May-June CBA Report

26 l May/June 2019 CBA REPORT www.CincyBar.org Young Lawyers Section Keys to Success Professional Development Tips for Young Lawyers By David J. Oberly At the heart of any attorney’s marketing and business develop- ment efforts is his or her personal brand. In the ultra-competitive market for legal services, your personal brand can give you a distinct advantage in winning business by standing out and devel- oping a visible and differentiated presence in the legal market. Conversely, a poorly defined or managed brand can hamper your ability to generate business or, at a minimum, result in significant lost opportunities to drive business growth. Your brand is a value proposition—distinct and unique from your competition—that sets you apart and differentiates you from all of the other attorneys who provide similar legal services . Branding encompasses the psychological aspects—feelings, perceptions, opinions, attitudes—of your skills and behaviors, as well as the services that you deliver. Importantly, your brand is defined by the qualities that people think of when they think of you. Maya Angelou penned it perfectly: “… people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” That is the essence of your personal brand. Effective branding requires a calculated, focused effort to stra- tegically articulate and promote how your legal skillset, talents, and expertise make you uniquely qualified to skillfully resolve a client’s most pressing and complex legal problems. In order to develop an effective, impactful personal brand, determine what exactly you want people to think of you, both professionally and personally, as well as what differentiates you from your competi- tion, and then determine how you will successfully articulate and convey that message. Once you have nailed down the contours of your personal brand, strategically leverage that message by utilizing those platforms and activities which will have the greatest impact in terms of allowing you to expose and promote your messaging to your target market. Your Personal Value Proposition At the core of your individual brand is your personal value proposition (PVP) – your statement of the tangible value and benefits others receive by maintaining a relationship and doing business with you. Importantly, your PVP is a vital tool to make the case for yourself, helping you to explain why you are the one to choose without coming out and telling potential clients “I’m the one you want.” Your PVP can be utilized across multiple marketing platforms as the foundation for building a steady stream of business. In order to effectively employ your PVP, you should strive to weave in your personal legal victories and briefly describe some of your more successful engagements during conversations and other interactions with those you come in contact with. (Of course, at all times, and in all settings, one must be cognizant of the Rules of Professional Conduct, and not promise any specific legal results nor discuss clients or cases specifically.) In addi- tion, to fully utilize your PVP, integrate discussion of your “soft skills” that will educate others about your work style and attri- butes, and exactly how you achieve results for clients. Focus on your strengths, articulate them in a way that is most attractive to your targets, and be sure to customize your message to the specific individual or audience you are engaging with. In order to effectively cultivate and utilize your personal brand, craft and refine the details of your brand, and then use it to drive everything that is associated with your name. Communicate your brand message clearly and consistently. Infuse your indi- vidual brand across every aspect of your legal practice and your marketing and business development endeavors, purposefully and methodically injecting your PVP into the marketplace for legal services. Promote and drive home your brand by being present and visible in the community, both within the legal profession and among relevant client or industry groups. Deliver your brand message and your PVP across multiple platforms, including your personal introduction at events, the content you cultivate on social media, and how you perform in front of audiences while giving presentations. Done the right way, with a strategic, focused, and consistent effort to articulate, position, and promote how your personal makeup and abilities make you uniquely qualified to solve clients’ complex legal problems, it will be an easy decision for potential clients to select you over all other options in the legal marketplace when legal services are needed. Building Your Personal BrandWith Social Media In today’s highly digital age, social media is a great tool that can be leveraged to promote and strengthen your personal brand. In prior times, personal branding for the most part could only be accomplished through one-on-one interactions and word of mouth. Today, social media enables attorneys to promote and publicize their own personal brands—and reach scores of indi- viduals and potential clients—with the click of a button. Once again, however, before embarking on any social media initia- tives, attorneys must be mindful of the Rules of Professional Rainmaking Through Personal Branding For Young Attorneys