In the competitive environment of law and professional services firms, client events, webinars, and sponsorships are more than just ancillary activities; they are an integral part of a firm’s growth and brand-building strategy.
However, the ability to measure return on investment (ROI) from these efforts is often mired in complexity. By diving deep into her three pillars of revenue, relationships, and reputation, companies can build a robust framework to measure and maximize the effectiveness of their customer engagement efforts.
Revenue tracking details
The financial impact of client events and sponsorships can be tracked through direct and indirect revenue streams.
- direct income: Assign unique identifiers to customers and prospects who interact with your company at events. Tracking processes throughout the sales funnel can reveal direct event-related revenue.
- indirect income: Look beyond your immediate business. Evaluate the role of client events in cross-sell and upsell opportunities. Use historical data to predict future revenue streams by analyzing patterns from past events.
Combining advanced analytical approaches with meticulous record-keeping enables companies to identify the exact value derived from each event.
Growing and nurturing relationships
At the heart of professional services is the strength of our customer relationships. These can be cultivated through:
- Client retention metrics: Calculate the retention rate of clients who engaged throughout the event and those who did not. Retention rates are a subtle indicator of relationship quality.
- Generating referrals: Track the number and quality of referrals from attendees and quantify the network effects of your client engagement efforts.
Cultivating a relationship-centered culture within your company ensures that events and sponsorships are more than just touchpoints; they foster relationships.
Reputation: More than profit
A good reputation opens the door to new markets and opportunities.
- media exposure: Analyze the scope and tone of post-event media coverage. Media mentions can be a proxy for brand awareness and reputation.
- Impact on the industry: Measure your company’s influence on industry trends and post-event conversations. Are you being invited to speak at other prestigious forums? Are you getting more mentions of corporate thought leadership?
Improving your reputation through customer engagement efforts often leads to a “halo effect” that benefits all aspects of a company’s operations.
Operationalize ROI measurement
To incorporate the three pillars into a consistent measurement strategy, follow these steps:
- Align activities with firm goals: Ensure that event and sponsorship objectives are aligned with the company’s broader strategic goals.
- Leverage technology: Implement and integrate CRM and data analytics platforms to effectively track and interpret engagement data.
- qualitative analysis: Quantitative data should be complemented by qualitative insights gleaned from client feedback, staff observations, and market research.
Key points for a future-proof strategy to measure ROI
- Innovation in engagement: Stay ahead of the curve by adopting innovative engagement formats and technologies that resonate with your customer base.
- feedback loop: Establish a robust feedback mechanism to gather insights from attendees and shape future events for higher engagement.
- ability development: Invest in training your team to maximize networking and relationship-building opportunities during client engagements.
When developing forward-looking client engagement strategies, law firms and professional services firms need to view each event and sponsorship from the perspective of generating revenue, building relationships, and improving reputation. By harnessing the power of data and maintaining a strong focus on these pillars, companies can not only justify their investments but also turn customer engagement into significant business benefits.
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Stephanie Marrone provides a full range of marketing and business development consulting services to law firms, professional services firms, B2B companies, recruiters, and individuals of all sizes to increase revenue, retain existing customers, and increase brand awareness. We are giving advice regarding. I also serve as the outsourced chief marketing officer/marketing department for a small to medium-sized law firm.
During her more than 20-year career in legal marketing, she has worked for a wide range of large, mid-market, and small-to-medium law firms. This gave her valuable perspective on the legal industry.
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