Matt Homen ("Six Minutes on Client Service Design") suggests breaking down the client service experience to identify and deliver value on what “drives the client freakin’ crazy” about the experience.  For example, waiting in an airport check-in line is part of the experience of going to the airport. By focusing on what the person in line is thinking and feeling you can identify what they value most at that particular point in time – “I want the line to move faster.”

I’ve recently helped a client retain outside counsel. Getting the chance to participate in this process from the client side of things revealed that retaining counsel is itself part of the client service experience. Even if the outside counsel pitching the work is not successful, if they’ve delivered on the value the client places on the experience, they create a relationship that likely will give rise to future work from this client or others with whom the client shares the experience.

Take that part of the retention process where the client is interviewing the short list of lawyer candidates. What does the client want in that moment? The answer, in the client’s voice, is that “I want to the interview to be more productive.” 

How to deliver on this value? What must you do to make the interview more productive?Continue Reading Getting Interviewed by Client: Be Less Annoying