Law Office Automation

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Law Office Automation

Earlier, law firms did everything manually. From client communications to file management, they handled all tasks by themselves, but now, things have changed.

Clients have started demanding more value and better personalization at lesser costs. Therefore, law offices must work hard to stay competitive and update their working style to survive the cut-throat competition.

Law firms are paid on an hourly basis for their services. However, lawyers are not able to commit their entire day towards billable work that can be charged for. There are several administrative tasks that demand their attention, which adds up to their non-billable work. And, it somehow reduces their productivity and can also lead to losses.

You cannot ignore non-billable work as they are vital for your business’s growth. But, they are very time-consuming and cost the firm a lot. =

So, how can law offices take care of such work without compromising on their productivity?

Perhaps, law office automation can help them do so.

You can reduce the time required for non-billable tasks by automating them. This way, everything can fall into place and you can also have better control over your entire office functionality.

We are currently living in an era of technology and digitalization. The law industry has also picked up on the latest technological trends by automating their ongoing tasks. Client intake, documentation, collection, client retention, and more such activities can be automated for better efficiency and even save time.

In this blog, we have highlighted what law office tasks are automated and how you can go about the process. So, dive in with us and unveil the endless possibilities of law office automation!

Why Should You Use Law Office Automation?

By taking advantage of marketing automation in law firms, you can attract more clients and serve them better.

Using automation, you can reduce your workload that is usually piled up by time-intensive tasks. Rather, you can start focusing on practices that require your knowledge and skills.

Priority-based scheduling and planning along with automation can do wonders for law firms. This combination also assures you that all your menial jobs are completed on time. And, you don’t need to dedicate your work hours to them.

Benefits of Law Office Automation

Now that you are well-aware of the basics, let’s now talk about the benefits of law office automation, and they are:

1. Elimination of Human Error

Automating your administrative tasks can help you reduce the scope of manual mistakes. There will be no possibility of duplicate data entries. Thus, you can draft your documents accurately, and send them to the right people on time.

2. Increased Attorney Satisfaction

Law office automation enables attorneys to dedicate more time to revenue-generating activities. This increases their morale and satisfaction level.

When lawyers are satisfied with their work, they are in a position to offer improved services. They can also update their knowledge and skills from time to time. Thus, professional satisfaction is beneficial to both lawyers and clients both.

3. Improved Transparency and Communications

The way you and your staff interact with clients matters a lot. It speaks volumes about how you treat your clients and how much you appreciate them. Train your staff for the same to fetch better outcomes.

Also, be transparent about your operations. Your clients deserve to know every smallest detail about their lawsuits.

4. Increased Competitiveness

If you own a small or independent law firm, you already know about the challenges faced. Though you want to level up your services, your budget may not be able to accommodate them.

Automation in law firms enables them to enhance their operations and stay competitive. You can employ law office automation software and accomplish your objectives affordably.

5. Reduced Overhead Costs

Talking about working on a budget, automation helps reduce overhead expenses considerably. With automation, you can handle most of your ongoing activities yourself. It can help you reduce staffing costs and other associated fees. Plus, you can finally reduce your non-billable hours.

6. Improved Client Experience

Clients also want to save time. If a process is completed in half the time, they will surely get impressed by your firm. For example, instead of calling clients to gather details, let them fill online forms at their own convenience.

Steps to Automate Your Law Office

What is automation in law firms? It is not the complete replacement of manual effort. Instead, it complements your efforts and improves them.

Automation simplifies existing processes. It also helps assemble all your data in one location to make it easily accessible.

The transition from manual work to automation in law offices can be difficult. But, you can nail it with the right steps in work. Below are some steps to combine technology with your ongoing jobs.

1. Identify Tasks That Need Automation

Identify the tasks that take a lot of time and can be done without your intervention. Think of all the tasks you don’t like doing regularly. Look up what law office tasks are automated.

You can also note down things that require you to hire other people. Make a list and start by taking baby steps.

There are some things that require your skills directly. Separate such tasks from the menial ones. Remember, you can only automate things that don’t require a human touch and can be completed by anyone.

2. Evaluate these Tasks

The next step is to review every task and consider whether they are fit for automation by answering the following questions:

• Are they necessary?
• Can they be considered non-billable?
• Are they repetitive?
• Most importantly, are they time-sensitive?

The above questions can help you assign a value to each task. Shortlist the ones that are important and need automation.

For example, replying to emails instantly improves your conversion chances. You might not be active on your email all the time. So, you can send automated emails that can guide clients further and keep them hooked.

3. Draft a Plan

If there are numerous tasks that need law office automation, draft an action plan. You should implement changes without jeopardizing your daily tasks.

Prioritize changes according to their importance and need. Take one step at a time. A well-thought plan can help you provide excellent client service even during transition.

4. Research Automation Software Programs

Based on your budget and implementation timeline, select the ideal automation software programs. There are several programs for different things. For example, you can use Acuity Scheduling to schedule meetings with clients. For getting documents signed digitally, RightSignature is a good option.

Similarly, you can research and find software for all your tasks. Some programs offer more than one service and are easily integratable with others.

PostGrid’s print and mail API can take care of your direct mail requirements. It can be integrated into your law office automation software and other applications.

 Also Read: Direct Mail for Lawyers & Law Firms

5. Develop Change Management Plans

Training your staff for these upcoming changes may not be simple. They are habituated to doing everything manually. Thus, be helpful and supportive.

Communicate about the changes as soon as possible. Give them some time to learn how to work alongside your automation programs. A proper training and change management plan can help make the transition comfortable for everyone.

6. Review and Modify

You can use the set-it-and-forget-it approach while using automation. However, it is a good practice to evaluate your programs over time.

There are plenty of customization options and unique features within every process. By exploring these things, you can work up to your full potential.

Also, ask for feedback from your staff and clients. Their insights might be very useful to your firm and you can uncover more possibilities.

Law Office Processes That Can Be Automated

Client Onboarding

Client onboarding is a crucial process. It counts as your first impression on clients. You need to gather all the required information to smoothen the process.

Previously, you would personally meet your clients to discuss all the case-related details. And you would take down notes in your diary. This way, you can add a personal touch to your services. But, is it worth your time?

Sometimes, your clients might not have some details at the moment. They would need some time to get you the answers. Therefore, personal meetings right at the beginning are not very productive.

Rather, you can automate client onboarding. Use a client intake questionnaire to collect information efficiently. There should be different questionnaires for different types of cases, so that you don’t have to edit anything later on. For example, in a property-related case, you would need the following details:

• Names of the parties involved
• Property address
• Size of the property
• Market price
• Purchase agreement, and more.

Your entire onboarding process should include such online forms, phone calls, emails, and personal visits. Your law office automation software can email your questionnaire or intake form to clients automatically. You will receive a notification and a copy of it after they are done filling out the form.

After this step, clients are emailed a link to your calendar. They can look up dates and schedule an appointment with you. You can leverage all the details collected and offer personalized guidance, rather than focusing on paperwork. While you will still speak to your clients personally, automation saves you a lot of time and manual effort.

Using this data, your CRM populates other documents and engagement letters. The software should also be able to populate conflict checks and perform detailed analysis on the matter.

Implementing law office automation enables you to add relevant form fields and eliminate the unnecessary ones. It can help customize forms according to the case particulars.

Documentation

Have you ever drafted an agreement on Microsoft Word and edited it for every new client? Replacing the client name on agreements might sound simple. But, it is not just that.

There are several other details that need modification like the scope of services, related provisions, case type, etc. At times, you might overwrite documents or forget to change some fields. If you want to avoid such problems and offer quality services, you should definitely consider law office automation.

With documentation automation, you can use the information from client intake forms and fill the template agreements. It is faster, easier, and more efficient than doing it by yourself. Moreover, the filled agreements can be emailed to clients to be signed digitally. You can countersign them in the same way. The final copies are again emailed to all parties for reference.

Similarly, you can use automation for drafting court pleadings, contracts, and engagement letters.

Some of the benefits of documentation automation are:

• Save hours of non-billable work.
• Get rid of writing legal documents manually.
• Save your client’s time as you can draft and send them documents in minutes.
• Save on administrative jobs and pass down the savings to clients.
• Improve your firm’s image by drafting accurate documents.
• Share case details with your entire firm.
• Retain details for future use and to bridge any knowledge gaps.

Documentation automation is a blessing to every law firm. Along with emailing, you can also mail physical copies to clients. PostGrid’s automated direct mail solutions can help you print and mail documents effectively.

Client Communications

In earlier times, lawyers would take some time off their daily schedule to reply to emails. Perhaps, they would have standard responses saved as drafts, so they could save some time on editing. Surprisingly, some of them are still doing it.

Many times, law firms receive a lot of emails and they don’t have time to reply to each of them. Plus, there is no scope for personalization. However, an automated law office would go around the other way.

It is important to prioritize some emails over the other. Automation allows you to set deadlines, assign matters to staff members, and prioritize urgent requests.

There are several new modes of communication that you can use to enhance your productivity. Automation in law firms enables lawyers to schedule virtual meetings, send timely emails, etc. Consider your clients’ preferred communication mode.

You can also set up an AI-driven chatbot on your website to assist clients. The chatbot is programmed to answer client’s doubts and also offer some legal advice. This way, you can reduce incoming inquiries significantly and save a lot of time. If something requires your attention, the chatbot can also send you an automated email for personalized answers.

Client communications are always ongoing. You need to keep your clients updated about their case status. This additional touchpoint can help in client retention to a great extent. Some great examples of communication automation are sending automated welcome letters, newsletters, and other things in the mail.

Proper client communications allow law firms to comply with their professional ethics. Automating your communications also helps maintain confidentiality and data security.

Collections

Payment collections can be daunting. Some clients take a while to pay and you might forget to follow up. The 2019 Legal Trend Report mentions that 14% of all billable hours are never paid for. There are several reasons for that and one of them is the firm’s inability to follow up effectively.

Such unpaid invoices can create shortfalls in the firm’s revenue and disturb operations.

Hence, law firms should come up with ways to persuade clients to pay faster. They could send regular emails or mail past due invoices to them.

While drafting invoices, you cannot compromise on compliance and precision. Thus, it can take your staff a while to draft invoices regularly.

Also, invoices are returned for modifications or adjustments at times. These things can further increase the payment period.

The first thing that you can do to change this scenario is automating payments. Stop accepting payments in cash or cheque only. Expand your payment options, so that clients can pay using the payment mode they are comfortable with. Clients are more likely to hire law firms that accept payments electronically. Thus, employ the latest technology and automate payments to speed up your collections.

You can avail several benefits by automating collections, and they are:

• With digital payments, you can get paid fast. It saves you the trouble of frequent follow-ups and simplifies collections.
• The second benefit is that you can create audit trails easily. In case of client disputes, they act as evidence.
• You can create and approve invoices easily. The law office automation software can automatically draft invoices for every new client or case.
• It can also apply the relevant interest charges to invoices that have crossed their due dates. These added interest charges can drive faster payments.
• If a client wishes to pay in installments, the software can record that too and send timely reminders to both parties.

Client Reviews

Top-notch law services and positive firm-client relationships are interrelated. They complement each other. If you have the required skills and are good at client interactions, you are likely to get more positive reviews.
Approaching clients after their cases are closed and asking for feedback is not always prioritized by law firms. They might expect that their clients would leave them a good review, but not do anything about it. But, with increased competition, you cannot wait for things to happen by themselves. To keep up your brand image and increase awareness about your services, client reviews are necessary. It is a powerful asset for your firm.

Identify platforms that are useful in generating leads. And ask clients to post their reviews on such platforms. It can increase your exposure and attract new business. Other than such reviews, encourage your clients to refer you to their family and friends. Mouth publicity and referrals are excellent ways to get new clients.

Reach out to clients that are happy with your services. You can print and mail their testimonials to prospects as part of your marketing efforts. If you are too busy to do these things, use law office automation.

What is automated system law office? It is a workflow that allows law firms to streamline their everyday tasks and additional activities. Automation can help you to send mail items like feedback forms to clients once their case is over.

Client reviews build brand loyalty and credibility. When prospects search for a law firm, the first thing they do is read reviews. Since law matters are personal to people, they prefer a law firm that can understand their needs well.

Client Outreach and Retention

Client retention is very crucial to service-based industries like law. Attracting new clients can be complicated and expensive. Plus, it is difficult to create trust among fresh leads.

There are several things that you can do for client retention like treating them with respect and listening to them carefully. Understand the case particulars deeply and guide them in every step.

You need to have a personal connection with your clients. Make them feel comfortable and confident. Take care that your entire office staff is helpful and kind.

Maintain transparency in terms of case statuses. Have virtual meetings with clients where you can explain how you are planning to move forward. Make your plans clear to them.

By automating client communications, onboarding, billing, and other administrative tasks, you can retain clients easily. Basically, automate all the aspects we have mentioned above. It will help you channel your efforts in the right direction.

There are several more things you can do to retain customers like:

1. Email Marketing

Most people think of emails as only a communication channel. But, it is a great marketing channel too. Law firms should go beyond their regular transactional and correspondence emails and look into email marketing.

Firstly, you can include marketing messages in your same correspondence emails. Along with replying to a client’s inquiry, you can also promote your brand. In addition, remember to segment your email lists to achieve your goals.

As a busy law office, you might have the tendency to put all your contacts into one long email list. However, this approach can result in clients losing interest and unsubscribing to your emails.

Keep the following things in mind to conduct productive email marketing campaigns:

• Consider your objectives: What do you want to achieve from this campaign? Expanding your professional network and connecting with your past clients are some common objectives. You can also use email marketing to improve client outreach and attract new clients.
• Provide value: The average open rate for emails in the legal industry is only 22.49%. Thus, provide value to your clients by sending useful emails. Identify your clients’ interests and draft emails only on those lines.
• Give discounts: It is important to appreciate your existing clients. Giving small discounts on your fees or allowing clients to pay on credit shows that you care. Your emails have a better chance of getting responses when they contain some discount details.
• Automate: Automating your email marketing campaigns is a must. You can send drip emails on time and also respond to any replies quickly. The moment you acquire a new client, your CRM will add his/her/their email address to your list.

Retaining clients is not an easy task. But, if you send them regular emails with good content, your firm can stay fresh in their minds. Thus, if they need law services at some point, they are likely to contact your office. Email marketing automation in law firms can help you accomplish that motive.

2. Social Media Marketing

55% of Americans depend on social media for getting the news. If you are still not using social media marketing, but are finding ways to increase client outreach and retention, this section is for you.

If you want to be known among clients, you need to improve your visibility. Social media platforms are excellent for that matter.

Attorney at Work had conducted a survey to find out the social media engagements of lawyers. 96% of respondents said they are active on social media, and 84% have LinkedIn profiles. It was revealed that social media is extremely useful to attract and retain clients.

Social media scheduling is important. Your posts have a higher chance of being seen when they are repetitive. Post regularly to appeal to your audience.

Some of the prime tips to use while conducting social media campaigns are:

• Do some research: Find out the recent trends and what your competitors are doing. Engage with other legal influencers.
• Start small: In the beginning, start posting only on a single platform. This way, you can work your way up with a lot of experience and knowledge.
• Draft a schedule: Plan the frequency of your posts. Using law office automation, you can design posts in advance and schedule them to be posted later.
• Measure performance: Only automation can help you measure results accurately. Once you know what is working and what isn’t, you can make the necessary modifications effortlessly.

3. Blogs

If you are wondering whether law firms have blogs, the answer is—they do. They are known as legal blogs and connect the legal community members.

You can generate a lot of business through educational blogs. Discuss the current law trends, criticize their drawbacks, and write about the possible solutions. From explaining complicated law terms to offering general legal advice to your audience, you have several options.

Blogs can help increase brand awareness and retain customers. They offer you the opportunity to showcase your expertise in the industry. With timely news and information, you can impress your existing clients.

Find below some reasons to use blogging as part of your customer retention and acquisition strategies:

Blogs are evergreen:

Blogs are always useful. If there are certain changes, you can always go back and edit them. But, choose your topics wisely.

Blogging is considered a soft-sell marketing channel:

Well-written blogs can convert readers into leads easily. Moreover, using law office automation, you can automate your blogging efforts. Write your posts beforehand, and schedule them to be posted later on. Thus, you need not spend a lot of time and can still generate numerous leads through your blogs.

Client Portal

Law firms can set up secure client portals through which clients can access their dashboards. They can get a consolidated view of their details, case particulars, important dates, and other information. This way, clients feel that they are in control of their data and are always updated.

You can also streamline client correspondences using case-related conversations, rather than searching multiple email chains. This improves the overall client experience and you can have all your operations mapped out.

An automated law office should always have such a portal that brings all your staff members and clients together. You can handle your interactions, link related tasks, assign staff, and do several other things through it.

Offline Communications

Physical mail gets more attention than other marketing channels. It can also drive more responses. Therefore, most lawyers prefer communicating with their prospects and clients offline. Though it cannot replace emails and other channels completely, direct mail works great in conjunction with them.

Documents, notices, and forms sent via mail are part of offline communications. Other than such transactional and compliance mail, law firms can also send marketing mail. It can help expand your reach and improve your image in the market.

Postcards, letters, oversized envelopes, and newsletters are all used as marketing collateral. Find below some ways to optimize your direct mail efforts:

• Include a CTA: Mention clearly what you want the recipients to do? If you want a person to sign on the documents and send them back, mention it. In the case of marketing mail, tell the recipients whether they need to visit you or do something else.
• Brand your mail: Customize every mail piece. Make sure your logo is printed on them. Plus, keep your branding consistent. All your marketing channels should be aligned with each other.
• Promote your online pages: Use direct mail items to promote your website and other digital media handles. You can use pURLs and QR codes for the same.

 Also Read: Response Tracking With PURL Landing Pages

The most important aspect to make your offline communications worthwhile is automation. It can help you print and mail effectively. Furthermore, it can help you:

• Streamline your activities: If you select the right solution provider, you can design, print, mail, and track in one place.
• Save costs: There is no longer the need to invest in capital assets like printing equipment. You can also save a lot of money on perishables like paper, stamps, glue, ink, labels, etc.
• Avoid manual effort: Law office automation eliminates manual error to a great extent. By automating your offline communications, you can get rid of doing everything manually. It is the better and smarter way.

PostGrid’s Print and Mail Automation Solutions

PostGrid offers a lot of useful print and mail features like:

Variable Data Printing

It is important to personalize every letter or marketing postcard you intend to send. Using variable data printing, you can print different sets of mail items in one go.

PostGrid’s direct mail automation API allows law offices to print personalized letters effortlessly. Moreover, with the CRM integration, you can also draft these letters automatically.

All-Inclusive Rates

Oftentimes, you need to pay different vendors for different services. For example, a social media marketing campaign would require a designer, content planner, SEO expert, and others. Paying each one of them separately can increase your campaign costs dramatically.

To avoid such troubles, PostGrid offers affordable and all-inclusive rates. It can also help you get postal discounts from the USPS. These things can improve your ROI.

Pre-Built Templates

Using PostGrid, you can draft your legal documents through pre-built templates. It can make the process faster and easier for you. The CRM integration allows you to import details and autofill all fields in the templates.

There are several documents that law firms need to print and mail every day. Automation in law firms enables you to complete the task without affecting your daily routine. With PostGrid you can save a lot of effort and time while getting the best outcomes.

Real-Time Tracking

Legal documents are time-bound. You might need to mail some of them urgently. Real-time tracking allows you to know the exact status of your mail. This way, you are aware of the estimated delivery date and can follow up accordingly.

PostGrid also allows you to view the status of all your sent mail in one place. Hence, you can have a quick glance at any point in time.

Added Security

Data security and confidentiality are vital for every company. The contents of some legal documents are highly sensitive in nature. Thus, you need a solution provider that offers unparalleled security.

PostGrid’s print and mail API is compliant with HIPAA, PIPEDA, SOC-2, and several other data privacy laws. It is built to protect your data under all circumstances while also maintaining the highest levels of efficiency.

It is safe to say that PostGrid’s direct mail automation solutions can help law firms increase profitability and improve brand image. You can complete your daily tasks with ease and better efficiency.

Wrapping Up

As lawyers, you should channel your time towards offering effective and creative solutions to legal problems.

You are only paid for the services that are offered directly to clients. Thus, marketing, administrative, and other such operations come under non-billable work.

Though they are not paid for, non-billable work is crucial for your firm’s growth and development. It is up to you how you want to manage your time and handle everything effectively.

Law office automation comes into the picture when lawyers look for reducing expenses and increasing profitability. It can help you streamline your tasks and increase billable hours.

With automation, there are limitless opportunities for law firms to save time and remain competitive. Plus, marketing automation in law firms helps them to increase awareness and attract clients from all over the world.

PostGrid’s automated direct mail API can help you level up your marketing game. It can help you with everything from generating leads to retaining clients.

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