Leor Franks (Chief Commercial Officer- Kingsley Napley) chaired a lively and very interactive panel discussion at the lawyer marketing leadership summit featuring Laura Klysz (Global Head Of Marketing and Communications- Simmons & Simmons) Clare Jennings (Communications Director- Mishcon De Reya) and Alison Lawton (Partner, Head of Marketing and Communications- Express Solicitors)

How well is your communications function integrated?

Clare Jennings gave a great insight into the communication ‘Machine at Mishcon’ where there is a 360 view across the knowledge, BD, marketing and communication teams.  This has meant that everyone has strategic counsel and everyone is aligned.  This has been achieved with a robust planning grid and sharing of insights around all the teams.  Clare's big rule of thumb is:

MARKETING= REACH

PR= TRUST

Laura Klyz suggested that the author of content should really show their personality and therefore own the article and relationship externally with clients.  This stops the noise and for the client, stops too many different voices and points of contact.  At Simmons & Simmons there is also a real emphasis on powerful storytelling.

Is the press release dead in the era of AI?

78% of the audience said no to this and Alison wholeheartedly agreed.  She went on to say that at Express, they have hired an in-house journalist to help with publish ready articles.

Laura talked through the changing nature of a press release and, if anything, they need to be more authentic and human than ever.  They also need to be more than just announcements now.  She also mentioned that other formats like videos and podcasts can be more creative in terms of getting out to market, and it stops people from hiding behind the written word.

Is content today becoming less human?

68% of the audience said they agreed with this statement.  The panel talked about the fact that it is fine for firms to leverage AI, but you have to make it human.  AI should be used more on the research side and not become the editor-in-chief.  

The panel warned that reducing the human element could erode trust with clients.  It was also suggested that there was a worry that it might make content writers lazy.

How resilient is your team compared to 5 years ago?

65% of the audience said that their teams were less resilient and the panel agreed.  Laura talked about the fact that triage can be used within the team to help work out what should be prioritized and it helps with the 24/7 response expectations put on teams.  A holding email is often the answer instead of a panicked and immediate response.

Communications just never settles within a law firm and everyone is in a heightened state because of this.  Rest and rotas are therefore very important within the team.

How has the volume of 'stuff' you produce changed in the last year?

71% of the audience said that it had gone up.

Laura then left the audience with a strategy bombshell that she would love to just turn all the digital channels off for a month at her firm.  It would reset the channels, and you could actually get transparency on what cuts through the noise.  Looking at the top ten clients at Simmons & Simmons would mean communicating with them on the phone and via email.

A bold strategy that would need to be implemented top down.  Watch this space!