); and broad knowledge of the general legal practice area in which the attorney works (that is, what we normally expect of a competent practitioner).The vertical axis represents one to two areas of deep specialization, that is, a unique or exceptionally deep understanding of a specific issue, law, industry, business practice or circumstance that sets the attorney’s experience apart from more generalist practitioners. They don’t have to be the only one with this specialized knowledge- though deep specialization with few competitors is certainly a worthy goal. But they do need to be among the very few with the specialized training, knowledge or experience. Promoting this vertical knowledge niche becomes the magnet that attracts new inquiries, prospects, and media interviews, and which fuels the referral process.
  2. They build ‘Trusted Servant’ relationships. They form close emotional bonds with these clients and engage them with a selfless focus on the needs and wants of the client that generates loyalty to that attorney. They are authentic in their commitment to their clients and often are willing to take short term losses for opportunities to embed more deeply in the client’s business. They work hard to become critically involved, trusted partners to their clients by studying the client’s business and its competitors; by expanding their relationships beyond the legal department; and by learning the operational, financial and human capital requirements of the business and sharing this knowledge broadly both within the law firm and with the client. This integration into the business of their clients makes them strategically important to the business and extremely difficult to substitute with another skilled attorney. It also fuels the referral process.
  3. They perform ‘random acts of kindness’. They are, essentially, selfless yet smart givers. And, importantly, they give without the expectation of reciprocity. They circulate through their business relationships probing and listening for ways to connect people, to do favors for people, and to share their knowledge and insights. They don’t worry about giving away free legal advice or charging for a ‘lawyer letter.’ They make themselves a one-stop resource for solutions to problems, both professional and personal. These ‘givers’ listen much more than they talk. They are noticeably focused, inquisitive and attentive in conversations. This discipline is at the core of attraction, and it is driving force of new inquiries and expanded relationships. See the recent book by Adam Grant, Give and Take, Why Helping Others Drives Our Success for a fascinating look at how ‘givers, takers and matchers’ network and build success.
  4. They maintain a valuable network of contacts and resources. They pay close attention to who they know, who knows what, and who they need to know to add valuable connections to their contact network. They prioritize these contacts and carefully manage their relationship building efforts. It’s difficult to tell where their professional relationships end and their personal relationships begin. They surround themselves with like-minded professionals in every part of their lives. For those in their contact network that fall outside of this orbit, they keep a current inventory of the skills, knowledge and relationships of the remaining contacts in their network, and connect and refer these people in a way that constantly adds value to all those touched by their network.
  5. They plan and execute daily. They have a plan and work some aspect of that plan every day. They make business development as much a part of their daily routine as their first cup of coffee. They keep their plans simple and achievable. It may not always be written, but it is clear their strategies for creating value for others. They understand the marketing tools that work best for them and incorporate those tools into their daily routine. They understand that success is the result of the frequency and repetition of their efforts, not the size or splashiness of the effort. They follow up consistently and have a bias for action. The consistency of this effort is what drives market awareness and reputation.
  6. They have an attitude of positivity and compassion. Attitude is everything. And nowhere is that more evident than in the attitudes common among highly successful rainmakers. They are empathetic, compassionate, optimistic and forgiving- making them highly approachable. They often have a great sense of humor and seem to truly enjoy their lives and work. And most importantly, they tend to eschew hierarchy and status, and treat everyone as equal and valuable.

There is no silver bullet. Building a rainmaker’s gravitational pull takes time. These are not easy competencies and disciplines to incorporate into your daily routine. You cannot fake compassion or feign positivity. The key to these competencies are in the authenticity of them. You cannot simply ‘talk the talk.’ To be a rainmaker with gravitational pull, you must learn to ‘walk the walk’ and walk it every day.

Making these changes takes effort and focus. They require a deep personal commitment and continuous self-awareness and self-improvement. But for those willing to take the journey, the payoff is not just in greater performance, but more importantly in greater happiness, deeper career fulfillment, heightened peer respect and more interesting relationships- all benefits reported by the rainmakers I have had the intense pleasure to observe and coach.

About Group Dewey Consulting

Group Dewey Consulting, LLC provides growth consulting and training services to law firms, practice groups and lawyers. Our core expertise is in business development coaching and training, lateral partner due diligence, marketing, opportunities research, practice group management and legal services strategy. We base our services on simple, sensible techniques and principles to overcome the complexities of a dynamic marketplace.

EricDeweyEric Dewey, MBA is a Principal with Group Dewey Consulting, and has over 25 years of marketing and business development experience in four industries including chief marketing executive and practice administration roles at four large law firms. He holds an MBA and two marketing certifications and writes the blog, Lawyer Up!  He can be reached at eric@groupdeweyconsulting.com or 502-693-4731.

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Photo of Lindsay Griffiths Lindsay Griffiths

Lindsay Griffiths is the International Lawyers Network’s Executive Director. She is a dynamic, influential international executive and marketing thought leader with a passion for relationship development and authoring impactful content. Griffiths is a driven, strategic leader who implements creative initiatives to achieve the…

Lindsay Griffiths is the International Lawyers Network’s Executive Director. She is a dynamic, influential international executive and marketing thought leader with a passion for relationship development and authoring impactful content. Griffiths is a driven, strategic leader who implements creative initiatives to achieve the goals of a global professional services network. She manages all major aspects of the Network, including recruitment, member retention, and providing exceptional client service to an international membership base.

In her role as Executive Director, Griffiths manages a mix of international programs, engages a diverse global community, and develops an international membership base. She leads the development and successful implementation of major organizational initiatives, manages interpersonal relationships, and possesses executive presence with audiences of internal and external stakeholders. Griffiths excels at project management, organization, and planning, writes and speaks with influence and authority, and works independently while demonstrating flexibility in thinking, especially in challenging situations. She also adapts to diverse and dynamic environments with constant assessment and recalibration.

JD Supra Readers Choice Top Author 2019

In 2021, the ILN was honored as Global Law Firm Network of the Year by The Lawyer European Awards, and in 2016, 2017, and 2022, they were shortlisted as Global Law Firm Network of the Year. Since 2011, the Network has been listed as a Chambers & Partners Leading Law Firm Network, recently increasing this ranking to be included in the top two percent of law firm networks globally, as well as adding two regional rankings. She was awarded “Thought Leader of the Year” by the Legal Marketing Association’s New York chapter in 2014 for her substantive contributions to the industry and was included in Clio’s list of “34 People in Legal You Should Follow on Twitter.” She was also chosen for the American Bar Association Journal’s inaugural Web 100‘s Best Law Blogs, where judge Ivy Grey said “This blog is outstanding, thoughtful, and useful.” Ms. Griffiths was chosen as a Top Author by JD Supra in their 2019 Readers’ Choice Awards, for the level of engagement and visibility she attained with readers on the topic of marketing & business development. She has been the author of Zen & the Art of Legal Networking since February 2009.