Page 43 - MASTER COPY LEADERS BOOK 9editedJKK (24)_Neat
P. 43
Leaders in Legal Business
Marketing is often described as brand-building efforts like article writing, speaking, attending
conferences, running firm seminars, public relations/marketing communications, website management, and other
related activities that help raise visibility in the marketplace or support those efforts to do so. Marketing research
is another important area. Conducting research to help identify potential opportunities is a wise investment before
spending unnecessary dollars in branding a firm. These activities support business development and sales efforts.
We sometimes describe sales as “one to one” and marketing as “one to many.” These three terms — sales,
marketing, and business development — are used interchangeably, often because there is confusion among the
legal professionals about the various activities, and also because the word “sales” can be seen as a very negative
word among lawyers. Most of the law firms’ clients have sales teams, and all firms have one or more rainmakers.
These people help to drive revenue and to bring new business to their firms, performing in the same manner as
salespeople in the business world.
An example of how these activities all connect is as follows: A lawyer writing an article or giving a
speech (marketing activities) may continue to leverage the article or the presentation in a number of ways that
expand their marketing use, including linking the article or presentation to the firm’s website, adding them to
one’s LinkedIn profile, and/or sending the article or presentation to other lawyers in the firm to share with their
clients and contacts. An article may be used to generate interest in one’s services through a more direct approach
— in other words, as a sales tool. Reaching out to a prospective client with information about a current trend,
regulatory change, or creative approach to a project is a sales outreach and offers one the opportunity to connect
directly with an individual to discuss their business goals and, therefore, anticipated legal needs. These marketing
activities give lawyers the opportunity to use the time invested in preparing an article or speech and turn it into a
sales opportunity.
To summarize, directly driving revenue is selling; maintaining and growing relationships (or supporting
those who do) is business development. Both are necessary to sustain a firm. Both have value and should be
recognized.
For assistance with the next step — turning a contact into a client — more firms are hiring business
professionals to help out.
A more recent development in the legal industry is the use of highly skilled sales professionals who are
adept at helping others with sales strategy and planning. Often called “coaches,” these individuals will assist
lawyers to be more effective at building a book of business, developing a strategy to win a specific client
engagement, or improving upon their existing business development efforts. Research conducted by Thomson
Reuters/West shows that in 2012 about 4 percent of the reporting firms had structurally distinct sales departments
from their marketing departments. In 2015 that number jumped to 14 percent of reporting firms. With titles like
director of sales, business development officer, and client relationship executive, these individuals are helping
lawyers to sharpen their sales skills and therefore their “win” rates to build new business opportunities for their
firms. While controversial for some firms, others — again, some of the Leader firms — are embracing these
individuals, and see their expertise and experience as an essential element of their firm’s client retention, client
growth, and new business strategy. In some cases these individuals act as internal sales coaches or partner with
outside resources to provide the needed coaching support if demand is high. Emphasis is placed on helping
facilitate the sales process, including where someone may be along the spectrum of the sales process and
developing sales forecasts that predict with some accuracy where the business and associated revenue will come
from. The sales professionals’ popularity is growing, and many of them are partnering with outside sales coaches.
There are many individuals offering up their services as sales coaches. The individuals who have actual
sales experience, with a proven track record and a history of working with lawyers in this capacity, will be the
most effective at coaching. This is especially true when it comes to helping rainmakers grow their books of
business. While many say they are good at coaching, few possess the necessary selling skills and prowess to help
the top rainmakers increase their books of business. Of course, those are not the only individuals who coaches
coach. Scaling a coaching program to a specific individual’s needs is what a good coach will do best. Just as some
of the best athletes in the world have coaches to help them refine their performance, the same is true of lawyers
and their coaches.
36
Marketing is often described as brand-building efforts like article writing, speaking, attending
conferences, running firm seminars, public relations/marketing communications, website management, and other
related activities that help raise visibility in the marketplace or support those efforts to do so. Marketing research
is another important area. Conducting research to help identify potential opportunities is a wise investment before
spending unnecessary dollars in branding a firm. These activities support business development and sales efforts.
We sometimes describe sales as “one to one” and marketing as “one to many.” These three terms — sales,
marketing, and business development — are used interchangeably, often because there is confusion among the
legal professionals about the various activities, and also because the word “sales” can be seen as a very negative
word among lawyers. Most of the law firms’ clients have sales teams, and all firms have one or more rainmakers.
These people help to drive revenue and to bring new business to their firms, performing in the same manner as
salespeople in the business world.
An example of how these activities all connect is as follows: A lawyer writing an article or giving a
speech (marketing activities) may continue to leverage the article or the presentation in a number of ways that
expand their marketing use, including linking the article or presentation to the firm’s website, adding them to
one’s LinkedIn profile, and/or sending the article or presentation to other lawyers in the firm to share with their
clients and contacts. An article may be used to generate interest in one’s services through a more direct approach
— in other words, as a sales tool. Reaching out to a prospective client with information about a current trend,
regulatory change, or creative approach to a project is a sales outreach and offers one the opportunity to connect
directly with an individual to discuss their business goals and, therefore, anticipated legal needs. These marketing
activities give lawyers the opportunity to use the time invested in preparing an article or speech and turn it into a
sales opportunity.
To summarize, directly driving revenue is selling; maintaining and growing relationships (or supporting
those who do) is business development. Both are necessary to sustain a firm. Both have value and should be
recognized.
For assistance with the next step — turning a contact into a client — more firms are hiring business
professionals to help out.
A more recent development in the legal industry is the use of highly skilled sales professionals who are
adept at helping others with sales strategy and planning. Often called “coaches,” these individuals will assist
lawyers to be more effective at building a book of business, developing a strategy to win a specific client
engagement, or improving upon their existing business development efforts. Research conducted by Thomson
Reuters/West shows that in 2012 about 4 percent of the reporting firms had structurally distinct sales departments
from their marketing departments. In 2015 that number jumped to 14 percent of reporting firms. With titles like
director of sales, business development officer, and client relationship executive, these individuals are helping
lawyers to sharpen their sales skills and therefore their “win” rates to build new business opportunities for their
firms. While controversial for some firms, others — again, some of the Leader firms — are embracing these
individuals, and see their expertise and experience as an essential element of their firm’s client retention, client
growth, and new business strategy. In some cases these individuals act as internal sales coaches or partner with
outside resources to provide the needed coaching support if demand is high. Emphasis is placed on helping
facilitate the sales process, including where someone may be along the spectrum of the sales process and
developing sales forecasts that predict with some accuracy where the business and associated revenue will come
from. The sales professionals’ popularity is growing, and many of them are partnering with outside sales coaches.
There are many individuals offering up their services as sales coaches. The individuals who have actual
sales experience, with a proven track record and a history of working with lawyers in this capacity, will be the
most effective at coaching. This is especially true when it comes to helping rainmakers grow their books of
business. While many say they are good at coaching, few possess the necessary selling skills and prowess to help
the top rainmakers increase their books of business. Of course, those are not the only individuals who coaches
coach. Scaling a coaching program to a specific individual’s needs is what a good coach will do best. Just as some
of the best athletes in the world have coaches to help them refine their performance, the same is true of lawyers
and their coaches.
36
