Building Legal Tech Software from the “bottom-up”

When you’re developing legal tech software or B2B (business-to-business) software of any kind, you can approach your go-to-market strategy in many ways.

When you’re getting started, you have many choices about how to build and promote your product.

One of those decisions is whether to focus on the needs of end users — the people who will use and benefit from your tools — or on the needs of the enterprise, which typically means focusing on tools for leadership.

In other words, it helps to think about this in terms of taking a bottom-up or top-down approach.

Legal tech software development from the bottom up

As the founder of a legal tech software company, I’m often asked what differentiates us from CLMs (contract lifecycle management software). My go-to response has always been that Recital is built to have an impact immediately.

Contract negotiators (e.g. those on in-house legal teams) can begin saving time with Recital on the very first day. There isn’t a single CRM that can make that claim.

Then I thought about WHY we are so different and wanted to add some extra context.

We are taking a “bottom-up” approach to product development at Recital. In other words, we're building a tool for end users to improve their work immediately.

CLMs, on the other hand, have gone the other way. They're built top-down for the needs of leadership.

To help make a distinction between these two strategies, I’ll offer up some examples of each — first using high-profile software tools that most of us are familiar with and then some specific examples of legal tech software in both of these categories.

The top-down strategy for software sales

There are good reasons why products are built from a top-down approach. For one, the primary buyer, the decision maker, is at the top.

Several successful software companies have taken a top-down approach, focusing on serving the needs of enterprises and requiring end users to adapt to their software. Here are three examples.

Salesforce

Salesforce is a leading provider of cloud-based CRM software, and its primary target audience has been enterprises. Salesforce often requires organizations to restructure their processes to align with the capabilities of its software.

Oracle

Oracle offers database management systems, customer relationship management (CRM) software, and enterprise resource planning (ERP) software. Oracle's solutions are tailored for large enterprises and require end users to adapt to their workflows and processes.

Microsoft SharePoint

SharePoint is a collaboration platform developed by Microsoft, primarily targeting enterprises. It provides document management, content management, and intranet solutions. SharePoint often requires organizations to redefine their document-sharing and collaboration practices, driving end users to change how they work.

Software tools that have achieved success using a bottom-up approach

Several successful software companies have taken a "bottom-up" approach, focusing on end users and their needs as a core part of their go-to-market strategy. These three started by selling to end users and have subsequently been darlings of enterprise as well.

Slack

Slack is a widely used team collaboration tool that prioritizes the user experience.

Slack's intuitive interface and user-friendly features quickly gained popularity among end users, leading to widespread adoption within organizations. Our team at Recital uses Slack daily to communicate asynchronously, making our remote team feel more connected.

Dropbox

Dropbox revolutionized cloud storage by providing a simple and intuitive file synchronization and sharing solution. It started as a consumer-focused product and expanded its services to cater to businesses.

Zoom

Zoom emerged as a leading video conferencing platform, primarily due to its focus on delivering a seamless user experience. It offered a user-friendly interface, reliable performance, and many features that appealed to individuals and businesses alike. Zoom's bottom-up approach led to rapid adoption, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Examples of CLM software companies using a top-down approach to sales

To help differentiate our focus from that of CLMs, let’s first look at three CLM companies that focus on selling to larger organizations.

Agiloft

Agiloft offers CLM software that provides flexibility to accommodate complex contract requirements. Agiloft's implementation often involves configuring the software to match an organization's existing contract processes, which may require end users to adapt to the system.

Icertis

Icertis focuses on serving the needs of large enterprises, emphasizing centralized control, standardization, and compliance, often requiring end users to adapt to its software and workflows.

Apttus (now Conga)

Apttus, now part of the Conga suite of solutions, provides contract creation, negotiation, and management capabilities. Apttus typically requires organizations to align their contract management practices with its software.

Legal tech software tools with an end-user-first strategy

For balance, let’s take a closer look at some tools that sell to legal professionals by focusing on the needs of end users first.

Clio

Clio is a cloud-based practice management software designed for law firms. It gained popularity among individual lawyers and small law firms due to its user-friendly interface, ease of use, and affordable pricing. Clio's bottom-up approach targeted solo practitioners and small firms, gradually expanding its user base to larger organizations.

Everlaw

Everlaw is a cloud-based platform providing legal professionals with document search, review, and collaboration tools. It prioritizes user experience and aims to simplify complex litigation tasks. Everlaw's success stems from its emphasis on end users' needs and preferences.

LegalZoom

LegalZoom is an online platform that provides various legal services, including document templates, legal advice, and business formation assistance. LegalZoom's bottom-up strategy involves empowering end users with self-service tools and resources.

Recital’s focus on the needs of in-house counsel and contract managers

One fundamentally different thing about Recital's approach to managing contract negotiations is that we are first building for the end user — specifically, for in-house counsel and other legal professionals who manage contracts and contract negotiation.

Our pricing and how we sell, using product-led growth, reflect all of that. And that is a bet we're making that very few companies in the legal tech software market are.

Try Recital, risk-free, and experience its immediate impact

Our challenge is to help in-house counsel understand that there is a better way than being forced into a toolset or workflow that was implemented top-down. And then to help them advocate for themselves and make a case for being equipped with the kinds of tools they will find useful.

To have them raise their hand and say, “Hey, I need this. I can't do my job without this.”

We want Recital to be in that position — as the required tool for in-house counsel. To get there, we need those early adopters to try Recital and experience its impact on their day-to-work.

One of the priorities of our approach is to develop our tools to augment and improve upon the way in-house counsel work, to avoid them having to engage in a lot of change management or adjusting their workflows.

We integrate with Microsoft Word, email tools like Gmail and Outlook, and cloud storage providers. That way, legal professionals can experience continuity with their existing workflows while enjoying new efficiencies with clause suggestions, document comparisons, and more.

Try Recital today, free, and let us know what you think

Want to try Recital for yourself? Install the new Microsoft Word Add-In or request a demo.

We are confident it will make you faster and quickly become an indispensable part of your contract negotiation toolkit.