The true scope of Legal Marketing and those who practice it

Legal marketing is much more than a label or a set of isolated tactics. It is a specialisation within the legal industry that combines marketing expertise with a deep understanding of the legal sector.

Like any professional discipline, it has its own branches and levels of complexity that are tailored to the particular needs of each firm.

Within legal marketing, there is a vast spectrum of roles ranging from lawyers with a marketing background to marketers, advertisers, public relations and journalists.

This specialised discipline has evolved and continues to gain relevance for its ability to support the growth, visibility and sustainability of law firms, often in collaboration with other key departments within the firm.

Legal marketing is much more than a mere appendage of traditional marketing; it is itself a specialisation in a very particular industry.

As in other professions, there are different branches within marketing, especially in the service sector where legal marketing is found.

Thus, specialisations have been developed in areas such as B2B Marketing, Experience Marketing, Financial Marketing, Services Marketing, among others, and Legal Marketing is no exception.

Marketing and business development professionals within law firms occupy different roles that touch on this area, but are rarely limited to marketing alone. Within this vast spectrum, we range from lawyers with a marketing background to marketers, publicists, public relations professionals and journalists.

What sets us apart is our marketing expertise combined with a specialisation in the legal sector.

Following simplistic logic, one could argue that a lawyer should simply be called a ‘lawyer’, regardless of his or her specialisation in constitutional law, labour law, or even his or her role as a judge, prosecutor, arbitrator, or in-house counsel.

However, just as there are different branches in law, there are different branches in marketing, and legal marketing is one of them, increasingly relevant and complex.

This is a key point that deserves to be clarified.

The relevance of these strategic positions within firms cannot be underestimated. Due to the nature of our work, we interact at all levels within the firm, from finance and human resources to IT and, of course, lawyers at all ranks, from partners to trainees.

This multidisciplinarity is essential, as it allows us to direct and execute strategies that save lawyers valuable time, a crucial resource in our industry.

Legal marketing is not just about social media management and rankings. Although the issue of rankings deserves a separate analysis, and we live in a world where social media presence is a matter of course, reducing legal marketing to these two functions is a mistake. The role of legal marketing is a critical function that transcends these areas and is fundamental to the success of law firms.

Among the many functions performed by professionals in areas where legal marketing is also practised, depending on the structure and objectives of each firm, and the role they play in business development, client whisperers, or the like, are, among others:

- Practice Support

- Client Relationship Development

- Client Portfolio Development

- Client Account Management

- Knowledge and Expertise Management

- Integration of Sides

- Proposals, Pitching

- Coaching, training and coaching for lawyers

- Alumni Relations

- Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI)

- Public and Media Relations

- Information gathering and providing of Submissions for well-known Awards and Rankings

- Digital Media

- MarTech Stack

- Legal Content Management and Communication

- Branding and Creativity

- Events and Sponsorship

- Data Analytics

- Competitive Intelligence

- CRM

- Pricing

- Project Management

- Budget management and optimisation

This list is not exhaustive, but it underlines the complexity and diversity of the role of professionals who also perform legal marketing. It is a discipline that requires specialised knowledge, multi-faceted skills and a deep understanding of the legal sector.

It is important to understand that legal marketing is an integral part, but only one part, of a multi-faceted role that can encompass many aspects, and its scope depends on the particular strategy of each law firm.

Far from being a limited function, it is a strategic discipline that supports the growth, visibility and sustainability of law firms in an increasingly competitive and specialised environment.

Each firm has its own objectives and needs, and legal marketing adapts to meet those objectives, demonstrating its relevance and sophistication in today’s legal world.

As a final thought, at a time when both firms and clients are seeking a higher level of sophistication and specialisation, this approach is becoming increasingly crucial to the success of law firms.


About the authors:

Monica Malcotti is in charge of the Business Development and Marketing area at BLP Legal, Central America.

Eugenia Sermeño is the Business Development & Chief Marketing Officer at Arias Law, Central America.

Alejandra Rojas is the Founder of UpWyse Legal Marketing in Colombia

Marisol Saravia is the Marketing and Business Development Manager at Hernández & Cía in Peru.

Romina Buso is a Senior Business Development Specialist at Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton in São Paulo.

All the authors are members of LMBD - Legal Marketing & Business Development Network LatAm