As many as one in five people phoning law firms never receive a call back, mystery shopper research has shown.
While most shoppers described their dealings with law firms as warm and engaging – and the majority of enquiries were answered either immediately or within two days – there remain gaps in some processes.
The exercise by marketing collective First4Lawyers found that of the 50 wills practices researchers called, four waited more than two working days to return calls and 10 did not call back at all.
The response rate was much better when customers called personal injury practices, with four out of the 50 taking more than two days to call back and just two not calling back at all.
For web enquiries, 28% of shoppers received a (non-automated) response by phone or email within 15 minutes, and a further 36% within two hours. But for 8% it took longer than two days and 16% did not hear a thing. Web enquires for wills were worse, with 24% responded to in the first two hours but 20% receiving nothing in response.
The difference in response rates between personal injury and wills practices was noteworthy because around half the calls were made to the same firm.
Some 60% of those who called a PI firm rated their overall experience at eight out of 10 or higher, compared to 40% of wills callers.
All but one of the mystery shoppers got through to a law firm on the first attempt and two-thirds had their calls answered within three rings.
Few call-handlers or fee-earners gave their name when answering calls but researchers were impressed by people’s phone manner, reporting that they showed empathy, were polite, spoke at an appropriate pace and asked the right questions to address their needs. Most fee earners explained how the firm could help, clearly outlined the cost structure and suggested a way forward.
But only a third of fee earners sold the benefits of using their firm and just 19% offered to send further information or promised to make a follow-up call.
First4Lawyers managing director Qamar Anwar said the findings show that while firms may be spending money on marketing and call-handling, many are missing out on clients due to issues further down the line.
‘One curious anomaly is the difference in service standards at firms offering both PI and wills and that is one obvious area where there’s room for improvement,’ he said. ‘When it comes to referrals, for example, a PI client will expert the same level of service from the wills department.
‘While there is much to praise in what we’ve found, the reality is there is still much to do to keep pace with the change in how consumers are engaging with law firms. The issues highlighted may seem small but, in today’s world where convenience is king, it could all add up to a very costly error for those law firms that fail to do something about it.’
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