Increase Your Caseload By Expanding Your Referral Network

A recent report shows that 52% of consumers hired a lawyer through a recommendation, and 21% of those recommendations came from other attorneys¹. That breaks down to 1 in 5 people choosing their lawyer based on another lawyer’s guidance.

The data shows that growing your referral network is a great way to grow your business. Not sure where to start? We’ve got you covered.

Here are four methods to discover new lawyers, grow your referral network, and get more cases. (We think the fourth is the best choice, but we may be biased.)

Social Media

While routinely considered one of the least successful ways to grow a reliable network of lawyers for referrals, we should mention social media. Though it comes with many drawbacks, using social media to find lawyers is an option many utilize to expand their referral network outside their local area.

Word of warning, be careful who you connect with on social media. Just because they say they are an attorney of good repute does not always mean it’s true. Social media is notorious for self-inflators, liars, and outright imposters. Therefore, you must be careful and do extra research whenever you connect with a lawyer through social media that you don’t already know, especially before sending or receiving a referral. This translates to a lot of time to find, and vet your contacts, especially when you can’t meet them face-to-face.

In-Person Networking

One of the best ways to get referrals from local clients is by building personal relationships with other lawyers outside of your field of law. If you’re lucky enough to have a nearby court that still hosts motion days, take advantage and utilize them for networking. If not, go to legal conferences, and don’t skip the meet-and-greet sessions.

Once you’ve connected, take time to get to know them personally before asking for referrals. Your face-to-face meetings will help ensure the partnership is the right fit and mutually beneficial. Don’t overlook how meaningful a good conversation over a cup of coffee (or tea) can be.

Legal Associations

Another great avenue is utilizing legal associations to meet attorneys and expand your referral network. There are two main types of associations that would be beneficial for you to join. Each one comes with different perks.

Joining an association focused on a specific field of law is excellent for expanding your network on a national level. Improve your reputation, increase your experience, and watch your co-counseling opportunities grow.

Membership in a general association, such as a state bar, can create connections on a local level. The more attorneys you know, and who know you, in your town or city that practice a different field of law, the stronger your chances to send and receive good cases.

Metwork

Metwork took the benefits of all three, combined them, and created a first-of-its-kind networking platform designed exclusively for attorneys. Our network is there to help reduce the time you put into searching and researching connections.

Metwork users are verified with state bar associations to ensure you’re connecting with actual attorneys. In addition, our smart match technology guides you to the right attorneys based on multiple characteristics, including a proprietary personality test. As a result, building your Metwork is easy, and as the number of lawyers in your network increases, so does your likelihood of new cases from referrals.

At the end of the day, knowing that the lawyers in your network are talented, in good standing, and will deliver for a potential client is critical for making quick referrals. When it comes time to send referrals, our feedback system pushes the best-rated attorneys to the top of the list. With a network of lawyers at your fingertips and our easy-to-use referral system, you can spend your time working on all the new cases sent your way.

Learn more about Metwork and sign up now.