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Law Firm Marketing Brief
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:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/1024px-Troisordres-59da2c7d9abed5001061fbfb.jpg) - Beyond the Tipping Point. The must read for this week starts with the 2021 Georgetown Report on the Legal Market - download your copy here if you haven't already done so. It's an excellent summary of the changes we've all seen unfolding over the course of last year - how law firms have scrambled to adjust to the seismic shift in market conditions brought about by the pandemic. The fact that profits per equity partner managed to soar to new heights really only obscures the cumulative significance of the changes. It reminds me of the dynamic of the ancien regime in France before the outbreak of the Revolution - how the old aristocracy struggled to hold onto its riches and prerogatives in the face of continually mounting pressure for meaningful social change. The Georgetown Report says the market may be approaching a tipping point, which in hindsight may turn out to be a genteel way of describing the revolutionary changes that lie ahead.
- Will the Band Play On? The Georgetown Report highlights a number of ways that law firm partners managed to plump their equity returns in 2020 even in face of such market turmoil, much of which is not likely to be replicable this year. For instance, 59% of all law firms received government assistance last year to help stay afloat, a source of "free financing" which is not likely to be forthcoming this year. Profits per partner also rose due to staffing adjustments, with most firms deleveraging and reducing associate headcount, shifting workload to partners instead. But this is a trend that has also likely run its course, at least according to BTI Consulting, since a majority of clients now want to increase associate staffing on their matters, in order to better manage their costs. Most notable is how dramatically law firms slashed their overhead, with the largest reductions coming in spending on marketing and business development, which fell by a whopping 44%, and recruitment, which fell by 40%. I find it particularly hard to imagine the BigLaw business model as sustainable without client entertainment and recruitment lunches!
- More Amazon, Less Cartier. Perhaps the most significant data point in the Georgetown Report is the notable jump in corporate law departments that now have dedicated legal operations staff -- with 81% of all law departments having made this move, a jump of more than 24% in the last year. This is a trend that has swept well beyond the ranks of the Fortune 500 to include law departments of all shapes and sizes. This is the real transformation in the legal marketplace - the transformation in how legal services are delivered, monitored and measured by new technology and the increasing client expectation for efficient service delivery.This is the focus of this week's blogpost from Adam Smith, Esq., which explores the various options for law firms in how they respond to the challenge of adapting to the new technology-driven landscape. More Amazon and less Cartier is the pithy way they sum up the issue facing law firm management. However law firms respond, it's clear their New Law competitors are wasting no time in raising the bar, doing more for client by enhancing their service offerings, and relentlessly continuing toupgrade their technology.
- Pricing and Project Management Survey. With the growing importance of legal ops and project management to both law firms and corporate law departments, the Legal Value Network and the Blickstein Group have released their inaugural survey of Legal Pricing and Law Practice Management, which you can download here. It's certainly a timely report although perhaps not altogether surprising that the survey identifies "opportunities for better alignment between law firms and their clients" on both scores. Much as pricing professionals on both sides of the market may try to align their interests, there is only so far that such efforts can go. With the best technology in the world, it's hard to imagine legal pricing will ever be frictionless!
- Let's Hear It For Corporate Citizenship. Speaking of sustainability, more firms continue to jump on the ESG bandwagon, most notably a new boutique practice launched by Ben McQuhae, a former Jones Day partner in Hong Kong, which vows to choose the work it will and won't do based on the UN's sustainable development goals. McQuhae has further vowed the firm will be one of the first net-zero carbon law firms! Not to miss out on the sustainability marketing craze, Seyfarth has also announced the launch of its new ESG, Corporate Citizenship and Human Rights practice group. I guess that makes it official -- union busting is out and good corporate citizenship is in!
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PinHawk Microsites
- Creating a Client Advisory Board for Your Law Firm, Silvia Coulter - LawVision
- Who Makes the Best Practice Group Leaders?, Susan Lambreth - LawVision
- Law Firm Sales: 2021 is the Year of the Sales Team, Silvia Coulter - LawVision
Legal Business in Brief
- K&L Gates secures 18 partners from four firms to open in Nashville, Global Legal Post: Big Stories, February 5, 2021
- Clients Do Quick About Face: Want to See More Associates, The Mad Clientist: BTI's Blog, February 3, 2021
- US firm Armstrong Teasdale acquires London's Kerman & Co in first overseas venture, Global Legal Post: Big Stories, February 9, 2021
Innovation
- KPMG reveals alliance with legaltech startup SirionLabs to boost contract offering, Global Legal Post: Big Stories, February 3, 2021
- Legaltech Week 2021.02.05 – Legalweek Post-Mortem, Plus the Panelists’ Top Stories, Robert Ambrogi's LawSites, February 7, 2021
- Real estate roundtable discusses agile working and role of technology, Legal Futures, February 5, 2021
Tips, pointers and presentations
- How to Hire a Paralegal: A Complete Guide, Clio Blog, February 3, 2021
- How to Be Funny at Work, Harvard Business Review, February 5, 2021
- 10 Tips to Improve Law Firm Profitability, Clio Blog, February 9, 2021
- How to Find Meaning When Your Job Feels Meaningless, Harvard Business Review, February 3, 2021
- Overcome Clutter and Hoarding in the Office: Advice from the Expert, Attorney at Work, February 9, 2021
- The Most Pressing People Questions Facing Companies Today, Harvard Business Review, February 9, 2021
Portable Business
- Weil celebrates hire of 'superb' Slaughter and May corporate partner, Global Legal Post: Big Stories, February 6, 2021
- Hogan Lovells bolsters London M&A and disputes practices with five-partner hiring spree, Global Legal Post: Big Stories, February 5, 2021
- Simpson Thacher makes double partner hire in European restructuring push, Global Legal Post: Big Stories, February 4, 2021
Law Firm Memos
- Fisher Phillips Survey Finds Majority of Employers Choosing Not to Mandate COVID-19 Vaccine, Fisher & Philips, February 3, 2021
- Most companies avoiding mandatory Covid-19 vaccinations, Littler survey finds, Global Legal Post: Big Stories, February 9, 2021
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Legal Marketing
- Lawyers, Tech + the Means of Legal Production, Artificial Lawyer, February 8, 2021
- Changing World, Changing Role – The Rise of the Tech-Savvy Marketer (Part 1 – Junior Marketers), ILTA KM Blog, February 5, 2021
- How Much M&A in 2021? - That's Lucrative Business for Law Firms, Law and More, February 3, 2021
Digital Marketing
- 10 Marketing Technologies That Should Be On Your Radar in 2021, The PR 20/20 Blog, February 7, 2021
- How to Get the Most Out of Strategic Messaging, Emotive Brand, February 4, 2021
- How to Build Momentum, Conversation Agent - Valeria Maltoni, February 3, 2021
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Companies and Products in the News
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Upcoming Conferences and Events
- Southern Environmental Law Center, Charlottesville, VA - Communications Manager ($65k to 80k), Law and More, February 8, 2021
Podcasts and Webinars
- Atlassian: Mike Cannon-Brookes and Scott Farquhar, NPR Podcast Directory, February 8, 2021
- How I Built Resilience: M. Night Shyamalan, NPR Podcast Directory, February 4, 2021
- Patreon: Jack Conte and Sam Yam, NPR Podcast Directory, February 8, 2021
- The Introvert’s Systematic Guide to Networking, Duct Tape Marketing, February 3, 2021
- What’s Happening With AI Right Now, Duct Tape Marketing, February 9, 2021
Vendor Updates
- Podcasting for Law Firms: Tools and Tips for Producing a Successful Show, Good2BSocial, February 5, 2021
- How to use RFM segments to supercharge Win-back Campaigns, Pure360, February 5, 2021
- 4 Benefits of using call tracking numbers to place outbound calls in Lead Center, CallRail Blog, February 5, 2021
Marketing and Editorial Jobs
- 2 Business Development Coordinators: Corporate or Dispute Resolution, For the New York Office of an International Law Firm, February 5, 2021
- BD Manager, For the New York Office of a Wall Street Law Firm, February 4, 2021
- Law Firm, D.C. - Marketing Associate (full-time), Law and More, February 5, 2021
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_____________ The Law Firm Marketing Brief is the newest addition to the Pinhawk family of newsletters for the legal market. As the pace of competition and innovation in the legal market continues to accelerate, marketing issues are now front and center in shaping the future of the profession. This newsletter is designed to serve the needs of marketing professionals in law firms of all sizes, as well as practicing lawyers who are actively involved in marketing and business development initiatives, by providing a weekly briefing on the marketing ideas and trends that are driving the transformation of the legal industry. Joe Lamport, Editor.
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Joe is a former practicing lawyer who has been a pioneer in the field of digital marketing for lawyers. He is the founder of the marketing consultancy, The Practice Platform. Free Subscription
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