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We asked a diverse group to participate in a virtual discussion of these topics during the last week of October 2003. Let me introduce the panel:

Darryl Cross is the Managing Principal of Darryl Cross Consulting and former Chief Marketing Officer for Benesch Friedlander Coplan & Aronoff, based in Cleveland Ohio. Darryl has been widely recognized for his innovations in developing a sales culture and system at Benesch. Darryl received the 2003 “Marketing Initiative of the Year Award” at this year’s Marketing Partner Forum. www.more-rain.com

Bill Feid, President and Chief Executive Officer, RealLegal, LLC. Bill has been at the helm of technology companies, including Law.com, EMS, and Firefly. Bill wears two hats in the conversation, one as CEO and buyer of legal services, and one who has insight into the business of law as CEO of RealLegal. www.reallegal.com

Linda O’Connell, Marketing Director of Robinson & Cole, LLP. Linda is a legal marketing veteran, with more than 14 years experience as the top marketing professional for Robinson & Cole, the leading law firm in Connecticut. Linda has served on the Legal Marketing Association National Board in several capacities and has led the marketing committee for the United States Law Firm Group. www.rc.com

Laura Owen, Director of Legal Affairs for Cisco Systems. Laura leads Cisco’s legal affairs supporting Worldwide Human Resources and Work Place Resources for this global leader in technology. She joined Cisco from Women.com, where she served as Vice President. www.cisco.com

Ed Poll, President of LawBiz.com. Ed is a well-known coach and consultant to the law practice management sector. He has authored several ABA books on managing a law firm. www.lawbiz.com

Norm Rubenstein, Partner of the Zeughauser Group. Norm is the nation’s top law firm marketing consultant. Formerly Chief Marketing Officer with Orrick, Norm has led the profession in the use of law firm branding and marketing communications. He is former President of LMA, and was recognized in 2002 with the “Marketing Director of the Year” award. Norm speaks at many conferences on marketing topics, including the Marketing Directors Institute, Marketing Partner Forum and the Legal Marketing Association National Conference. www.zeughausergroup.com

Harry Trueheart, III, Managing Partner of Nixon Peabody, LLP. Harry has led Nixon Peabody, one of the fastest growing law firms, through several mergers throughout the country. Nixon now has more than 600 attorneys in 14 cities. Harry is a Fellow of the College of Law Practice Management. www.nixonpeabody.com

And me, Mark Beese. I am the Marketing Guy at Holland & Hart, LLP, a 285 -attorney firm with 12 offices throughout the Rocky Mountain West and Washington DC. www.hollandhart.com

Let’s get started:

Part 1: Branding

Mark Beese: Over the past few years, many firms have invested in "branding", advertising, additional marketing staff, professional salespeople, even competitive intelligence experts. What do you see law firms doing in the areas of "business development" or marketing that is particularly successful, cutting-edge or promising? What are some firms doing that are a complete waste of time?

Linda O’Connell: As a means of positioning a corporate law firm in the marketplace, basic techniques are being used effectively by firms of all sizes, from the mega national firms to boutiques and even 20 lawyer operations. Ads, media spots, sponsorships, seminars all help law firms, like the rest of the business community, become known by potential purchasers of their products and services. Depending on the prospective buyer, any of these tools can help achieve a strategic agenda.

In my mind, the key to success in marketing is differentiating one firm's capabilities from others. All of us say we do quality work, provide great service, and have the latest technological tools to enhance efficiency. This provides a real challenge for most midsize American law firms, precisely because most of us actually do provide quality legal work and responsiveness. In fact, I am struck by how many companies seem to truly appreciate the value proposition their savvy firms provide.

So, how does a firm differentiate itself? Innovative use of technology for e-communications, Extranets for sharing work product, websites that offer valuable information, and use of efficient trial preparation techniques are a few examples. But there is more. Helping a firm stand apart means filtering all marketing activity through the lens of clients' perspectives to determine how they look at issues, to discover what will help them resolve challenges. Effective ways to reach this goal are intake discussions that help manage expectations, regular how are we doing" meetings with major clients, a clear understanding of business challenges and industry issues. Another response is using strategic, high profile topic or industry initiatives. Transform practices into support of, say, the food and beverage industry OR a Sarbanes practice OR a petroleum group. Be innovative yet responsive to marketplace issues.

Bill Feid: Over the past year I have seen several firms do some very interesting and attention getting activities. Most firms issue electronic newsletters, which if done well, are an excellent tool to grab someone’s attention. The most effective newsletters are those that are limited to a single subject, such as the attention given to SOX or the recent 401k guidelines for plan compliance. Conversely, marketing pieces that try to communicate too much will not engage the reader or leave a positive impression. In fact, if there is no strong message, they often are discarded immediately. Well written marketing newsletters accomplish three objectives:

1. They provide relevant and timely information
2. They allow a firm to demonstrate its expertise on the related subject matter
3. They are extremely cost effective

From a business development perspective, the impact of such e-mail newsletters is two-fold. Specifically, they are an effective tool to attract new clients and to inform current clients to the additional services and expertise that is available to them. The latter is often overlooked as the easiest way to grow billable services.

Norm Rubenstein: Like Bill, I am intrigued by the ways in which technology is redefining the marketing process. And, I, too, have noticed how many law firms now are using email as a timely and more cost-effective distribution channel for their external communication materials. However, more unusual today is the way that a handful of truly marketing-savvy firms are designing the content and navigation of their second- or third-generation Web sites. Instead of the old product-push mentality that characterized all law firm marketing from the first firm brochures through the first legal Web sites, market leaders finally are crafting Web sites that organize content from the client's--and not the law firm's--perspective. In some cases, that includes a navigational system that organizes content by industry sectors instead of simply by areas of legal practice. Such an approach allows a visitor to "self-identify" and transport immediately to Web content responsive to their interests and needs. Any time a law firm can demonstrate that it thinks like its clients and appreciates their concerns; the message sent is exponentially richer.

Laura Owen: Regarding what firms are doing that is innovative and cutting edge - from my viewpoint, firms must embrace technology to even get a chance for a seat at the table. Email, blackberries, instant messaging are all fine, and to be honest, I'm always very happy when I visit a law firm's office and find Cisco IP telephony on their desks. But it's really much more than that. IP phones are just one indicia that the firm recognized the value of technology and the productivity gains and cost savings associated with making that investment.

I'm using the internet to drive productivity increases, reduce costs and improve the quality of legal services, so I need a law firm that understands the value of collaborative work rooms on a secure extranet, that can help suggest additional productivity gains by making changes in processes that involve internet tools (such as feeding FAQ's back to an internal website so that legal knowledge is reused as much as possible), and find ways for its own extranet or data base to work in concert with ours. It may very well be a mutual journey with outside counsel developing the right process, the right use of technology, or the right internet tool, but I have to make that journey and I only have time to work with firms who are willing to go that extra mile and commit to the value of the internet.

Darryl Cross: One thing I see that is very encouraging is integration of marketing efforts, and I do mean beyond a simple consistency of message and corporate ID. Firms are beginning to focus their efforts on specific industries or business issues and then trying to form beachheads by focusing a multitude of marketing resources (seminars, press releases, vertical Web sites, etc.) on key points in the market. Some examples of this are multi-disciplinary practices formed around homeland security issues, competing globally (especially how companies take on China), or the polymer industry. The willingness to have multiple practice areas combining efforts to solve not only legal issues, but also the underlying business problem, makes for a much more efficient, and focused, method of business development. Still, much work still needs to be done in helping increase the "intensity of user" which I define as a measure of total wallet share from EXISTING clients. Structured business development is new to many firms, and some firms are tending to lean towards capturing new clients in new markets, which is extremely expensive and time consuming.

Another key area is that more firms are coming to the realization that ROI calculation for some of these efforts does not neatly fall within a calendar year. In the past, I have seen many examples of firms whose approach one year is a total focus on PR, the next year on seminars, the next year on electronic newsletters, and so on. Integrated marketing and business development occurs over periods of years and does not end based on budget cycles. Savvy firms are becoming more holistic in their approaches and resisting the "bandwagon" approach of adopting the latest legal marketing fad.

Overall, attractive brands and name awareness does not generate new business from clients and prospects. No matter how cutting edge it might be, any marketing effort that does not have a formalized pipeline or funnel approach of how to turn those efforts into specific face-to-face encounters with specific buyers can be a waste of time and money.

Norm Rubenstein: I also am impressed by the level and degree of competitive intelligence gathering I see going on in law firms today. The strategic marketer appreciates that the more one knows about a client or prospect, the more likely one is to anticipate and respond to the client's needs. Now that Lexis-Nexis/Martindale/CourtLink, West, and a host of other information packing providers have made data readily available, no lawyer should have to pitch new business or respond to an RFP

Harry Trueheart: I hear repeatedly from GC's that fancy general brochures are a waste of time and money. We should listen. Institutional advertising has limited usefulness, except perhaps for firm internal morale. I do think that focused and professional "selling" is a developing trend -- by this I mean identifying client needs (not firm capabilities), identifying prospects with needs that match firm skills, and presenting those skills, or solutions to prospective clients. I believe "deal lists" and “case lists" and other sharply focused ways of describing competencies are useful to buyer and seller. I also believe that tracking developments in an industry or with a specific client or prospect, as a means of understanding and anticipating client or prospect needs, is a useful approach.

Bill Feid: I absolutely agree about the brochures -- I don't read them! Brochures should not be expected to generate new business, but they can be helpful for leaving another positive impression on the prospect. As Harry mentioned in his response, the key is listening and, I think, developing relationships. Excellent and right on.

Laura Owen: I like newsletters -- but in electronic form only -- don't ever send me anything on paper if you can avoid it. Even then, I'd really like firms to create newsletters that aren't generic. If a firm could tailor its news to its client’s needs rather than sending the same letter to all clients in a particular area, that firm would have a real edge. It would mean that the firm knows that client's issues and priorities and only pushes news to clients with an interest in that area. An easy example, I don't work with unions in this role, so don't send me cutting edge NLRB decision summaries. And then if the firm could push the specific news to a company's intranet on the right page rather than clutter up my email -- that's perfect. No one I know does this yet.

Seminars are helpful -- always should be free to clients and include MCLE credit. I like them as training for non-lawyers in particular on specific subjects.

Then as part of any fixed fee agreement, I require the firm to provide at least 3 in person on site sessions, which could be up to 1/2 day or just a over a brown bag lunch. Again, this is training mostly for my internal clients to help them make better business decisions and when to (and not to) call outside counsel or me re an issue.

Next month we will continue this roundtable as it addresses Client Service.