A survey for the MoJ based on telephone interviews with more than 900 law firm clients has revealed that only five per cent chose their lawyer through advertising.
This proportion is smaller than the eight per cent who “saw local offices” and the same as those who found their law firm through research, either online or in directories like Yellow Pages.
The survey, by the National Centre for Social Research, aimed to give an overview of the legal services market before full implementation of the Legal Services Act and the arrival of ABS. The telephone interviews were carried out between March and June 2009.
The most popular way of finding a lawyer was through word of mouth recommendations by friends or family (29 per cent) or because clients had used the firm in the past (23 per cent).
A further 23 per cent found their lawyer through a referral. In most cases, 14 per cent, the referrals were made by non-legal businesses, such as estate agents or financial advisers.
Apologies for the slightly sensationalist headline!
But I guess the findings of the survey kind of make sense in many respects – certainly as far as traditional high street firms are concerned. But for the firms out there operating what could be euphemistically referred to as Tesco-law-type services - who typically handle bulk personal injury or conveyancing work, I guess the story is rather different. Browsing around the web, I’m continually amazed at the various banner ads for various types of personal injury lawyers who flaunt their services in the strangest of places within cyberspace.
Forging a great reputation for doing quality work is ultimately always the best marketing approach a small or medium size law firm can take. They will also presumably be perfectly happy for the Tesco-law firms offering wholesale legal services out there to continue with their scattergun approach.
You get what you pay for, after all.
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