Law Firm Branding

We hear it all the time, “the word branding, but what does it mean? Is it the firm’s name? Is it a firm’s logo? Is it their advertisements? Is it their values posted on their website?” The answer to all of these questions is yes, but not individually. A successful law firm brand is your firm’s idea that is perceived by clients’ trust and experience. A successful brand has the brand image and identity in sync so that your law firm’s value and promise are reflected throughout the client experience.

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Defining Brand

Simply put, Brand Image (Brand Essence, Personality) + Brand Identity = Brand. The brand cannot exist without image or identity, and knowing what they are and how they work together is the first step towards building your brand.

Brand Image

The brand image can be divided into three parts.

First, establishing brand essence. Brand essence is the heart of your brand. What is your law firm values and vision? What promise will you keep to your clients? What personality will your firm have to help satisfy those customers’ needs and desires?

The second part of the brand image is value proposition. Understanding your clients and market are essential to establishing trust and differentiation.

The last section is brand personality. Based on the brand essence and value proposition, we can determine the best personality to bring the firm to life.

Brand Identity

After the brand image is established, your firm will want the brand identify to match. Brand identity includes but not limited to visuals like logos, colors, typography, and business cards that a law firm uses to connect with its audience visually.

Branding Goals

A successful brand needs to meet these seven goals:

  1. Emotions – What types of emotions do we want to establish with your clients?
  2. Desires – What desires will your firm satisfy for your clients?
  3. Differentiation – How can you stand out from other law firms?
  4. Trust – How can you establish trust in your law firm?
  5. Value – What are the core values of your firm? Do your clients share the same values?
  6. Connection – Law firms will want to connect with the outside world. How can your law firm share your clients’ emotions with the outside world?
  7. Belongingness – How can you connect and reflect your clients within your brand? You want your clients and community to feel like they are a part of your brand.

Building Your Brand

As a marketing company with the goal of branding a law firm, we have a lot of questions to answer. We want to base your law firm’s brand on actual data and analysis, not just a hunch. We need to dig deep and discover who the market is, where your law firm stands, and how we can engage with that market. What differentiates your firm from other law firms? Where is there opportunity? These are the questions we need to answer in the research phase.

Market Research

We want to discover and then define the current community where your law firm is established. We also want to look at potential markets and how to expand your brand into these markets. We want to define and answer:

  • Who is the current market? What are their hobbies, interests, and overall demographics?
  • Who are your current clients? How do they perceive your law firm?
  • What are the needs and desires being considered when your services are sought out?

Company Research

After defining the market, we want to see where your law firm can position themselves for ultimate success. In order to do so, we need to discover who the current brand of the law firm is. This includes:

  • Identifying company values and goals.
  • Assessing internal strengths/weaknesses.
  • Comparing against your competitors.
  • Identifying where your firm can bring the most value for clients.

Successful Law Firm Branding Steps

  1. Your Law Firm Idea/Creation – What value will your law firm bring? What are your practice areas and goals?
    Your law firm will need to have a mission and vision statement created that will align with your firm’s purpose.
  2. Positioning – What position do you have in the market? Who are your competitors and what differentiates your firm from others?
  3. Personality – As what type of person do you want your brand to be perceived? What tone will messaging have? How will this personality satisfy the branding goals listed above?
  4. Idea of attractiveness – Brand Identity. Establishing your color palette, logo, typography, iconography, photography, and more. These visual identifiers of your brand will be synced with your positioning and personality.
  5. Communication – Rolling out the brand. How will your law firm connect to your clients and the world? Ads, websites, billboards, speaking engagements, and more are all ways for your law firm to communicate with the outside world.

The first step towards growing your brand is defining your brand. This is a task that isn’t always easy, but will always help you connect with your firm and your clients. We have seen our clients’ businesses grow when they work with us to develop their brand identity, and we have seen firms fall when they fail to to define themselves in their crowded market.

If you would like help building your firm’s identity, contact Mockingbird for a brand consultation today.