Research shows that several months can pass between the time you decide to paint a room and the time you actually paint it. Joanne Kim, Partner and Chief Idea Officer at Marcus Thomas, the advertising and PR firm that conducted this research, claims the main reason for the delay is that people simply can't decide on a color. To help their paint brand client, Kim's company showed them how to connect with their customers at each step in the buying process.  "It's no longer a matter of simply telling a brand story," says Kim, "The chapters have to be interesting at each point of a buyer's journey." This advice led the paint company to connect customers to design ideas on Pinterest and to host Color Clinics to answer consumers' questions about color and offer decorating ideas.

The lesson learned is that simply staying in touch is not enough. Law firm prospects need to feel you are connected to their buying decision at multiple points in the process. If the solution isn't offering help in deciding paint color, perhaps it is keeping the prospect apprised of specific legislation or tools that are relevant to current challenges. Or, maybe it's keeping the prospect apprised of the progress in your current related cases. The important thing is to understand what Kim calls your prospects' "buyer's journey." You need to determine key moments where you and your firm can be helpful and what you need to do to deliver value as the prospect gets closer to deciding whether to use your services.

In the corporate world, anticipating customer needs and providing these assistive experiences throughout the buyer's journey is becoming the norm. According to recent research conducted by the Driving Business Growth Series in partnership with Google, nearly 90 percent of successful businesses understand how critical it is to their growth that they help customers make decisions about products and services.

This understanding is no different with professional services. In fact, one could argue that creating such a deep connection in the decision-making process is even more important during the complex, customized and nuanced process of selecting counsel.

Do you know your prospects' selection criteria? Can you be a resource to them as they make the decision to hire a lawyer? Tuning in to their "buyer's journey" might just help you land your next big client.