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Never compete on price

September 14, 2010

I walked into Kara Roberts office this afternoon and asked whether she wanted to work on something fun. Kara, who serves as LexBlog’s Client Development Director, responded with a “I need it. I just got off the phone with a lawyer who complained that LexBlog’s initial fee is twice as much as one of our competitors.”

My response? That’s right. Any business can compete on two of three fronts. Service. Quality. Price. But not all three. And I’ll take competing on outstanding service and quality of product over competing on price any day.

One because it’s the right thing to do when you’re looking to serve others. And two, because that’s what most people want – quality and service.

Doing a quick Google search I ran across an excellent article by Elizabeth Gordon sharing six reasons to never compete on price.

  • Don’t be afraid to charge what you are you worth.
  • People like paying for quality.
  • Take your focus off price and onto to value.
  • Put the emphasis on quality and service and the experience.
  • Use your price point to cultivate your niche.
  • Ask what you can do to add more value and listen.

I’d add at least one more. Don’t compete against someone who doesn’t care as much as you do.

In LexBlog’s case we’re doing all we can to make difference in our client’s lives and the people they serve. With most of our clients being lawyers and law firms, it’s critical that we do everything we can to uphold the integrity of our profession, and even improve the image of the legal profession.

Focusing on price, as opposed to quality and service, leaves the American lawyer ill-served. It’s not what companies serving lawyers should be all about.

Dad was right. “Work on having a product and service that accompanies it that you can proudly proclaim as being the best in the business. Never compete on price.”

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