How to start building your brand as an in-house counsel

The stronger your personal brand is, the better known you are, the better liked you are and the more trusted you are in your community. Following on from my post about why you should build your personal brand, it’s time to share some of the ways how you can start/continue this journey.

Remember that the first step is getting over the embarrassment of putting yourself forward for opportunities. Know that no one will judge you for putting your achievements out there and additionally, sharing what you’re working on can help the community as a whole. It could spark an idea or reassure someone that they’re not alone in facing that challenge.

I often chat through some options with my network and always happy to. Get in touch for an off the record, no judgement chat about what you can do. In the meantime, below is my initial cheat sheet on building/raising your brand. If you have any other tips, let me know so I can add!

1)?????Awards

Those of you who know me will remember that I looked after the entry campaigns for The Lawyer Awards so I’ve picked up a few tricks of the trade that I’m always happy to share.

For starters, here are a few things to consider as an in-house team looing to enter an awards

·??????Most importantly – read the criteria! Sounds obvious but I’ve seen many entries that don’t hit the mark when compared to what we’ve asked.

·??????The crux of a team entry should focus on stand out legal work – this doesn’t always have to be a headline grabbing M&A or IPO, but should be something stand out.

·??????Support the legal work with evidence of other innovation; diversity & inclusion, training, operations, use of technology, ESG are all good examples of what judges usually get excited about.

·??????It’s likely that your entry will cover work that has led to resounding success in the business so why not ask the senior leadership to share how your work has benefitted them and the company.

Secondly, pick the awards that you enter carefully. Not all are reputable. In fact, I was once awarded one for In-House Lawyer of the Year, Media. Was a rather amusing conversation with said organiser that although I worked at The Lawyer, I am in fact not a lawyer.

The main ones in my view are The Lawyer Awards, The British Legal Awards, Legal Business Awards and FT Innovative Lawyers.

Fundamentally, if you’re looking at the social buzz after an award thinking “why isn’t that me” then you need to put yourself out there. Judges can only judge on the entries they’re given. Sometimes the cliché is the truth, “you gotta be in it, to win it”

2)?????The legal press

Some of the best kept secrets are within in-house legal teams. Why? Because the press doesn’t know about them and you aren’t telling them.

Not every story will be printed but if you don’t reach out, none of them will be.

Most reporters will have contact details online so if you’re not sure, give them a call and explain a little about the potential story rather than creating a lengthy press release.

Remember, you’re not as accessible to the press as private practice so most reporters will be happy to hear from you. Everyone that I’ve ever introduced to a reporter has had a piece printed.

3)?????Rankings and lists

It’s that time of the year when our social feeds explode with “good news I’m Band 1 in Blah Blah Law” from our friends in private practice. But did you realise there are opportunities for you to be recognised too?

Maybe I’m slightly biased but the coveted list of the year is definitely The Lawyer’s Hot 100. Celebrating excellence from the year before, the list goes live at the end of January each year. What not a lot of in-house know is that you can put forward a nomination to be considered (deadline is 30th September).

As per the above, if you don’t showcase what you’ve done to the right people, you won’t be mentioned. If you feel uncomfortable putting yourself forward, speak to a friendly law firm to send the nomination in.

There’s also the GC Powerlist (this year’s has just been released) and the FT Innovative Lawyers rankings here in the UK.

4)?????Conferences and events

There’s nothing like getting together with peers and a great way to increase your exposure amongst peers is by taking the stage at a conference.

Speaking is also a slightly less public way of sharing your expertise and advice, with your story being for those in the room only.

When you're invited to an event and open the agenda, think about what you can offer to the topics that are being discussed. If you don't see speakers attached to sessions then there's a chance that the organiser is still looking for the right people - put yourself forward!

A great way to ease into speaking publicly can be podcasts. Quick plug that Lessons I Learned in Law will be returning in October!

If you’d like guidance on events that the community rate, let me know but most will have contact information for the person writing the agenda/a register of interest form – put yourself forward to speak!

5)?????Social media

?With a multitude of platforms, there’s a place for everyone in social media. I personally find the TikTok side of things completely out of my comfort zone and would much rather share via an article (thank you for reading this far) or a post.

For in-house counsel I think LinkedIn is the best option. There aren’t many in-housers on Twitter and if you are a TikTok genius, you can share your content on LinkedIn to boost traffic. Sharing positive news, successful deals, innovative ideas is all something that the wider community will be happy to hear about.

Going back to how your personal brand can help others, Sarah Marshall & Jamie Pearson’s High Five is a series that I’d recommend following with handy advice that they’ve picked up along the way as in-house lawyers and are sharing with the community.

When you are staring at a blank page, it's hard to know where to start. So why note create a sticky note on your mobile or buy a notebook to jot down ideas as and when they happen. Note your team's successes, the value you brought, the challenges you faced and overcame and then it's all there ready to start sharing.

To chat about this or anything else, please feel free to book a slot in my diary here or call me on 07946 181 069.