Law firms encounter various challenges when dealing with B2B data. Five of the most common themes we see law firms face are data accuracy, lack of data analysis skills, data fragmentation, data security, and data volume.
The longer these data challenges are left untouched, the more likely they are to adversely affect decision-making and outcomes. The good news is that these obstacles can be resolved with immediate, cost-effective solutions.
Here we discuss the challenges B2B data pose and offer solutions for overcoming these.
Challenge: Data Accuracy
One of the most significant challenges for law firms regarding data is ensuring its accuracy. Whether for marketing or record keeping, only accurate and complete data can lead to valuable insights.
Inaccurate or outdated data can be a significant problem. It might occur due to human error in data entry, incomplete information gathered from various channels or simply data decaying over time. This can affect decision-making and campaign effectiveness.
Solution:
To ensure data quality, law firms should establish best practices for collecting, verifying, and maintaining data. One approach is to use a data validation service that flags inaccurate information, removes it, and replaces it with freshly researched data. This then minimises the risk of errors or inconsistencies.
Doing this together with assigning a dedicated team or person responsible for data quality control, should ensure that all data is accurate and up-to-date, and that any inconsistencies or errors are resolved.
Challenge: Data Analysis
Extracting meaningful insights from marketing data requires specific analytical skills and tools. Many law firms lack the necessary time, resources, or expertise to analyse the data effectively. This means valuable information remains underutilised or undiscovered.
Even with access to high-quality data, law firms can struggle to identify key trends and extract relevant insights. This can be particularly challenging when dealing with large volumes of data or complex data sets through limited resources.
Solution:
To address challenges with data analysis, law firms should use appropriate tools and software to make the process more efficient and accurate. Having a dedicated team that undergoes regular training and development in data analysis will improve the efficiency and effectiveness of marketing campaigns as well as help make better informed legal decisions at all levels.
Challenge: Data Fragmentation
Law firms often gather data from multiple sources, like CRM software, email campaigns, and website forms. Managing these different sources can lead to fragmentation and data silos, which can quickly and easily unravel into duplicated data. This makes it difficult to get a full scope of the data held and its usefulness.
Integrating data from a CRM, email marketing platform, website analytics, and other sources can be a complex task that can lead to duplicate records, missing fields, and ultimately incomplete insights.
Solution:
Addressing data fragmentation involves implementing robust data management strategies and investing in suitable technology to ease data organisation. Staff should be given comprehensive training on both strategy and how to use the data management software, always maintaining a strong focus on data privacy and compliance.
Challenge: Data Security
Law firms deal with sensitive and confidential data, including personal information about clients and financial records. Keeping this data secure and GDPR compliant is vital to maintain client confidentiality and prevent data breaches. Data security challenges occur often for law firms, particularly when sharing information with external partners and experts.
Solution:
Law firms should establish strict data protection and secure data-sharing protocols. Adopting specialised software to encrypt and protect data when shared with external partners is a must, as is the development of clear guidelines for data sharing, including who has access to data and how it should be handled.
Making sure that all data is GDPR compliant and only working with external partners that also adhere to these regulations should be made compulsory.
Challenge: Data Volume
Another challenge for law firms is managing large volumes of data. The law sector is fast changing with year-round events and a constant stream of new information coming in. Keeping all this data organised is a huge task and not being able to locate key information promptly can be a major setback.
Solution:
To overcome the challenge of managing large volumes of information, data management software should be adopted. Depending on its use, this could be a CRM system, Enterprise Resource Planning tool, email-sending platform, or specialised software for the legal sector.
These tools can automatically organise and classify data, making it easier to identify relevant information quickly. An individual or team can be tasked to organise data in a more visually favourable fashion by creating a searchable database and categorising data by type or relevance.
Make your data as strong as your legal case
These are just some of the key challenges that law firms face with their data. However, with the right assistance and approach these obstacles can be handled with ease. Our data services help law firms to overcome these five challenges.
What makes us different from other data providers is that we work on a project-by-project basis rather than supply a list of previously researched contacts. We work closely with you and research exactly what you require and nothing else, taking into account the data you currently hold and complimenting it with freshly researched data. This means that you get the most accurate and up-to-date information every time.
What’s more, working on a project-by-project basis means you only pay for what you need; there are no hidden costs, subscription charges, or sign-up fees, giving you complete control over spending.
To learn more about how we can help you with your data, simply contact us on 01227 463817 or send your data enquiry to us at info@thedatabusiness.co.uk.
