I have a favourite question in conversations with start-ups and new clients. It is a question which leads to discussions about the client's business or commercial situation. 

It's a question designed to shed light on the client's business model, industry economics and facts relevant to providing a better legal solution.

My favourite question is: "Tell me how you'll make money or add value, and I'll provide legal advice." 

This needs assessment question is best asked very early on for better project management. 

I ask it to firstly, and more precisely, understand non-legal issues and considerations. For example, as we'll see non-legal considerations greatly help to craft a service-level agreement or performance measures or metrics in a contract.

There's a second reason for the question. My belief is that non-legal issues are usually riskier and more common for business client. To produce a better legal solution in business law it is best to at least consider the most vital issues even if they initially appear to be irrelevant to the assumed legal solution. 

Why it is a good question 

Now let's test how useful the answers to the question can be. 

Business lawyers can be more useful if they stay up-to-date with industry economics. This involves more information and skill than simply being "commercial" in one's approach to legal advice. 

Industry economics is a frequent topic here at Lightbulb. An example of this interest is the post Australian fashion law and industry trends, published at the start of last year's Rosemount Australian Fashion Week.

Fashion Week 2008 commences today. It's another opportunity to investigate fashion economics and test the usefulness of my question.

Ask a fashion industry client the above question and you might be lucky enough to receive a response about how the client will make money or add value in the specific circumstances of say a fashion shop. The client may even provide to you a table like the one we will now discuss.

Whether your business is in fashion or not, you will appreciate the performance measures table below. It provides useful economic information or measures.

Although the measures are for a fashion shop or outlet, many are useful for other retailers or e-tailers. To illustrate, bullet points after the table list business or legal decisions made easier by having the table.

The performance measures table helps answer my favourite client interviewing question. It forms a foundation for what must be done to make money or add value in fashion retailing. Provide a table like this to clarify the specific needs of your business and you'll get better legal solutions.

Performance measures for a fashion shop or outlet 

• Site selection for a shop
• Investigation of whether a shop lease is appropriate to take up or renew
• Performance measures for employee contracts and performance management
• Assessment of retail outlet return on investment for a fashion chain
• Marketing, eg assessing specific campaigns, advertising or sponsorship 
• Selection of IT and equipment to build, buy, licence or lease, eg CRM systems versus security cameras versus in-store demonstration videos

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Source: Table 6.8 in The Fashion Handbook by Tim Jackson and David Shaw (Routledge, London, 2006), p. 108.