As featured in Bloomberg Law on May 6, 2022. In the early 2000s, a partner running a significant litigation department looked me squarely in the eye and said, “I’m a litigator. That means I don’t market. Once the client is done working with me, they want the whole litigation episode behind them.” At the time, I thought he might be…
On April 19, the IBA’s Law Firm Management Committee, with the support of the Women Lawyers’ Committee, produced the webinar, “The Secrets of Women Rainmakers – How to Become One and How to Create a Culture that Develops Them.” With more than 400 attendees calling in from around the world, the group discussed their own experience in developing business, their…
As featured on LinkedIn on April 28, 2022. In the last decades, I’ve often felt like a contractor. As a CMO and now as a consultant, I’ve built new marketing departments and helped renovate others. They’ve ranged from talented teams of five people to troops of more than 100. When asked what makes a marketing department successful, I see the…
A chapter by Deborah Farone from the book “Running Legal Like a Business: The Fundamentals of Legal Operations for Law Departments,” by Connie Brenton and Susan Raridon Lambreth. Imagine having the perfect role within a great legal department. Each day, you’re adding value and doing the work you love. The most innovative assignments seem to fall from the sky….
As featured in Forbes on Jan. 05, 2022. A few years ago, a CMO friend referred a talented young lawyer to me. The lawyer was on the precipice of great career success but wanted to improve her abilities by working with a marketing coach. I already had several law firm clients and looming deadlines, but like anyone who has trouble…
As featured in Bloomberg Law on Dec. 15, 2021. The start of the new year is when people try to commit to improving their mental and physical health by going to the gym, cutting back on social media, or curbing their consumption of carbohydrates. Yet when thinking about goals for 2022, lawyers may be best served by considering their marketing…
As featured in The Luxury Law Alliance News on October 29, 2021. Just as brands define luxury goods, they also define in-house counsel; Deborah Farone provides five personal branding tips for GCs to consider. Chanel: timeless luxury, a white camellia and gold buttons on a black blazer. Loro Piana: gorgeous fabrics and luscious cashmere from goat kids. Louis Vuitton: a…
As featured in Law.com on August 25, 2021. For the last several years, there is one recurring question lawyers have been asking me: “What is the secret behind rainmaking?” After having served two long-term tenures as a chief marketing officer, first for Debevoise & Plimpton and more recently for 14 years at Cravath, Swaine & Moore, I left to write…
A year into the pandemic, trends in legal marketing have become clear. Is your law firm keeping up? The following piece appeared on Above the Law in March 15, 2021. As an unprecedented year comes full circle, many businesses are taking the opportunity to reassess their business development strategies, tactics, and goals. For law firms, some trends have become…
As featured in “Forbes” on November 30, 2020. For the last two centuries, for most young lawyers, legal training in the United States has meant studying at law school and taking courses in civil procedure and constitutional law. What it hasn’t provided, until very recently, are lessons in how to operate a business, how to innovate or how to think…
