tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7058786915356669476.post7855790863735985843..comments2024-03-27T08:57:40.383+00:00Comments on SOLO IP <br> for sole and small IP practices<br>: The future of small IP firmsFilemothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15735898485265104580noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7058786915356669476.post-10818192302410142342010-02-17T10:46:42.724+00:002010-02-17T10:46:42.724+00:00Mark Anderson wrote:
"Providing free informat...Mark Anderson wrote:<br />"Providing free information may be good for your business, but alternatively it may reduce your income if clients think they can do it themselves with your helpful information. "<br /><br />Those who want to do it themselves, will do it themselves with or without your information. The nature of the Internet is that someone else will provide them enough information to DIY if that is their inclination. By putting out your own information you are planting a seed in their mind so that when they get into a mess, or stuck, they will come back to you.<br /><br />I wrote about how those of us in the IT industry have been competing with FREE offerings effectively, and implications for legal services in "The Legal Sector and FREE" http://www.connectegrity.com/2010/01/the-legal-sector-and-free/<br />Would be interested in any comments/thoughts you have on that.<br /><br />Shireen - I think you have it spot on with your approach. :)Mark Bower (Connectegrity)http://www.connectegrity.com/category/blog/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7058786915356669476.post-29759715025818706382010-02-16T21:04:38.815+00:002010-02-16T21:04:38.815+00:00Shireen, my approach to creating something scalabl...Shireen, my approach to creating something scalable is to build up the consultancy practice by bringing people on, so that I cease to be a sole practitioner. I have tried free and commoditised services on a small scale and they have been a flop; to make standard services actually earn me a living, I think they would require much more risk capital than I want to invest. So I will stick with being a specialist, consultancy-style operation for the time being.Mark Andersonhttp://www.andlaw.eunoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7058786915356669476.post-50851058780609259342010-02-16T17:32:11.189+00:002010-02-16T17:32:11.189+00:00Thanks for your comment Mark. Very interesting. ...Thanks for your comment Mark. Very interesting. Google has a lot to do with the wealth of free information available out there! The way I see it, some clients will want to do their own legal work, so if Azrights provide them with the means to do so more quickly and efficiently then some of them may prefer our products and offerings to hunting down the free information for themselves, with all the limitations that that option gives rise to, particularly the time it takes - and businesses are generally time starved. However, there are others who will not be at all inclined to do the work themselves so our offering of DIY products will not appeal to them, and they will continue to instruct us to do the work for them. <br />Anyone can do anything themselves if they want to. It's not just legal work that people will opt to do themselves rather than using professionals. <br />For me I'm in business to create something scalable and potentially financially rewarding if I can manage it. I would not just want to provide consultancy type services for ever, although I'll be happy to settle for that if my other projects don't succeed in the way I hope they will.Shireen Smith, Azrightshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00878214320196044240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7058786915356669476.post-50856964123937299532010-02-16T13:44:58.453+00:002010-02-16T13:44:58.453+00:00Good points Mark. I want to look for techniques to...Good points Mark. I want to look for techniques to get the word out to more sophisticated clients that looking for direct access to real specialists is best practice. Looking for the Bar to show the wayFilemothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15735898485265104580noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7058786915356669476.post-85600615407922620252010-02-16T13:02:31.188+00:002010-02-16T13:02:31.188+00:00My view is that as a sole practitioner it is impor...My view is that as a sole practitioner it is important to focus on one's core client base, and not get too side-tracked by speculative marketing of new types of service. Also, I feel that general trends in the market, whilst interesting, may or may not affect an individual small firm. One new client or one major piece of work can transform one's commercial outlook.<br /><br />Providing free information may be good for your business, but alternatively it may reduce your income if clients think they can do it themselves with your helpful information. I am finding that some of my clients are becoming more sophisticated over time (assisted by our published precedents and text books) and are using our services less; we are having to engage with newer, less sophisticated clients.Mark Andersonhttp://www.andlaw.eunoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7058786915356669476.post-91621668581520549232010-02-16T11:26:32.659+00:002010-02-16T11:26:32.659+00:00It has certainly been the case that over the last ...It has certainly been the case that over the last 5 years it has been niche practices that have been created by those of us in practice areas that do not match the marketing consultant's criteria for BIG LAW. Perhaps though there may be more consolidation for those services where consumers prefer to use a factory productFilemothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15735898485265104580noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7058786915356669476.post-6437568467957845932010-02-16T10:25:35.202+00:002010-02-16T10:25:35.202+00:00Wonderful to find a law firm innovating so much. I...Wonderful to find a law firm innovating so much. I wrote just yesterday about fallout of the Legal Services Act (see http://www.connectegrity.com/2010/02/who-will-save-us/) and I agree that the middle market will be hit hardest. Four or Five big players will emerge over the course of about 10 years that will dominate the retail market. There will be many more niche players than today I believe, as people laid off from those mid-market firms start their own specialist practices. One thing is for sure - the future will not be boring!<br /><br />Mark.Mark Bower (Connectegrity)http://www.connectegrity.com/category/blognoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7058786915356669476.post-68895860701232135912010-02-16T09:07:14.775+00:002010-02-16T09:07:14.775+00:00Thanks for your comments. I too offer personal ex...Thanks for your comments. I too offer personal expertise and traditional legal services. However, I also try to have an alternative offering at lower prices. For example, we have 4 different price options for trade marks. This is perhaps something on which those who work with brands might have views on - whether you have to stick to just one price point or can have a range of different offerings....Shireen Smith, Azrightshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00878214320196044240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7058786915356669476.post-61991227913506049282010-02-16T08:51:13.245+00:002010-02-16T08:51:13.245+00:00These techniques are interesting and innovative an...These techniques are interesting and innovative and I am sure we will see a lot of them on "Tesco law" sites. Perhaps you should go into product development for them. Your reseach and experience should be very marketable.<br />From my perspective the selling point for a SOLO IP practitioner is that I offer my personal expertise and knowledge and I refer those who want automated services that are as cheap as chips to others or indeed to the UK IPO itselfFilemothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15735898485265104580noreply@blogger.com