Customer service and Solicitors?!?
I know its strange to hear the words Solicitors and customer service in the same breath without a cuss word or perpetual laughing but its definitely time to change that.Customer service excellence has always been and will always be one of the critical competitive advantages for any business, and it still surprises me to this day that solicitors have got away with typically bad service in a world that is so demanding of companies. We live in an age where we want it now, and anything else just won’t do. Moving house, has been proven to be the most stressful thing to do, and I firmly believe the majority of this has been due to bad or non existent customer service from solicitors and conveyancers. Lets face it, solicitors didn’t get into the game because they are people people, in fact it’s quite the opposite.
Whilst searching for solicitors/conveyancers to partner with, Palmer Gallant & Co had to reject at least 9 out 10, because they just couldn’t understand that the customers deserve service that is second to none. The majority, just seemed to be stuck in the 1980’s and although they were keen to work with us, they weren’t willing to adjust their service to suit, and therefore we just wouldn’t entertain them, It was extremely hard at times, as I had some great relationships with solicitors that just couldn’t make the grade and were banking on me to help them grow. Don’t get me wrong, there are so many parts to making a successful legal move, the job is a tough one, that deserves respect but so are many other trades, that all just seemed to move with the times.
Obviously solicitors have put a lot of time and effort into getting qualified, but at the end of the day the customer wants to know how much you care before they care how much you know.
Solicitors need to be challenged now, and their service must dramatically change to get it any where near other sectors in this modern age. There must no longer be any compromise! I’ve made sure that my company operates an extremely strict service level agreement, that would cause a firm to be struck off from partnership if they breach it at any time. I urge all solicitors/conveyancers to follow suit, and finally realise that the customer comes before any ego. No one is too good to serve, and if you don’t like customers it’s time to start thinking of a new career…….. Maybe an Amish Tree Surgeon?
About the Author: Wayne Gallant #WWG
Wayne Gallant is an Entrepreneur, Investor and Co-Founder of Palmer Gallant & Co (Service Guaranteed Conveyancing Panel Manager) and somortgage.co.uk. Passionate about customer service and technology aided business.