• Skip to navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys

AAEPA, Inc

Find a Member Member's Login
Call Today (800) 846-1555
  • Membership
    • Membership Membership
    • submenu
      • Why Join?
      • Member Requirements
      • Become A Member
      • Meet the Team
  • Estate planning software
  • Education
  • Practice management
    • Practice management Practice Management
    • submenu
      • 11 Essential Systems
      • Coaching
      • Law Firm Marketing
  • Resources
    • Resources Resources
    • submenu
      • Live Training
      • Blog
  • Contact Us

Are Your Systems Adrift?

Home » Explore Our Services » Are Your Systems Adrift?

We often talk to firms who start out strong using Academy systems and their sequential steps, but over time they unknowingly eliminate important steps in those systems. Here at the Academy, we call this the “drift” effect.

For us, drift means a gradual change in position or a gradual deviation from an original course, model, method, or intention.

If your systems feel like they have drifted a bit, you’re not alone. It’s a very common occurrence. Tenured firms suffer from drift more frequently because those shifts and changes tend to happen over longer stretches of time. Many firms we work with start out by following our steps to the “T” – oh they are great role models! However, over time with staff turnover and lack of training documentation, those intentional systems and steps slowly have a way of being forgotten or eliminated by the well-meaning users of those steps.

What compounds this problem even more is it is sometimes difficult to tell when drifting begins or how long the system has been adrift. Many firms don’t realize it until they are in a serious state of frustration, usually when a marketing effort stops working or a workflow system that ran smoothly before develops inconsistencies and balls begin dropping.

Drifting and missing a step in a system can jeopardize the entire effort. This is because each step in the process, and the accuracy of each step, is intentional and significant. And sometimes sequentially significant.

For example, let’s say you have a 6-step process for sending an offer letter to your in-house mailing list. Step 4 has always been a follow-up call to each letter recipient one week after the mailing. However, someone three or four years back decided to eliminate this step because it saved them an hour’s worth of time. As sensible as that minor decision seemed, eliminating that step can actually have a major impact on the bottom line. That little eliminated step has the potential of actually improving the response rate by 10% – 40% depending on the mailing type.

So before eliminating any steps in a system, it is important to make sure everyone on the team knows and understands why each step is there and the impact each can have. Unfortunately, “minor” modifications and short-cuts are commonplace and many decisions are done without the owner even knowing.

We also do not want to underestimate the importance of planned touchpoints with clients and prospective clients. If key touchpoints are eliminated arbitrarily, you decrease opportunities to reconnect and cultivate those important relationships. It can also impact future business such as referrals, positive online reviews, connections to centers of influence, or private speaking engagements.

As you have probably surmised, we tend to geek out over systems and processes. So much so, we even built in workflow and marketing steps into our law firm management program to help take the guess work out of which steps to do and when. Now, steps can no longer be forgotten or eliminated. We love it!

So take a step back and look at the steps in your systems. How would you rate your systems on a scale of 1 to 10? Are you a 1 – a law firm that drifts along and sometimes follows the same steps each time? Or are you a 10 – where you consistently and predictably follow your steps with every case you work on?

If you feel like your systems are adrift, let us know. We have several law firm audits to help our Member firms identify where drift is happening in key areas of their practices. The audits are a quick and easy way to evaluate each year how well systems are being followed and if any steps have been eliminated or forgotten over time.

Susan Russel
Practice Building Consultant
American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.
9444 Balboa Avenue, Suite 300
San Diego, California 92123
Phone: (858) 453-2128
www.aaepa.com

  • Author
  • Recent Posts
Susan Russel
Susan Russel
Practice Building Consultant
Susan Russel
Latest posts by Susan Russel (see all)
  • Turning Stalled Out Goals into Actions - May 12, 2022
  • 10 Time Management Tips: Creating Your Ideal Week - November 18, 2021
  • Best Advice from Our Parents - June 17, 2021
SHARE

Primary Sidebar

Subscribe to our blog

Recent Posts

  • Turning Stalled Out Goals into Actions
  • What Makes a Will or Trust Invalid
  • Ultimate Social Media Cheat Sheet: Character Limits & Best Days/Times to Post
  • Understanding Tax Apportionment Clauses
  • Do You Thank Those Behind the Scene?

Categories

  • Academy Girl Friday (33)
  • Client Services (238)
  • Coaching (33)
  • Consumer Advantage (3)
  • Counseling (21)
  • Elder Law (5)
  • Estate Planning (918)
  • Estate Planning Documents (5)
  • Estate Planning Education (199)
  • Financial Analysis (3)
  • Financial Services (1)
  • General (19)
  • Law Firm Marketing (281)
  • Law Firm Net Revenue (7)
  • Law Firm Staffing (99)
  • Law Firm Technology (45)
  • Law Firm Web Tips (185)
  • Leadership (191)
  • Legal Education (644)
  • Marketing Tools (2)
  • Medicaid (1)
  • Member Services (1)
  • Owners Compensation (1)
  • Peak Performer Focus (1)
  • Practice Building Calls (1)
  • Practice Management (495)
  • SEO/Social Media Support (3)
  • Software (6)
  • Strategic Planning (9)
  • Uncategorized (15)

Footer

logo of American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys

About Us

  • Meet the Team
  • Site Map
  • Legal Notice
  • Privacy Policy

Explore Our Services

  • Coaching
  • Estate planning software
  • Events
  • Legal education
  • Marketing
  • Web and SEO

Keep in Touch

Mon-Fri

9444 Balboa Ave. Suite 300

San Diego

(800) 846-1555

info@aaepa.com

Take Back Control of Your Business and Your Life

+

footer section | American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys

© 2022 American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc All rights reserved.

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent. Don't sell my personal information.
Cookie Settings Accept All
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
Save & Accept