Within the pages of this magazine is a world of options. Myriad law firms and legal service companies showcase ideas that can help you better manage and run your departments. But other than advertising in our magazine, what else do these firms have in common? They all market themselves to their current and prospective clients.
How often do legal departments invest time and energy into marketing themselves to their clients? The answer is rarely. And that's a costly mistake.
Most CEOs view their legal departments as pure cost centers. They don't understand that without legal, the business would come to a screeching halt, and have no concept of the amount of work legal puts into protecting the company from hidden (and costly) dangers. And they don't understand how much effort it takes to ensure the company is compliant in this post-SOX era.
In fact, most companies still view the legal department as the corporate police force that is only needed when the company gets into trouble.
You can't blame CEOs for these misconceptions. Legal departments have done a miserable job of selling their successes to their clients. That has to change. And the first step in the process is developing a strategic marketing plan. The following are some of the fundamental steps you need to follow when developing such a plan:
Identify unique value propositions.
Everything the legal department does--from developing a proactive strategy with HR to deal with sexual harassment to identifying a long-term liabilities--protects the company in some fashion. You need to highlight and quantify those accomplishments to upper management.
Encourage communication.
You need to learn to tell stories. Most departments have tons of specific examples of how their involvement in a matter or project either saved the company millions of dollars or helped bring in millions in revenue. It is the GC's job to ensure that the legal department gets credit for those successes.
Create a capabilities brochure.
Most lawyers aren't natural salespeople and don't feel comfortable meeting with the company's leadership to showcase their accomplishments. A simple solution to this problem is to distribute an internal newsletter or brochure. For instance, last year we profiled the legal department at Tufts Associated Health Plans Inc. Each year the GC of that company publishes a guide to the legal department which provides contact information for all the lawyers on her staff, as well as their areas of expertise. It also lists the appropriate contact for any given legal matter. In addition, the brochure identifies the projects and significant matters that department will be working on for the coming year.
Find internal champions.
Every legal department has worked successfully with at least one business leader in the company. Most of those leaders are willing to explain how your department helped them on a project to other senior executives.
Reach out to the trade press.
This magazine is your magazine--use it to help showcase some of your successes. Each September we highlight in-house innovators in the CLT 10. Have you told us your story?
Good luck rolling out the program. And if you can't find the internal resources to support your legal department's strategic marketing plan, I know plenty of brand, marketing and communication experts and strategists that would jump at the chance to take on the challenge. Let me know what you think by e-mailing me at nat@cltmag.com.
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Nat Slavin is the publisher of Corporate Legal Times.