Law Firm is the legal entity that a person hires to represent them in a lawsuit or other dispute. Law firms may be small, with a single lawyer serving several clients at once, or large, with multiple lawyers and support staff. A law firm can also be an organization that specializes in particular types of cases or industries, such as bankruptcy, employment law, or family law.
Most law firms are structured as partnerships. Partners are joint owners and business directors of the legal operation. Non-partner associates are paid salaries and may receive benefits such as medical insurance, but have no ownership stake in the company. Aspiring associates must work on their professional brand to elevate themselves towards partnership track, a long process that can take up to 9 years at elite firms like Wachtell Lipton.
Achieving a high-quality attorney reputation can make a big difference in the amount of referrals and leads a law firm receives. The best way to do this is to be a leader and provide exceptional service to clients and other colleagues. In addition, focusing on a niche area of the law can help raise a lawyer’s profile within a law firm and accelerate their path to becoming a partner.
Reputation management software like Reviewtrackers and StatusBrew can collect and analyze client feedback, helping attorneys understand what their clients are saying about them online. By highlighting positive feedback and testimonials on a lawyer’s website, they can reinforce their expertise and trustworthiness to new and existing clients.
It’s important for law firms to be able to measure their brand awareness and perception levels, so they can track the impact of marketing activities and plan their next steps. The ‘Law Firm Reputation Matrix’ separates both of these dimensions into different levels, giving law firms a clear picture of their current position and enabling them to set milestones for future growth scenarios.
Using digital marketing strategies to reach the right clients and grow referrals is an essential component of a successful law firm. This means putting the feelers out, going outside of the mental cocoon of your firm and finding out where your (potential) target market meets, what keeps them up at night and who influences their decisions.
When establishing online presence, it’s also helpful to establish owned media assets – websites and email lists – that can be developed as standalone reputation management tools. As social media platforms and other external media sources can change their policies and algorithms, having your own channels gives you greater control over your law firm’s online reputation.