Does your entire team tell the same story to clients, prospects and the outside world when talking about the firm and what it does? Does each team member’s understanding of your firm match the claims you make on your website and in your marketing materials? Does everyone tell the same story? Or do different members of the team – even partners perhaps – tell different stories and give different impressions of the very same firm?
What would happen if you asked every member of your firm to tell the firm’s story, to explain what the firm does best and how? And what if you then compared their answers to marketing narratives on your website and other materials? Often firms find that team members sound like they’re working for a different firm than the one described in the website.
While having solid marketing messages and materials is important, if your entire team doesn’t speak to those messages consistently, then you don’t have a consistent brand message. A solid brand permeates all levels of the firm’s communications, starting with marketing and moving through the front desk, operations, sales and management.
Asking each member of your team to tell the firm’s story and how it benefits clients can help you determine areas for improvement and how to build or redirect your firm’s messages. And you may find valuable input you’d never considered from unlikely sources. Use the input to reconcile your brand messages and material, to ensure consistency, and to make sure that your entire staff is well versed in those messages. You may find you need sales training, refreshed materials or a new website.
Clear and consistent messaging serves as the foundation of all your marketing communications efforts. This messaging includes not just your materials but also your staff’s verbal communications. A solid brand tells a story that permeates everything the firm touches.
Audit your communications. Make sure your brand is solid and polished throughout your firm.