A business owner emailed two firms on a Tuesday morning about a commercial lease he needed reviewed before signing by Friday. Both firms did good work. Both quoted a similar fee.
The first firm's principal read the email that evening, between other things, and planned to reply properly in the morning. The second firm had a simple rule: every enquiry gets a reply within the hour, even if it's just to say when a proper answer is coming.
That second reply landed at 11:14am. It was three sentences — confirmation they could help, the fee range, and a time for a call that afternoon. By 3pm, the business owner had signed.
The first firm's principal, genuinely the more experienced lawyer for this kind of work, called at 9am the next day. Too late. The decision had already been made.
Nothing about the legal advice was ever compared. The business owner chose the firm that made the next step obvious first.