Part 1 | 7 Benefits of using Clio for your law firm

I started using Clio last year with some of my legal clients and it has completely changed how I work! I now use Clio nearly every day to help with client intake, CRM, document management, appointment booking, billing and more. Earlier this year, I decided to take the next step and become an Official Affiliate Partner of Clio. It means I can help more people start using the platform…and I also get to dive deeper into some of the more advanced features for myself too!

What is Clio and how could it help your law firm?

Clio is a full-service CRM tool, specifically designed for use in the legal sector. It’s cloud-based, meaning you can use its easy client intake interface wherever you are, including when meeting new clients at their offices.

Clio contains two products: Clio Grow and Clio Manage.

Clio Grow is centred on client intake and CRM. It’s designed to make onboarding new clients simple and efficient and allows you to book appointments, manage and nurture client relationships and funnel leads.

Clio Manage helps you to manage existing client relationships. It’ll help you track expenses, manage documents, bill clients and is a powerful tool for case management.

Using Clio can help to automate repetitive tasks and simplify and streamline administrative processes throughout the journey of taking on a new client; from hiring to invoicing. Plus, if you encounter any hiccups along the way then they have great support features – I’ve used their online chat feature often and they are always quick to help.

If you’re new to Clio and want to find out a little more they have a great introductory video on their website. However, my aim with this first blog in my Clio series is to highlight some of the features that I find the most beneficial to my legal clients…

7 Benefits of using Clio for your law firm

1| Clio is a cloud-based CRM tool for the legal sector

Because Clio is cloud-based, you can access everything wherever you are. You don’t need to worry about licenses being tied to a specific machine or having to be at your main computer to access information. All your data and information can be called upon wherever you are, at any time.  You can also download the Clio app to your smartphone so it’s always accessible wherever you are.  

2 | You get unlimited document storage with Clio

When you use Clio, you benefit from unlimited document storage in the cloud. You can save and store your documents digitally and then get clients to sign them electronically. This is such a useful feature – it speeds up document signing and makes the process easy to track and manage.

3 | Time tracking and expense recording is super easy with Clio

Another of my favourite features! I work with a lot of different legal clients and used to have to keep multiple Excel sheets running to record my time working with each of them. Now I do everything through Clio – as I’m set up as a fee earner I also time record to matters so I simply start the clock and get to work knowing Clio is keeping track and recording my time to the correct matter ready for billing later on.

4 | Clio speeds up invoicing

With Clio I can bill clients electronically, even on a mobile, using invoices I’ve created from Clio templates. Clio’s billing report functions allow you to see billable, unbillable and non-billable WIP, you can also break billing down by individual lawyers. Overdue invoices are automatically flagged for follow-up, helping me to keep on top of everything. Clio can also be integrated with Xero and Quickbooks.

5 | Clio has unrivalled app integration

You can integrate Clio with over 200 apps including Google, Microsoft, Mailchimp, Dropbox, Zoom, Zapier and BundleDocs.  They are adding to this list all the time.

6 | Clio supports GDPR and SRA compliance

Secure management of data is a big concern for all of us. But Clio has industry-leading security features that support compliance with GDPR and SRA.

7 | Clio works closely with the UK’s leading legal organisations

Clio is working in partnership with the Law Society in England & Wales and is an approved supplier for the Law Society of Scotland. These partnerships help to ensure Clio continues to deliver for the specific needs of the legal sector.

Are you ready to find out more about Clio?

As an affiliate partner of Clio, I offer a free 30-minute call with any lawyers who are interested in finding out more. We can chat about how Clio could support your business and I can guide you through some of the key features. If you’d like to book a free consultation, please get in touch.

Stay tuned for further blogs in the series…

This is the first in my series of four blogs on Clio. Throughout the series, I’ll be highlighting features of Clio that can help you and your firm. I’ll also be drawing on my own experiences using Clio and sharing case studies of how I have helped clients with Clio Grow and Clio Manage.

Coming soon:

Case studies from using Clio – how I help my legal clients

How I helped my client streamline their onboarding process using Clio Grow

Why you should use Clio Grow & Manage for a seamless customer journey