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The Oldest, Most Effective Form of Business Development

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Growing a business is hard work. Tech, automations, SEO, and so much more. But there is one timeless and often forgotten way to drive new business and attract better clients: Networking.

You probably have networked your way to success for years, but did you know that most attorneys get 60-80% of their work from other professionals?

This means that meeting other professional service providers and creating mutually beneficial relationships with them can account for a big part of your growth. That is why in today’s article we’re going to talk about 3 tips for maximizing your networking efforts, and how you can do it effectively starting today.

Networking That Actually Works Tip #1: Start With Clarity

If you have done a lot of networking in the past and it hasn’t led to fruitful relationships, this may be the reason why. Whenever you are speaking with another professional the number one question (after breaking the ice with some small talk) will usually be:

“So, tell me about yourself. What do you do?”

The way you answer this question matters way more than you may currently realize. A vague answer will not be memorable and get lost among the dozens of conversations the other person will have that day. That is why the key is being clear about who you serve and how you serve them.

For example, stating that you serve corporate clients with their legal needs is very ample and easy to forget. But if you say “We are a small boutique firm specializing in compliance for pharmaceutical companies”, the specificity will help the other person remember what you do. This lasting impression significantly increases the chances of that other person referring you to the exact clients you aim to attract.

And while you may want to serve a diverse client base, framing what you do depending on the context may be a great idea. If you are meeting professionals with connections in the financial world, and that is one of the industries that you serve, you may want to emphasize your expertise in this area when talking with them by saying:

“We serve clients in a wide variety of sectors, but one of our specialties is helping financial services companies stay compliant and manage their legal needs.”

In this way, you are keeping your options open while presenting yourself as an expert.

Networking That Actually Works Tip #2: Give First

The best relationships don’t come out of a mindset of extraction, but of service. If you try to help others first, the natural human tendency will be to retribute back. So if you want referrals, refer first; if you want some counsel, provide your expertise first.

A generous attitude can solidify your reputation as a valuable and reliable professional. It also attracts more genuine connections with long-term partners who can significantly impact your business.

Just think about how have you met your best clients. Probably they came from a referral by a person who had a strong relationship with you, or by helping them first with a particular problem which then expanded into a wider working relationship. Networking goes beyond the exchange of business cards: it is about cultivating authenticity, mutually beneficial relationships with other professionals.

Business Coach Dan Sullivan talks about the concept of “Referability Habits”. These are a set of often invisible behaviors that make all the difference when meeting another person. Some of them include showing up on time, doing what you say, finishing what you start, and saying please & thank you. By paying more attention to these basic courtesies, you can become more ‘referrable’ and build your reputation. 

Networking That Actually Works Tip #3: Don’t See Others as Competition

While it is undeniable that some businesses might be in direct competition with you, the reality is that you can create mutually beneficial relationships with most professionals.

The reason is that, even if you both serve the exact same industry, your dream client might be their nightmare client, and vice-versa. Ask yourself, who is your dream referral? and who is your nightmare client? By answering those questions, you can network with other professionals and attract the actual clientele that you want.

The Business That You Want Is Only One Relationship Away

Consider this scenario: You operate a small law firm with 6 employees. At a cocktail party, you meet the CEO of an accounting firm that serves 50 clients. If you cultivated a solid relationship with this person, and successfully created a referral partnership, what would be the chances that your firm thrives?

They would be immense. Whether you are looking for more or better clients, amazing team members, or even raising capital to expand, you are one single relationship away from the business that you want.

This does not mean to treat every relationship as a business opportunity. In fact, many of our most fruitful partnerships have come from spontaneous conversations around the coffee station. It is in those unplanned moments when we can connect with others and come up with our brightest ideas.

Cultivate the Relationships that Will Build Your Business at Amata

While networking can take your business to the next level, the reality is that most of us are busy. That is why at Amata we create an environment where collaboration naturally happens, so you can build your business just by going into the office.

Our workstations are strategically placed to foster collaboration with peers. Our offices are centrally located, with cozy cafés around for meetings. Our signature cognac room allows you to relax and end the day by sharing stories with other attorneys.

At Amata, you’ll also get to meet professionals from other industries, from accountants to financial advisors, marketing professionals, and HR firms. This can lead to new clients, referrals, joint ventures, and even friendships. We also organize monthly meetings with over 600 attorneys, where you can expand your network and business opportunities.

Contact our team here to see how Amata’s networking opportunities can help take your business and relationships to the next level!

Discover our networking events for Chicago lawyers.

The New Office Model for Attorneys

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The “office-as-a-service” model, often referred to as OaaS, is a flexible approach to providing office space and related services to professionals, including attorneys. This model saves costs and provides law firms with all the support they need to thrive, with the flexibility to stay competitive in today’s changing marketplace.

In this article we’ll explain eight benefits of the office-as-a-service model (OaaS) for attorneys, and why it is perfect for solo and small law firms.

Benefit 1: Flexible Workspace

Most lawyers start their own law firms seeking freedom – the freedom to have more control over how they work and to generate higher revenue from the book of business they’ve built.

Freedom and profitability. The problem is that large offices with long-term contracts give you none.

With Amata, attorneys can rent office space on a flexible basis, whether they need it for a few hours, days, or months. This flexibility allows you to adapt your office space to your specific needs, such as client meetings, research, or collaborative work with colleagues.

For example, our conference rooms can be used in 15-minute increments, and you only pay for the time you use (they are not rounded up to the nearest hour).

Most lawyers do not need to come into the office on a regular basis. You can free key resources by having a flexible workspace that adapts to your exact needs. 

Benefit 2: Cost Savings

Instead of committing to a long-term lease and incurring the associated costs of maintaining a traditional office, attorneys can save money by paying only for the space and services they use.

In today’s economic environment, the ability to adapt by adding or removing office spaces without penalties is crucial. That’s why our plans offer 12-month lease terms with a 30-day notice period for adjusting office space, allowing you to reduce costs and maintain profitability when needed.

Benefit 3: Access to Prime Locations

You probably don’t need a 240-square-foot office with a lavish library. What you need is a space that conveys professionalism and is strategically located near courthouses, government offices, and transportation routes for your team.

Our offices are located in professional and prestigious addresses in Chicago. All locations are within walking distance from major public transportation, and some are even steps away from the courthouse.

This enhances your law firm’s professional image and accessibility to clients. We have 3 locations to choose from and meet your exact needs.

Benefit 4: Fully Equipped Offices

You don’t need to be an AM250 firm yet to access top-tier support. Amata’s offices come fully equipped with essential office amenities, including furniture, high-speed internet, phone lines, printing and scanning facilities, and conference rooms. This minimizes your need to invest in office infrastructure.

Benefit 5: Support Services

One of the downsides when transitioning from a big corporation to running your own solo or small law firm is giving up the numerous support mechanisms that make life easier.

That is why Amata provides on-demand (hourly) support services in the form of admin assistants, paralegals, receptionists, and business phone/phone app services that free your time to focus on billable hours and enjoy your life.

Imagine having:

  1. Hourly paralegals that work as if they are on your staff.
  2. Administrative assistants that work with you virtually and in person, depending on your needs and circumstances.
  3. Paralegal assistants that go to city hall, the Recorders Office and deliver courtesy copies to judges for you.
  4. Live receptionists who can screen your calls, handle new clients in-take, and greet your guests.
  5. Notary/witness service program at all locations; plus a remote notary/witness service program that includes video recording.

These are all examples of what our law firms get with our Attorney Support Services.

Benefit 6: Networking Opportunities

Growing a solo firm can be, as the name implies, pretty lonely. But with Amata’s model it doesn’t have to be this way.

You’ll get to meet professionals from other industries, which can lead to new clients, referrals, or joint ventures. We also organize monthly meetings with over 600 other attorneys, where you can expand your network and business opportunities.

Benefit 7: Scalability

When your revenue goes down, as a business owner you need to reduce expenses to maintain profit. Amata allows you to drop or add offices during the term of the contract without penalty, resulting in true office flexibility.

Whether your law firm grows or downsizes, you can easily adjust your office space needs without the complications of breaking leases or finding new locations. This scalability in your office space costs (which typically represent a significant portion of expenses) can be invaluable during fluctuations in client demand.

Benefit 8: Virtual Office Services

Working from home can be phenomenal, but there’s one problem: you can’t use your home address for client services!

That is why we provide a virtual business address, so clients associate your organization with Class A, prominent office buildings in the Chicago area. A virtual business address also entitles you to receive correspondence at the location, receive phone calls, and enjoy mail processing and forwarding from the on-site staff.

The New Office Model, Perfect for Solo and Small Law Firms.

The Office-as-a-Service (OaaS) model was born to provide attorneys and law firms with flexible office terms and help them reduce costs while improving operational efficiency.

This enables legal professionals to focus on billable hours, serve their clientele, and enjoy life on their terms. You can access fully equipped offices in prime locations, along with a suite of AM250-level support services, all tailored to your unique needs.

For more than 21 years we have helped attorneys like you to serve more clients without sacrificing their health, family life, or profitability in the process. Give us a call today if you’d like to explore our flexible and scalable office solutions.

Discover our offices for lawyers in Chicago.

How to Access Top Legal Support Services Without Being an AM250 Yet

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According to the American Bar Association (ABA), the average American lawyer works 50 hours per week. But what if we told you only 35% of that represents billable work?

That is what the 2022 Legal Trends Report by Clio found: only 3.5 hours of most attorneys’ long work days are billable. The rest of the time is spent booking calls, mailing clients, running meetings, and doing admin work.

This runs contrary to the reason why most small firm founders started their practice. Attorneys can easily fall into high-stress, low-pay months, daydreaming about the support services AM250 firms enjoy.

But what if you could have the support system of a coveted AM250 firm, but with the flexibility and affordability you require now?

 

Enter Amata’s Lawyer Support Services

For over two decades, our mission has been clear: Support law firms in serving more clients while enjoying a healthier work/life balance.

Let’s say you started your solo practice after leaving an AM250 law firm. You went from billing $450/hour to $325/hour, but it was okay because that convinced some of your clients to come with you. You expected less overhead, higher profitability, and more control over your time.

The problem is that without assistants, senior paralegals, and accountants, you had to work longer, non-billable hours just to keep up. A 10% drop in billable hours can mean hundreds of thousands of dollars less in potential business that could be developed. That is the opportunity cost of trying to do everything by yourself.

But what if you decide to hire support and focus on billable hours? The list of support services can be long, but very worth it depending on your case:

  1. Copy & Mail Handling: A virtual assistant can manage your office mail and make copies of essential documents when needed.
  2. Deliveries: Office staff can assist with physical document deliveries and handling paper checks for legal fees.
  3. Research Assistance: A virtual assistant can handle legal research and document requests through Lexis-Nexis.
  4. Paralegal Support: A paralegal can manage caseloads, client intake, deadlines, court paperwork, and client inquiries.
  5. Administrative Help: Office and virtual assistants can provide support with tasks like mail retrieval, email management, project management, marketing, social media, proofreading, and document scanning.

The question is, how can you afford these services without being an AM250 law firm yet?

Flexible Support Services Without the Overhead

The demand for legal services has been volatile over the last 3 years. Firms need to manage staffing and resourcing effectively to remain flexible and serve clients without the stress.

Here’s how Amata legal support services in Chicago help you do that:

1. On-Demand Paralegals

No longer do you need to worry about keeping a paralegal busy for a full eight-hour day. We vet paralegals who can act as an extension of your team and bill only the hours you require.

Our senior paralegals have 20 or more years of experience and specialized knowledge. We also can connect you with junior paralegals ready to handle:

  1. Editing appellate briefs and other briefs per your notes
  2. Handle the back-and-forth aspects of discovery, which can last for months
  3. Draft simple complaints and motions
  4. Assess and prioritize cases
  5. Close on real estate transaction

All so you can ease your caseload while paying only for what you require.

2. Legal admin support

With the right support, lawyers are able to boost their productivity, grow their practice, and do what they do best — practice law.

Amata’s legal support services include receptionists and administrators who can help scan documents, track packages, and review court filings. We also understand you don’t have time to train, and that is okay. All our staff is experienced and vetted to understand your unique needs.

3. Virtual assistants

The traditional formula for growing a law firm is billing more hours or increasing rates, but there comes a point where that approach goes against the client’s best interest.

With virtual assistants, there is a third option. Eliminate all under-utilized time and expenses, delegate administrative work, and focus on billable hours. This increases your profitability and allows you to scale, while serving your client’s best interests.

Some of the tasks virtual assistants can handle for you are:

  1. Document review, organization and summarization
  2. Data entry
  3. Calendar management
  4. Meeting scheduling and coordination
  5. Technological support
  6. Invoice preparation and payment
  7. Social media assistance
  8. Non-legal correspondence, transmittal letters, and email
  9. Case management system update
  10. Internet and public database research

4. Live receptionist

Busy lawyers require professional receptionists. And with Amata, there is a better alternative to hiring, training, and retaining full-time, in-house receptionists yourself.

Our legal virtual receptionists ensure that you never miss a caller. They can screen calls, schedule appointments, reply to messages and return phone calls for you. All the information is updated in your database, so you can follow up at your own pace while clients are taken care of.

Hiring the exact receptionist support you need for only the time you need is possible. This significantly reduces the risk when hiring staff to support your operations.

5. Office options

Amata’s revolutionary concept is that office space should be consumed and paid for the same way we use and pay for software. You wouldn’t purchase 5 licenses of your practice management software when you only need 2, so why do we sign long-term leases for space with 5 offices when we only need 2?

Modern law firms require office plans that can be scaled up and down without penalty.

Imagine a place where you can enjoy the comradery of other attorneys, meet with clients in an impressive law office setting, and enjoy coming to the office. If an associate leaves or joins your firm, you can give up or add offices as needed. It’s all about only paying for what you need, not wasting money on office space you are not using in anticipation of growing into the space.

Access AM250-Quality Legal Support On Your Terms

Amata’s paralegals, paralegal assistants, law clerks, and virtual assistants act as an extension of your law firm. Here is a list of some of the services we can give you access to:

  1. Notary/Witness Service (Amata Location or Remote, includes video recording)
  2. Court Runs (Including the assembly, print, and preparation of courtesy copies.)
  3. Mail opening/scanning
  4. Assistance with certified mailings
  5. Scanning/copying documents
  6. Faxing documents
  7. Preparation of FedEx
  8. Set up assistance and coordination of services (phone, copier codes, messenger)
  9. Bank deposit
  10. Catering support/ordering
  11. Faxing support
  12. Special orders/3rd party ordering
  13. Video conferencing set-up
  14. Hand Deliveries/Pick-Ups
  15. E-Filing
  16. Preparation of Notice of Filing, Notice of Motion, Certificate of Service, and forms.</span
  17. Review of local rules, court’s standing orders, & any temporary procedural orders in place.
  18. Spindle or piggyback motion hearing dates, and any communications with the court clerk.
  19. Confirm acceptance of filing by the court clerk.
  20. Document Translation
  21. Interpreter – Remote or On-Site
  22. Preparation of Table of Authorities
  23. Formatting appellate briefs
  24. Skip Tracing
  25. Asset Search (bank accounts)
  26. E-Recording

Inquire today to learn how our on-demand, flexible legal support services can help your law firm increase profitability without the stress.

Discover our legal support staff for lawyers in Chicago.

5 Things Law Firms Should Consider When Choosing Office Space

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The legal industry is changing. The COVID-19 pandemic has reshaped the way lawyers work, with some embracing the flexibility of remote work while others emphasizing the importance of in-person collaboration.

But for most small firms, office space rental is a big expense that needs to be considered carefully. As the legal industry continues to evolve, so do the needs and preferences of law firms when it comes to office space. Is there a solution in-between costly office spaces and having no office at all?

Before you sign that lease, consider these 5 factors that will help you select an office space that meets your unique requirements.

1. Location, Accessibility, and Client Convenience

Having an office with strategic proximity to courthouses, government offices, and clients can significantly impact your firm’s daily operations and client relationships. A conveniently located office not only reduces travel time for attorneys but also makes it easier for clients to reach the firm for meetings and consultations.

Deciding where your law firm will be located also plays a huge role in attracting and retaining the best employees. A recent study by Thomson Reuters of solo and small law firms found that work/life balance is a top priority for attorneys, and your office location can significantly impact this with commute times.

Top clients AND talent are attracted to Class A office buildings in the Chicago area. And with Amata, you can access them in a way that suits your growth needs and budget.

2. Space Design and Layout

When selecting office space, consider the layout and design to ensure it aligns with your specific needs.

For example, most lawyers do not need to come into the office on a regular basis, but they will occasionally require a conference room. Whether it is for client meetings, gatherings with your team, or space to focus outside of home, your office space should have conference rooms available for the day.

With Amata’s hybrid office model, solo and small law firms can have on-demand conference rooms for up to 18 people. You can book a room with tech capabilities for presentations and lots of coffee, so you can impress clients without the fixed cost of a traditional office space.

3. Technology and Infrastructure

A well-equipped office should provide the necessary technology to seamlessly run your law firm. This includes high-speed internet, secure networking, video conferencing, and reliable phone systems to support your legal teams. 

This is why at Amata we provide a full-service law firm space with the flexibility you require. More than 800 law firms and professional services companies benefit from the following (either directly or through our vetted partnerships):

  1. A client in-take process
  2. Support staff (on-site paralegals, live receptionists, docket clerks)
  3. Practice management software and/or a CRM
  4. Billing software
  5. Computers/printers/copiers/mail equipment/phone
  6. Private and virtual offices
  7. Networking opportunities

In today’s competitive environment, reducing your office costs is vital to investing more in technology, automation tools, and compensation. As international lawyer Sandra Chiarlone realized, the result is effectively servicing your clients and growing a successful law practice.

4. Flexibility and Lease Terms

With today’s fluctuations in caseloads and staffing needs, having flexible lease terms becomes a must. Ideally, you would find a comfortable space with a short-term lease that is not costly to terminate.

At Amata, we focus on affordable AND scalable plans. After all, cheap rent may not lead to a reduction in costs. For example, without having the ability to add or drop offices during the term of the contract, you may not know the true cost of hiring a new associate.

But with Amata, if that associate leaves the firm for any reason, that office and the associated costs are terminated — protecting your profitability from incremental overhead expenses.

5. Health and Safety Measures

A home-based work setting may pose challenges in ensuring adherence to post-COVID-19 health and safety protocols. A professional workspace will ensure proper ventilation, sanitization protocols, and established contingency plans for emergencies and crises.

This not only protects the firm from potential liabilities but also strengthens the trust and confidence of both clients and personnel in the firm’s dedication to their well-being.

Conclusion: Selecting the right office spaces comes down to flexibility

It is hard to predict all the factors that may impact your office space. Will you require extra offices? A conference room? New technology?

That is why choosing the right office space for your law firm comes down to flexibility. Location, accessibility, space design, technology, and health and safety measures are all key factors. By having flexibility around these aspects, law firms can create a workspace that not only meets their current needs but also positions them for future growth and success in the ever-evolving legal landscape.

At Amata, we have traditional and modern designs to choose from. All locations are professional, in prestigious locations, and within walking distance from major public transportation. Find the true office flexibility you seek.

Discover our offices for lawyers in Chicago.

Why Your Law Firm Needs a Professional Legal Answering Service

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Why Your Law Firm Needs a Professional Legal Answering Service

 

Growing a small law firm is no small feat. Attorneys and paralegals are stretched thin, and most clients expect an immediate response whenever they need them.

Think about the last time a client called your office. Were they happy to wait a few days for a reply? Or did they expect to talk to a professional on the phone immediately?

Customer service standards are high in the legal profession, and negating immediate attention comes with the risk of losing great clients. Yet for solo law firms and many private law firms, hiring a full-time, in-house receptionist can be out of reach. After all, you require a professional receptionist who understands the legal terminology and procedures, and has outstanding communication skills to enhance the client experience.

Finding, interviewing, onboarding and training such a person can require a lot of resources. But thankfully, another option is available.

 

Never Miss a Caller and Keep Generating Business — Even When You Can’t

Gone are the days when small law firms maintained full-time, in-house receptionists at the office. The changing dynamics of the modern workforce have paved the way for more flexible and cost-effective solutions. The alternative? Professional legal answering services that act as an extension of your law office, without the costs of hiring, training, and retaining an employee.

At Amata, we provide you with a Live Virtual Receptionist who will ensure that you never miss a caller. You can free your time to focus on billable hours, while your receptionist screens calls, schedules appointments, replies to messages and returns phone calls for you. All the information is updated in your database, so you can follow up at your own pace while clients are taken care of.

There are many reasons to keep your company phone number the same, which is why we use a proprietary app that allows your receptionist to reply from your phone, while you keep full ownership over your phone and all your information private. In this way, clients can feel the personal touch of your replies, while you maintain the phone number that you’ve worked so hard to promote.

Access to this app can be shared with as many members of your law office as you require. Voice mails are organized in a firm directory, so they reach you or your associates. You can easily transfer calls, manage your availability, and receive daily reports from the call activity of the day within the app.

 

Legal Answering Services vs Generic Answering Services

Should you choose a legal answering service or a generic answering service?

Legal virtual receptionists understand legal terminology and the inner workings of law firms like yours. They are trained to address legal inquiries, identify the urgency of each case, and assist clients when they need it most.

Our US-based, focused legal virtual receptionists understand your unique needs and can be trained with special handling instructions and scripts that represent your firm. They create a welcoming experience for your callers, and filter calls so you never have to deal with unwanted robocalls again.

It is also more cost-effective to outsource to a professional receptionist service than a full-time receptionist who is sitting in the office all day. Our scalable plans are designed to suit your exact needs: We can handle after-hours calls, assign a full-time or part-time receptionist, and become a true extension of your team that builds long-term relationships with clients on your behalf.

 

Seamless Integration: Outsource Without Legal Ramifications

One overlooked benefit of hiring an outsourced legal receptionist is the decreased legal ramifications for your law firm. Business owners intimately know the significant costs and complexities terminating an employment relationship can carry. In contrast, letting go of an outsourced virtual receptionist can be justified through simpler contractual terms.

A professional virtual receptionist will be able to sort out problems and pull things together for you to review, but they will not be experts at everything. Their role is to be your point of contact and coordinate the best resources for the work that you need to be completed.

Amata’s virtual receptionists are trained to be a part of your team. They will learn your preferred greetings and adapt to your firm’s culture. And with our streamlined arrangement, you can remain agile without fearing any potential legal ramifications for your law firm.

 

10 Benefits of a Virtual Receptionist for a Law Firm

A full-time receptionist sitting in the office is no longer necessary. There are more cost-effective solutions today. Your outsourced virtual receptionist can take calls and do client intake for a fraction of the cost, providing an agile solution that enhances your client experience, frees your time for more billable hours, and streamlines your operations for growth.

The list below sums up 10 benefits of hiring a well-trained legal virtual receptionist:

  1. Take care of urgent client calls, even when you’re busy
  2. Never miss a new client intake
  3. Schedule appointments
  4. Free your time for billable hours
  5. Filter robocalls
  6. Quickly respond to clients
  7. Cut down costs
  8. Provide client support beyond business hours
  9. Protect your availability and productivity
  10. Remain professional and accessible

A virtual receptionist can be an invaluable gatekeeper for your law firm, saving you time and reducing the anxiety and stress of running a law practice. This translates into increased ROI, word-of-mouth referrals, and more business for your firm.

Learn more about how Amata’s Virtual Legal Receptionist can assist your Firm here.

Discover our legal support staff for lawyers in Chicago.

Litigation Firm Gives Up Office Lease And Doesn’t Look Back

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Litigation Firm Gives Up Office Lease And Doesn’t Look Back

Welcome to the second profile in our series of success stories from law firms that have chosen Amata Law Office Suites to house their practice’s operations. Covering only eight of the more than 800 law firms that have leveraged our services in Chicago, Illinois, each month we’ll feature the successes of a few firms and how they’ve used Amata to their advantage.

Can office solutions save lives? Maybe not. But at Amata, we’ve certainly seen ours make others’ easier. Case in point this story about a Chicago-area litigation firm that started with us in 2021. Their journey from suppressed potential to unbound growth is just one example of the real-life impact that the right office space provider can have.

Starting With the Basics

Founded in 1997, this practice was a revered name in Chicago’s insurance, real estate and commercial litigation scene long before it started working with Amata. It had grown steadily over the years, finding success through several high-profile cases while expanding its operations not only throughout Illinois, but also Michigan, Indiana and Wisconsin. The HQ team back in Chicago worked out of the same office space for 13 years before their lease went into limbo in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic.

During this time, the firm – like everyone else – had been forced to take an unconventional approach to business as usual. The three principal partners, six lawyers and additional staff members on the team rarely visited the office space they had and were instead handling most matters remotely.

Taking a New Approach to Work

Of course prior to the pandemic, there wouldn’t have been a question about whether this type of “old school”, self-managed arrangement was the smartest move to make. For many, it was the only way. Business owners had come to accept the sky-high costs of maintaining exclusive office space and assumed it was unavoidable. But remote work changed things overnight to quickly reveal just how much more can be done with less.

In the latter half of 2021, Amata’s team received a call from one of the firm’s partners with questions about how managed virtual offices work. They were particularly interested in phone services, call forwarding and automated receptionist features. These options had the potential to provide all of the advantages of a brick-and-mortar office – reliable customer service and confidential lines for client calls – without actually having an in-house physical presence.

While devastating in other respects, the pandemic presented this firm the opportunity to try out a new approach, and in doing so, reduce its fixed expenses, risk, and partner liability on a short-term basis.

Reaping the Benefits of a Smarter Approach

Within days of signing onto an agreement with Amata, this once-taxed litigation firm was able to drop its monthly expenses of over $21,000/month (including a full-time receptionist) to about $550/month. For context, that’s less than a third of the average rent price for an apartment in Chicago. But they were getting so much more value – not only professionally maintained and managed office space, but also receptionist services and freedom from constraining lease arrangements.

While Amata’s services had initially been sought out in response to the pandemic, the litigation firm moved to transform its partnership into a long-term endeavor. Decision makers found that staff were just as productive in their new flex arrangement and that the cost-savings of adopting it permanently could only pay dividends. This proved true later on in 2022, when the practice added two more associates to its team. They took two additional offices with Amata so that these new partners could work with existing associates in person two to four days each week. Beyond that, no other physical space has been needed to maintain the firm’s productivity and broader operations. Flexible solutions from Amata allow them to drastically increase their monthly cost-savings for reinvestment in company growth.

How Amata’s Solutions Tailor to the Needs of Individual Law Firms

The law firm we’re discussing today is no different from others in Chicago in the sense that it had a problem with operational inefficiency that needed to be tackled. But at the same time, none in the city are identical. Each and every practice has its own story and areas of expertise. Factors like team size, client base, and funding all play into how any given law firm operates. Enhancing efficiency requires case-specific support, and that’s exactly what Amata provides.

Amata gives law firms everything they need – and nothing they don’t. We want to equip your practice to succeed in today’s changing yet competitive landscape. Our innovative services are specifically designed for budding ventures that need a cost-effective way of delivering value to their clients.

We provide a range of solutions, from phone answering and virtual office management to document filing and legal research. As-needed office space is also available so that you can scale up or down as needed. Amata frees up your time, resources, and staff so they can focus on doing what they do best – winning cases. Inquire today!

Discover our virtual offices in Chicago.

Increasing Revenues with Existing Legal Clients

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By Ron Bockstahler

Increasing Revenues with Existing Clients

Revenues can come from net new business and from expanding services to existing clients. Most of a firms marketing efforts go towards net new business. Let’s discuss how we can increase revenues with existing clients. This is “low-hanging fruit” that can take a business from break-even to profitability with little financial investment. To take advantage of some of this low-hanging fruit we need to increase our value to existing clients and measure existing clients level of satisfaction.

“EXCEPTIONAL CUSTOMER SERVICE” MINDSET

We spend years building firms that provide outstanding services and products to our clients. Most of us have client testimonials prominently displayed on our websites and throughout our marketing materials. These are satisfied clients, so let’s put some resources into winning more of their business. The first resource is your firms people. Happy employees create a culture of “Exceptional Customer Service”. Increase employee satisfaction by offering perks that motivate your staff.

Everyone in the organization must approach existing clients the same way they approach prospective clients. Think about how you treat a potential client the week you are expecting them to sign a $1 million contract with your firm. Providing them a little extra attention. Making sure they have everything they need. If we showing existing clients this same type of attention, maybe they too will be signing an agreement for an additional $1 million in annual revenue.

CUSTOMER SURVEYS TO CREATE RAVING FANS

Before we approach existing clients to use more of our services, we first need to measure their satisfaction with existing services. One way to do this is the Net Promoter System, created by Fred Reichheld in 2003. The Net Promoter Score is the percentage of customers who are promoters (those who rate your services a 9 or 10 on a scale of 1-10) minus the percentage who are detractors (those who score your services 1 to6). To obtain a score from a client you will need to conduct regularly scheduled client surveys.

CLIENT SURVEYS IN ACTION

Two recent incidents led me to write this article and both involve customer surveys. The first is a vendor Amata uses and the other was an unhappy Amata client. Let’s start with the vendor. For 2 months Amata requested to have an ice maker installed. The assigned representative was aloof and uncooperative. This vendor sent out a random customer survey and our manager used this survey to report our dissatisfaction with the delayed install. The companies quick response was amazing. The ice maker was installed within a week after the survey was submitted. Amata went from a customer looking to leave the company to a happy client, willing to consider this company for the next installation.

The second incident involved an Amata client. The client completed a survey 60-days after joining Amata. In the survey the client expressed dissatisfaction with a billing issue and a couple other items. Amata’s management team immediately met to plan a course of action. A response was sent to this client, addressing each of the concerns, the following day. The client’s follow up response was to praise Amata’s team for addressing the concerns. The client also commended the Amata staff for their professionalism. In both incidents, an unhappy client was turned into a raving fan, with potential for additional services in the future. These are two excellent examples of how the use of surveys help take the pulse of your clients, identify unhappy clients, and turn them into raving fans for your firm.

If you’re interested in hearing more about how you can add more flexibility to your office expenses, contact us and let’s talk.

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Office Flexibility and Cost Controls

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By Ron Bockstahler

The most common question I’m asked lately is “What is happening in the office space sector?”.  With a client base of over 800 law firms and businesses, I usually have a good read on what is happening in the office sector of the real estate industry. Throughout June we have seen an increased demand for office space, but more specifically, the demand for flexible office space has been a top priority. Clients are placing a high priority on office flexibility and cost controls in their office selection.

JUNE CONTRACTS

This last week of June alone, Amata signed 12 contracts and/or amendments with existing clients and new clients. Eight of these were to take additional or new space and four were to reduce space. One virtual client, converted to have a full-time office and a California based law firm sign an amendment to have Amata manage their phone system and answer their phones. In each conversation clients were focused on cost controls by exercising the flexibility in their agreements.

FLEXIBILITY

Not included in the above-mentioned new contracts is a 500+ employee New York based law firm, that renewed their agreement with Amata, adding additional offices. The deciding factor to remain with Amata versus signing a lease for their own space was the flexibility Amata provides. Adding or removing an office during the contract term, without any penalty is crucial in this business environment. Another firm dropped an office from their agreement the first week in June, then added a workstation this past week. Successful firms are adapting to the fast-changing business landscape and controlling costs by taking advantage of the flexible lease and staffing solutions provided by Amata.

COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE

One of Amata’s greatest competitive advantages is the flexibility to manage expenses quickly to match changes in revenues. The cost structure with traditional office landlords makes it impractical and unprofitable to provide tenants this type of flexibility. When a company signs a lease, the landlord amortizes the cost to build-out the space, cover concessions, and brokers fees. Amortized costs do not go away when tenant downsizes and no longer requires all the space. Expanding beyond the initially leased space, without increasing the lease term, further locks in fixed expenses.

Learn more about how you can add flexibility and cost controls to your office expenses by contacting Amata.

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Paralegal Services Provider: What You Need To Know

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Today’s law firms are at no shortage of things to do. From handling an ever-increasing caseload to keeping up with the latest changes in the law, attorneys have their hands full. This is where a paralegal services provider come in.

What are Paralegal Services?

Paralegal Services are defined as the provision of legal services by a non-lawyer who is qualified to perform substantive legal work through a combination of education, training or work experience. These services may be provided to lawyers, law firms, businesses or individuals and can include everything from legal research and writing to assisting with closings, trial preparation and more.

Paralegal services give law firms the convenience of on-demand support staff to extend their operations. Through ticketing based systems, providers match clients with the right paralegal for the task at hand, making it easy to get started with little-to-no administrative hassle.

The use of paralegal service providers has increased in recent years as the legal industry has become more complex and competitive. The need for qualified support staff has never been greater, and paralegal services provide an efficient way to get the help you need without the overhead of a full-time employee.

This type of support can be especially helpful for small law firms who may not have the budget to support a full-time staff member, or for attorneys who handle infrequent legal matters.

What a Paralegal Service Provider Can Offer You

Paralegal services have become popular for good reason. They have a slew of applications and benefits to take advantage of, including the following.

Great Value at a Low Cost

What is perhaps the greatest advantage of using a paralegal service provider is the cost-effectiveness it offers. When you work with a paralegal service provider, you only pay for the services you need, when you need them. This is in contrast to a full-time employee, who you would need to pay even when there is no work for them to do.

With a paralegal, law firms can reap the full benefits of a highly trained legal professional without having to shoulder the full-time costs of salary, benefits, taxes, and more. This can free up a significant amount of money that can be used for other purposes, such as marketing or expanding business operations.

Flexibility and Scalability

Another advantage of paralegal services is the flexibility and scalability they offer. When you work with a paralegal service provider, you can increase or decrease the number of hours you need as your workload ebbs and flows. This can be a major advantage for small law firms or attorneys who handle a high volume of cases sporadically throughout the year.

Wide Range of Applications

As thoroughly trained and experienced professionals, paralegals are able to fulfill almost as many roles as lawyers themselves. The services they provide can be anything from research and writing to assisting with closings, trial preparation, and more. This makes them a versatile tool that can be used in a wide range of situations.

Virtual and Office-based Availability

If the past few years have shown us anything, it’s that the traditional 9-to-5 workday is no longer the only option. With the rise of the internet and advances in technology, more and more people are working remotely. This is true for paralegals as well.

Some paralegal service providers have a physical office where you can meet with them in person, while others are entirely virtual. This gives you the flexibility to work with experienced paralegals that are based in your city or a virtual paralegal that is located elsewhere in the country.

Considering Paralegal Services for Your Law Firm?

Amata Law Office Suites is a leading provider of paralegal and administrative support solutions to law firms across the United States. Our senior paralegals boast more than 20 years of experience in the field and are adept at handling a wide range of tasks, from research and writing to trial preparation and more.
Whether you need assistance on an as-needed basis or are looking for a more comprehensive solution, we have a package that is right for you.

Contact us today to learn more about our paralegal services and how we can help your law firm operate more efficiently.

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A Look at Hybrid Work for Small and Midsized Law Firms

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By Ron Bockstahler

We are going on our third year living with Covid-19 and some of the early predictions about a hybrid work/office model are starting to become reality. But the truth is, this reality looks different for almost every law firm and is heavily influenced by personal preference, type of law practiced, and individual situations. When it comes to creating the perfect hybrid work environment, there is no one-size-fits-all solution.

Over the past 30 days, I have worked with five law firms helping them to create a hybrid work environment that will allow them to optimize resources, maximize profitability, and maintain firm culture. All these firms were successful prior to the pandemic and their work volume has been consistently increasing since the pandemic began. Their challenges include maintaining firm culture, developing new associates, coordinating work projects, and keeping their work force from leaving for new opportunities. I will even add my own company, Amata Law Office Suites, into the discussion since we too have experienced similar challenges during the pandemic and are now wrestling with how we move forward. Let’s look at a couple of these firms, their situation and how, at least for now, they are moving forward with hybrid work/office solutions.

Let’s start by talking about the largest of the five firms I’ve recently worked with. Since the project is ongoing, I will not mention the firm name for confidentiality purposes. The firm is based in Florida, with locations in several other states. In Chicago they have 38 attorneys and occupy two adjacent floors in the Chicago loop, about 35,000 sq. ft. in total.  I started talking with this firm about a year ago, late in 2021, as they were considering the best way to move forward with their office space. Like most of us, they wanted to see how the pandemic would play out and how their lawyers and staff would adjust to remote work before making any big decisions on their office space. With enough experience working remote and a lot of input from their lawyers, they are now ready to move forward with a hybrid work/office model they believe will work well for their firm. Their model involves giving up both floors at their Chicago office in a partnership with Amata Law Office Suites, with the firm maintaining twelve offices for lawyers and staff who have elected to come into the office regularly and four offices for hoteling among lawyers and staff that come into the office only occasionally. The firm is signing a licensing agreement with Amata and will use the common areas and conference rooms in the same way as other Amata client. The lawyers and staff without offices have elected to work remotely, only coming into the office for firm meetings or to occasionally meet with clients. By giving up their permanent office space the firm can reduce expenses by just under $800,000 each year.

Next is a three-attorney law firm with two staff members. For the partners of this firm, the remote work model did not suit their work preference. In fact, since the beginning of the pandemic, they have been coming into the office every day. It is common to see the partners meeting serendipitously to discuss a client or case they are involved in. They are all old enough to be empty nesters, so they can work at home without interruptions. Instead, they enjoy the camaraderie the office provides. If I were to rank the reasons lawyers give me for coming into the office, camaraderie and the social aspects would be at the top of the list. For years one of my favorite sayings when talking with my managers has been, busy makes busy. Create a busy environment and people will gravitate to that environment.

Want to learn more about how Amata helps law firms leverage hybrid work? We can help you find the right fit – start a conversation with us here.

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