What do law firm leaders expect?

• Author: Roach, Betsi
• Position: LEADERS

Our "new normal" includes increasing pressures on law firms, with many in our industry continuing to see revenue generation and business development as key components in firm strategy. Marketers have responded by looking beyond traditional communication and branding tools to find new ways to help bring new business to the firm. Interestingly though, a recent BTI study commissioned by LMA and the Association of Legal Administrators (ALA) compared marketers' perspectives with those of 1,200 law firm leaders.

The good news is that this study confirmed LMA's own 2012 research, also performed by BTI, which showed marketing is growing in importance within law firms across the country. Unfortunately, administrators reported that they are not always getting what they want from their firm's marketing and business development efforts.

Administrators did agree with CMOs that new revenue is the most important outcome of marketing. However, there is a disconnect with marketers, who often focus on growth within existing clients and administrators' desire for additional referrals through marketing efforts. While this might make sense from a tactical perspective, this disconnect underscores the opportunity for increased dialogue between administrators and marketers to agree on marketing's overall strategic goals and areas of focus when working toward increased revenue.

Another area of discomfort is the importance of business development coaching and planning within the...