Answer: True.

A recent study has shown that only 10% of solicitors and 7% of accountants are actively interested in finding out what their clients want.

As we noted in a recent post, many clients only engage professional services because they have to, not because they want to.

Does this mean we have stopped making an effort and allowed ourselves to become satisfied with our income, rather than thinking of new ways to interest our clients and gain new business?

The first rule of a modern practice is to be client focused - that is, to provide a product or service that is aligned to clients' needs. This makes sense - it is easier to sell something to someone who already wants it than to try and persuade them to buy something they don't.

This being the case, why are we not making more of an effort to understand what it is that our clients want, and how they want it provided? Come on now, we really ought to be interested in find out more.

Let us look at the advances in technology.

50% of the population is now estimated to own a Smartphone, a figure that will inevitably continue to grow. With increasing amounts of work done away from the office, conducting work on a mobile device, such as a Blackberry, iPhone or iPad, is on the rise. It stands to reason, therefore, that delivering services, such as newsletters, articles or even accounting systems that are compatible with mobile devices will become an increasingly effective way of connecting firms and their clients in future.

Is your firm thinking about this?

Professionals are rarely at the leading edge of technology adoption. 64% of accountants claimed in a recent CCH/You Gov survey that they are not likely to move to cloud computing - ever! ...but their clients will be.

And what about social media? With 600 million people worldwide using Facebook and 200 million people with a Twitter account, it seems ludicrous to think that there are professional firms out there who do not yet have a social profile. However, the same CCH/ YouGov survey showed that less than one in ten accountants use social media as a means of attracting clients.

But it doesn't deliver new clients, they protest.

To judge social media directly against new client gains is to miss the point. There is more to social media than simply generating direct enquiries in the short term. A social profile creates visibility and familiarity with your brand in an increasingly knowledgeable and discerning market. Professional firms with a social presence are thought of as modern, open, knowledgeable and forward thinking. It is this positioning that will differentiate your form against your competitors in the mind of a prospect - for the cost of nothing more than a bit of effort.

At Bizezia, we continue to invest in providing the resources to professional firms that clients need in a format that allows them to be delivered as clients want. Why not start with EziaNews as a means of identifying topical news items for your social media and newsletter strategy?