Selling your story (published Winter 2019)
Politicians are now using them: how firms use narratives to sell legal tech With politicians currently selling their narratives for UK plc. Thought it would be apt to examine what they are, what it takes to create one; and, how firms are using them to sell tech. As we know, in legal tech, there is an awful lot of sameness: too many firms promising too much of the same thing. Bombarded with competing messages, busy clients and partners crave clarity and direction. That’s why narratives are so important. They provide a GPS for the path ahead. An overarching narrative creates a template for all other internal and external communications, but surprisingly, most firms (more than half we reviewed) don’t have a narrative on their websites detailing their approach to tech and innovation. Even when firms do venture to articulate propositions, often they lean towards the generic. For example: “Together with our modern approach to legal project management and the entrepreneurial spirit we’re known for, our solutions are delivering results for clients in speed, quality and value.” It takes time, talent and boldness to draw out something more compelling, but it’s important – this is what sets the scene. Linklaters has a corporate narrative that describes its ‘mindset’ and how it’s ‘empowering (its people) to do and think differently’. It pushes this into the area of innovation: ‘Innovation is about doing things differently – unleashing the imaginations of our people to challenge the present and shape the future.’ It also draws on the idea that innovation runs deep. ‘Innovation lies at the core of our purpose of delivering legal certainty in a changing world. It runs through everything we do at Linklaters – our legal advice, the way we deliver our services to clients and the way we run our business. We believe the best responses to the challenges brought about by change, whether commercial, geo-political or cultural, require creative, innovative and collaborative thinking.’
Of course, this is only half the story. Once developed, narratives don’t stand alone. A sentence such as ‘We are an innovative, full-service firm with global capabilities’ won’t compel anyone to sign on the dotted line. Instead, firms need to give evidence. Powerful phrases begin For example…’ You wouldn’t think that law firms struggle with using hard facts. After all, senior business leaders and partners employ them every single day. But facts are just one type of evidence, and may need bolstering with more emotive language to appeal not just to people’s IQ, but also their EQ. Through a combination of hard facts and descriptive language, stories come alive. Here are four discrete types of evidence: • Facts: these establish size, scale, and what’s at stake • Observations: expert marketplace perspective and the issues clients face • Anecdotes: bringing ideas to life (relevant business stories are even better) • Metaphors: simile and analogy cut through waffle, creating shortcuts to insight As mentioned, only a few firms include their tech and innovation narratives (on their websites). Fewer still, combine their facts, observations and anecdotes to tell their own stories. Neither do they use metaphors. Surprising, given the challenge of communicating something as abstract as tech, in an easy to understand and memorable way. Storytelling, and the art of storytelling is an excellent way for any client facing lawyers and support staff to structure and present their credentials into something more persuasive and compelling. We know a few firms practising storytelling. More should follow to help distinguish themselves in the market.
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