Every ad doesn't have to sell. You can't describe the work your attorneys perform and expect a prospective client to immediately call you on the phone. However, when combined with other marketing tools, advertising is a highly effective method to get your name in front of your audience and reinforce the image of your firm. If the ad is supposed to sell, let it. But keep in mind that ads can do a lot more for your marketing plan than just sell.
Good advertising works because of good planning, good creative concepts and good execution.
If so, keep trying and recognize that law firms entering the world of advertising are still on the frontier and growing pains are unavoidable. This article appeared in the February 1996 issue of Legal Marketing Exchange , the official newsletter of the National Law Firm Marketing Association. Jay M. Jaffe is the Chairman of Jaffe Associates, Inc., a marketing and communications consulting firm specializing in law and other professional service firms with offices in Washington, DC, and London. Jaffe Associates creates more large law firm advertising than any firm in the world.