Other Resources
- Managing Partner Summit: Business Development 2021
The Client Speaks: How We hire Outside Counsel
by Managing Partner Roundtable with Uri Gutfreund and John Remsen, Jr.A Webinar Originally Broadcast on May 12, 2021
A virtual conference for leaders of smaller and midsize law firms in New York and New Jersey. The entire program ran for three hours, with more than 50 managing partners and firm leaders participating. This is the on-demand recording of a 30-minute panel discussion we co-moderated with Uri at the end of the Summit featuring two in-house counsel and a corporate CEO. Among other things, we talked about how clients go about hiring and evaluating outside counsel. Here are my take-aways:- Generally, clients hire lawyers not law firms.
- When seeking a new lawyer, clients first turn to friends and colleagues with whom they have pre-existing relationships for recommendations. They use the internet to cross-check and further research.
- Rankings and directory listings do not impress sophisticated consumers of legal services.
Click here to hear the Webinar
Click here for Handout Materials - Motivating Young Lawyers to Market
by A Webinar presented by Legal Marketing Association,
Association of Legal Administrators, and Managing Partner ForumMotivating young lawyers to develop and maintain effective marketing and business development efforts proves challenging for many law firms. The skill sets are not taught in law school and the time involved is non-billable; yet business development skills and a book of business have become increasingly important to a successful and satisfying legal career. Listen in on this 60-minute webinar to learn the perspectives of our panel, which consisted of a managing partner, a firm administrator and two in-house marketing directors. They share what's working for them and their law firms.
Click here for Handout Materials. - Today’s Best Practices
in Law Firm Marketing and Business Development
by John Remsen, Jr.Despite the advent of social media and the Internet, we maintain that law remains a “people business.” By that, we mean that clients hire lawyers, not law firms. There are exceptions, of course, but generally we maintain that clients hire lawyers, and that they hire (and refer) lawyers they know, they like, and they trust. For lawyers and law firms, that means building and cultivating relationships and reputation among persons in a position to hire a lawyer with your interest and skills set. It means breaking bread and active participation in target-rich organizations, and that social media plays a supporting role. It’s not rocket science. You just have to get out there and do it. In the session, we discuss:
- Best Strategies to Keep Current Clients,
- Best Strategies to Attract New Clients, and
- The Seismic Shift in How Law Firms are Reallocating their Marketing Resources.
Click here for Handout Materials.
- Marketing and Business Development:
The Managing Partner’s Perspective
by Legal Marketing Association, in affiliation with The Managing Partner ForumAccording to recent MPF surveys, marketing and business development are top of mind among managing partners of smaller and mid-size law firms. More and more firms are hiring in-house marketing professionals, increasing their marketing and business development budgets, and shifting resources toward business development, including sales training for lawyers young and old.
In this fast-paced webinar we presented for the Legal Marketing Association, we discussed with three managing partners their insights and perspectives on law marketing and business development. We’d like to extend a very special thanks to our panel:
James A. Dressman, III, Esq.
Managing Partner, Dressman Benzinger LaVelle
Francis H. Sheppard, Esq.
Managing Partner; Rumberger, Kirk & Caldwell
Raymond J. Werner, Esq.
Past Managing Partner, Arnstein & Lehr
Click here for the Webinar.
Click here for Handout Materials. - Listings, Ranking and Directories:
How to Make Sense of It All and Achieve Maximum Return on Objective
by John Remsen, Jr.The number of law firm rankings and directories has exploded in recent years to more than 1,100 according to Jaffe. Which ones are best for your firm? What policies (if any) are in place to ensure that your firm is achieving maximum ROO when it comes to its investment of time and money in rankings and directory listings? We recently presented a session for the Legal Marketing Association during which this topic was discussed among some folks in the know. Our panel included:
Vivian Hood
President-Public Relations, Jaffe
Arielle Lapiano
Director of Public Relations, Paul Hastings
Laura Mills
Editor, Chambers USA
Elizabeth Petit
Managing Editor & Director of Research & Development, Best Lawyers
Many answers to the questions above can be found in the handout materials we prepared for this interesting and provocative program. Also, check out Jaffe’s website for some great guidance. - LegalMarketingBlog.com
by Tom Kane, Kane ConsultingTom’s blog is consistently ranked as one of the leading blogs by many about law firm marketing, so there’s a reason why it ranks at the top of list when one does a Google search on the topic. It’s packed full of great guidance and the latest information about law firm marketing and business development. He started the blog in 2005 and updates it about once a week. These days, Tom spends the majority of his time providing one-on-one business development coaching (by telephone throughout the U.S. and overseas) with lawyers in all size law firms.
- How to Maximize Your Law Firm's Marketing ROI
by John Remsen, Jr.Law firm marketing has come a long way in 25 years, and firms are starting to figure out what works and what doesn’t. In the early days, it was mostly about brochures, sponsorships and advertising. More recently, however, smart firms have shifted the way they allocate their marketing and business development resources. And the action is with business development.
A few facts to consider:- Client hire lawyers, not law firms.
- Clients hire and refer lawyers they know, like and trust.
- For most commercial firms, 80% of next year’s business will come from current clients.
- It takes 5-7 times more time and effort to generate a matter from a new client than from an existing client.
- Business Development Thought for the Day
by Tom Arceneaux, Esq.My good friend Tom Arceneaux is the Partner-in-Charge of Business Development of Blanchard Walker, a 25-lawyer firm based in Shreveport, Louisiana. Every morning, he distributes a "Business Development Thought for the Day" and he's been doing it for over a year. It began as an internal newsletter to help motivate lawyers at his firm to get out and market. Others outside the firm learned about it and today, he has more than 500 lawyers on his distribution list. I've enjoyed reading his practical and inspirational advice, and Tom is kind enough to invite our readers to join his list. Tom's firm is a member of the Meritas network.
Click here to subscribe. - LawMarketing Portal
by Larry BodineThis is a helpful portal addressing all aspects of law firm marketing. Operated by Larry Bodine, an expert in law marketing, the portal includes news on events and resources, and hosts the LawMarketing Listserv. In the Law Marketing Blog, he regularly posts tips on marketing and client development.
- Legal Marketing Association
Founded in 1985 and with over 2,500 members, LMA is dedicated to serving the needs and maintaining the professional standards of those involved in marketing within the legal profession. 93% of the NLJ's top 250 firms are represented in the organization. Our CEO, John Remsen, Jr. has served on its national Board of Directors and was Executive Editor its monthly newsletter called Strategies: The Journal of Legal Marketing.
- Law Marketing Bibliography
by David M. FreedmanThis is a terrific Web site maintained by David Freedman, a public relations consultant based in Highland Park, IL. It accurately and objectively reviews over two dozen of the top books on marketing and business development for lawyers and law firm marketing professionals.