Never Quote a Price Until You Tell a Story.
How to communicate your value to potential clients without making a guarantee or being a jerk.
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Now on to this week’s email…
The Guarantee Temptation
Criminal defense clients want a guarantee.
That’s understandable. The value of a criminal defense lawyer is difficult for the client to measure. The lawyer may know how good she is at defending a particular type of case, but the client may feel that the lawyer won’t be honest and will exaggerate her competence.
So they ask for a guarantee:
“Can you guarantee that you can keep me out of jail?”
Don’t Make a Guarantee!
It might be obvious, but it bears saying. Don’t make a guarantee.
Even in cases with very predictable outcomes, I never guarantee the result. We don’t have full control over the case’s outcome. Too much depends on witnesses, the prosecutor, the client, and the judge.
So the criminal defense lawyer is faced with a dilemma.
How do you communicate your value without guaranteeing something you can’t control?
The Jerk Method
One approach is to make a bunch of claims that can’t be verified.
“I’m the best DUI lawyer in the State.”
“No one gets better plea bargains in drug distribution cases than I do.”
“I’ve won hundreds of sexual assault cases.”
That’s the jerk method. It’s ethically questionable and it doesn’t work.
The Jerk Method Is Ethically Questionable.
The jerk method is misleading.
Rule 7.1 of the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct prohibits misleading communication.
A lawyer shall not make a false or misleading communication about the lawyer or the lawyer's services. A communication is false or misleading if it contains a material misrepresentation of fact or law, or omits a fact necessary to make the statement considered as a whole not materially misleading.
When you make claims that can’t be verified, it’s easy to exaggerate and be misleading.
The Jerk Method Doesn’t Work.
When clients or potential clients feel like you’re trying to convince them or manipulate them, they’ll immediately fight back.
It’s almost impossible to make grand self-serving statements without appearing to be trying to convince the client. The client will resist every time. The Jerk Method actually makes it harder for clients to trust you and hire you.
So what should you do instead?
Tell a Story.
“Let me tell you about a client I helped who was dealing with a similar case.”
Instead of making a guarantee or talking about how great you are, tell the potential client a story about a case you’ve handled in the past. You can be 100% honest and certain about the past. Help the new client see how you helped a previous client achieve their goals.
I like to keep 3-5 stories about past clients handy when I’m speaking to a new potential client.
My rule is, “Never quote a price until you’ve told one of those stories.”
What Makes a Good Story?
A good story is specific.
Don’t say, “I handled a DUI and I got it reduced.” Give enough detail for the client to be able to visualize it.
“I handled a DUI for a lawyer who was going to lose his license if he got convicted. We got the case reduced to Impaired Driving and made a deal with the Bar for probation instead of a suspension of his law license.”
A good story has stakes.
Tell the new client why the previous client cared so much.
“I handled a felony domestic violence case for a member of the Air Force. His whole career depended on getting the case dismissed. A conviction would have discharged him from the Air Force immediately.”
A good story is similar(-ish) to the client’s.
I used to over-emphasize this point. I thought, “I’ve handled lots of DUIs involving cars, but none involving boats. I don’t have a story that can help this client.”
I’ve learned that the stories don’t have to be as similar as I thought. Criminal defense lawyers see all the things that distinguish a burglary case from a robbery case. But for the potential client, they’re basically the same.
If you have a very similar story, use it. If you don’t, tell the client about someone you helped. The charges might be similar. The stakes might be similar. Or they might just both be criminal cases. The differences matter less to the client than to the lawyer.
Disclaimer
We have to be careful that the story doesn’t morph into a guarantee.
That’s why I end almost every story with this disclaimer: “Every case is different. I haven’t seen the evidence in your case yet. That story gives you an idea of how I approach this type of case.
“But I can tell you this: I’m going to do everything I can to get you the outcome you need.”
Key Takeaways:
Never quote a price until you’ve told a story.
Keep 3-5 stories handy.
A good story (1) is specific, (2) has stakes, and (3) is similar to the client’s situation.