For decades, law firm marketing departments have been split into two functions: business development and communications. However, as companies become more marketing savvy, they have come to realize that these two areas of expertise are not mutually exclusive. As HC found in its study with BTI, winning business oftentimes means getting your name in front of General Counsel through a variety of communications vehicles.
In an upcoming article by John Hellerman about the relationship between inside and outside counsel, several GCs noted that they are more likely to hire attorneys who publish in industry journals or speak at industry events over attorneys whom they have never heard of before. They see it as a matter of expertise—if an attorney presents (and communicates through publishing, speaking, third-party commentary, etc.) a specific skill that the GC is looking for, the attorney is likely to win that business.
If this is the case, then what should the business development cycle look like? It’s simpler than you might imagine. Let’s take a case study of a recent matter handled by HC.
Winning business oftentimes means getting your name in front of General Counsel through a variety of communications vehicles.
1) Identify the Target Clients
An AmLaw 100 firm asked HC to meet with one of its litigation partners to discuss PR opportunities. Instead of just discussing run-of-the mill opportunities that could be presented to any attorney, HC asked the partner what his target industry was and who in that industry were target clients. The list provided HC with enough background to launch a comprehensive business development and communications campaign.
2) Research Target Clients
Having the target industry and clients in hand, HC created in-depth briefing books on each of the companies and their in-house counsel staff. We also created briefing books of companies that were not listed as targets but fit within the same demographic. These briefing books included biographies of in-house counsel staff, recent litigation numbers, and company overviews. Most importantly, they included information on organizations in which in-house counsel were members. By gathering this information, HC was able to determine that many prospective GCs were members of the same organization, so that became a target group.
3) Develop Organization-Specific Pitches
After having identified an organization to go after, HC worked with the partner to come up with four to five specific topics on which he could be positioned for speaking engagements, bylines, or third party commentary. These were issues that had not previously been discussed in the organization’s past events or newsletters but were relevant and timely to the industry that the organization served.
4) Implement and Secure
With topics in hand, HC was able to reach out to the industry association and its local chapters and pitch the partner for speaking, byline, and third party commentary opportunities. As a result, the partner received numerous opportunities which will get him in front of the GCs he is targeting.