What's In a Logo?

Putting an immense effort into marketing is not something taught in law school and is not something many attorneys take the time and money to do. We are taught to be lawyers, and lawyers practice law. When I opened my own practice in 2010, the only marketing advice I received from other attorneys was to bold my name in the local phone book and rely on word of mouth. Putting more than $25 into business cards was highly discouraged, and the reviews on having a website were even worse.

In the spring of 2018, after a steadfast effort to give my personal life a new image, I wanted to do the same for my professional life and law firm. The first thing that came to my mind was a new logo, and, in the beginning of this new adventure in my career, that’s all I planned to do.

The more I thought about it, I realized that developing a new logo meant creating a entirely new image and figuring out a way for my logo to convey my practice without looking like the majority of law firm logos. A new image, however, is about more than new marketing tools or a fancy, updated logo. I also wanted to play an active role in the entire process—I know how to market my practice better than anyone else, or at least I thought so.

Fortunately for me, I knew enough about the marketing process to know my vision would quickly surpass my abilities to make it happen. I did not even know what SEO was and my website experience was limited to posting on Facebook.

In addition to me knowing how little I knew about marketing, I also had the good fortune to cross paths with Jordan Lacenski a few years ago. Jordan knows marketing, and she knows creativity. If I was going to trust anyone with handling the polishing of my professional brand, it was going to be Jordan and her company, Boss Brand Creative, a boutique creative agency.

I had no idea what I was getting myself into. I found out as soon as I signed the contract that I was definitely not getting into the development of a basic marketing plan. I had major homework to do. Boss Brand Creative’s rebranding process pushed me to define the core values of my practice and establish a clear vision statement and mission statement. Those things were never mentioned in law school, and most any solo practice attorney I know would tell you their vision for their law practice is to practice law, and their mission is to not go broke doing so.

The rebranding process puts a sizable focus on the initial work of creating a mission statement, vision, and tagline. It’s a soul-searching process that provided me with a new outlook on the career I love. When all was said and done the rebranding process left me more than mere marketing products. My practice gained a brand, and I attained a polishing of my professional image that I could not have secured by hiring a traditional marketing agency to do all the work for me.

For me, the rebranding process meant that I am invested in my business and in the community where I have planted roots. My decade of practicing law has given me so much fulfillment and opportunity. Now it’s my turn to hand this gift of rebranding back to my firm as a “thank you” for all the years of allowing me to passionately pursue my dreams.

I hope you enjoy viewing the fruits of our labors even a fraction as much as we enjoyed putting this together. And if you ever need legal counsel in Montana, keep in mind that “Justice suits you best.”