The problem with the race to be the cheapest conveyancer is that you might win.

Can Smaller Law Firms Compete With Big-Name Brands?

This is a question that has never gone away. As the big name brands barge their way into the legal sector they will seek to squeeze every penny out of every client. Can the smaller firms compete?

Of course they can—as long as they don’t compete on price alone.

The Pitfall of Underbidding

Some firms in an effort to compete can extort workers to show up and work harder for less, in order to underbid a competitor. You might make a few more bucks for now, but not for long and not with pride.

Another firm or conveyancing broker will always find a way to be cheaper or more brutal than you.

The Race to the Top

When I was completing my articles (yes I am showing my age as it was pre-’training contracts’) the senior partner would tell me every so often:

“Push up your prices… don’t be scared.”

It was wise advice and regrettably not always adhered to by me. What the senior partner was telling me back then was that the race to the top makes more sense.

The race to the top is focused on:

• Quality
• Respect and dignity
• Guts and innovation
• Sustainability
• Generosity when it might be easier to be selfish

It’s also risky, filled with difficult technical and emotional hurdles, and requires patience and effort and insight. The race to the top is the long-term path with the best outcome.

What Clients Really Value

It’s so easy to forget whilst you fight for survival that clients actually appreciate a lawyer who cares about them.

Why not be different to the supermarket law firms with their bitter cash register jockeys? A smiling face, a social chat, a don’t-worry-about-the-pennies sort of interaction.

The Ultimate Benefit

There is a side benefit when you win the race to the top. You end up with healthy, motivated lawyers focused on a quality service.

The result is:

• Increased profits
• Market share
• A community of clients that are glad you’re there

Update: The pressure described in this article has not disappeared. It has acquired a technological dimension. Artificial intelligence may help firms work more efficiently, but using it simply to increase caseloads could reduce the human attention given to each client. Our recent article asks who is actually doing the conveyancing when AI reads the documents.

(Have I been watching too much Mary Portas?)