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Dave Smyth 98fm Strata 3 - Web Design & Marketing Company Sky Ireland - Commercial Director Established Setanta Ireland – Commercial Director Established Greenlight… a result driven Marketing & Communication company - working with a number of companies within the Legal, Accounting & Engineering fields.

Branding – What can it do for us ? Today’s Discussion: Branding – What can it do for us ?

Or branding…..what has this got to do with a Solicitor’s Practice? What can we learn from companies like ? Or branding…..what has this got to do with a Solicitor’s Practice? 1st Brands have value – They can become an asset on your balance sheet and offer sustainability to your business. You need to create a ‘Brand’ for your practice - Brands by their nature convey a uniform quality, credibility, experience and consistency. How do you set about creating a brand? - Think of a person/personality -Think of your business in terms of a person…adventurous, humorous, serious.. - Michael O’Leary, Dara O Briain etc 

Become Client focused – S. W. O Become Client focused – S.W.O.T- You need to understand the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities & threats that face your practice. It is also important to view this from the client’s perspective, rather than solely taking an internal stance. Think in terms of Product not service - Each service you offer has a different target audience – think Conveyance v Employment law. By thinking in product terms, it makes it easier to ‘understand’ your clients better and how you should communicate with them. Understand the Target Audience - Once you understand the product you can better understand the target audience –e.g Conveyance can be viewed as a more consumer product. Employment law is more business orientated, both need slightly different ‘language’ to communication effectively. Making sure your ‘brand’ matches the target audience - If you’ve decided that your brand is Obama there’s no point going to Texas and expecting a landslide victory! Define the key benefits of your products - Why would a client engage with you… you need to give your target audience good reason to choose you, ahead of your competitors. Define the message - After 3 points, people tend to ‘switch off ‘ so make sure the key benefits you choose are the right ones! Remember Relevance - Relevant product, for the relevant audience, with the relevant message ..think timing – ice cream on a summers day

Plan & Evaluate the tactics 12 month plan with Budget - Marketing is a 12 month process, however some months are more important than others, therefore make sure your plan is consistent with the ebb and flow of the business cycle – December is not the strongest month for Conveyance – January is a period where Family law tends to peak etc. Core target audience - where are they? - Reading the Irish Times –Searching the Internet - Engaging with Face Book - Updating their LinkedIn profile – What are best tactics to deploy - Once I know where my target audience are more likely to be, how do I best distribute my marketing budget Networking – B2B Traditional Marketing – Press, Radio etc On line Marketing & Social Media – User friendly Website, Pay Per Click, Search Engine Optimization, Email Marketing, Facebook vs. Linkedin Understand expected results/KPI’s How many people look at their unique visitor figures and bounce rate from their website, particularly if you are active with any form of marketing. How do you quantify reaction from the activity engaged in. Test, Learn, Adapt – never be afraid to modify.

Q&A Thank you Dave Smyth Managing Director Greenlight Ltd dave@greenlight.ie Mobile 087 2445016 www.greenlight.ie