When prospects contact your firm, they’re often carrying shame, fear, and a sense of failure. As part of your strategy for converting bankruptcy leads, then, your job is to replace those emotions with clarity and confidence. By using the right words, you can make bankruptcy feel normal, strategic, and even empowering. This article offers a practical framework for guiding those early conversations, including sample scripts that help reframe bankruptcy and build trust from the first call.
Start with Emotion Instead of Information
Most firms lose bankruptcy leads not because of pricing or lack of experience, but because they fail to address the emotions behind the inquiry. People who call a bankruptcy firm have usually been struggling for a long time. They’ve tried to manage the debt. They’ve Googled solutions. They’ve worried in silence. And when they finally reach out, they’re hoping for more than information. They’re hoping for relief.
If the first thing they hear is a rushed intake, a voicemail box, or a robotic checklist, they often go cold. The emotional window that led them to reach out in the first place starts to close.
The first call should not be a checklist of qualifications. It should set the emotional tone for everything that follows.
What to Say in the First Few Minutes
You don’t need to be a therapist to make this emotional shift, but you do need to validate the other person’s experience by creating space and showing empathy.
Keep in mind: bankruptcy has a dirty reputation. Most people associate it with failure, irresponsibility, or shame, not because those things are true, but because that’s the story the credit industry and pop culture have pushed for decades.
It’s your job to challenge that story and help the person on the other end of the line see bankruptcy for what it really is: a legal, smart, and sometimes necessary strategy for taking control.
Try something like this:
“Hey, I know it probably took a lot to make this call. Most people we talk to have been trying to juggle debt for months, sometimes years or even decades, before reaching out. So first, I just want to say that you’re in the right place. What you’re dealing with can feel scary, but I want you to know that it is more common than you think, and there’s a legal process built specifically to help people through it. Before we get into the details, can I ask a little about what’s going on financially and what kind of relief you’re hoping for?”
This short script:
- Acknowledges the emotional weight of the call
- Reframes bankruptcy as a normal, legal process
- Creates space for the client to feel heard before being evaluated
You’re not just gathering information. You’re guiding the person out of shame and into action.
Four Tips for Converting Bankruptcy Leads
These four tips can help you shift the tone of the conversation, build trust, and guide more people toward filing. Each one focuses on addressing the emotions behind the inquiry, not just the facts. When done right, this approach can dramatically improve how you’re converting bankruptcy leads.
Reframe Bankruptcy as a Smart Strategy
Most people think of bankruptcy as something to be ashamed of. They see it as rock bottom. Your job is to rewrite that narrative and show them what bankruptcy actually is: a legal strategy built for moments exactly like this one.
Try saying:
“Bankruptcy isn’t the end, and it isn’t rock bottom. It’s the reset button built into the legal system. It exists for one reason: to give people a way out when debt becomes unmanageable, whether from job loss, divorce, medical bills, or just trying to survive in an unfair financial system. More than half a million people file every year, and most of my clients say that their only regret is that they did not declare bankruptcy earlier. Bankruptcy is how the law helps regular people stop the bleeding, catch their breath, and rebuild with a clean slate.”
Replacing shame with strategy is one of the most effective ways of converting bankruptcy leads. This kind of language places the client back in the driver’s seat. Instead of feeling like they’re crawling into your office asking for help, they start to feel like they’re stepping into a smart solution with a clear path forward.
Watch & Learn: Why Bankruptcy Leads Won’t Convert—And How to Fix It
Show Them What Relief Actually Looks Like
People dealing with debt are under nonstop stress. The phone calls, the threats, the sinking feeling that no matter how hard they try, they’ll never catch up … it wears people down. That’s why one of the most powerful things you can do early in the conversation is paint a clear picture of what relief looks like.
Try saying:
“Bankruptcy is a smart strategy because it legally wipes out debt you could spend the next decade trying to pay off. It protects your income, shields your assets, and gives you the fastest path back to stability. And here’s what most people don’t realize: the moment you file, your rights kick in. It’s called the automatic stay, and it means creditors have to stop calling you and garnishing your wages. They can’t take you to court. That relief starts right away. Even before your case is closed, you’ll feel the weight start to lift.”
When someone is overwhelmed, clarity creates momentum. When they can picture the calls stopping, the pressure lifting, and the road ahead becoming manageable, they’re far more likely to move forward.
Ask Questions That Help You Connect
Once someone starts to picture life without all the pressure, things shift. When they realize the calls can stop and the garnishments can end, that’s when they really start to open up. But to get to that point, you have to know what they’re carrying. That means asking questions that go deeper than just income and expenses. You want to understand what their day-to-day looks like, what they’re worried about, and what kind of change they’re hoping for.
Here are a few questions you might ask:
- “What’s been the hardest part of managing the debt?”
- “How long have you been trying to manage this on your own?”
- “How is this debt affecting your day-to-day life, like sleep, work, or relationships?”
- “Has anyone else talked to you about bankruptcy before? What did they say?”
- “Can I share how people in similar situations have used bankruptcy to reset?”
These questions create space for the client to reflect. They also help you understand what kind of motivation is driving them to act. When you understand that, it’s easier to guide them toward a solution.
Offer Value Before They Ask for It
Your leads want to know that you care about them and that you have a plan for what comes next. One of the best ways to show that is by offering value before they even ask for it.
Try saying:
“One thing we offer is a full credit rebuilding system. Once your bankruptcy is confirmed or discharged, you’ll get access to classes, tools, and recommendations to help improve your credit within 12 to 24 months of filing. Of course we can file your bankruptcy paperwork for you, but we want to do more than that. We want to be part of your recovery.”
You can also let them know about:
- Free credit monitoring after bankruptcy to catch violations
- Access to vetted car loans with guaranteed reliability
- Legal support if creditors report inaccurately after discharge
- Or any other value-add that your firm offers.
This kind of follow-through makes a difference. It shows them you’re thinking beyond the case file and are invested in their outcome, which plays a key role in converting bankruptcy leads.
FAQs
Have questions or need more info? Please read the most frequently asked questions below.
