Legal marketing priorities are moving away from more traditional methods to embrace the opportunities in our digital landscape. When people need to find you, they start by typing your legal specialism into a search engine – just like they do when they’re looking for anything else.
You know this, but how are your internal discussions going? Have you convinced other management to invest in more digital marketing? It’s so much easier to be persuasive if you have robust market research to back you up. And it’s much better for your firm to base business critical decisions on reliable data.
Here’s how you can use law firm market research to sharpen your edge through a deeper understanding of your ideal clients, the competitive landscape, and the impact of your ongoing messaging and campaigns.
How legal marketing is changing
A recent legal marketing survey gives some clear conclusions around how law firms’ priorities have changed. These are based on the opinions of 100 chief marketing officers (CMOs) and 100 managing partners in leading firms across the UK, the US, and Canada.
Here’s the comparison they found between marketing priorities from the last five years and going forward into 2025. These are in rank order, with 1 being the top priority.
Priorities from the last five years:
- Sponsorships
- Hosted events
- Digital media
- Traditional advertising (press, radio)
- Exhibitions and conferences
Priorities going forward:
- Digital media
- Content marketing and thought leadership
- Hosted events
- Exhibitions and conferences
- Media relations
That’s quite the switch at the top two spots, isn’t it?
Why this is important to you
The traditional emphasis on making connections through networking is great for raising your profile. By including online avenues in your marketing strategy, you have a whole new string to your marketing bow. Take this brilliant opportunity to lead with how your law firm delivers real value to your clients.
In the same survey, this range of statistics gives an interesting window into current perspectives on law firm marketing:
- 38% of CMOs believe their firm’s marketing communications “accurately conveyed the firm’s expertise” – but only 18% of managing partners agreed.
- There’s also a considerable gap between the same groups, concerning whether they thought the firm’s full range of expertise was understood by the market. 40% of CMOs think it is fully understood, but only 20% of managing partners think the same.
- General Counsels’ expectations of thought leadership from their legal services suppliers is demonstrated by how much of their content they consume – 86% every month, with over 75% of General Counsels spending at least eight hours a week keeping on top of current issues.
- 50% of managing partners considered investment in the firm’s digital presence an important driver of future business growth.
- 45% of managing partners rank thought leadership in their top three marketing priorities.
- 28% of chief marketing officers rank thought leadership in their top three marketing priorities.
Any period of transition, especially when multiple stakeholders are involved, can be tricky to navigate. Being able to quantify where you are – and the reason for future marketing investments – with reliable data is absolutely crucial.
How law firm market research is the balm for your business (and marketing!) pains
According to PwC’s annual report, 28% of the top 100 law firms are planning a ‘transformation exercise’ within the Marketing and Business Development category, in the next couple of years.
Are you planning to pivot to more online marketing? Do you need to cajole your team into producing some thought leadership pieces, despite their imposter syndrome? Are you bracing yourself to try and convince management you need to invest more in content – and that it will deliver good ROI?
Here’s how law firm market research gives you a solid evidence base for the type and direction of marketing you want to pursue.
1. You need to stand out as a leader in your field
Content marketing is a brilliant way to showcase your expertise and build trust with potential clients. But how do you know who is reading or watching your content and what type of content they prefer? Are they more likely to read blog posts or watch videos? Where do they look for information online? What social media platforms do they use?
Law firm market research is the answer to all these questions! Ask the questions before you invest in a full content marketing strategy. Use brand perception and awareness studies to guide the direction of your content. And make sure you’re publishing in the right places.
Use this primary data to publish your own original research content and cement your position as experts in your field.
2. You want to understand your current clients more deeply
Understanding your current clients is key to building stronger relationships and retaining their loyalty. Dive into their experiences with your brand – what they think, say, and feel about your service – and whether they’d recommend you to others.
Use law firm market research to learn where they find out about your firm, their preferences and pain points, and how they interact online. This insight informs more efficient lock-up management and better long-term client relationships – which minimises the risk of losing them to competitors.
By analysing your client base and industry trends and creating detailed buyer personas, you can refine your approach to deliver tailored solutions that are perfect for your ideal clients.
3. You need to boost lead generation and conversions of new clients
How do you identify new markets for your legal services? Are you wasting time nurturing leads who are never going to convert?
Law firm market research is a powerful tool for boosting lead generation and conversion by getting into the hearts and minds of your target markets. By analysing client demographics, behaviours, preferences, and pain points, you can tailor your messaging and services to resonate with the needs of each segment.
This insight enables you to craft compelling content, optimise marketing strategies, and focus on channels that attract the right new leads. With a clear picture of your ideal clients, you can create personalised experiences that build trust, address specific concerns, and ultimately increase the likelihood of attracting hot leads that convert into loyal clients.
4. The competitive landscape is increasingly crowded
According to the PwC Annual Law Firms’ Survey, 49% of businesses are somewhat concerned about “increased competition” – understandably. In a highly competitive legal landscape, market research is essential for law firms to stay ahead.
By analysing industry trends, competitor strategies, and client preferences, firms can identify gaps in the market and refine their value propositions. Understanding what sets your firm apart helps you highlight your unique strengths and align your services with client demands.
This strategic insight enables more targeted marketing, better client retention, and smarter decision-making, ensuring your firm remains competitive and relevant in a fast-paced industry.
5. Hire and keep the best people
‘Improving client and account management’ and ‘hiring key practitioners, relationship owners and rainmakers’ feature in the top three organic growth strategies of the top 100 law firms (PwC survey). How do you attract – and keep – your best people?
Market research helps law firms attract and retain top talent by providing insights into industry employment trends, compensation benchmarks, and what legal professionals value most in their workplace.
Understanding these factors allows firms to craft competitive job offers and cultivate a workplace culture that meets employee expectations. By staying attuned to the needs and preferences of potential and current employees – such as opportunities for growth, flexibility, and recognition – firms can position themselves as desirable employers, reduce turnover, and build a team that drives long-term success.
Ongoing law firm market research keeps you abreast of the evolving landscape, which reacts to how technology advancements change legal services.
6. You need to prove the ROI of your marketing budget
You need market research that measures all the key metrics so you can track the success of your marketing efforts. Market research plays a critical role in proving the ROI of marketing budgets for law firms.
By analysing data on website traffic, lead generation, conversion rates, and campaign performance, firms can measure the effectiveness of their marketing efforts. This enables informed decisions about where to allocate resources so you get maximum bang for your buck.
Clear insights into what works – and what doesn’t – not only justify the budget, but also help refine strategies, improve outcomes, and demonstrate the tangible value of marketing investments.
ScoreApp: Your law firm market research partner
ScoreApp is the perfect market research partner for law firms, offering expert tools to gather and analyse insights from clients, prospects, and staff. Crucially, ScoreApp does market research with you, not to you!
Our innovative quiz and survey platform helps you create irresistible interactive assessments that uncover your clients’ needs, preferences, and pain points while building trust and showcasing expertise.
ScoreApp’s user-friendly analytics help you identify trends, refine your ideal client profiles, and optimise marketing strategies based on real-time data. The brilliant visuals make it really easy to share your insights across your organisation so everyone’s united behind your messaging and marketing strategy.
By seamlessly integrating lead generation with market research, ScoreApp ensures you stay competitive, connect with your perfect audience, and prove exactly how valuable your marketing efforts are to your firm.
Give ScoreApp a try, for free, right now and smash that ROI!
