As featured in American Lawyer on July, 19, 2024. Read the article here.
Capuchin monkeys. Law firm marketing. Holding on to great people.
An editor recently asked me, “Why is it that legal marketers leave 🏃♀️ their firms?”
While there are several reasons, from lack of advancement to culture to compensation, there are several ways to value and retain your business development and marketing staff.
I’ve seen several law firms do this well.
I hope that the attached article, which I was asked to write for The American Lawyer, may provide food for thought.
Here are three essential elements.
1. Understand the challenges that come with marketing a law firm.
Imagine marketing a business similar to 100 other companies in a highly competitive market, where many of those in management don’t want to stand out by doing something different. In a recent post by @Lewis Grimm, a lawyer who is as great at business as he is at building relationships, he points out the merits of respecting your marketers. These are tough jobs in a challenging (yet wonderful) profession.
2. Training is essential.
Provide opportunities and budget for training for your marketers. Just like any other professional within your firm, they need to be informed about business, the economy, and the tools to do a great job. A little inspiration from an outside conference can mean a world of difference, and the benefits to your firm will be exponential.
3. Everyone wants to grow.
Advancement in a job is essential. It is vital to remember this, mainly when working with younger generations. Providing opportunities to learn and advance with new skills will benefit the firm.
It would be great to hear your thoughts on how to keep valuable employees from leaving. Oh, as for the capuchin monkey, the key to knowing what they can teach us is in the article.
