Glenn Reid: The fundamentals of legal marketing

Glenn Reid

This article delves into the essence of legal marketing, exploring its raison d’être, guiding potential clients to your doorstep and crafting a message potent enough to convert enquiries into loyal clientele.

What is marketing for?

Let’s begin by demystifying what marketing is actually for. It’s not just an add-on to your practice; it’s an integral part of it. Marketing serves as your beacon in a crowded marketplace, making you visible to those who need your services the most.

It doesn’t stop at visibility. It is also the driving factor that ultimately lands you a new client.

Direct potential clients to you

In the realm of legal marketing, the initial goal is straightforward yet crucial: to seize the attention of your target audience. Before you can engage or persuade, you must first become a blip on their radar, a name that resonates when they find themselves in need of legal advice.

In essence, your marketing activities should aim to make your law firm the focal point in a sea of options, the first port of call when legal challenges arise.

Search Engine Optimisation, social media channels, professional networking, client referrals, and targeted advertising serve as your key allies in this endeavour.

Convince them to instruct you

You have your potential client’s attention. Now what? It’s time to guide them through a journey that starts with awareness and culminates in action. At this stage, the theoretical framework shifts from merely capturing attention to influencing decision-making.

The aim is to transition the individual from a state of interest to a state of intent. This involves strategically positioning your legal services as not just an option, but the optimal choice.

There are thousands of techniques to achieve this. The challenge marketers (and lawyers) face is figuring out which series of techniques will be effective. The key considerations for marketers revolve around determining the right blend of techniques and the sequence in which to deploy them.

These choices are influenced by the specific legal service being offered, the characteristics of the target audience and what most resonates with them. Some examples of powerful tools at your disposal include compelling written and video content, testimonials, case studies, existing client portfolios and inclusion in legal directories such as The Chambers Guide.

Marketing is complicated yet essential to succeeding in business

The key message of this column is clear: Don’t relegate marketing to the realm of mere administrative tasks; instead, invest the time to truly understand its nuances. This will empower you to effectively manage your in-house marketing team or foster a more productive relationship with your external consultants.

• Glenn Reid is a columnist and law firm marketing consultant at Reid & Partners Legal Marketing.