Should lawyers offer free consultations?
Posted: Sun Dec 22, 2024 9:36 am
While free consultations are the norm in certain areas of legal practice, such as personal injury and criminal defense law, opinions vary as to their value to family law firms. Whether free consultations are right for your law firm is something you must decide for yourself based on a number of factors, not the least of which is your time and attention.
We’re here to help you weigh these decisions.
What are the pros and cons of offering free consultations on your telegram thailand viral family law firm website?
A free consultation usually involves reviewing the facts and details of the legal matter. It also often involves looking at any contracts, agreements, or existing legal orders. The attorney then provides information about the client's legal rights, usually based solely on the facts provided. In a free consultation, you can expect to be provided with:
Statement of the client's rights based on the facts provided
Potential legal strategies available
Potential outcomes for each scenario
Costs associated with each process
Clients who receive a free consultation should receive information, not a decision or solution. Why offer a free consultation? Here are its pros and cons.
advantage
Build a client list. For attorneys, free consultations can help attract clients.
Attract more traffic to your law firm, thereby increasing potential clients.
Build your reputation and name in the community.
shortcoming
Time is money and it is extremely valuable in your career.
Some people schedule a free consultation to get free legal advice, but have no intention of becoming a client.
It will alienate you from other paying customers.
Let’s talk metrics: How much monthly traffic are divorce attorneys actually losing when they don’t offer free consultations?
Consider the following search volume data for the following keywords:
Keyword searches for free consultation at marriage and family law firms (based on Baidu data)
It may seem that a free consultation with a divorce attorney isn't worth the money. It may seem that not many people are looking for this service.
However, even if only a small fraction of clicks result in inquiries, and only a small fraction of inquiries convert into clients, you’ll still be acquiring several new clients each month.
Think about what “a few more clients per month” means to you and your firm, and determine if that makes sense. For most attorneys, that means considering the cost of their time to conduct a few free consultations per month.
Can you do 10 in a month?
Maybe you could do it twice a week?
How much of your workweek does this take up?
How else would you use that time?
Consider these questions and determine whether working for free just to get a few extra cases is in the best interest of your company and your time. Only you can determine the answer based on your company's circumstances.
Most people seeking a free consultation need legal representation. Some may want free information to better understand the specifics of divorce law. Others have very unique circumstances that require the right attorney.
Bottom Line: Should Divorce Lawyers Offer Free Consultations?
This is a personal choice that depends on how the pros and cons are balanced for you and your law firm.
As a child support, child custody or divorce attorney, you know where your time is spent every day. Should your firm spend an hour of unpaid time discussing divorce proceedings, property division and spousal support limitations?
If your business needs clients, or if you're having trouble getting started or finding your feet, a free consultation is a smart move. Even experienced divorce attorneys can offer free consultations to expand their client roster.
A free initial consultation can get more traffic to your website, which means more people coming to your office and potentially becoming clients.
Alternatives to Free Consultations
Not all family law attorneys should offer free legal advice in this type of consultation. There are several alternatives that may offer a better solution.
Fixed Fee : Consider a fixed fee that will be added to their retainer if they sign on. For example, for a divorce case, you could charge an initial fee for the consultation, but when they become a client, that fee will be added to their legal services balance. This is also considered a non-refundable deposit.
Brief Assessments : Offer a brief (15-30 minute) assessment-style meeting rather than a full formal breakdown of the legal process. You don’t need to cover every family law matter, but you can provide some insight and connect with potential clients who may want to learn more before retaining legal representation.
Another approach is to offer free resources that fully answer all of the questions people typically ask during a free consultation. Think about what common questions your clients have. Then, create:
Webinars
E-book
Evergreen Blog Content
podcast
Downloadable guide, PDF
This allows people to make an informed decision about whether to enter into an attorney-client relationship with you, but it doesn’t take time away from your pro bono work. You can schedule the time it takes to create these tools more flexibly than you would for an hour-long divorce litigation conversation in the middle of a workday.
Why Law Firms Work with Panlongsheng
Online advertising for lawyers doesn’t always include a free consultation. When you want to stand out in this industry and attract clients, you need to have a well-known brand online and locally, a well-crafted website, and excellent SEO . That’s where Panlongsheng comes in.
Our extensive experience helping law firms of all sizes, expertise in digital marketing, and years of success allow us to meet our clients where they are. We listen to our clients and then develop a custom strategy for them.
We’re here to help you weigh these decisions.
What are the pros and cons of offering free consultations on your telegram thailand viral family law firm website?
A free consultation usually involves reviewing the facts and details of the legal matter. It also often involves looking at any contracts, agreements, or existing legal orders. The attorney then provides information about the client's legal rights, usually based solely on the facts provided. In a free consultation, you can expect to be provided with:
Statement of the client's rights based on the facts provided
Potential legal strategies available
Potential outcomes for each scenario
Costs associated with each process
Clients who receive a free consultation should receive information, not a decision or solution. Why offer a free consultation? Here are its pros and cons.
advantage
Build a client list. For attorneys, free consultations can help attract clients.
Attract more traffic to your law firm, thereby increasing potential clients.
Build your reputation and name in the community.
shortcoming
Time is money and it is extremely valuable in your career.
Some people schedule a free consultation to get free legal advice, but have no intention of becoming a client.
It will alienate you from other paying customers.
Let’s talk metrics: How much monthly traffic are divorce attorneys actually losing when they don’t offer free consultations?
Consider the following search volume data for the following keywords:
Keyword searches for free consultation at marriage and family law firms (based on Baidu data)
It may seem that a free consultation with a divorce attorney isn't worth the money. It may seem that not many people are looking for this service.
However, even if only a small fraction of clicks result in inquiries, and only a small fraction of inquiries convert into clients, you’ll still be acquiring several new clients each month.
Think about what “a few more clients per month” means to you and your firm, and determine if that makes sense. For most attorneys, that means considering the cost of their time to conduct a few free consultations per month.
Can you do 10 in a month?
Maybe you could do it twice a week?
How much of your workweek does this take up?
How else would you use that time?
Consider these questions and determine whether working for free just to get a few extra cases is in the best interest of your company and your time. Only you can determine the answer based on your company's circumstances.
Most people seeking a free consultation need legal representation. Some may want free information to better understand the specifics of divorce law. Others have very unique circumstances that require the right attorney.
Bottom Line: Should Divorce Lawyers Offer Free Consultations?
This is a personal choice that depends on how the pros and cons are balanced for you and your law firm.
As a child support, child custody or divorce attorney, you know where your time is spent every day. Should your firm spend an hour of unpaid time discussing divorce proceedings, property division and spousal support limitations?
If your business needs clients, or if you're having trouble getting started or finding your feet, a free consultation is a smart move. Even experienced divorce attorneys can offer free consultations to expand their client roster.
A free initial consultation can get more traffic to your website, which means more people coming to your office and potentially becoming clients.
Alternatives to Free Consultations
Not all family law attorneys should offer free legal advice in this type of consultation. There are several alternatives that may offer a better solution.
Fixed Fee : Consider a fixed fee that will be added to their retainer if they sign on. For example, for a divorce case, you could charge an initial fee for the consultation, but when they become a client, that fee will be added to their legal services balance. This is also considered a non-refundable deposit.
Brief Assessments : Offer a brief (15-30 minute) assessment-style meeting rather than a full formal breakdown of the legal process. You don’t need to cover every family law matter, but you can provide some insight and connect with potential clients who may want to learn more before retaining legal representation.
Another approach is to offer free resources that fully answer all of the questions people typically ask during a free consultation. Think about what common questions your clients have. Then, create:
Webinars
E-book
Evergreen Blog Content
podcast
Downloadable guide, PDF
This allows people to make an informed decision about whether to enter into an attorney-client relationship with you, but it doesn’t take time away from your pro bono work. You can schedule the time it takes to create these tools more flexibly than you would for an hour-long divorce litigation conversation in the middle of a workday.
Why Law Firms Work with Panlongsheng
Online advertising for lawyers doesn’t always include a free consultation. When you want to stand out in this industry and attract clients, you need to have a well-known brand online and locally, a well-crafted website, and excellent SEO . That’s where Panlongsheng comes in.
Our extensive experience helping law firms of all sizes, expertise in digital marketing, and years of success allow us to meet our clients where they are. We listen to our clients and then develop a custom strategy for them.