News: Law Firm Offers Satisfaction Guarantee

By Henry J. Reske

Whether or not it turns out to be an effective shot across the competition's bows, the newest marketing tool for Chicago's Coffield Ungaretti & Harris is sure to get noticed. Borrowing an idea used by marketers ranging from the makers of kitchen gadgets to publishers of mail-order books, the firm is offering a written guarantee to its clients. "We cannot guarantee outcomes; we do guarantee your satisfaction with our service," it reads. The firm promises that its representation will be "cost-effective" and timely, and that clients will be kept informed of progress.

Dissatisfied clients are advised to "promptly" inform the firm, which will attempt to resolve the complaint "even if it means reducing ... legal fees."

Variation on an Idea

"The idea of a service guarantee is not a new idea," said Ross Fishman, marketing director for the firm, which has 75 lawyers in Chicago and 10 in Washington, D.C. "It's the application to a law firm that's unprecedented."

Fishman readily acknowledges the possible marketing benefits of the policy and said the firm plans to buy print advertising touting the new guarantee, which was first offered to clients in May.

The promise was developed as the next logical step in client service, said name partner Richard Ungaretti. It "shows we're committed to clients and it makes clear to everyone in the firm that we are in the service business."

Fishman noted that companies such as Federal Express and the Nordstrom retail chain have built reputations on top-notch customer service and that there is a "tremendous benefit for a law firm that provides that care."

The guarantee concept was the product of "an evolutionary process" that included six months of market research by the firm, Fishman said. Its surveys found that dissatisfaction with a law firm comes from inadequate service, poor communication and lack of responsiveness.

While many law firms survey clients every few years or after a case is closed, the philosophy at Coffield is that problems must be caught early on.

Fishman said part of the goal of the guarantee was to create "sort of an ongoing client survey." He said the policy, which asks clients to speak up "promptly" about concerns, enables the firm to do something about a problem before it's too late. "This rewards all the right behavior on both sides," he said.

Gerald P. Giese, a lawyer and vice president in the private banking and trust division at the First National Bank of Chicago, thinks the concept is more beneficial to people less familiar with using law firms. Giese participated in focus groups looking at the policy from the view of the smaller customer.

Large companies, he said, know what to expect from a law firm and have the clout to demand it, but many smaller customers might not. He called the policy "an assurance to a new customer or someone who is not a sophisticated user of legal services."

Midsized Firms Most Impressed

Indeed, Coffield's survey of 383 of the Chicago area's 1,500 largest companies showed that midsized companies were most persuaded by the written guarantee. Nearly 60 percent of those companies, defined as having sales of $25 million to $74 million annually, said they would be more likely to select a firm with a written guarantee than another equally qualified firm.

Fifty-seven percent of all the surveyed purchasers of legal services said they had been dissatisfied with the quality of service from a law firm, and 51 percent said a guarantee would affect positively their choice of a firm.

Whether the policy is a good idea won't be immediately known, Giese said. One possible downside: Those already prone to complain might be most likely to take advantage of the policy.

Reprinted by permission of the ABA Journal.