Sports Business Journal recently ran an article on top NFL draft picks going to smaller agencies to represent them. I will not steal the thunder from the article, but the gist is that athletes expect more care/handholding/caring at a smaller shop.
Turn to law firms. The adage is that people pick lawyers and not law firms. It is true. I have clients who come back to me for years and after years of not seeing them. It is very flattering. They do not teach you in law school, but if you were lucky, your mama taught you to treat everyone well.
But an attentive attitude can exist outside of a small shop as well. The basketball great Ray Allen signed with attorney Johnnie Cochran rather than an agent. Allen felt that with a cap on basketball salaries, he would rather pay Cochran’s hourly rate than pay a percentage. By hiring a pro like Cochran, Allen got what he wanted, and gave a head-fake to the expected practices of the day.