How “Signals” Help Law Firms See Around Corners
Waiting for RFPs or referrals isn’t a growth strategy, it’s a gamble. Clients move fast, loyalties shift quietly, and opportunities can disappear before a firm even realizes they existed. To stay ahead, lawyers need to anticipate need before it’s spoken.
That’s where Signals, one of the pillars of Foundation Proactive, comes in. Signals surface timely, real-world business events that indicate a company may soon need legal support, allowing firms to move from reactive to proactive business development. With Signals, lawyers know who to reach out to, when, and why, turning data into dialogue, and dialogue into opportunity.
Why Firms Need a New Kind of Visibility
Many firms believe they lose clients because of pricing or performance, but most churn has nothing to do with either. In fact, research shows that 42% of clients leave their firm due to lack of communication. Others fall victim to “recency bias,” where GCs award work to the firm they’ve heard from most recently.
At the same time, clients are diversifying their legal relationships. It’s now common for a single organization to work with anywhere from three to thirteen firms. Staying top of mind has never been more difficult — or more essential.
Signals address this challenge by helping firms stay connected in meaningful, timely ways. They reveal the moments when a client’s business is shifting — when a funding round closes, a new executive steps in, or a restructuring begins — and those moments are often the best opportunities to engage.
What a Signal Really Is
A signal is a real-world event that suggests a company is entering a new phase of legal need. It might be an executive appointment, a fundraising announcement, a merger, or even an early rumor of layoffs.
The data behind these signals comes from reliable, public sources like LinkedIn, SEC filings, press releases, Crunchbase, PitchBook, the USPTO, and more. But the magic isn’t in the data itself. It’s in the filtering. Instead of flooding lawyers with noise, Foundation Proactive’s Signals are carefully curated so that only actionable, matter-generating events rise to the surface. The result is clarity: a concise, daily feed of opportunities that align with the firm’s strategy and strengths.
The Types of Signals That Drive Opportunity
Signals span the full spectrum of corporate activity, and each one is a potential opening for the right kind of outreach.
- Executive and Organizational Changes — A new CFO, CEO, or Head of Corporate Development often signals a coming shift in strategy or financing
- Corporate Events — Fundraising rounds, IPOs, and acquisitions can trigger securities, regulatory, and real estate needs
- Market and Workforce Shifts — Layoffs, investigations, or restructurings may point to employment, compliance, or litigation work
- Innovation and IP — Product launches and patent filings often mean upcoming IP protection or brand strategy opportunities
- Wealth and Liquidity Events — Equity sales or family wealth transitions create openings for private client and tax advisory services
Each type of signal gives lawyers a reason to reach out, not just to sell services, but to demonstrate awareness and support when clients need it most.
From Insight to Action
The true value of Signals lies in how seamlessly they fit into a lawyer’s day. Partners receive a tailored daily email highlighting top developments among their clients and prospects. Each signal is mapped to specific practice groups, ensuring that the right people see the right opportunities.
Outreach can even be pre-drafted in the partner’s own voice, ready for review and one-click approval. And because Signals integrate directly into Outlook, lawyers can act immediately without switching systems or losing context.
This approach turns information into impact. Instead of reactive, last-minute business development, firms build proactive habits, engaging at the moment of opportunity, not after it’s passed.
Firms using Signals are already seeing meaningful results. Timely outreach keeps them top of mind, helping reduce silent churn and improve client retention. They uncover cross-selling opportunities across practice areas and identify prospects earlier than their competitors.
But perhaps the greatest benefit is relational. Signals make engagement feel personal and relevant. When a lawyer reaches out following a client’s funding round or leadership change, it shows attentiveness — not marketing. It shows partnership. And that kind of connection builds lasting trust.
What Makes Signals Different
Plenty of tools promise “client insights,” but most stop at awareness. Signals go further because they’re designed for action. Each signal is tied to a specific next step — an introduction, a draft message, or an entry in the firm’s CRM — supported by accurate, cleansed relationship data through integrations with tools like ERM and Cleanse.
This isn’t generic data mining. It’s targeted, high-context intelligence that helps lawyers deepen relationships, not just expand mailing lists. Signals transform business development from a scattershot effort into a repeatable, relationship-first process.
Looking Ahead
Signals are only getting smarter. Soon, they’ll connect directly to experience data through Litera Foundation Proactive, allowing firms to estimate potential revenue impact based on past matters. The signal glossary continues to grow, expanding to capture new kinds of client activity. And with deeper integration into Litera One and Lito, Litera’s AI Legal Agent, lawyers will be able to ask natural questions like “Show me all clients who hired a new CFO this quarter,” and instantly see actionable insights.
The future of business development is proactive, data-driven, and deeply human. Signals sit at the center of that evolution. They give firms the visibility to act early, the confidence to engage meaningfully, and the ability to turn information into opportunity — before anyone else even sees it coming.
Ready to witness the power of Foundation Proactive? Request a demo today.
