So you’ve sat down and met with me over lunch. We reviewed your situation and your desires. We now both know what it is you need and want, so I’ve given you a plan for how we will try to get there. I’ve told you what it will cost. And I’ve explained my satisfaction or your money back, no questions asked, guarantee.
Yet that’s when you might say, “OK, thanks, Eric. I’m going to go think about it, and talk to my [fill in the blank confidant].”
Why?
Because you want to shop around.
I understand.
You want to get the best value you can afford. You’re not sure if you can get the same quality of service I offer for less. I don’t blame you. I do the same thing myself when I am about to make a big spending decision.
But I don’t want to lose you as a client. And I especially don’t want to lose you as a client if that means you ended up with a lawyer who leaves you in a “buy cheap, pay twice” situation.
So if you want to show around, may I help you do it?
Start by telling me who else you heard about. Let’s see how these other lawyers’ fees, experience, knowledge, skills, and customer service stack up against mine.
Frankly, if you find an attorney who is better in all or even most of these areas, you should hire that attorney.
Let’s just make sure you’re comparing apples to apples when shopping. Make sure that the “lower fee” is in fact lower, not one of those “promotional” rates that the cable companies or the credit card issuers use to suck(er) you in. Let’s see if they are cutting corners to cut costs.
Make sure that the experience you’re being sold doesn’t mean the lawyer with 20 years’ experience palms you off on his associate who passed exam the bar 2 years ago.
Let’s find out how easy (or how hard) it is to get this lawyer on the phone or to respond to an e-mail.
Let’s find out when these attorneys are next scheduled to appear in court, and let’s go watch them in action (I’ll help you look up the dates, times, and places), so that we can see how well-prepared and persuasive they are.
If you find an attorney who seems to deliver an even better value than I can, please tell me because A) I want to deliver an even better value; B) I want to see how that’s done; and C) if you can find such an attorney, I’ll offer you an even better deal, if for no other reasons than to thank you for revealing a better way to me.
Eric K. Johnson | Utah Family Law, LC | divorceutah.com | 801-466-9277 | 801-450-0183
