Make Time For Face Time

It's a giant red flag if you never see your clients -- especially if you don't work in Biglaw.

handshake shake hands shaking hands meeting introductionLast week I went to Denver. I’m on a client’s mailing list, so I received an invite to a shindig they were having for one of their portfolio companies. I’ve been representing the client for over a year and haven’t met them in person yet, so I decided it was time. When I showed up and introduced myself, they were floored. “You came all the way out here for this?!!” Yes, I did. Because I had nothing better to do last Friday and Saturday than take a three and a half-hour flight each day? Oh no, along with the rest of the ATL columnists, I spend my weekends attending the hottest parties and frequenting the most exclusive clubs. (And if you believe that, I’ve got some swampland in Florida I’d like to talk to you about.) Here is why I took the trip.

In Biglaw, I often heard people say they never saw the firm clients. “I don’t need to wear a suit, we never see any of our clients anyway.” As a capital markets attorney, even if the client was in the same city, or just one block away, I never saw them. It was all conference calls and emails, and only occasionally a one-to-one phone call. The deal team lists that included the relevant attorneys from issuer’s counsel and underwriter’s counsel, as well as the company and accounting team contacts, only had contact information, never any headshots (a good thing in my case), so I wouldn’t have known the people I was working with if I tripped over them.

Now that I’m out of Biglaw and have my own practice, it would be a giant red flag if I never saw my clients. Maybe things are okay now, but what are the odds I’m going to have a client forever and ever if I never make an effort to meet the client face-to-face? Since sometimes doing good work isn’t enough, probably not that great. Also, if I ever do happen to screw something up, the odds of my surviving with a client I’ve never shaken hands with are pretty slim. (Whereas if I can get the client drunk and snap an incriminating photo, then I’ll never lose the client!)

Furthermore, every company client is going to have some turnover, even if right now it may seem like a company can’t live without a certain person. If Three’s Company can survive without the Ropers, then most of my clients can survive without my primary contact at the company.

Say there’s a GC change and my person gets replaced by someone I don’t know. There are a couple of ways this can go.

Scenario #1:

New GC: So who have we been using for our corporate work?
COO: We use a small firm in New York, headed by a guy named Gary Ross.
New GC: Well, my old firm would be perfect for this work, and I trust them.
COO: Geez, I don’t know, we’ve been using the other firm for a couple of years now…
New GC: I’d rather use someone I’m comfortable with, and I don’t know Gary or his tiny firm.
COO: Ok, fine.

Sponsored

I’m toast.

Scenario #2:

New GC: So who have we been using for our corporate work?
COO: We use a small firm in New York, headed by a guy named Gary Ross. We’ve been using them for a couple of years now. Gary was just out here last week.
New GC: Well, my old firm would be perfect for this work, and I trust them.
COO: Hmm… Well, like I said, Gary was just out here last week, seeing everyone. We’re all good with Gary and his team.
New GC: I’d rather use someone I’m comfortable with, and I don’t know Gary or his tiny firm.
COO: But I just had a beer with him last week. He was telling me how much he loves working with us. And about his brother-in-law’s medical bills. Is there a compelling reason we need to change? I think we’d all be more comfortable if you worked with Gary and his firm.
New GC: Ok, fine.

I survive! And I will likely never find out this conversation took place.

Another thing that happens is when I’m meeting with a client, even if it’s strictly for face time, nine times out of ten the client will say, “I thought of another thing you can help us on.” Sometimes that other thing alone can pay for the trip.

Sponsored

Relationships with clients are like any other relationship. If you have a great client, you need to treat that client like you got lucky on Tinder and ended up with a supermodel with a Ph.D. Don’t leave the client alone for others to woo. Constantly reach out and touch base. And don’t be billing the client for you calling them up or flying out to see them. My client appreciated my flying out to Denver, but I think they’d have a fit if they saw the airfare on the next bill I send them. Since clients are the best source of referrals, the cost-benefit analysis takes into account not only the fees I’ve received from the client, but also the referrals I’ve received from the company and the referrals I hope to receive in the future (with or without blackmail).

Final thought: is Skype or Hangout and the like an acceptable substitute? I think if it’s not someone I would visit anyway, then it’s a good idea. But otherwise, it’s not nearly the same, mainly because a client knows getting on an airplane and renting a hotel and a car is far more of an effort than setting up a video call. Plus, if you were dating a supermodel with a Ph.D., would you be fine with an occasional Skype?  Or would you rather press the flesh?


gary-rossGary J. Ross opened his own practice, Jackson Ross PLLC, in 2013 after several years in Biglaw and the federal government. Gary handles corporate and securities matters for startups, large and small businesses, private equity funds, and investors in each, and also has a number of non-profit clients. You can reach Gary by email at Gary.Ross@JacksonRossLaw.com.