Hi,
I have recently been casually employed by a solicitor in Queensland to promote his services in his local area. I am actually employed by my wife as she is the office manager. :-p I’m trying to gain an understanding of how property investors find and select a conveyancer/solicitor to handle their property transactions. This is purely research and not a promotion so please don’t flame me. This solicitor has been working in the same area for decades and has done very little active promotion, relying almost entirely on client and agent referrals and his reputation. TImes are tough for many conveyancers and he wants to keep his staff employed…I have a vested interest in this of course. He doesn’t want to schmooze up to all the Real Estate agents to get more business so he has employed me to promote his services.
At this point I am very new to promotions and conveyancing so I value any and all of your thoughts, whether negative or positive. I understand that nobody likes to pay their hard earned cash to a lawyer but in Queensland at the moment we don’t really have a choice…unless you’ve got the experience to go it alone…so how do you choose?
Where do you look?…friends, family, Yellow Pages, internet…
What “features” do you value most? …price, expertise, experience, location, friendly staff, professional attitude…
Once you have dealt with a conveyancer what is it about their service that makes you happy to use them again or recommend them?
I look forward to your comments.
Trev
Hi Trev,
It's a good question and I've been out of the property game for several years. For someone starting out as a novice how would I find a property conveyancer if I was buying for the first time? Where would Iook to avoid getting trapped into a one shop package style deal with a developer (which happened to me once. Many thanks!
Cheers,
Gats!I'm a licensed Conveyancer and I run my own business in WA. A few months ago I decided to fly solo after working what seemed slavelessly to someone and I have been faced with this exact issue.
Clients choose who they wish to act for them dependent on what they foresee as being of most value to them. Unfortunately, a good number of the public will just go with whoever the real estate agent recommends whether or not the real estate agent has a vested interest in them choosing that Conveyancer or not.
Some will just phone around and around to get the best price and haggle, haggle you.
I am trying to promote my business at the moment by word of mouth and by contacting people I know in the game. It's slow. I try to focus on premium service but price is playing a strong factor in todays climate. The repeat referral base is most valuable and it is always easier to do a good job the first time and have a client return than seek out a new client.
Internet is a good tool for overseas clients.
Albeit all other techniques, the easiest way to get more business is to schmooze to real estate agent and brokers. A good marketing tool for this base is newsletters or seminars on topics of interest. The agent will see your business as of value to them and continue to refer clientele hopefully following building that rapore.
It will be a great day when the public choose an independent Conveyancer based on a high level of educated knowledge and service. I might be dreaming, hope not though.
Convey,
I’m not really a schmoozer by nature but I guess if a significant number of people rely on the agent to choose the conveyancer then it would be worth the effort. I definitely need to collect some stats re this from our current clients…up to now this sort of info has never been tracked.
As far as the hagglers go we have lost a lot a business because the staff just give out a price and the prospective client is gone forever never hearing the full story of what exactly that price includes. This is changing slowly but we still lose them when all they want is the cheapest price. I guess its just natural to want the best deal but IMO you often get what you pay for.
Cheers.
I have just purchased my first house and am in the process of looking for a conveyancer. We would prefer to go with one reccommended to us rather than just looking someone up in the yellow pages.
Our RE Agent has reccommended someone and so has our Broker. But if we could find a friend or family member to suggest someone, I think that would be who we would choose.
If we didn't get any reccommendations online is my favorite tool. I'd browse forums (thats how I ended up here) and I don't think I'd go with someone that didn't have a website.
Hope that helps
Thanks for your comment Ms Pearly. This mirrors what other people I have spoken to are telling me. It appears that first home buyers being younger are also usually more likely to go online for info and not just the Yellow Pages. Forums are a brilliant resource if you are web savvy…just beware the viral marketers I guess. Referrals from a close friend or relative seem to be the most trusted, then its looking like a large number of folks just go with the agent’s recommendation and then the really savvy folk go online and do their own research. Good luck with your research and thanks for the input.
TrevHi Trev,.
For me the first place I go to look for most things is the internet. What I find there is my first impression of the company/service etc. After this I would probably discuss with family/friends etc. and if they make recommendations I check them out on the internet for myself! I havn't opened a yellow pages book in years!
Another idea might be to do some local advertising (radio/newspaper/flyers etc.), it really depends on who and where you are targeting and what your budget is. Another great tool is having a clean clear cut website that is easy to use, loads fast and provides the information they are looking for, not what you think looks pretty. Along with a great website, an online marketing campaign to back it up would deliver quality leads to your employer. ( You would need to pay someone to do this)
The main features for me would be price, professionalism and quality of work. I know peoples first reaction is almost always price, but the key thing here is to steer them around the price by not only outlining the features for going with your firm, but how it benefits them. Eg. "We break down the legal jargon and clearly explain your conveyancing (feature), this helps you make an informed decsion that best suits your needs (benefit)" I know for sure that I would be happy to pay a little bit more for a better service.
I hope this helps a little!
Pete
For conveyancing in Queensland, there are quite a few options.. You can get pretty good deals with fixed prices and good service.. Id steer clear of the big mobs, they tend to never be available when you need to speak to them.
My most recent sale was through a firm called KRG Conveyancing … pretty happy to be honest..
Regards
Fishin danThanks for your input Pete. Most helpful. The reminder re features and benefits was timely.
Dan, what is it about your dealings with this conveyancer that made you happy? I like their website and may steal some of their ideas. Not sure I believe all their spin though but I guess its all about setting yourself apart from the pack in the minds of the potential client. Fixed price conveyancing is obviously all the rage. I wonder what their costs are and I wonder what these guys do when the file doesn’t settle for a year or two or there is some other major complication…
Trev777 wrote:Thanks for your input Pete. Most helpful. The reminder re features and benefits was timely. Dan, what is it about your dealings with this conveyancer that made you happy? I like their website and may steal some of their ideas. Not sure I believe all their spin though but I guess its all about setting yourself apart from the pack in the minds of the potential client. Fixed price conveyancing is obviously all the rage. I wonder what their costs are and I wonder what these guys do when the file doesn't settle for a year or two or there is some other major complication…Good questions, I cant answer the one about the year or two, but i had some problems with the building and pest… Im sure you could ring and find out..
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