Law Firms
Why You Should Care About Marketing
Under the pressure and influence of economic, political, and social environments, the legal industry is in a golden age of development, and more changes are taking place within the industry than ever before. More and more law firms are looking to reform and develop, creating competition in the legal sector that will only be more intense in the future. Even an experienced and competent law firm can struggle against the lack of funds and poor performance. For many firms, the root cause lies in the absence of clientele, which means that they do not understand the importance of marketing. Marketing is a way for a law firm to become branded, professional, and competitive. In addition, an advanced marketing strategy can give the firm a stable foothold in the local service market and gradually work towards nationwide legal service. As far as the legal industry in the U.S. is concerned, with nearly 10,000 partnership law firms nationally, the challenge for every law firm is how to grow better, faster, and more robust. Major companies worldwide attach great importance to marketing because they can market to more potential clients to see the superiority of their business with eventual revenue increase. In the legal industry, some law firms have made innovative attempts and efforts in marketing; however, only a small number of law firms have succeeded and become leaders in their countries or even successfully have broken into global markets. Most law firms are stagnant, which has a lot to do with the fact that there are still many problems with their marketing strategies.
Creating a Professional and Unique Image for Your Legal Team
The most prevalent deficiency of most law firms in marketing today is inaccurate positioning and ineffective strategy - or even no marketing strategy at all. Most of them only understand marketing as sales, and some law firms or lawyers treat legal services as general commodities by employing sales “advertising” using leafleting strategies. Law firms should, first of all, explore their strengths, identify their advantages, evaluate if they can survive and even thrive in the market economy, and ascertain where they currently fit in the competitive landscape. Without proper positioning, a firm will be a step behind or continuously at a disadvantage with the competition, let alone maintaining a relatively stable source of clients. On the other hand, with a clear brand position and target, we can conduct a comprehensive analysis and make a practical, customized marketing strategy and enhance the firm’s performance to the next level.
A Faster-Paced and Credibility-Dependent World
A consumer trend towards wanting to see professional agencies as more human and accessible while remaining capable and effective. And since the legal industry is an asset-light and strongly client-dependent profession, the legal sector should adapt to market trends and enter the era of client orientation. With the market trend-savvy of a professional marketing firm, law firms can procure effective marketing. Communication with clients is also an important aspect, which can include social media interaction and pre-sales and post-sales messaging, apart from the conversations during actual legal consultations. By monitoring social media feedback and perhaps with occasional surveys, we can determine what the potential legal client wants and expects at each stage of the consumer journey, act as an effective liaison and provide timely representation to both the firm and its clients.
Let the Professionals Do What They Are Good At
Marketing may seem like a "no brainer," but it's not as simple as it seems. There IS a science to it. Marketing is an intricate process with many aspects to be carefully considered and implemented in just the right way and at just the right time. To say it's challenging for non-professionals to do this correctly is an understatement. Most of the staff in a law firm are professional attorneys. Although knowledgeable in law, legal practitioners don’t have sufficient expertise in marketing, so they can’t be sure how to make their professional value known to more people effectively. Marketing with limited experience and scattered knowledge will not bring you ideal results. Embarking on marketing campaigns as a layperson and bypassing the professional services of those who are experienced in this ever evolving and changing specialization will likely lead to large expenditures and tiny returns on investment. The best solution for a law firm in today’s world is to prioritize legal cases, while utilizing a professional marketing team to take care of the marketing. A quality marketing team can help you find your niche, build an image as to why your firm is advantageous to use over others, effectively building your potential clients’ confidence to choose your firm over your competitors.
