With in-person meetings ruled out, legal tech companies have adjusted their sales tactics to a more personal, albeit digitally conveyed, approach.

The unique circumstances of COVID-19 caused legal tech vendors to embrace more creative, and less straightforward, sales tactics, said Kenneth Gary, a partner at legal tech PR and crisis communications firm Baretz+Brunelle. 

"[Vendors are] just communicating more and some are reallocating to more public relations and content to rise above the hard sale approach to a more consultative approach, which has been helpful," he said.

While companies contacted by Legaltech News didn't report a slump in sales, most said they stopped cold-calling as clients adjusted to remotely working and dealt with the personal impacts of COVID-19.

"We shared more of the information through the content leadership sales method because we wanted to provide information to clients and prospective clients, but we didn't want to call because it's tone-deaf," said Jerry Ting, co-founder and CEO of contract management platform Evisort.

Evisort also launched webinars and leveraged video conferencing platforms to build relationships and add a personal touch to sales call, Ting added.

Likewise, ProSearch Strategies paused its cold-calling and began deploying webinars, said the company's sales and marketing director, Brian Meegan. He also noted the e-discovery provider's new sales tactics included more sensitivity toward current or prospective clients.

"There are a lot of people going through this that have relatives that are ill or have been ill, and just having conversations and making sure everything is OK is where our approach has changed," he said.

Still, while Evisort and ProSearch's pause on cold-calling and shifting to a web-based outreach approach is one of necessity, its effectiveness is questionable, Gary noted.

"Legal tech is one industry that has thrived from event-focused selling—everything from Legalweek to ILTACON, CLOC and other majority legal tech-focused events. Without that, you're seeing legal tech companies turning to virtual events, as we are seeing across industries. However, virtual events are untested," he added. 

Noting the importance of body language and face-to-face interactions in sales, Gary said he wasn't sure if digital platforms were sufficient. ProSearch's Meegan also questioned if the new approaches could nurture the business development vendors need.

"I don't know if you can start that process through cold-calling someone brand new and build that relationship in any industry. I don't know how you build that relationship with business collaboration tools without being shoulder-to-shoulder to them."