Thought leadership is all about having interesting and attention-grabbing insights on the big problems facing your customers.

You could be using these insights in interesting articles and blogs, well-argued reports and white papers, and also delivering them in videos, LinkedIn posts and of course face-to-face in meetings and when speaking at events.

But is there research out there showing it brings commercial benefits for law firms?

Yes, there's plenty!

For instance, when it comes to generating demand and increasing sales, below are some highlights from recent research by global comms agency Edelman

 (in this case based on 1.3K US business decision-makers in 2017):

1. 41% of C-Suite executives include companies on RFPs directly through their thought leadership
2. A majority of decision-makers use it to vet organisations and understand the calibre of their thinking

Being known as an authority on important legal challenges and trends gives tremendous advantages when it comes to winning work. These include strong credibility, better recognition, more referrals and greater memorability. You can charge more too!

But many of the traditional signs of authority for law firms have been superseded.

Having a great offering, lots of credentials, smart offices, well-designed marketing materials and a professional website are not nearly enough to open the door with most senior-decision makers.

As the final court of appeal in the UK for civil cases, the Supreme Court is a powerful institution. Positioning yourself as a Supreme Court commentator will build and enhance your reputation with peers, clients and the media as someone who understands the most important legal disputes.

In 2009 I was a litigation reporter at The Lawyer responsible for covering the opening of the Supreme Court. Previously the UK’s top justices sat as the Appellate Committee of the House of Lords. The move from the House of Lords into a purpose-built court on Parliament Square was intended to emphasize the independence of the judiciary, increasing the transparency between Parliament and the Supreme Court.

Our recent "Building a business-winning reputation" webinar looked at how law firms can build a strong business-winning reputation, and how to get the communications strategy right to achieve this.

This webinar is now available as a complimentary video and podcast. Just click here to watch it now or download it for later.

Why do many law firm marketing & PR campaigns fall flat?

Let’s be honest, many law firm marketing and PR programmes fall flat.