Here’s a great New Year’s Resolution: kick off 2023 with a refresh – or maybe even a total makeover – of your law firm’s brand.
If you’ve never gotten around to branding your practice, now is the perfect time to start. And Alta Pro can show you how.
This post is Part 1 of Alta Pro’s five-part 2023 Law Firm Branding Checklist series. The series demonstrates how to showcase your firm’s strengths, tell its unique story, and stand out from the pack. It is designed especially for small practices with limited budgets and resources.
In this first installment, we’ll establish some basics about law firm branding – what it is, what it isn’t, and how to do it right.
Now more than ever, solo and small law firms need a distinctive and unique brand. Otherwise, they risk being swept away by the stormy seas of stiff competition, economic uncertainty and market disruption. Alta Pro is here to help. We created the 2023 Law Firm Branding Checklist to guide lawyers in solo and small firms through the step-by-step process of building a winning brand. The checklist and accompanying blogposts cover everything from choosing the right brand to marketing your brand effectively. Discover other ways Alta Pro Lawyers Risk Purchasing Group (RPG) can keep your practice safe and successful.
What is a Brand?
The following definition is from the American Marketing Association:
“A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that identifies one seller’s good or service as distinct from those of other sellers.”
Here’s a definition from CLIO that is more lawyer-specific:
- “An intangible collection of perceptions in a consumer’s mind about your legal service.”
- “A promise that is made to clients that then sets their expectations of you and your law firm.”
From these definitions, we see that law firm branding is a process, not an event. It includes your firm’s logo, color scheme and website. It informs your marketing strategy. It sets client expectations about the nature and quality of your legal services. And it requires intentionality and continuous effort, although it needn’t be expensive or time-consuming.
What a Brand is Not
A law firm brand is not just a snappy logo. It’s not a catchy firm name. It’s not trendy fonts or an expensive website. It is not really a “thing” at all.
Your brand is about perception, performance and emotions. It is a message to current clients that they were wise to choose you as their lawyer and that they’re in good hands. It’s a reminder to your team to always provide exemplary service. And it’s an implicit promise to prospective clients of what you can do for them.
How to Get Started
That’s the easy part. We’ve done much of the work for you. We’ve compiled risk management resources, best practices and key considerations, all of which went into the creation of this 2023 Law Firm Branding Checklist and accompanying series of blogposts.
Good luck, and good branding!
CLICK HERE FOR 2023 LAW FIRM BRANDING CHECKLIST, PART 2: Do a Self-Assessment
Do you practice in Wisconsin, Texas, Minnesota, Ohio, Illinois, Indiana or Michigan? Is your professional liability coverage managed through Alta Pro? If so, you’re automatically a member of the Alta Pro Risk Purchasing Group (RPG), which offers a wealth of benefits for your practice: free, cutting-edge CLE webinars featuring top experts tackling timely topics; the Pro Practice Playbook; the Pro Practice Blog; Reminger’s ProLink risk management assistance; Reminger’s Claim Repair Hotline; discounts on CLIO practice management software; tax savings on health insurance; and access to the Risk Pro, who can help keep your firm safe and successful. Register here and start enjoying your Alta Pro RPG benefits.