Answering Legal Customer Case Study: Dale Carson Law

As we release this blog post on May 11, 2020, we’re still in the midst of a pandemic, and much of the legal world is up in the air. While many law firms have been forced to tell clients that their availability to talk is currently limited, Dale Carson Law has been able to proudly display a banner on the top of their website saying “we remain available to assist you 24/7”.

A screenshot of dalecarsonlaw.com from May 11, 2020.

Dale Carson Law is of course an Answering Legal customer, and during a time in which other firms are in complete disarray, they have had our 24/7 virtual receptionist team to lean on. In this customer case study, we’ll talk about our relationship with the Jacksonville based criminal defense firm, and discuss why Dale Carson Law trusts our team to handle their important after hours calls, even during times of crisis.

Why Dale Carson Law Chose Answering Legal

When it comes to representing law firms, not all answering services are created equal. This is a lesson that Dale Carson Law learned the hard way, which eventually led them towards using Answering Legal.

“We had a prior answering service that was overpriced, and I wasn’t satisfied with the quality of their services,” said Jackie Carson, the firm’s office manager. “I searched online and got a hold of Answering Legal. They talked to me about all of my issues and (put together) a proposal. Then they gave us a free trial, and they were awesome from the get-go.”

Far too often attorneys end up contacting Answering Legal after a disastrous few weeks or months with another answering service. Law firms require specialized phone answering care, and they typically don’t get the attention or quality of service they need from standard call centers that represent a wide-range of different industries. The good news is, once lawyers get started with our Answering Legal, they usually end up staying put for a long time. Dale Carson Law began its relationship with our service in March of 2015, and we’re proud to say that they have now been a customer for over five years!

How Dale Carson Law Uses Our Service After Hours

One of the biggest reasons Dale Carson Law reached out for phone answering help, is because they knew their criminal defense firm couldn’t afford to be missing calls overnight. Letting after hours calls go to voicemail almost always translates to missing out on new clients. People who have just been arrested don’t really have the ability to leave a message on your voicemail and patiently wait for a call back, they need to find legal representation right away.

Getting a high volume of calls after hours can create a lot of problems, and usually results in lawyers and their staff devoting a significant amount of their personal time towards after hours work. Since signing up with Answering Legal, the Dale Carson Law team has been able to avoid overnight headaches, and has had a very simple game plan in place for handling calls after heading home for the day.

“We forward our phones to (Answering Legal) after we leave the office, so usually around 6 pm,” Carson said. “They will patch calls with potential clients up until 10 pm, then overnight, they will take messages and email them to me until we are back in the office around 6 am.”

Over the past five years, our service has made capturing new leads incredibly simple for Dale Carson Law, and it’s largely because of the preparation our team puts into their after hours call handling process.

“(The Answering Legal team) worked out a script with us -- they ask (overnight callers) certain qualifying questions,” Carson said. “If it’s a new client, they patch them through to us, but if it’s an existing client, they take a message. If someone gets arrested around 11 pm one night, they might be scheduled to see a judge at 9 am the next morning. Their family is trying to reach a lawyer to represent them on short notice. With Answering Legal, I’ll have messages right when I wake up in the morning about court appearances, so I can get back to them right away.”

So just how much of an impact has our virtual receptionist team had on Dale Carson Law’s bottom line?

“It has been very valuable, because approximately nine times out of ten, we’ll be hired to go to first appearance court, and that leads to representation going forward,” Carson said. “Simply because we answered and we were there. It has enabled us to provide a service that most law firms simply can’t offer. Most firms can’t answer phones 24/7. It’s reassuring to know that we have someone answering the phone and we’re not losing business.”

Why Dale Carson Law Has Stayed With Us For Over Five Years

These days, it’s rare to see law practices stay with the same phone answering service for more than a year or so. This is partly because growing law offices see their call handling needs change over time, and largely because most phone answering services aren’t consistent in what they provide. So how has Answering Legal’s partnership with Dale Carson Law lasted so long?

“Their communication is great,” Carson said. “They do what I need, (and communicate through) email and text. I understand that they’re coming up with an app to streamline that even further. I can talk to any manager when needed, and otherwise I think it’s just a rolling call center. They have about 160 operators now.”

Since the pandemic began, Answering Legal has not missed a beat, and is still available to assist customers at any hour of the day or night. Our technology has allowed our virtual receptionists and managers to all work seamlessly from their homes, as we continue to follow guidelines put forth in our home state of New York.

While it’s clear Dale Carson Law enjoys working with our team members, it’s been our ability to serve their callers that’s kept the firm coming back with us year after year.

“Clients don’t realize that they’re an answering service,” Carson said. “It provides continuity and credibility to our firm. They seem engaged and invested in our business. Unlike the last answering service we used, we’ve had no complaints.”

Ready to see if Answering Legal can live up to the hype? Get started with a free trial of our service here or call us at (631)686-9700 for more information.

You can also check out more of our case studies below:

• Palumbo & Associates
• Smith & Eulo Law Firm
• Zirkin & Schmerling Law

All quotes from Jackie Carson in this blog post were collected via Clutch B2B Ratings & Reviews.