Law firms, regardless of size, are usually composed of many departments, each responsible for contributing to the firm’s success. Whether that is a single administrator who handles the marketing or a firm that has an entire department of people, the marketing side usually cannot function without the assistance of the legal side. When it comes to promoting your firm’s success, or ensuring your lawyers are known thought leaders in their fields, your firm’s marketing professionals become an integral part of your team. Creating brand awareness and reputation for the firm, as well as setting the framework for effective business development for each practice group is essential to your firm’s success. However, this only happens when there is a productive and mutually respectful relationship between marketers and their lawyer colleagues. Establishing this dynamic can often be challenging until the marketer builds a rapport with your team of attorneys which, like any good relationship, takes time and requires an open line of communication. It becomes critical, then, to understand the obstacles that can get in the way of building an effective partnership in order to combat them. Below we’ll discuss three common challenges that occur between the marketing team and attorneys as well as strategies for overcoming them.
Adjusting to Change
It has been 40 years since the Supreme Court issued its precedent opinion in Bates v. State Bar of Arizona, No. 76-316. 433 U.S. 350 (1977),that ultimately allowed lawyers to advertise. Since then, firms have been striving to generate business through a variety of channels to stay competitive, thinking far beyond the referral model or their reputations alone to generate revenue. Further, the advent of new technology and social media as sources of business generation has brought an onslaught of options and instant publicity. However, for many attorneys, especially the seasoned ones, the current avenues for promotional growth may seem overwhelming and they can be skeptical about the ideas that marketers suggest for their business development efforts.
