Strategic marketing a hot topic at the launch of the Legal Marketing Association’s Vancouver chapter

From The Lawyers Weekly, Oct. 07, 2005


By Jane Mundy
Vancouver

The launch of the first Canadian chapter of the Legal Marketing Association (LMA) in Vancouver on Sept. 9 shows just how far legal marketing has come in this country.
Although the practice has developed significantly in the U.S. over the past few decades, it is only recently that having a strong marketing component became an integral part of running a legal business in Canada.

"We now have more in-house legal marketers, legal marketing consultants and lawyers interested in legal marketing than ever before," noted Allison Wolf, the marketing manager at Vancouver litigation powerhouse Harper Grey LLP and one of the event’s organizers.

Law firms and lawyers in this country now know that one of the keys to their success is marketing their practice more effectively. But the challenge in this is finding a good, strong marketing team and providing them with the proper tools to better promote the firm.

"Lawyers have a limited amount of time to dedicate to the business side of their practices," said Wolf. "Organizations like the Legal Marketing Association can help them determine what is the most effective use of their time and resources.”

That process began at the above-noted launch of the LMA’s Vancouver chapter, which gave more than 90 attendees – including lawyers, legal marketers, law

firm administrators, consultants and suppliers – a chance to hear three American experts discuss such topics.

Specifically, the experts told the crowd that developing a marketing strategy and communicating well within your firm – and with your clients – is the best way to ensure that your firm succeeds.

Roberta Montafia, chief marketing officer of New England-based Day, Berry & Howard LLP, emphasized the importance of internal firm communication in the strategic planning process. “You’ve got to market yourself [to the firm],” she told the group of marketing experts, “[and] make [lawyers] realize that marketing is strategic.”

Meanwhile Mark Greene, director of practice development and market research at California-based firm O’Melveny & Myers LLP, stressed the importance of being innovative and “willing to get out there and take a risk” when putting together the firm’s strategic plan.
He then told the crowd about some examples of failed firms that wouldn’t take risks to move forward as well as some success stories of a few firms who “stuck their necks out” (without being reckless) to demonstrate the importance of taking such risks in marketing strategies.

The ones that turned out successful diversified their practice, planned on physical geographic expansion, reinvested their profits and varied their client base whereas those that failed depended on just a few big accounts.

Above all, he told the crowd to take advantage of their firms’ cultures because knowing what your firm is all about and what it stands for “is the glue that holds the firm together. [The] failed firms only had partners aware of strategic plans.”

And finding out what connects everyone at the firm – from the most junior associate to the managing partner – can only be done by communicating. Once a proper process has been put in place and a culture and a marketing strategy has been worked out between the lawyers and marketing advisers, then all involved can contribute to the implementation phase.

According to Montafia, one way to deliver your marketing message, demonstrate your culture and connect with your clients is through “magnets”. By magnets, she means hosting certain programs, such as a women’s group or a breakfast series, that attracts a certain segment of your clientele. She added that these types of events and programs customize your message and create a sophisticated marketing structure.

"In a large firm it's hard to get clients and lawyers to know who we are, so we have to give magnets," she explained. "Our magnets make us different from the other firms."

But once that’s done, the marketing initiatives have to translate into sales. Silvia Coulter, managing partner of Coulter Consulting Group and president of the Boston-based Legal Sales and Services Organization, used her turn at the podium to describe how sales thrive in conjunction with marketing and how important service is in retaining and developing clients.

While Greene touched on firm culture – focusing on the greater good of the firm – Coulter talked about how to influence and develop a successful sales culture. The way to do that, she said, is by conducting client and market studies, calling existing clients who are no longer active, building an accurate and updated client database and developing a forward-looking sales forecast.

"Your client has sales people, why can't you? You too have a business to run," she said.

In terms of doing a proper survey, Montafia recommended using an outside source to conduct it. All three experts agreed that you shouldn’t have a partner who is in charge of that client doing a survey. Greene said that a third party is important to bring in fresh ideas; and often new opportunities or problems will turn up as a result.
All three also agreed that follow-up, both on strategic planning and client surveys, is imperative. Roberta Montafia said that firms are notorious for not following up on such initiatives because “these [lawyers] are used to winning, they are afraid of what is going to come back [in a client survey] and they distrust outside sales firms.”

Meanwhile, Coulter suggests that you examine how the support staff also interacts with clients. “Look at every way you touch a client, and can any of these interactions be improved?”

 

 

He then told the crowd about some examples of failed firms that wouldn’t take risks to move forward as well as some success stories of a few firms who “stuck their necks out” (without being reckless) to demonstrate the importance of taking such risks in marketing strategies.

The ones that turned out successful diversified their practice, planned on physical geographic expansion, reinvested their profits and varied their client base whereas those that failed depended on just a few big accounts.

Above all, he told the crowd to take advantage of their firms’ cultures because knowing what your firm is all about and what it stands for “is the glue that holds the firm together. [The] failed firms only had partners aware of strategic plans.”

And finding out what connects everyone at the firm – from the most junior associate to the managing partner – can only be done by communicating. Once a proper process has been put in place and a culture and a marketing strategy has been worked out between the lawyers and marketing advisers, then all involved can contribute to the implementation phase.

According to Montafia, one way to deliver your marketing message, demonstrate your culture and connect with your clients is through “magnets”. By magnets, she means hosting certain programs, such as a women’s group or a breakfast series, that attracts a certain segment of your clientele. She added that these types of events and programs customize your message and create a sophisticated marketing structure.

"In a large firm it's hard to get clients and lawyers to know who we are, so we have to give magnets," she explained. "Our magnets make us different from the other firms."

But once that’s done, the marketing initiatives have to translate into sales. Silvia Coulter, managing partner of Coulter Consulting Group and president of the Boston-based Legal Sales and Services Organization, used her turn at the podium to describe how sales thrive in conjunction with marketing and how important service is in retaining and developing clients.

While Greene touched on firm culture – focusing on the greater good of the firm – Coulter talked about how to influence and develop a successful sales culture. The way to do that, she said, is by conducting client and market studies, calling existing clients who are no longer active, building an accurate and updated client database and developing a forward-looking sales forecast.

"Your client has sales people, why can't you? You too have a business to run," she said.

In terms of doing a proper survey, Montafia recommended using an outside source to conduct it. All three experts agreed that you shouldn’t have a partner who is in charge of that client doing a survey. Greene said that a third party is important to bring in fresh ideas; and often new opportunities or problems will turn up as a result.
All three also agreed that follow-up, both on strategic planning and client surveys, is imperative. Roberta Montafia said that firms are notorious for not following up on such initiatives because “these [lawyers] are used to winning, they are afraid of what is going to come back [in a client survey] and they distrust outside sales firms.”

Meanwhile, Coulter suggests that you examine how the support staff also interacts with clients. “Look at every way you touch a client, and can any of these interactions be improved?”