Larry Bodine Law Marketing Blog : Law firm marketing, legal editor, legal marketing, attorney marketing, business development, marketing consultant, legal consultant, business development

At LexisNexis' LegalTech New York 2013 panel, "Taming the Wild West of Social Media: The Secrets of Social Media Success in the Legal Profession," moderator Steve Mann (chief marketing officer of the Research & Litigation Solutions business at LexisNexis^®) set the tone for the session by walking attendees through some important demographic changes underway in the legal profession.

Here is a video clip from the panel discussion:

The Chicago chapter of the Legal Marketing Association presented a dozen "Your Honor" awards for excellence in marketing at a ceremony in a classy Loop restaurant recently.  Law firms were honored with an achievement award in the following categories:

• Advertising Campaign: Levenfeld Pearlstein LLC & Hunter Design – "Unusually Good"
• Identity: Davis & Kuelthau – "Positive Change"
• Promotional & Collateral Materials: Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP – "Demand Something Different"
• Promotional Gifts: Davis & Kuelthau – "Positive Change: Lockbox"
• Public Relations / Community Relations: Ice Miller LLP – "Indiana CEO Survey Project"
• Public Relations / Community Relations: Mayer Brown LLP – "Global Financial Markets Initiative Teleconference Series"
• Recruiting / Professional Development: Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP – "Demand Something Different"
• Sales / Business Development: Levenfeld Pearlstein LLP – Rate Freeze 2009
• Vendor Partner of the Year: Regis Marketing Group – for work with Davis & Kuelthau
• Web Sites and Other Electronic Media: Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP – Web site Redesign Project

This year, the  judges thought two entries stood out among the others in their categories. To reward the uniqueness and ingenuity of these entries, the judges created a special "Judges' Innovation Award." This category was not available for entry. The two winners in this category were:

• Baker & Daniels – "Baker & Daniels Takes Flight into Identity Launch"
• Valorem Law Group – "valoremlaw.com – The Billable Hour is Dead" - visit here to read a detailed account

The highlight of the evening was the newest inductee into the LMA Chicago Hall of Fame, Donna L.G. Shaft. Shaft has dedicated more than 20 years of her time to the legal marketing profession. She was one of the early presidents of LMA and LMA Chicago, and she served on our chapter board many, many times. Shaft is a frequent volunteer, most notably as chairperson for many committees on the local and international level. As a marketing services consultant, Shaft's client list is a who's who list of professional services firms.

If you’re going to create a brochure, it’s best if you make it distinctive.  My latest favorite is the Valorem law group’s brochure.  They show a clock (from their building in Chicago) shot through with bullet holes.  You open it up and it says, “we killed the billable hour.” 

Not only is it memorable and different but it expresses a powerful unique selling proposition.  It contains no lawyer bios or practice descriptions, and is designed to prompt readers to visit their website: www.valoremlaw.com.

I love their selling points inside the brochure:

• Every invoice contains a "Value Adjustment Line" where a client can mark up or down the firm's fee.  "If you don't believe the value we deliver is worth our proposed fee, you adjust the bill," the brochure says.
• A page that says "We listened. (Carefully). Client complaints: Hourly billing only. Annual rate increases. Unpredictable fees. Boiling the ocean to make a cup of tea."
• "We created a new business model: You define success, we achieve it, you know exactly what it will cost."
• A reprint of a letter to the firm, addressed to "Cool Law Firm."

They also show their sense of humor, saying, "We take our work seriously. Ourselves, not so much."  They have a picture of their boardroom, with "Bored Room" etched into the glass. There's a picture of a hallway sign that warns, "Beware of Brainstorms." And the fine print on the back says "In creating this brochure, no real clocks were injured or killed."

The brochure designer is Jon Heiniger in Chicago. For more info call Nicole Nehama Auerbach at 312.676.5469, Nicole.auerbach@valoremlaw.com