Why is that when law firms start reconsidering how their website looks, they start looking at other law firm websites for inspiration?
By and large, there’s not too much inspiration out there and when firms seek to be inspired by others in their industry sameness prevails, and then around we go one more time!
For a moment of self-fulfilling prophecy, when we’re at the starting line working with a new firm, we’re striving to get a sense of who this firm is, we’re looking at unique qualities that set them apart, love marks (what clients love), we then start thinking of narratives, a story that depicts this firm, which then turns our minds to design aesthetics.
Do firms know what their unique value proposition is? Invariably, no, but once you hear it, you know it. For example, in recently working with leading Australian criminal law firm, once we heard of the way they worked collectively on their files, it was a strong demarcation from other practices who usually have the ‘king-pin” defence lawyer of which all the others in the practice pale into insignificance.
The Bosscher Lawyers website, we think is a great example of design that works and the feedback thus far, corroborates that view!
In recently talking to my colleague Robert Algeri from the law firm web design, Great Jakes, Robert describes his similar approach as “discovery,” where he and his team literally spend weeks talking to those within the firm and those outside it.
We find as does the team at Great Jakes, it’s the subsequent distillation phase that creates great design that nails the firm’s value proposition and then seeks out the best way to harness a mash of technology and design to bring it to life.
You can hear my chat with Robert here
The Burnet Duckworth & Palmer, by Great Jakes is another stellar example of well-considered design!
The message here is don’t rush into such an important touch mark. Sure, take the time to look at your competitors, but only in a way that allows your firm to differentiate and get very introspective about the culture, the qualities, the work patterns and the idiosyncrasies of your firm from multiple dimensions and don’t do it yourself. Others will see and hear what will be forever lost to you!
