It’s time to move on. To look forward.
Many firms need to stop looking backwards at their Proud Traditions or long-dead founders’ historic accomplishments.
No client has ever said, “Oh, if I could only find a firm that’s been in continuous practice for at least 100 years, they’d get all my business.”
I always want to ask the lawyer who’s telling me that their firm has been in practice ~100 years whether they have 100 years of personal legal experience (because that lawyer would be very experienced!). If not, why should I care that the firm’s name or logo have been relatively unchanged since the 1920s or Civil War or whenever?
How does that help me win my case or close my deal? Stability is fine, but it’s rarely among clients’ actual decision-making issues.
Consider – How much do you care about what your accounting firm’s founders did in the 1920s or ’30s?
Would it make you much more likely to hire them? Probably not.
From my perspective, firms should stop focusing quite so much energy on what the firm did 25 or 50 or 150 years ago.
Tell me what you’ve done lately. And, more importantly, why it helps me accomplish my goals.
You can leverage your firm’s history in your marketing or brand.
But it can’t be backwards-looking. Connect to your past, but always look ahead.
Brunini
We designed this brand and website for 150-year-old Brunini, Mississippi’s largest, finest, and oldest firm, at a time when regional interlopers were moving into town. We wanted to show that Brunini understands the local legal market and has the size, experience, and connections to the local community that will benefit its clients.
Hawley Troxell
We also explored this idea for Hawley Troxell, Idaho’s largest and oldest law firm. They had some amazing historic photos of their founders, so we wanted to see if we could use them. We liked them, but they didn’t quite convey the brand message we wanted for the firm. They were great photos, though.
—————————-
Need a new brand or logo for your own firm?
Contact Ross now at: ross [at] fishmanmarketing.com or +1.847.921.7677.
Download a free copy of his best-selling strategy and branding book, “We’re Smart. We’re Old. And We’re the Best at Everything.” here or buy an actual book on Amazon here.
Do your lawyers need marketing training or a dynamic speaker at a firm retreat, either live or via webinar? Ross is one of the legal profession’s most-popular marketing and CLE presenters. Here’s a link to a video of Ross in action.
