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b'The beauty of CRM is it can do a thousand things. The problem with CRM is it can do a thousand things. Starting out, most firms should concentrate on only two or three things. The challenge is that those two or three things are different for each firm, groups within the firm, or attorneys. Start with a needs assessment. Understand what you want to get out of CRM before you get the technology. Consider people, processes, and problems first, then the product: - Some firms just want to manage email lists and events which saves tons of time and for law firms, time is money. - Others want to identify and leverage relationships. - Later, you can add client team support, an alumni program, business development tracking, pipelines for opportunities, and other activity tracking. CRM is a fundamental change and improvement in how the firm manages its most important assets: relationships. It\\u2019s not a project or initiative that just ends. It\\u2019s an ongoing effort. What is the best way to get your attorneys to adopt CRM technology? - Assess your needs up front. - Don\\u2019t roll out CRM firm-wide all at once. Do it strategically by group. Find a distinct group where CRM can be a benefit and deploy on a micro level. Chris offers a few law firm examples of successfully implementing CRM. - Training and communication are essential. What about the quality of the law firm\\u2019s data? Thirty percent of your data degrades every year \\u2013 people move, get married, change jobs, get promoted, retire, etc. If you don\\u2019t keep up with the changes, within two or three years, your data will be completely degraded. The key to CRM success is clean, complete, and correct data. How clean your data is affects your campaign delivery to the recipients. When bounces come back, someone need to go through them, research them, and update them. Start with a manageable data set, such as the top 50 or 100 clients. Bring that data over first and validate the data. As the market has become competitive it\\u2019s tremendously important for law firms to do coordinated business development, and that involves tracking, pitches, RFPs, last step, next step, and have all of the historical information to be able to predict revenue, even hiring and expansion. About our guest: Chris Fritsch is Founder and President of CLIENTSFirst Consulting, a strategic business development technology consulting firm that focuses on CRM, eMarketing and related technologies for leading law and other professional services firms. Chris applies her background in law and more than 15 years of legal marketing, business development and technology experience to help her clients grow and succeed. Chris is a popular speaker on CRM, eMarketing and Competitive Intelligence topics in the professional services arena. Website: ClientsFirst Consulting | Twitter: @CRMSuccess'