No matter the industry in which you participate, there will be plenty of competition for the attention of clients and customers. In the legal field, this is especially true, and many lawyers stress the experience, skills, and expertise that clients will receive when they invest in the legal services of that law firm. Standing out among the legal crowd can be a challenge, so many are turning to business development methods to increase the reach of a law firm.
One such type of business development effort is thought leadership. Suppose the attorneys of a law firm can position themselves as particularly important experts through thought leadership. In that case, they have a better chance of showing clients why their law firm is the right choice for their legal concerns. As an attorney in your specific field – personal injury, divorce, family law, criminal defense, business, estate law, or any other practice area – you likely have a good amount of competition.
Without participating in thought leadership content efforts for marketing your legal services, you will simply be waiting to be chosen by a prospective client who may already be stressed out about making that decision.
When you become active in thought leadership marketing for lawyers, you can rest assured that you have a much better chance of standing out among the legal crowd and acquiring the clients you need before the competing law firms.
What Is Thought Leadership for Law Firms?
The first thing to understand is exactly what thought leadership marketing is and its relation to the legal field. As an attorney, you worked long and hard to gain insight and understanding of your legal area. What you may not have gotten to be an expert in is business development. When you participate in thought leadership, you are choosing to share your expertise and working to educate potential clients as well as other lawyers in your field who would benefit from real-world thought leadership content.
As a thought leader, you have become fully immersed in a specific legal practice area and have discerned certain content that clients and other attorneys may need to learn more about. You can create that thought leadership marketing and content marketing with your expertise and share it widely through blogs, articles, white papers, podcasts, videos, webinars, and remote presentations. Social media marketing experts and legal marketers can work together to ensure that your business development efforts as thought leaders are shared with anyone who may benefit.
The Benefits of Thought Leadership Marketing for Law Firms
The benefits for attorneys and their law firms can vary depending on what is most important to them regarding the outcomes of thought leadership articles and posts. For some, the benefits of thought leadership marketing are tied to business development goals. For instance, generating leads for your firm and building awareness of your brand in the larger geographical region as a thought leader (for example, a “Steps to Take When You Get Arrested” post for a criminal law firm). Various posts will help you get those leads and brand awareness if you continue to publish them regularly.
Other lawyers looking to take on thought leader roles will use thought leadership marketing efforts to get recognition as an expert in a particular legal area or for a certain legal issue or to get published in one of your industry’s trade magazines or important publications. As a thought leader, you will be recognized and relied upon as the go-to for specific inquiries when you craft content appropriate for your audience.
No matter the reason for your firm’s desire to increase business development through thought leadership marketing, it is important to remember that the benefits for law firms only manifest if the right audience of would-be clients is getting to see your posts and needs the information you are providing. Keep your law firm’s target market in mind as you develop pieces and work through your thought leadership marketing content. Suppose you are answering legal questions about issues related directly to the prospective clients. In that case, those posts are sure to generate awareness for you and get the attention of new business.
How Can My Website Position My Law Firm as a Thought Leader in the Legal Field?
Your website is one of the most direct and clear ways to communicate to your would-be clients as they search for attorneys in their area who practice the type of law for which they need an expert. That being said, your website should be an extension of you and your legal practice. If the attorneys at your firm want to be considered experts and thought leaders in their respective areas, the website needs to demonstrate that very clearly.
It is not simply a matter of saying that you are a thought leader and allowing the new business to roll on in merely. Rather, people want to be shown what thought leaders do, how they can be effective with their legal problems, and why they should trust your firm over any others. Thought leadership marketing content on your website is the best way to make this illustration clear.
If you regularly post articles, blogs, webinars, white papers, tutorials, and other types of thought leadership content on your website, it will soon be clear that you are the expert on the topic. With so much great thought leadership content, your website will be able to move up in the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs) for keywords related to your specialty.
Contact Our Thought Leadership Specialist
Suppose your law firm is looking to invest in thought leadership efforts to build your clientele list and become the go-to firm for a legal specialty. In that case, Wow Factor Websites can help to position your firm as an expert by assisting you with evolving and creative thought leadership efforts. Most lawyers already have a wealth of knowledge to call upon, so it makes sense to put that wisdom to good use at the same time. Sharing insights on a unique point in your legal field and building trust in your audience is the start of your thought leadership efforts, and the blog post, article, white paper, or another content piece will not go unnoticed by your ideal clients.
Contact Wow Factor Websites today to find out about the new business opportunities that can be created for your law firm as you share insights and engage more deeply with your ideal clients through your legal writing. Thought leadership marketing is critical if you are a lawyer looking to have your practice stand out in an overwhelmed industry.
