Quick: Law firms embrace new ways to communicate during COVID-19

By Jon Quick

There was a time earlier this year when many thought that by late summer COVID-19 would be under control and we’d be back to normal. Not so, as we now know.

If there is progress, it does seem that we are adjusting to “the new normal” in all walks of life, in all types of businesses. Law firms are no exception.

One of the most noted differences is we have changed the way we communicate. While once it was almost imperative that lawyers needed to meet in person with clients, that is not necessarily the case anymore. Many law firms have embraced newer platforms to keep in touch, including all forms of social media. That’s a good thing and will be used long after this pandemic is over.

We took some time this month to check in with various firms around the region to find out how their business practices have changed in these unprecedented days.

Connell Michael Kerr LLP, a family and education law firm with multiple offices, has taken multiple steps to change the focus and content of its marketing and how it interacts with clients during the COVID-19 crisis. Partner Erin Connell, who focuses on family law, has worked to ensure that clients have access to appointments via Zoom and other technologies, as well as ensuring that parents who now have children at home during the day still have access to her after hours or in the evening.

In terms of marketing, Connell says that CMK’s family law division has always been successful with a focused word-of-mouth approach, and that hasn’t changed. “We want clients to know that we are available and our goal is to serve them — whether they need to meet virtually, during the day or on a weekend.”

The education law branch of CMK, with offices in Indiana, Ohio and Texas, has changed its marketing to target social media, including adding FaceTime live videos, online Zoom seminars and frequent social media posts.

Catherine Michael, chair of the firm’s education law division, says, “We look at marketing more in terms of raising the awareness of parents as to their child’s educational rights. Whether they come to us as attorneys or not, we want to give them the information they may need to navigate the complexities of the education system, especially during the age of COVID.”

We received these thoughts from Church Church Hittle + Antrim managing partner David R. Day and partner Libby Roberts.

“Our marketing message has remained consistent: CCHA is (still) your trusted advocate, particularly in times of challenge and change. What has changed is our method of delivery, which includes virtual meetings and socially distanced conversations in our offices. We have tailored our efforts to our clients’ level of comfort while abiding by current mandates. We have implemented innovative approaches, especially our estate planning and family law teams, to literally meet our clients at our curbside to review and execute important estate planning documents and assist with ongoing estate planning and family issues. While our ability to interact with our clients face-to-face has been more limited, we have not let that impact the high standard of our services we provide. Our sports law team has worked with clients to navigate platforms to allow everyday business in athletics compliance to continue while preserving our clients’ ability to properly advocate for themselves and rely on counsel in virtual proceedings involving participants across the country. We have also continued to highlight and support our community organizations who are delivering services that are of particular need in these times.”

Heading to northwest Indiana, Tara Tauber, partner at Tauber Law Offices in Schererville, shared this:

“As a small office with three attorneys, we have discovered that clients appreciate having the opportunity to meet with us via videoconference from the convenience of their own homes. This is a service that we never offered before the pandemic, but it is certainly one that we will continue to offer in the future. We have found that clients even have the ability to meet with us over their lunch hour or break at work, without having to leave work, which creates additional convenience for clients.”

Brian Burdick, Indianapolis managing partner at Barnes & Thornburg, said the firm “relies on being nimble and flexible in the way we support our clients during times of change and uncertainty. Throughout the pandemic, we have redoubled our efforts to connect with clients constantly and consistently through access to helpful educational resources, including legal alerts, litigation and legislation trackers and checklists. Likewise, we have relied on technology to bridge the communication challenges by conducting virtual town halls and open, online forums that bring together larger numbers of stakeholders to have important conversations about particular topics. What hasn’t changed is our focus on continuing to build that human connection with clients to learn more about how they are doing in this new COVID-19 environment and how we may be able to support them.”

Rebecca W. Geyer at the Carmel office of Geyer & Associates, PC, agrees that being flexible is key.

“Many clients are concerned about contracting COVID and the potential effects on their family. We meet with clients in-person, virtually and by phone to accommodate their preferences. It is also important to stay connected to clients and provide timely advice during this uncertain time. Throughout the pandemic, we’ve continued to provide regular content through social media to provide our clients with timely information about resources and laws which may provide them with support and assistance.”

Finally, as I research and write these articles, I always like to check in with Josh Brown, founder of the franchise & licensing practice group at Cohen Garelick & Glazier. Josh has become a nationally known expert in the creative and effective usage of social media for law firms.

“Once the pandemic hit and closures began, the attorneys at our firm immediately reached out to all clients to update them with contact information and to lend an ear for support,” Brown said. “This allowed for an initial touch point to check in with clients and see how they were doing. From that, we were able to better ascertain how we could help them navigate through uncharted waters while we were learning in real time as well. But here’s the thing — two minds working on an issue is better than one. With my clients, they found comfort and support in speaking with me to walk through … decisions they knew were coming. I did not charge for these calls. Going forward, we are taking things day by day, and I have made it a priority to check in with folks more often than I did in the past. It is simple, but I have found that clients appreciate it.”

All of the lawyers we talked to agreed there is nothing that replaces good in-person face-to-face communication. Still, there are many alternatives that can also be effective, depending on the circumstances, and save time and money — an important consideration for attorney and client.

I would love to hear your ideas on how the operation of your business has changed during COVID-19. We may use them in a future column.•

• Jon Quick — 317-432-0309 or [email protected] — is the president of Carmel-based QPR and Marketing, specializing in law firms, a partner at Videopolis.tv., and a former executive with CBS and Emmis Communications. Opinions expressed are those of the author.