How should a law firm best plan for a post-COVID transition? What new practices from this time should they consider implementing long-term?
To help law firms with determining a plan for post-COVID transition, we asked business professionals and HR experts this question for their best tips. From diversifying their services to training for virtual setup in the court systems, there are several tips that may help your law firm with your post-COVID transition.
Here are seven tips for law firms to plan their post-COVID transitions:
- Consider Diversifying Your Services
- Reevaluating the Need for Long Hours
- Adjust The Marketing Plan
- Recognize and Implement Tactics That Worked Well in 2020
- Consider Making the Work From Home Model Permanent
- Train for Virtual Setup in the Courts Systems
- Cybersecurity Awareness Training
Consider Diversifying Your Services
While it may seem like everything will go back to normal after COVID-19 is no longer a worry, I doubt that will be the case. This experience has taught lawyers that we need to diversify our offerings in case something like this ever happens again. In fact, with many still experiencing reduced demand due to the pandemic, many lawyers are already taking steps to expand their service areas to bankruptcy and family law which is booming due to the state of the economy.
— Court Will, Will & Will
Reevaluating the Need for Long Hours
The legal industry is known for having large, expensive offices and long working hours. Through COVID-19, law firms had to adjust. The traditional ways of how a law firm was run were rattled, with lawyers now working on high-stress cases in the comfort of their home offices wearing a t-shirt rather than a suit. While some law firms might rush back to the norms of long commutes and traditional offices, I think the industry will be forever changed. The enormous amount of pressure living up to these stereotypes has dwindled and I think there will be more of a work-life balance in law firms even when the dangers of COVID-19 relents.
— Hunter Garnett, Warren & Simpson
Adjust The Marketing Plan
Law firms have relied on traditional marketing methods like billboard advertising or radio spots to help build local visibility for their practices. These days people are spending less time in their cars stuck in traffic next to billboards and listening to radio ads and more time at home. Marketing plans for law firms need to adapt to what the new normal looks like in a post-COVID transition. To do that, think about how people’s preferences and behaviors have changed during the pandemic. Podcasts have taken off, which opens up a new substitute for radio ads. Employers like ours have decided to go remote forever, which collectively will decrease the value of a billboard ad that shined during workday commutes. Instead of billboards, blogging about legal topics or following some law firm SEO tips may be an effective alternative. Whatever the method, law firms can prepare for a transition by revisiting and adjusting their marketing plans.
— Brett Farmiloe, Markitors
Recognize and Implement Tactics That Worked Well in 2020
You have to look at your culture and see what foundation it provides you. If you had a strong culture going into COVID, this enabled you to pivot and adapt to the market. For example, you discovered how to maintain productivity while working from home and supported your team to ensure they remained resilient and kept a work-life balance. These skills can be readily adapted in a post COVID environment.
— Sanat Patel, AVANA Capital
Consider Making the Work From Home Model Permanent
If the tumult of the last year has shown anything, it’s that companies can’t rely on always having access to their office. To that end, law firms should seriously consider seeking to make their work from home model permanent, with a particular focus on how they can build a more robust working model to deal with future disruptions. Restructuring aspects of your law practice (particularly your client support network) and utilizing technology to allow employees to perform their roles – regardless of whether they’re at home or in the office – will be paramount to maintaining client support.
— Benjamin Graham, AnswerConnect
Train for Virtual Setup in the Courts Systems
I think with the virtual setup being embraced in the courts systems for such a long duration that it will become a permanent offering. Having hearings and discoveries through this method of virtual calls makes everyone’s lives much easier and overall safer. I think law offices should be ready for this to become a normal offering along with be ready to go back in person as that will always be a preference when it come to legal proceedings.
— Mark Smith, UAT
Cybersecurity Awareness Training
If your law firm does not have a monthly cybersecurity awareness training program in place, it is time to start. Hackers are taking advantage of this unfortunate time we’re all going through and using COVID as a ’’flavor of the week’ for their phishing emails. Don’t think it can’t happen to me because that’s exactly why savvy hackers are taking advantage of attorneys and their teams.
— Lauren Patrick, Curricula
