Legal marketing is unique among other in-house marketing roles in that you are serving the organization as whole and individual lawyers simultaneously. I often describe my role as a legal marketer as a hybrid between in-house and agency work – my job is to advance the goals of one organization (the firm), but I do that by supporting many individual clients (the lawyers). This duality can be challenging for a marketing department. You need to prove your value to the firm as a whole and meet the marketing needs of lawyers as individuals – two expectations that do not always align with one another.
However, there are some evergreen approaches to making your client happy, whether that “client” is a rainmaking partner, an up and coming associate, an entire practice group, or an internal committee. Incorporating these tactics into your department’s daily interactions with your clients can help you enhance lawyer satisfaction and establish a positive reputation for your department.
- Consider what “client service” means in the industry and in your organization. Your lawyers know good client service when they see it because they provide it to their clients every day. Read industry news, attorney interviews, and client feedback reports to learn what firm clients expect of their lawyers. It is likely that your lawyers have the similar expectations for the client service they receive from their in-house teams. Consider implementing an “in-house client feedback program” to formally evaluate your lawyers’ needs, priorities, and expectations of the marketing department.
- Communicate early and often. Legal marketing exists because lawyers do not have the time to do it all. No matter the importance of your marketing initiatives, billing will always come first. When working on projects with your clients, reach out far in advance of your deadlines to put the project on the radar. Provide regular status updates and action items throughout the project to keep work moving along and to avoid surprises. Prove that you are on top of things and that the lawyers were right to trust you to execute a project.
- Remember the little things. As stated above, a lawyer’s job is to bill. It is a legal marketer’s job to turn ideas into reality by thinking of all the details it takes to execute a project. For example, a lawyer may say, “I want to publish an article” or “I want to host a client dinner,” but may not understand there is more to those tasks than just writing the piece or calling a restaurant. It is our job to handle the small things, from sharing and enforcing editorial guidelines to selecting meals, so the lawyers can stay focused on the legal issues.
- Do as you say. This can be easy - if you say you will call someone at 3 pm, call him or her at 3pm. Other times it can be more difficult – you may be stopped in the hall for an update on a project that one of your teammates is handling or called for a research project you have never done before. Don’t immediately say you can do something or that you know something to be true. Actively listen, and if you do not know if something is possible, simply say you will research the issue or present the idea to your team. In short, do be accountable; don’t overpromise and under-deliver.
- Recognize uniqueness. Every lawyer at your firm is unique. Get to know their practices, their business development plans, and individual preferences. If you know a lawyer who loves speaking to media but hates writing articles, don’t ask him to write articles. If you know a lawyer who loves speaking engagements, proactively contact her with speaking opportunities. Tailor your outreach to meet their needs.
- Use amplification to reinforce the value of your team. In the busy world of a law firm, your lawyers may not always remember what you or one of your colleagues has done for them. Remind your lawyers why the marketing department is a valuable part of the firm. This can be done informally through conversation (“I just saw the brochure Jane created for your practice – it looks great!” or “We had a lot of success with the article you published last month – would you be interested in creating a client presentation on the same topic?”) or formally through post-mortem emails or meetings following a project or by regular updates to firm leadership.
Legal marketing is different at every firm and for every lawyer. While there is no one-size-fits-all approach to supporting your lawyer clients, the above tips can help garner a positive reputation for your team through communication, accountability, and client service. A positive reputation and behaviors to support that reputation can take a marketing department from being a tertiary part of the firm to an indispensable, trusted group of advisors.
By Ashley Stockwell, Marketing Communications Specialist, Miller & Chevalier, for the September/October 2016 issue of Capital Ideas.