Best Practices for Implementing CRM at Your Law Firm

A customer relationship management (CRM) system helps you become more effective, enhancing business operations and making client management simpler. If you’re looking to upgrade or adopt a new law firm CRM system, it’s important to think about the kind of system you need and the steps it’s going to take to implement it.  

Top Questions to Ask When Updating or Getting a New Law Firm CRM

What Kind of CRM Software Do You Need?

The first thing to think about is the kind of CRM software you need. Will you want to have a CRM that has contact management, document management, or email integration? Write down some of the top tools you use and the features you’re looking for before you choose a law firm CRM software solution. 

What Challenges Are You Dealing With?

Another thing to ask yourself is what kind of challenges you’re dealing with in the day-to-day operations of your law firm. If you currently have a CRM, does it cause headaches because of limited integrations, a lack of security features, or outdated coding requirements? Do you have a system that won’t scale, holding back your firm? 

And, if you don’t have a law firm CRM, what are you hoping to do with it? Do you have a slow client intake process? Are you having a hard time with marketing because it eats up so much of your time? Client intake and marketing automation software can help in those cases, making a CRM with those features extremely valuable to your firm. 

How To Implement Your New CRM

Implementing a new law firm CRM solution doesn’t have to be difficult if you follow the right steps: 

Assessment

Decide on the features you want in your new CRM. Which parts of your current CRM, if you have one, do you like? Which do you dislike? 

Evaluation

Look into the software developer. Is the CRM specifically designed for the legal industry? How is the developer’s reputation? What are their reviews?  

You also need to think about the software. Look into various aspects of the software and its features, such as: 

• Accessibility: Is the CRM accessible remotely? Attorneys are often on the go and may need to access it from home, the office, or the courtroom.  
• Case management: A legal-specific CRM should integrate with your current case management software, automating manual tasks such as billing clients. 
• A client portal: A client portal may or may not be included with a CRM’s subscription price. You’ll want your clients to have access to their information online and for that information to be secure.  
• Data migration: There is always a chance that you’ll need to switch CRMs. Ensure any solution you look into offers assistance with data migration. If you have to do it yourself, it could be more time-intensive, which is something to keep in mind.  
• Document sharing: Sharing documents manually is time-intensive.  
• Upgrade support: Find out if you will get automatic upgrades and updates when the CRM changes.  

On top of these features, other top features you’ll want to look into include ease of use, any integrations the software or platform will work with, and the type of security features the new CRM has.  

Particularly in the case of security, you’ll want to ensure you use a legal-specific CRM because it tends to offer better security than a general CRM. Still, do remember to ask about data security, as a leak could compromise your clients and put your firm at risk. 

And, three other features to think about carefully before taking the leap and purchasing a new CRM subscription is the total cost, training required, and the support you’ll receive from the software company. For a very expensive solution, having around-the-clock support and training run by the software company would be fantastic. At a minimum, you’ll want to know you have access to live customer support when you need it, training sessions (for free when possible), and a clear cost for everything you’re purchasing.  

Implementation

Once you choose the software that you’d like to use, you need to focus on actual implementation. 

Decide how long you have to implement the new software. A timeline helps you understand how long you have to implement the features you want to use, but you should also think about training, questions, software support, and other concerns that might come up as you implement a new or upgraded solution. 

If you can delegate the implementation of the CRM to the software team and an internal project manager, the implementation may go more smoothly than if you do not. A project manager can use milestones to help effectively move along the integration of the system into your workflows, making sure your team gets up to speed quickly.  

Our Law Firm CRM Solution 

Law Ruler is a well-rounded CRM system that helps you handle leads, prospects, existing clients, and more. With helpful automations to take care of daily tasks and take repetitive work off your plate, it’s a game changer.  

With Law Ruler, you can send personalized, automated texts, nurture emails, and prospecting. On top of that, it makes the client intake experience simpler, so your clients appreciate the time saved and stay loyal to your brand. 

Here are some of Law Ruler’s top features: 

• Advanced Legal CRM 
• Intelligent Client Intake Form Builder 
• Automated Emails, Texts, and Voice Calling Campaigns 
• Built-in Softphone Dialer 
• One-Click eSignature 
• Document Automation 
• Intake & Marketing Dashboards 
• Automated Workflows 
• ChatGPT Integration 
• AI Email Assistant 
• Open API 

Customer Relationship Management Made Easy with Law Ruler 

At Law Ruler, we have a powerful, legal-specific CRM with open API, so it can integrate with your case management software. Whether you need to automate your marketing or work on client intake processes, Law Ruler can help you boost client retention, capture more leads, and grow your firm. Ready to see what our CRM can do for you? Schedule a demo today.