Intake-Desk Pattern

The Referral Hesitator

Avoids asking for referrals. One of the 13 R2R archetypes, as it shows up on a law firm intake desk.

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This is one of the 13 R2R archetypes. The R2R definition: Avoids asking for referrals. On a law firm intake desk it shows up as described below. The full archetype is on jeffreyscottstanton.com, and all 13 are on the 13 archetypes page.

What it sounds like

A good call ends warmly with a booked consultation and nobody asks, "Who sent you our way?" The source is recorded as "unknown."

The call it loses: The source and the loop. The firm cannot tell which referral partners and which channels produce booked consultations.

Why it persists

Respect for the caller and a feeling that asking is taking. Overused, it leaves the firm blind to its best sources and leaves happy contacts without a prompt.

It is not a character flaw and not a lack of training. It is a strength that fires at the wrong moment, and it can be named, scored and coached.

Scorecard items it tends to skip

The close of the call. Asking how the caller found the firm and logging it is a small step that is often skipped.

The 14-item card is on the call-review scorecard page.

How to coach it

Add one question to every call: "How did you hear about us?" Log the answer every time. Review the unknown source count by person, and set a rule for when and how satisfied clients may be asked about a review or a referral, within the firm's rules.

The R2R Assessment shows which of the 13 archetypes a person runs before the first call is scored, so the coaching goes to the right moment first. See all the intake-desk patterns.

Scope, plainly: everything on this site concerns the conversation that turns an inquiry into an engagement. Nothing here is legal advice, nothing touches the legal work or the attorney's judgment, and any wording a firm adopts is reviewed by the firm against its jurisdiction's rules on attorney advertising, solicitation and fee communication before it is used.

About the Author

Dr. Jeffrey Scott Stanton, DCH is a behavioral strategist and the founder and Chief Learning Officer of R2R Diagnostic Group. He is the former EVP of Learning & Development at Douglas Elliman Real Estate, where he trained sales professionals on the conversations that turn an inquiry into a commitment. He applies the same method, the R2R Assessment and a 14-item call-review scorecard, to law firm intake teams. The work is the conversation only; legal questions and judgment stay with the attorney.

The method, the scripts and the scorecard are on how it works, the script template and the scorecard guide.

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