How to: boost your media profile

In an increasingly competitive market, lawyers need to stand out from the crowd. One way to do this is to have a strong media profile. ‘Like it or not, we live in a media age, and not having a media strategy leaves a gaping hole in your business plan,’ says Melissa Davis, managing director of legal PR and marketing agency MD Communications. ‘Gone are the days of only big firms rolling out a media campaign.’

As well as dealing with the competition, which intensified with the introduction of alternative business structures, lawyers are fighting to protect their reputation. ‘Lawyers fall into the camp of bankers, journalists and estate agents, who score low on positive perception among consumers,’ says Gus Sellitto, managing director of Byfield Consultancy. ‘Lawyers in large City practices earn good money. It’s very easy for the national media to jump in and stir up public sentiment. It’s an easy stereotype to attach to.’ But, he adds, lawyers are starting to understand the importance of connecting to the public and working to change that perception.

The legal profession has traditionally been ill at ease with self-promotion; the Law Society did not permit lawyers even to advertise until 1986. A fear factor remains due to concerns such as client confidentiality. But, says Davis, ‘lawyers have something important to say on matters that affect everyone’s lives. They are the only ones able to articulate the importance of justice in our society through the media. Who else is going to do that?’

Recruitment is another factor that may drive a firm’s PR. ‘There’s always competition for the best talent,’ says Daniela Conte, senior communications and PR manager at international firm Simmons & Simmons. ‘When you’re not targeting clients, you also need to be thinking about what other lawyers are reading, what they are reading about our firm, and how that coverage will shape their views of our firm.’

Where to begin

In order to draw up a PR action plan, solicitors first need to ask themselves what they want to say, to whom they want to say it, and why, says Sellitto.

‘Good PR isn’t about jumping on the latest craze,’ Conte cautions. ‘It’s about understanding who your clients are, what’s important to them, what you need to communicate to them, and the best way to do that.’

She adds: ‘We are a five-sector business and 80% of our revenues comes through [those] sectors. My strategy is geared towards getting the message out to the market about our sector expertise.’

One of those sectors is financial institutions. ‘Is Twitter the best way for us to raise our profile with those clients? I would say no,’ says Conte. ‘A lot of financial institutions have blocks on their systems because of financial reporting restrictions – they can’t even access a lot of these sites. So do financial institutions expect to be receiving serious news from their legal adviser via Twitter? I would argue not. But on the other hand, TMT [technology, media, telecommunications] is one of our sectors and technology clients are comfortable receiving information in that way.’

Building relationships with journalists is also important. ‘Some people think if you have strong relationships with your key press then journalists will repay that by writing positive stories,’ Conte says. ‘Having a good relationship with journalists is about [them having] you at the forefront of their mind when they’re writing a piece and they need a spokesperson.’

And who should be the firm’s spokesperson? ‘It’s not necessarily the people you’d expect who are the best people in that media role,’ says Conte. ‘It’s a learned skill. If people think just because they’re outgoing and articulate they’re going to make great spokespeople; it doesn’t always work like that. They key thing about dealing with the press is preparation.’

Helen Loney, PR manager at south-west firm Foot Anstey, is careful not to bombard the media with too many press releases about the firm’s work. ‘We also work in partnership with others,’ she says, citing efforts to raise the profile of its Islamic finance team, a practice unique to the south-west. The firm worked with UK Trade & Investment to issue a case study about the team’s expertise which, says Loney, resulted in good regional newspaper coverage.

One element of trying to boost your media profile on which PR agencies and in-house marketing teams are unanimous is not to underestimate the power of the local media (see top tips, above).

‘The success of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme campaign was largely built on coverage in the local press,’ notes Davis, previously the Society’s head of media and PR. ‘I also know that the Society used the local press very effectively in forcing HSBC into a U-turn over its conveyancing panels. It got the public on its side and escalated from there.’

Small high street firms and sole practitioners should start local, says Sellitto. ‘It’s going to be tougher to try and get into the FT and The Times every day, but it does come back to the question of who are you trying to attract and why,’ he adds. ‘If none of your clients come from the local community, there’s no point in being in the local media. But if you’re trying to get to local consumers, then local media is very good.’

The letters pages of a local paper are a good place to have a voice, says Davis, because they are often the most read part of a local newspaper.

‘I see law firms who go out and get media coverage, and it’s either not sustained or there seems to be a scattergun approach,’ says Sellitto.

Davis says it is important to ‘keep the conversation going’. She adds: ‘Don’t go overboard and expect coverage daily, but generate news, ideas and continue to engage with the media. Don’t assume they will remember you in three months’ time or hang on every word you say. It takes effort.’

How much?

Indeed. And that effort can cost.

PR agencies often work for a ‘composite day rate’ of £750-£1,100. This may include the services of more than one team member, or the account manager only. Individual PR professionals may be cheaper, though they will come without the infrastructure and service that a fully staffed office should provide – though anyone who has had a bad experience of inappropriate delegation of tasks may prefer this. The cost of employing an in-house PR professional will vary enormously, not least because in a small or medium-sized firm, some will combine PR and marketing with other duties. A junior PR adviser may earn up to £25,000 in a smaller firm, £45,000 in the City. For senior appointments in all but the largest law firms the salary range is £45,000-£70,000.

Compared with the regional press, that’s good money indeed – and helps explain why many a former scribe now plies their trade in the PR business.

Monidipa Fouzder is a Gazette sub-editor