Since joining the legal marketing industry in 2015, my involvement in LMA has been very valuable to my professional development, personal growth, and network expansion. As one of the lucky recipients of the Midwest Region President's Scholarship, I attended the LMA Annual Conference in fabulous Las Vegas in March, which was an exciting opportunity for me to dive into LMA at a national level.
On Monday, March 27, I attended the LMA QuickStart—Legal Marketing Essentials pre-conference program. This program was geared towards marketers who have been in the legal industry for fewer than five years. The speakers presented on a variety of marketing and business development topics and provided a well-rounded legal marketing foundation for those of us who are newer to the industry. My favorite sessions of the day were "Attorney Persuasion" and the CMO Panel. Both of these sessions offered no-nonsense advice for working with the attorneys and leaders of our firms.
The depth and quality of the conference’s programming exceeded my expectations. I focused primarily on breakout sessions that aligned with the Communications and Technology Management tracks. Of these sessions, my favorites were "Best-in-Breed Bios," "Living the Brand," and "How to Build a Thought Leadership Platform." I attended two sessions outside of the communications and digital realm, which were "The MBA Mindset" and "Outside the Legal Industry: How Businesses are using the Client Experience to Up Their Game." Both of these sessions were a panel-format and provided interesting perspectives of business and client service from outside of the legal industry.
Additional programs that stood out during the conference were the keynote speaker, Zoe Chance, and the general counsel panel. Zoe’s presentation focused on behavioral economics, and she walked us through psychological insights that impact human behavior to explain decision-making. The general counsel panel is always a popular session because the panelists provide invaluable feedback on how GCs make decisions, what is important to them, and what is going on in their world.
In addition to its outstanding programming, the conference was an excellent opportunity to meet and network with legal marketers and vendors from around the world. I took full advantage of all available networking events from the welcome reception and Midwest Region Meetup to the Poolside Party and vendor parties. Not only were these events incredibly fun, but they were also an easy way to meet other LMA members and expand my network within the association. Additionally, I participated in the mentorship program and would recommend this program to new and returning conference goers.
I would highly recommend attending LMA’s annual conferences. I learned so much and thoroughly enjoyed my time there. Thank you, Midwest Region, for sending me to the conference!