When starting a new law firm, it’s not enough to be a good attorney. You also need to brand your business in order to properly market yourself and separate from the competition as soon as possible. There are many critical factors that go into branding your law firm.
You need to make sure your brand is memorable, easy to share with potential clients, and reflects your unique style. And while successful branding usually requires an expert’s help, there are some important pieces of advice that can help you with the process.
#1. Have A Well Designed Website
Most people go online when they’re first looking for any kind of service, so having an appealing website is essential. As the people from Connective put it, your website is the face of your law firm-the first impression clients will have of it.
As such, you need to make sure your site tells people exactly what kind of services you offer. Remember that potential clients are likely to look for lawyers in their area, so be sure that you have a location-based search function.
In addition to that, be sure to include the most important information on your home page so that you don’t confuse or overwhelm visitors. A well-designed website will be fast to load, easy to navigate, and will offer a lot of information about your law firm.
And, at the top of your page, be sure to include your company’s name and logo. This will give you a professional image and will help people remember your brand.
#2. Have A Memorable Logo
Your logo is the most important part of branding yourself, as it will represent your law firm everywhere you go. Of course, before deciding on a logo, there are some key things to consider. For starters, you need to determine what you want the personality of your brand to be.
Do you want to set an image of an empathetic law firm that puts people first and understands the problems they’re going through on a personal level, or something that says you’re a big company with a lot of resources?
Once you decide on that, your next step is choosing the type of logo you prefer – pictorial, watermark, abstract, etc., and then you can pick the font and colors as well.
Keep in mind that logos don’t need to be overly complicated, but they do need to be easily recognized by clients. It might be a good idea to take a look at what your main competitors are doing on that front and see what you can learn from them as well.
#3. Marketing Campaigns
Another important factor that will really help you shape your brand is a well-thought-out marketing campaign. You can achieve that by making sure you have a plan from the very beginning. What kind of target audience will you be going after? How can you reach those people?
In addition to that, how do your competitors market themselves, and what makes them stand out from their competition? You should consider surveys as well as interviews to find answers to these questions. Once you’ve figured that out, it’s time to create a plan.
You need to decide on the kinds of marketing you want to keep doing, as well as those that will be less effective. Do you think spending money on billboards is worth it? Or would your time and resources be better spent elsewhere?
Remember that you need to know exactly what kind of clientele you’re looking for, and then you can tailor your marketing to them. Of course, when it comes to branding – you need to ensure all of your marketing efforts are consistent and reflect the same brand.
#4. Stay Consistent
The big thing about branding is making your firm stand out as a one-of-a-kind – and you do that through different visual cues. The colors you choose, your logo, slogan – everything that’s a tangible part of your brand needs to stay consistent through everything you do.
The nice thing is if you did your homework earlier on – this should be easy. A good way to accomplish it is by making sure all of your marketing materials are put through a final assessment before getting out there in the real world.
However, apart from the visual aspects, you want to ensure that the tone of your marketing materials is in line with your brand image as well.
For example, if you’re building your image as a law firm that cares deeply about workers’ rights, then you need to ensure you don’t make public statements that will make it seem like you support big corporations.
On the other hand, if you do want to be the law firm representing those corporations, your marketing materials probably shouldn’t touch up on unions or other words that are closely associated with workers’ rights.
#5. Mission Statement
Every brand needs a mission statement in order to really excel – and more importantly, it’s something that will help you shape the rest of your brand.
A good mission statement should show exactly what kind of clientele you’re looking for, how they can expect to be treated by you and other lawyers in the firm, and ensure that there’s a clear message between product and marketing.
By doing so, you can easily determine if certain materials are in line with what your law firm stands for. Of course, the best mission statement is always the most authentic one. It shouldn’t attempt to please everyone, and it shouldn’t be too broad – this is why knowing your target audience is so important.
While a mission statement shouldn’t be made in an attempt to exclude someone, you need to ensure it’s strong enough to attract exactly the type of clientele you’re looking for.
A strong brand identity is one of the most important things in business, and it’s also one that can help your law firm to stand out among its competitors in the long run.
From building a great website to creating a strong mission statement – building a brand is about creating a story and giving your clients and potential clients a comprehensive idea of the kind of firm you are.
It’s about helping them build trust in you as an attorney, and it all starts with building a solid strategy from the very beginning.
Comments are closed.