Expert on law firm marketing advises 'finding your brand'

By Elizabeth Jolliffe DMBA President Until I facilitated branding discussions at two recent events, I was skeptical whether ''brand'' is a relevant concept for lawyers or even for law firms. Compared to the word reputation as it relates to lawyers and law firms, brand seems an amorphous concept pushed by marketing consultants. Preparing for the discussions, however, persuaded me that the concept of a brand does have relevance and value for lawyers. Brand and branding have many different definitions. Put simply, a brand is the essence or promise of what will be delivered or experienced. Consistency Lawyers should have a personal brand in the sense that you should figure out what the consistent experiences and expectations are that people have with you as a lawyer and what you want them to be. Ideally you want them aligned. Lawyers do not need to have a personal brand in the sense of something you describe to someone else. You do not have to tell a prospective client your ''brand identity.'' For example, Nike does not say action, performance, excellence and success are its brand. But those words capture the essence of Nike athletic apparel and the image that Nike conveys in its marketing. By ensuring that its products live up to this image, Nike maintains its brand. The consumer knows what she will receive every single time she purchases a Nike product. Capture the Essence Like Nike, Apple, or McDonald's, consider what words capture the essence of you as a lawyer and the consistent experience you want people to have with you as their lawyer. Those words will not necessarily appear in your tag line, elevator speech, website biography or about the author notes. But self-reflection will better focus you on your strengths and core values as a lawyer, the services you offer, your reputation, image, style, real interests and fit with your best clients. The Compelling You With brand clarity you can create a more compelling website instead of using the same buzz words as every other law firm. You can revise your self-introduction to sound more like you. You can write a better personal business plan for 2012 or speak more confidently during your next evaluation. The clarity and focus will help because you will realize what you do really well, what is important to you, how you connect with your clients and colleagues and why they keep coming back to you. After you identify your brand, you can build brand awareness by raising your visibility and name recognition. Become known by your target market and potential referral sources for the consistency of the services and experiences you provide. Results Getting focused and clear on your brand helps you attract more business, advance professionally and have more control over your career. Regardless of whether you are in a firm, corporation, government or elsewhere, a new lawyer or an experienced one, identifying your brand is time well spent. The DMBA has worked hard to get focused and clear on what we offer. Through that process we developed the tag line ''Raising the Bar Through Networking, Practice Development and Community Service.'' We believe that by providing opportunities and value for our members consistent with this purpose, we are creating a more successful, closer knit legal community. Elizabeth Jolliffe is a certified career management and business development coach for lawyers. She practiced for 19 years as a business litigator and partner at Clark Hill PLC in Detroit. Elizabeth helps her clients take charge of their practice and career. Elizabeth@YourBenchmarkCoach.com. Published: Thu, Dec 15, 2011