http://gbltd.com/ Greenfield/Belser's Big Ideas Newsletter en-us Thu, 15 May 2008 19:46:51 +0000 Thu, 15 May 2008 19:46:51 +0000 Initial RSS Hand coded by Steven Gallagher - DynamicallyPublishedContent Pulled From Point and Clique sgallagher@gbltd.com sgallagher@gbltd.com copyright 2008 Greenfield/Belser LTD 1 51 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200805 Professional Services Marketing Thu, 15 May 2008 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200804 Professional Services Marketing Thu, 10 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200803 Professional Services Marketing Wed, 05 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0800 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200802 Professional Services Marketing Thu, 07 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0800 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200801 Professional Services Marketing Mon, 07 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0800 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200712 Professional Services Marketing Mon, 10 Dec 2007 00:00:00 -0800 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200711 Professional Services Marketing Mon, 26 Nov 2007 00:00:00 -0800 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200710 Professional Services Marketing Mon, 15 Oct 2007 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200709 Professional Services Marketing Tue, 04 Sep 2007 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200708 Professional Services Marketing Mon, 06 Aug 2007 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200707 Professional Services Marketing Mon, 09 Jul 2007 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200706 Professional Services Marketing Mon, 04 Jun 2007 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200705 Professional Services Marketing Big Idea is all about how the Web has changed…

• Seminars for clients
• Media planning
  
• Client newsletters.

]]> Tue, 01 May 2007 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200704 Professional Services Marketing You will learn:

• How the Web is changing professional services marketing
• Which tools remain in print and which have gone online
• Best practices for firm brochures and Web sites.

]]> Mon, 02 Apr 2007 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200703 Professional Services Marketing


For all the hand-wringing and perseveration around the new New York bar rules, we’re not reaching for the defibrillator paddles yet. In the main, we don’t see much of a problem for our clients beyond discreet, ugly notices. ]]> Thu, 01 Mar 2007 00:00:00 -0800 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200702 Professional Services Marketing The Benefits of Clutter-Busting Direct-to-Client Promotions. You will learn:

• The scope of the direct-to-client opportunity
• How professional service firms are capitalizing
• What differentiates clutter busters from junk

]]> Mon, 05 Feb 2007 00:00:00 -0800 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200701 Professional Services Marketing Wed, 03 Jan 2007 00:00:00 -0800 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200612 Professional Services Marketing You will learn:

• The role that a marketing team can play in a merger
• Why it is so important to define and implement your communications strategy early on
• The importance of robust communications in facilitating a merger’s success
• The various constituents that need to be addressed when firms merge.

]]> Mon, 04 Dec 2006 00:00:00 -0800 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200611 Professional Services Marketing You will teach us:

• Which topics are most important to you
• Whether our content stinks or is on-the-money
• If your nasty spam filters are disabling our graphics.

]]> Wed, 01 Nov 2006 00:00:00 -0800 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200610 Professional Services Marketing You will learn:

• An important subject to tackle with your Web designer
• Why you should care about screen resolution
• What Ice, Jell-O and Liquid are (You thought you knew, right?)
• How to solve the screen resolution dilemma.
• Where to get more information
  

 

]]> Mon, 09 Oct 2006 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200609 Professional Services Marketing What you will learn:

• Why blog?
• How the blog fits into the firmwide marketing plan
• Why blogs help individual practice groups but, typically, not firms
• Why bloggers need to publish elsewhere, too.

]]> Fri, 01 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200608 Professional Services Marketing You’ve done the impossible—engineered a consensus of your marketing committee on a new ad campaign. Better yet, they’ve approved the creative! Now you need to develop an effective media plan…

]]> Tue, 01 Aug 2006 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200607 Professional Services Marketing Since 2001, Vocus, an online, on-demand corporate communications and publications software provider, has periodically conducted surveys and published white papers about what journalists look for on firm Web sites. The following digest of their recent white paper is this month’s Big Idea.

]]> Sat, 01 Jul 2006 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200606 Professional Services Marketing You will learn:

• how four factors interact to make a communication successful, or not
• how the Communications Index measures the effectiveness of any communication
• why communication among experts presents dangers to the rest of us.

]]> Thu, 01 Jun 2006 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200605 Professional Services Marketing This month you will learn how to solve the daily fire drill that is a sponsorship ad]]> Mon, 01 May 2006 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200604 Professional Services Marketing The students you are recruiting are a marketing-savvy lot; the best and brightest have been viewed as a valuable demographic all their lives and have been exposed to dozens of marketing strategies. So they have become cynical and wise beyond their years.

Force trite messaging on them, condescend to them—or worse—try to sell to them, and they may not give you a second glance. On the other hand, fail to present a contemporary image or to articulate a clear promise of value and they may not notice you at all. So what wins? Intelligence. Sharp minds despise dull efforts.

]]> Sat, 01 Apr 2006 00:00:00 -0800 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200603 Professional Services Marketing This month you will learn:

• Why service descriptions fail
• How to rethink the structure and organization of descriptions
• Strategies for printing on demand—as you need them!

]]> Wed, 01 Mar 2006 00:00:00 -0800 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200602 Professional Services Marketing This month you will learn

• Why anonymous mail and Web mail surveys are ineffective
• The biggest mistake you can make with client survey data
• Strategies for following-up on client survey results.

]]> Wed, 01 Feb 2006 00:00:00 -0800 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200601 Professional Services Marketing A critical survey of the AmLaw 200 Web sites. Why'd we undertake this research? In our opinion, because

• Web design and development remains focused on technology and not on brand differentiation. As long as we live in fear of the technology, techies will remain in control and the Web sites will stay the same - unexciting and undifferentiated.
• Self-anointed Web reviewers inexplicably give high marks to sites we believe to be mediocre, at best. We'd like to replace an eccentric and arbitrary set of standards for Web site development with reasonable standards for design intelligence.

]]> Sun, 01 Jan 2006 00:00:00 -0800 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200512 Professional Services Marketing In this article you will learn:

• What a tagline is and why it matters
• How taglines have progressed in professional services marketing
• Which approaches work best
• What pitfalls to avoid
• How to use taglines best in your marketing efforts.

]]> Thu, 01 Dec 2005 00:00:00 -0800 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200511 Professional Services Marketing Answers to all the questions you’ve ever
asked about advertising

For many of us who have a certain affection for the profession, advertising may seem unprofessional, even unseemly. Moreover, we may suspect that advertising is unnecessary given that a professional service is a relationship business like no other. We may also believe that advertising is ineffective. Finally, we have little confidence that we can measure the return on our investment. So why advertise? ]]> Tue, 01 Nov 2005 00:00:00 -0800 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200510 Professional Services Marketing Today more and more professional service firms are taking part in the ever-growing trade show circuit. There's good reason. Traditional businesses have always viewed trade shows as powerful business development opportunities where contacts are made and relationships are born. While there is a lot to be gained from a successful trade show experience, there is an equal opportunity for loss as well (and not just financially). To increase your firm's odds of success, the following tips are designed to help you Stand Out At The Show.]]> Sat, 01 Oct 2005 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200509 Professional Services Marketing Applying prime time creativity to everyday professional service communications]]> Thu, 01 Sep 2005 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200508 Professional Services Marketing Take two minutes to read this article, and you will learn how developing a systematic, goal-oriented approach to conversational branding can help your lawyers:

• make a better first impression for your firm
• deliver a consistent message about your firm
• take better advantage of marketing opportunities
• recruit more persuasively
• strengthen your firm’s brand.

]]> Mon, 01 Aug 2005 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200507 Professional Services Marketing In this article you'll learn:

• how to know your ads will work
• how to maximize the impact of your marketing budget

]]> Fri, 01 Jul 2005 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200506 Professional Services Marketing Recently, we're seeing a lot more lawyers playing themselves in ads, brochures and on firm Web sites. And they look just great. This trend has added personality, warmth and authenticity to the pages of legal trade publications. It's one more sign of the healthy maturing of legal marketing.]]> Wed, 01 Jun 2005 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200409 Professional Services Marketing True or false: Do great work and great work will follow.
True or false: Communicating firm goals below the partner ranks invites trouble.
True or false: Each relationship with a client should be controlled by only one partner]]> Wed, 01 Sep 2004 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200408 Professional Services Marketing You know the type. It might even be you. Or maybe someone in your office. They figure that, since they can get rate cards from any magazine or newspaper, they can buy media with the best of them. Well, they’re wrong.

Sure, rate cards have their place. They’re a quick reference when buying ad space and let you easily compare sizes and prices between publications. But as the top media buyers and marketing directors know, rate cards are just the starting point for creative media plans.]]> Sun, 01 Aug 2004 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200407 Professional Services Marketing Recruiting can be tough. The competition for the best students from the best schools around the country has only increased as firms have grown—some at exponential rates. Kirkpatrick & Lockhart is one firm that revamped its recruiting materials in order to compete for this small group of top students.]]> Thu, 01 Jul 2004 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200406 Professional Services Marketing Stories we've heard too often: The Tokyo office is bleeding cash. Moscow was a nightmare. London looks good on the letterhead but where's the business? Look at the register of law firm offices that were opened and closed in the 1990's and you'll see an August sky of shooting stars. Decisions to open new offices seem to be made for all the wrong reasons-and hard decisions without hard numbers can be incendiary in an executive planning session.]]> Tue, 01 Jun 2004 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200404 Professional Services Marketing Macromedia's Flash is the foundation for Web sites that vibrate with color, animation, moving images and video—sites as stylish as dkny.com, as hip as adidas.com, as practical as salliemae.com and as information-packed as paulhastings.com. But as yet few law firm Web sites are built with Flash. With this article, we hope to promote more informed discussions among law firm marketing departments and their IT counterparts as they consider strategies for their next Web sites.]]> Thu, 01 Apr 2004 00:00:00 -0800 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200403 Professional Services Marketing Law firm management and marketing directors have realized the folks who visit their Web sites want more than bios and practice descriptions. The users-clients, prospective clients and law students—value a pleasant and informative experience at the site. And they are quickly turned off by a bland or frustrating one. Web design is about feelings as much as information.]]> Mon, 01 Mar 2004 00:00:00 -0800 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200402 Professional Services Marketing Why should your firm conduct client research? There are the hidden festering problems that threaten longstanding client engagements. Professional research also reveals rich openings for cross selling, especially for firms that may own a much smaller piece of their clients' total business than they suspect. If you are not yet convinced, then read on…
]]> Sun, 01 Feb 2004 00:00:00 -0800 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200401 Professional Services Marketing Finding the "almost right" stock photo or illustration is easy. Finding the exactly right match for your firm's message can take hours or even days. And when you find it, you want it for your own-as an integral part the look of your brochure, as an instant identifier on your Web site and for as-yet-unimagined future projects.]]> Thu, 01 Jan 2004 00:00:00 -0800 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200312 Professional Services Marketing "Why should I advertise?"
This question should sound familiar; it's one that resonates throughout law firms all across the country. But have you ever gotten a straightforward, definitive answer? Could you give one if someone were to ask? In the following article, Burkey Belser and Joe Walsh provide answers to this and other frequently asked questions about advertising.]]> Mon, 01 Dec 2003 00:00:00 -0800 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200311 Professional Services Marketing People can get very upset when colors do not appear consistent across applications. The logo color on the glossy firm brochure doesn't match the color on the newsletter. The Web color never did match and is even inconsistent from screen to screen! What's a brand manager to do? Copy this report to all who refuse to believe there are things you can control and things you can't.]]> Sat, 01 Nov 2003 00:00:00 -0800 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200310 Professional Services Marketing From McKinsey to Hewitt to PricewaterhouseCoopers, consulting and accounting firms have mastered the practice of fielding primary, business-issue-based, research and turning it into marketing and sales outreach programs. In fact, it's a staple in their marketing mix. But few law firms have followed suit. It's not that law firms are unpublished: they churn out volumes of newsletters and client alerts that help contacts stay abreast of changes in laws and regulations. But with so many firms doing the same thing, it's tough to get your publications noticed, much less read.

If breaking through is your goal, consider primary research as an alternative or an addition to your mix.

]]> Wed, 01 Oct 2003 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200309 Professional Services Marketing Law firms spend millions on recruiting each year, but many recruiting partners have not evaluated their program's effectiveness. Measurable goals are rarely identified. The shift from recruiting—to fill the empty chair—to year-round recruitment marketing has not taken hold at the management level, even though the recruiting season is now 365 days long!

This essay has been substantially edited for online distribution. To request a full copy of the essay and research results, email abeheler@gbltd.com.]]> Mon, 01 Sep 2003 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200308 Professional Services Marketing Our fourth biannual survey of letterhead design among the AmLaw 100 showed a continued trend towards increasing use of color, logos and other graphic elements. In fact, the trend is accelerating. In a recent Law Firm Inc. article, Greenfield/Belser principal Joe Walsh reviewed the survey results, citing examples of law firms who have taken a modern approach to their letterhead. ]]> Fri, 01 Aug 2003 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200307 Professional Services Marketing A recent survey of the AmLaw 100 found that roughly one in five firms produced an annual review last year. The challenges facing firms creating such pieces are often intimidating, but the surge in the development of annual reviews suggests that an alternative to the firm brochure has surfaced.

In a recent Legal Times article, Burkey Belser explored the law firm annual review and offered tips on how to overcome obstacles and create a successful finished piece.]]> Tue, 01 Jul 2003 00:00:00 -0700 http://gbltd.com/bigIdeas.php?vol=200306 Professional Services Marketing Search engines follow their own rules when delivering search results. Know the rules and you'll rank at or near the top. Our latest research tells you how to improve your rankings and how to regain top rankings for your newly-designed site. For the full report, see below.]]> Sun, 01 Jun 2003 00:00:00 -0700