The legal support services sector is facing its greatest challenge ever,as a new breed of business savvy services lawyers turn to the provision of online law related services to attract the new generation of clients seeking legal support services.
Proposed changes to the way that conventional legal advice services are offered to the general public, and even greater proposed changes to who can provide these legal advice services, are set to shake up what's being referred to as the next Gold Rush waiting to happen.
It's no great secret that the current economic downturn has had a serious impact on every individual lawyer, and an even greater impact on medium to large practices of law services lawyers. This impact will fade into insignificance compared to the major shakeup planned for law services as the doors are opened to other none legally qualified online legal providers.
All of a sudden one of the last bastions of business where clients had to retain the services of a qualified lawyer is set to be blown out of the water. Given the proliferation of online businesses during the last 10 years, clients and fee spending customers have a new expectation of being able to purchase their legal advice services online. Many want to pay for legal support services like a legal contract,employment law services,county legal services or simple legal document services without the requirement of having to physically meet face to face with a fixed office based lawyer.
As the floodgates finally open to the provision of full online legal and law services, those lawyers will struggle to compete in the contemporary age of the provision of legal support services.
The internet is growing at a phenomenal rate, especially the sector of online e-commerce. New generations are growing up to consider it as the conventional method of purchasing goods and services. Those businesses which fail to embrace this large catchment of clients and customers will perish. The law services profession is one that has already fallen way behind the rest of the business fraternity. Any firm or partnership of services lawyers who don't wise up, will at best lose out on substantial income generation streams, and at worst be forced out of business.
Many new Internet online law services providers are gearing up to attack the market. Some will set up in direct competition, and go head to head with medium to large firms of conventional lawyers. Other more astute online businesses are taking a more structured approach of partnering with existing lawyers and firms of solicitors.
Imagine for a moment you are a partner in a well established firm of lawyers. Your business has grown organically in most part due to your companies' reputation, partners' legal skill sets and number of years in practice. Your firm was on track for business growth and looking forward to long term business sustainability. You feel confident about your companies' long term future.
Now imagine for one moment, that virtually overnight your turnover is slashed by 50% and the organisation who has taken your turnover from you,is run by a spotty faced 18 year old Internet E-commerce geek, who has no legal skills, no qualifications and no physical office overheads, because he or she is running an online legal services virtual office.
If you think this is never going to happen to your legal services UK company, then think again, because it's already in play.
Ignore this threat to your legal business at your own peril.
If you need any further convincing of how a well established high street service with nearly 100 years of trading can fall victim to online services, then think how quickly Woolworths folded in 2009.
The following article, provides solicitors and lawyers with an insight into online secrets utilised by many online service providers.
Legal Services UK Disclose The Top 10 Online Legal Services Secrets #1 Legal Document Services
It's already a fact that clients and customers can purchase legal document services and templates in high street office stationary shops. The service of providing legal document services is set to explode online.
Legal Services UK Disclose The Top 10 Online Legal Services Secrets #2 Legal Support Services
Contemporary legal customers have an expectation of wanting everything for the cheapest possible price and in the quickest possible time. Online legal services will provide instant virtual access to legal support services. Many internet economists are predicting huge growth in the online legal support services sector.
Legal Services UK Disclose The Top 10 Online Legal Services Secrets #3 Legal Services Lawyer
The provision of an online legal services lawyer will become big business as e-commerce and online legal services promote their cyber space legal services lawyer service.
Legal Services UK Disclose The Top 10 Online Legal Services Secrets #4 Legal Services Office
The online provision of a law services office is a reality. Low start up costs and very little ongoing maintenance charges will make a virtual online legal services office a very attractive proposition.
Legal Services UK Disclose The Top 10 Online Legal Services Secrets #5 Legal Advice Services
The main Internet search engines like Google & Yahoo etc are primarily information portals. They exist and thrive by providing informative information and advice. Any online law services company which provides a quality legal advice services will grow organically up the search engine rankings very quickly. As such legal advice services are set to boom online.
Legal Services UK Disclose The Top 10 Online Legal Services Secrets #6 Legal Services Co
In the near future there will be a proliferation in the number of online legal companies. The relative ease with which anyone can set up a Legal Services Co will ensure a proliferation of online legal service companies.
Legal Services UK Disclose The Top 10 Online Legal Services Secrets #7 Legal Services Contract
Many Contemporary customers have no desire to book an appointment with a fixed location lawyer for items like a legal services contract. Online providers will ensure clients have instant download access to an individual services contract.
Legal Services UK Disclose The Top 10 Online Legal Services Secrets #8 Employment Legal Services
Many business HR managers are too busy to visit a solicitor for their employment legal services. Much of the employment law services can be provided via instant online download PDF templates.
Legal Services UK Disclose The Top 10 Online Legal Services Secrets #9 County Legal Services
Online legal services providers understand that they can grow their business quickly by tapping into the power of search engines, by providing regional and/or county legal services. Even the lowest skilled internet marketing team member knows how to grow county services by region very quickly.
Legal Services UK Disclose The Top 10 Online Legal Services Secrets #10 Legal Services Lawyers
It is likely that existing law services lawyers will be hit the most by the new online legal providers. This is a very real wake up call to all existing legal services lawyers not to procrastinate, and to take a proactive business approach today.
In summary: If you are a law services lawyer or a partner in a firm of services lawyers then you have two options to survive and thrive.
1: You can contract in an expensive web development company and position yourself online. If you do this, do not be fooled by any web developer who informs you the greatest cost in getting you a fantastic online presence is in the build and design of your web site. Because that is completely wrong. For sure, it's obvious that you should have the Rolls Royce of web sites if you want to grab your market share. However it's no good having the finest Rolls Royce locked away in some hidden garage, because you don't have the petrol to drive it around showing it off to people.
The greatest expenditure with any online e-commerce web site lies in the online & offline marketing spend. Without getting too technical, this spend will far exceed any amount spent on your web site design and build.
2: You can partner with a firm of legal support services providers who have already anticipated this change in the market, and made substantial investment in establishing themselves as a partner to many existing legal firms.
Legal firms benefit in many different ways by partnering with this type of provider. Existing firms increase their turnover from existing and new income generation streams, and they reduce their outgoings because their outsourced partner of choice takes away many of the expensive day to day expenditure incurred by the existing legal firm.
If you want to know more then you'll have to contact me.
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Dr. Mark D. Yates is an International Business Growth Consultant specialising in delivering a profitable online e-commerce presence for existing legal businesses. His dynamic business model delivers exponential growth, increased turnover & profit margins. To book his online business support to legal services lawyers consultation service, visit him at =>
http://www.businessconsultancyonestopshop.com or e-mail him at
drmarkdyates@aol.com
