How Law Firms Can Find More Business Opportunities Within Their Existing Client Relationships
Law firms invest significant resources in developing new business, but many have limited visibility into the opportunities that exist within their current client base. A firm may have represented a company for years, handled several important transactions and developed strong relationships with its legal department without fully understanding the company's other legal needs or the connections its lawyers have with executives across the organization.
This is very common at firms with multiple offices and practice groups. Corporate lawyers may have a longstanding relationship with a client, while employment, litigation, regulatory and intellectual property lawyers have little knowledge of the company or its business priorities. Business development teams may be tracking industry developments and leadership changes, but that information isn't always connected to the lawyers who could act on it.
Developing more business from existing clients requires a coordinated approach to understanding those relationships, identifying opportunities and giving lawyers useful reasons to stay in touch.
Start With a More Complete Picture of the Client
Most firms can identify their largest clients by revenue, but that information provides only part of the picture. Understanding a relationship requires looking at the work the firm has performed, the people involved and the client's business.
For example, a private equity firm may use one law firm for acquisitions but rely on several other advisers for financing, employment, regulatory and portfolio company matters. The relationship partner may know the investment professionals well but have limited contact with the firm's operating partners or portfolio company executives.
That creates an opportunity to examine the relationship more closely and identify areas where the firm has relevant experience that the client may not know about.
For priority clients, business development teams can work with relationship partners to review:
- Current and historical matters, including the practices involved
- Key contacts within the client's organization and their responsibilities
- Relationships held by lawyers in other offices or practice groups
- The client's industry, business model and growth strategy
- Recent transactions, investments and leadership changes
- Areas where the client currently uses other legal advisers
- Potential introductions to additional executives and decision makers
The review becomes more useful when the information is maintained over time and incorporated into regular client discussions.
Look for Opportunities in Business Developments
Changes within a client's business often provide useful opportunities for lawyers to reconnect and offer assistance. The challenge is identifying developments early enough to have a relevant conversation.
An acquisition announcement, for example, may be important to lawyers across several practices. Corporate lawyers may be involved in the transaction, while employment lawyers can assist with workforce integration, intellectual property lawyers can address ownership and licensing questions and regulatory lawyers can advise on compliance issues.
Similarly, a company expanding internationally may encounter new employment requirements, commercial contracting issues, data privacy obligations and regulatory considerations.
Business development teams can help lawyers stay informed by tracking developments such as acquisitions, financing rounds, executive appointments, geographic expansion, new products, regulatory changes and litigation.
The next step is to assess which developments warrant outreach. A leadership change may create an opportunity for an introduction, while an announced acquisition may warrant a conversation about integration planning. The most useful outreach connects a specific development to the client's business and the firm's relevant experience.
Understand Who Knows Whom Across the Firm
One of the challenges of client development is that relationships are often held by individual lawyers, and information about those connections may not be readily available to colleagues.
A partner in one office may know a company's general counsel from a previous matter. Another lawyer may have worked with its chief financial officer earlier in their career. A third may have represented an executive at another organization.
Those connections can be valuable when a firm is trying to expand an existing relationship, but only if the information is accessible and current.
CRM systems can help, although their usefulness depends on the quality of the information they contain and whether lawyers actively contribute to them. Business development professionals can supplement CRM data with matter histories, relationship discussions and other available information.
For important clients, it can be helpful to create a relationship map identifying key contacts, their roles, the lawyers who know them and the strength of those relationships. This can also help firms coordinate outreach and avoid having several lawyers contact the same executive independently.
Make Cross-Practice Introductions More Relevant
Law firms frequently identify cross-selling as a business development priority, but successful introductions require an understanding of the client's circumstances.
A corporate partner who has represented a client for several years may be reluctant to introduce a colleague without a clear reason. Protecting the relationship is important, and an introduction that feels disconnected from the client's needs can create unnecessary friction.
Business development teams can help by identifying specific situations where another practice's experience may be useful.
For example, if a portfolio company is expanding its manufacturing operations, the relationship partner might introduce colleagues with experience in employment, environmental regulation, real estate or commercial contracts. If the company is implementing AI tools, a conversation involving technology, data privacy and intellectual property lawyers may be appropriate.
The introduction works best when the relationship partner understands what the colleague can contribute and the client has a reason to be interested.
This requires some internal preparation. Lawyers need concise information about their colleagues' experience, examples of relevant matters and an understanding of how their services connect to the client's business.
Give Lawyers Better Reasons to Stay in Touch
Many lawyers want to maintain stronger client relationships but struggle to find reasons to reach out between matters. Business development teams can make this easier by identifying relevant developments and preparing useful information.
A client that has recently appointed a new general counsel may appreciate an introduction to the firm's broader team. A private equity sponsor evaluating investments in a new sector may be interested in a discussion with lawyers who understand that market. A company preparing for international expansion may benefit from a briefing on employment or regulatory requirements.
Events can also provide opportunities to develop relationships with additional executives within a client organization.
A small roundtable for portfolio company general counsel, for example, could bring together executives facing similar operational and legal challenges. A discussion focused on acquisition integration, AI adoption or regulatory developments could create opportunities for several practice groups to engage with clients.
The topic, participants and follow-up all matter. Business development teams can help identify the right audience, coordinate lawyer participation and make sure conversations continue after the event.
Use Client Intelligence to Support More Coordinated Business Development
Law firms have information about their clients spread across multiple systems and sources. Matter records show the work the firm has performed. CRM systems contain relationship information. Lawyers have knowledge from conversations and engagements. External sources provide information about company developments, transactions and industry trends.
Connecting that information can be time-consuming, particularly when business development teams are supporting large numbers of lawyers and clients.
Client intelligence platforms can help firms organize relationship information and identify developments that may be relevant to business development. Gatsby helps law firms connect client and market intelligence with relationship development, giving lawyers and business development professionals information they can use to identify opportunities and prepare for client conversations.
Technology can support the process, but firms also need a clear approach to evaluating opportunities, coordinating with relationship partners and following through.
For example, a business development professional who identifies a significant development at a priority client can review the existing relationship, determine which lawyers have relevant experience and work with the relationship partner on an appropriate next step.
The objective is to make client development more consistent across the firm and reduce the amount of time spent gathering information from disconnected sources.
Build a Practical Client Development Process
Firms can begin by selecting a manageable group of priority clients and establishing a regular review process. The initial group might include major institutional clients, companies with significant growth potential or relationships where the firm has an opportunity to expand into additional practices.
A monthly or quarterly review can focus on a few areas:
- Recent activity: What matters has the firm handled, and which lawyers have been involved?
- Business developments: Have there been acquisitions, leadership changes, financing events, expansions or other developments?
- Relationship coverage: Which executives does the firm know, and where are there gaps?
- Potential needs: Are there business developments that may create demand for additional legal services?
- Internal coordination: Which lawyers have relevant experience, and who is best positioned to make an introduction?
- Next steps: What outreach, meeting, event invitation or other activity would be useful?
- Follow-up: Who is responsible, and when will the team revisit the opportunity?
Documenting these discussions helps business development teams track progress and maintain continuity when lawyers change roles or client relationships evolve.
It also provides a more useful way to evaluate client development activity. Along with tracking new matters and revenue, firms can monitor introductions to additional executives, meetings involving multiple practices, new relationships within client organizations and opportunities identified through client reviews.
Making Client Development Part of the Firm's Routine
A coordinated client development program requires regular attention from relationship partners, business development professionals and lawyers across practices. It also depends on having reliable information about the client's business, the firm's existing work and the people involved in the relationship.
For business development teams, the opportunity is to bring those pieces together and help lawyers determine where their experience may be useful. For lawyers, it means having a better understanding of the companies they represent and the colleagues who can help address their clients' needs.
With a consistent process and access to relevant client intelligence, firms can identify opportunities earlier, develop relationships with more decision makers and become more involved in the business issues affecting their clients.