Assembly to hear strategic marketing plan

By David Anderson

An ongoing marketing program that helps restore the reputation and image of Illinois lawyers as problem solvers, valuable professionals and reliable advisers is headed for a vote at the December meeting of the ISBA Assembly.

The program, developed by the ISBA Committee on Strategic Marketing for Illinois Lawyers, envisions a phased-in approach to create a permanent budget for advertising and marketing, including a market research component.

During its November meeting in St. Louis, the Board of Governors voted to recommend the marketing proposal for adoption by the Assembly.

Advertising, at first in newspapers only, could begin by January 2006. As the ad budget grows, other media such as radio, television and the Internet could be added.

Carl R. Draper of Springfield, co-chair of the strategic marketing committee, told the board there is strong feeling by ISBA members that there should be a continued effort to conduct advertising on behalf of practitioners.

“Members will benefit from seeing ads run in their local papers that promote the ISBA and lawyers in their community,” Draper said.

In an ISBA membership survey, “public image of lawyers” was the highest ranked priority for ISBA action, listed by more than 60 percent of responding attorneys.

During the Future of the Profession Con-ference in December 2004, participants voted by overwhelming majorities to support ISBA conducting ”a comprehensive marketing pro-gram to teach the public about the role and the need for a lawyer” (91.3%) and “educating the public about the added value of using the services of a lawyer” (82.2%).

The Assembly created the strategic marketing committee last December to develop a program for promoting the services of lawyers and the image of the profession. Advertising messages are planned to increase the public's intention to use lawyers' services for individual and business needs.

As part of the program, the public will be directed to IllinoisLawyerFinder on the ISBA Web site, or to the toll-free Illinois Lawyer Finder service.

ISBA has conducted advertising of a similar nature periodically, but never as part of a long-term, ongoing campaign. The goal of the committee is to create an allocation for advertising as a permanent part of the ISBA budget, and to accustom ISBA members to expect such advertising on their behalf as part of their dues dollars.