What is Marketing?

Ask 10 different lawyers or business people what marketing is and you are likely to hear a very broad range of responses. To one, it may be television advertising, yellow pages and print ads. To another it's a well designed web page and intelligent search engine marketing. A third will say it's managing client relationships through effective service.

The textbook definition of marketing is actually the process through which an organization develops and communicates value to its prospects and customers. When you stop to think about it, this is quite a broad definition - and it should be.

Tip: Marketing touches all parts of your organization and it encompasses vastly more than most imagine.

Marketing is pricing, market research and strategy, messaging, appearance of marketing material, planning and measurement, service, sales and yes, the channels through which you reach your clients. Solid marketing can make a company with a mediocre offering successful and poor marketing can make a company with a great offering fail.

The best marketing organizations measure return on marketing investment for every tactic and do not engage in tactics that are not measurable.

How many times have law firms become so dependent one or two marketing tactics that they are eventually blindsided when these channels dry up, or become oversaturated with competitors? Marketing requires the continual monitoring and analysis of results, tracking of lead sources and regularly updating strategies to keep ahead of the curve.

As for vendors, many do not realize how precarious their competitive position is, absent consistent monitoring and adjustment of their marketing efforts. I have managed marketing plans that have enabled the companies for which I workedto take considerable market share from segment leaders, in short periods of time. We were able to do this by executing throughly researched, integrated marketing plans and rapidly adapting them to those channels where the highest return on investment was realized. We maximized the highest return tactics and eliminated, or dramatically reduced the rest.

In conclusion, the proper management of your marketing is your highest return on investment. If, you are not able to afford a full time resource to assist in the continual tracking and measurement of your investments, consider retaining an experienced marketer on a consulting basis for a full evaluation of your current marketing process.

If you have any specific marketing topics you would be interested in hearing about, or have a specific question that pertains to your firm, please e-mail me or leave a comment and I will do my best to address your inquiry.