By Settify | www.settify.com

The most successful law firms know it takes more than providing professional services to clients to remain relevant and profitable. Adopting legal technology that enhances the client's experience and streamlines internal processes to increase the speed of information flows and reduce operational costs is equally important. 

How can you improve efficiency within your law firm?

By using integrative technology to create a seamless flow of data across onboarding, billing, CRM, document management and reporting platforms. 

As workplaces evolve post-pandemic, aligning business-critical platforms to function in concert is crucial for practices of all sizes, particularly firms with smaller headcounts and a heightened need for efficiency. Firms on the front foot realise a reduction in manual effort, improvements in efficiency and more streamlined processes. 

In this article, we will focus on one of the most time-consuming processes a law firm can face - the onboarding process.

Efficient onboarding solution

Fielding phone enquiries is time-consuming, as is onboarding clients and creating their matter. It is often a manual process that requires rekeying the client's information into your Practice Management System (PMS).  

Practice Management Systems such as LEAP, Smokeball, ActionStep, Clio, LexisNexis integrate seamlessly with intelligent intake solutions like Settify. Users of Settify, as an integrated solution, see improvements in the accuracy and efficiency of creating a client's matter. It enables firms to engage with potential clients early in their journey using an online questionnaire to learn about their circumstances. 

The information submitted through Settify ensures that the firm has all relevant information about the client before the initial meeting. This information allows the lawyer to formulate actionable strategies for discussion at the initial meeting, making the consultation more productive and efficient. The integration eliminates manual data entry, reduces errors, and securely stores client data in the firm's PMS.

Embracing other useful integrations

Solutions such as By Lawyers, LawConnect, Hubspot, Xero, RapidPay and InfoTrack are commonly used by practices. These apps facilitate searches, the commencement and process of a matter, time tracking, billing and marketing. 

Integrating specialised software into a firm's PMS creates real advantages and efficiencies. Bringing together these otherwise siloed apps automate routine tasks and streamlines operations within practices - bringing about increased productivity without needing extra headcount. 

Investing in your success

Running multiple applications is part and parcel of doing business. However, allowing them to operate in isolation is messy and leads to decreased productivity and efficiency while increasing costs. The benefits of robust systems integrations enable you and your team to do what they do best while achieving the following:

• Improved client onboarding and management,
• Optimised automation, workflows and processes, 
• Reduced manual effort and increased efficiency,
• Real-time updates, and
• Delivery of improved customer service. 

Systems integrations may not be the first thing you consider when identifying how to increase your firm's profitability. But, in a competitive market, it's essential to know that your tech is working as hard as you are and is the silent partner in your success.