Client Intake & Business Development Manager - #2188937

Role: Full-Time (37.5 hours), subject to probationary period

Salary: £35,000 per annum

Hiring: Mid-December

About the Role

Pinpoint Lawyers is currently the trading name of barrister Gareth-Lee Smith. In Q1 2027, Pinpoint Lawyers will become an SRA-regulated law firm specialising in civil and commercial law. You will therefore be employed by Gareth-Lee Smith in the first instance, and later transferred to Pinpoint Lawyers Limited in accordance with employment law.

Pinpoint Lawyers is building a modern legal practice centred on excellent client service, clear scoping, fixed pricing and efficient use of technology.

We are looking for someone to take ownership of the client journey from the moment (and we mean the moment) a prospective client makes an enquiry until they become an onboarded client of the firm.

This is not a cold-sales role: we generate the leads. Your job is to make sure that good prospective clients receive an excellent response, understand how we can help them and move efficiently through our qualification, scoping, proposal and onboarding process.

You will combine client care, sales, commercial judgement and first-class organisation.

Core Responsibilities

Lead Management

• Take ownership of new enquiries across our lead channels.
• Respond promptly to prospective clients.
• Make initial contact and establish the nature of the enquiry.
• Qualify prospects against agreed criteria.
• Identify urgent matters, deadlines and potential conflicts requiring immediate escalation.
• Ensure every lead has a clear next action.
• Maintain accurate lead and pipeline records.

Scoping Calls

The purpose of these calls is to diagnose and scope the client's requirements, not to give legal advice.

• Conduct structured initial scoping calls with prospective clients.
• Establish what has happened, what the client is trying to achieve and why they require legal assistance.
• Understand the commercial or personal importance of the problem to the prospective client.
• Identify the information required for the lawyer to determine the appropriate next step.
• Explain our services and process clearly.
• Identify and propose the appropriate next step within defined parameters.
• Recognise when a question requires legal advice and refer it to the supervising lawyer rather than attempting to answer it.

Sales and Conversion

• Develop strong rapport with prospective clients.
• Understand the prospective client's decision-making process.
• Explain the value and structure of the service being proposed.
• Deal appropriately with questions about process, scope and price.
• Follow up proposals systematically.
• Identify and address genuine barriers preventing a prospective client from proceeding.
• Maintain disciplined follow-up without pressuring clients.
• Close suitable prospects and move them into onboarding.
• Record reasons why prospects do not proceed.

Client Onboarding

• Manage the transition from prospect to client.
• Gather the information and documents required for onboarding.
• Coordinate identification, conflict and compliance requirements.
• Ensure engagement documentation is completed.
• Arrange initial payments where required.
• Coordinate matter opening and handover to the relevant legal team.
• Make sure the client understands what happens next.

Pipeline Management and Reporting

• Maintain an accurate CRM pipeline. We use Clio Grow.
• Report on lead numbers, lead sources, response times, qualification, appointments, proposals, conversion and lost opportunities.
• Identify recurring objections and reasons for lost enquiries.
• Help improve scripts, processes and client communications.
• Work with the Director to continually improve conversion and the client journey.

What the role does not involve

The role is about understanding the prospective client's needs, helping them understand our service and ensuring the right enquiries progress efficiently to the legal team.

You will not be expected to:

• cold-call prospective clients;
• provide legal advice;
• assess legal merits independently;
• promise particular legal outcomes;
• undertake substantive legal work unless separately authorised and trained to do so.

Measures of Success

The objective is not conversion at any cost. It is to convert the right clients and provide an excellent experience to everyone who approaches the firm.

Success will be measured across the whole client journey, including:

• speed and quality of initial response;
• percentage of suitable leads progressing to scoping calls;
• attendance rates for booked calls;
• proposal conversion;
• overall lead-to-client conversion;
• speed of onboarding;
• pipeline accuracy;
• quality of client communication;
• reasons for lost opportunities; and
• appropriate identification of unsuitable or unprofitable enquiries.