Our news item last week on the rise of the internet as a medium for choosing a legal adviser has touched a nerve.

Traditional methods of choosing a solicitor, such as word of mouth or using the ‘family firm’, still dominate, but the web is inexorably gaining ground. The rate at which consumers are turning to the internet to find a lawyer has doubled every year. Even if the annual rate of increase drops to 50%, the internet will become the channel of choice in just four years.

Many solicitors do not understand the significance of this. Research for the 2009 edition of the Law Society’s Software Solutions Guide found that only 17% of smaller firms use the web to let clients access files or exchange information. One in five uses their website for email newsletter sign-up. Fewer than one in 10 are using text messaging to communicate with clients. And a depressing 63% of those questioned said they either cannot do any of these things or do not have a website at all.

Websites are not the be all and end all, of course – they are not the silver bullet that will let you slay the beast named recession. But they can let you connect with your clients in better and more efficient ways. The soaring popularity of price comparison sites demonstrates how the web is rapidly becoming a critical tool through which consumers find businesses. Especially businesses they know next to nothing about – like law firms.