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Lessons Great and Small from Chief Marketing Officers Forum

By Larry Bodine, Esq.

Here's a sampling of the rich variety of lessons I learned at the 5th Annual Law Firm Chief Marketing Officers Forum in Chicago, presented by Incisive Media. Follow the high points of the CMO Forum in Chicago on Twitter: #LCMO

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There will soon be an online social networking site for African-American lawyers, at www.BlackCounselorOnline.com. The brainchild of Jo A. Saint-George, Esq. of Phoenix, AZ, the network plans to launch in two weeks.

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CMOs are often asked to give managing partners a "Schmoogie."  No it's what you think, get your mind out of the gutter.  It's a Tchotchke or branded firm merchandise, like a coffee cup with the firm name on it, according to Robyn Radomski, CMO of Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren.

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There is a solution to dealing with all the time-wasting "fires" that marketers have to put out -- such as RFPs assigned two days in advance, a partner who wants help planning his daughter's wedding, or a request from H.R. for 100 T-shirts the day before an associate event that has been in the works for six months. According to Joseph Melnick, CMO of Butzel Long, you simply plan for them to happen. When they occur, you've already prepared for the awkward situation.

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To demonstrate return on marketing investment, Barbara Sessions, partner at Winston & Strawn, distributes a one-page "By the Numbers" summary, listing items like "wrote 22 RFP responses, produced 21 eLunch programs, made 359 pitches to target media." It's very impressive and can be scanned in a minute.

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Chapman & Cutler has created several internal blogs where partners in a practice group can share information about clients and business development.  The chatty nature of blogs causes the lawyers to actively contribute, making it as effective as a CRM system, according to partner Melanie Gnazzo.

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Every person -- from the managing partner to the person who cleans out the kitchen -- at Womble Carlyle has taken the Gallup StrengthsFinder personality test.  Aden Dauchess, Senior Marketing Manager, uses the information when helping a partner plan a business development action plan.  If the test, for example, shows that the lawyer is an "Intellector," this means they hate public speaking and Aden will advise them to write a blog, which they will enjoy.

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The way to make a client loyal is to figure out ways to boost the client's bottom line, according to Darryl Cross, Vice President of Client Profitability for LexisNexis. He said there should be a ranking of law firms based on how much they increased the profits of their clients.

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Alex Wei Zhang is a partner with King & Wood, the largest law firm in China. He came all the way from Beijing to attend the CMO Forum.

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Coming up today:

• Guarding the Crown Jewels of Your Law Firm
• Maximizing ROI with your Pro Bono and Charitable Giving Program.
• How to increase your Firm's Win Rate on RPFs.
• How to Market Lawyers of color.

See you there!

Full post as published by Larry Bodine's LawMarketing Blog on September 16, 2009 (boomark / email).