Branding is an essential part of achieving professional success. Your brand consists of the experience that your services and expertise as well as the core values that drive the work you do and your relationships with others.
Not only are brands created by the use of company names, logos, and other factors, but they’re also created by the personal interactions you have with clients, colleagues, and other industry professionals.
But many attorneys and their law firms fail to develop brands that represent the value they provide. Knowing the difference between your personal and business brands gives you better results in your marketing and networking efforts.
Branding in the Marketplace
In today’s marketplace, it’s difficult to separate legal professionals from the firms for whom they work. As a result, attorneys should invest in their personal brands as much as their business brands.
Cultivating a brand that distinguishes you from competitors is essential in today’s online market. Your personal brand is with you at all times, and it’s difficult to separate your personal brand from your business brand.
Your brand helps prospective clients find you when they search for legal services that meet their needs. Your personal brand defines your skills and mission so that you can reach your target audience and grow your client base.
Personal Branding
Like a business brand, your personal brand can be defined using tools like web pages, logos, taglines, and social media.
These tools make it easy to create a consistent personal brand that makes you recognizable among your target audience and professional peers.
Personal branding positions you as a trustworthy and credible leader in the legal industry. This especially important for small business owners or attorneys who are trying to establish themselves and build their practices.
Business Branding
Your law firm’s business brand is an extension of your personal brand. It represents the values you stand for and the services you provide to your target audience.
Your business must create a brand that highlights your strengths while developing an identity that online users recognize and trust for information and resources that serve their legal needs.
Your business brand must be built on the interests, needs, and behaviors of your target audience.
Successful business branding is an ongoing process that uses audience data to create a message that resonates with those online users who are most likely to need your legal services.
Creating Your Brand Voice
Understanding your audience allows you to optimize your brand, message, and the channels used to connect with your audience. As a result, you create a brand “voice” that distinguishes your law firm from its competitors.
This brand voice goes beyond your website and logo to connect more deeply with prospective clients.
By providing answers to questions and engaging with your audience, you humanize your law firm and develop the trust that leads to a growing client base.
Your business brand should be consistent across all of the points of contact with online users. These include your website, advertising, and social media activities.
Creating a consistent experience is at the core of building a recognizable brand online. Personal and business branding can serve distinct purposes. But they both work together to create an overall brand experience for your current and future clients.
As an attorney, your personal brand creates opportunities for personal growth and development. Your law firm’s business brand is an extension of your personal brand.
Both work to help you grow your legal practice and reach your target audience more effectively. Branding supports your marketing efforts and leads to greater results from your campaigns.
Creating a personal and business brand can be tricky if you aren’t sure where to start. Let us know your questions in the comments below.
We’ll help you identify the elements to consider when building your personal and professional brands so that you can take your law firm’s online success to the next level.
