1. Start with Lansing’s actual service area, not a population assumption
Your firm may serve Lansing, other parts of Tompkins County, or a wider New York market. Those geographic choices belong in your intake questions and reporting definitions. Lansing’s Census geography is the town itself; it should not be treated as the county, a metropolitan area, or the state. The population estimate can help describe the municipality, but it cannot establish how many people need counsel, how many will call, or whether your firm needs another intake person.
Recommended approach
Define the geography you want intake staff to record and the geography you want to compare later. Ask whether a caller is seeking help in Lansing, elsewhere in Tompkins County, or outside your accepted service area. Then use the consultation to decide how those distinctions should affect qualification, routing, follow-up, and reporting.
