BIGfrontier Communications Group

In a sea of names how does your firm differentiate?  BIGfrontier has a long history of making firms and practices stand out through aggressive promotion of individuals and practice groups, that serves to target specific clients important to the firm’s overall growth.  There are several different approaches to delivering PR services to law firms, each with their own attributes and varying degrees of success.  One mistake most PR firms make with law firms is relying on lawyers to tell them what the stories are.  BIGfrontier does not deliver PR for PR's sake.  We will work with your company to insure that you're able to monetize your exposure. 


BIGfrontier has had success with law firm marketing because we approach our clients from a reporter’s perspective:  we review the firm’s intellectual assts, conduct interviews and research news cycles and then develop stories.  Beyond getting bylined papers placed and arranging boat tours, which most in house law firm marketers consider de rigueur, BIGfrontier will provide designated spokespeople with opportunities to comment on trends and issues in the news.  We make the firm topical, immediate and knowledgeable in the media.   As with all our accounts we present a law firm and its designated attorneys and practice groups with a position that reflects uniqueness in the marketplace.  A review of selected law firm client work will illustrate this point.
Here’s a quick checklist of questions that any law firm considering a public relations firm should be asking:

1. Will the firm’s public relations objectives HELP business goals?
   
2. How will public relations initiatives be measured? What will some of the benchmarks and milestones look like?
   
3. Why does the firm want public relations at this particular juncture of their business objectives?
   
4. Who is the target audience? Does the firm have several audiences?
   
5. How does the firm wish to be perceived in its target market(s)?
   
6. What are the specific PR tactics, such as giving CLEs—both online and in person—getting published, becoming a source for the press, conducting seminars, etc.?
   
7. Can public relations goals be met within the allocated time frame?
   
8. Do you want public relations for practice groups or do you want PR help when working on a specific case?
   
9. Which attorneys will regularly talk to the PR professionals to brainstorm ideas, etc.?
   
10. How frequently will this be conducted?
    
11. How comfortable are the attorneys talking with the press?
    
12. Do the attorneys have a basic 101 understanding of how the press works?
    

Here are a few of the law firms we have worked with...

Fox and Fox - Leading Midwest law firm concentrating in employment, civil rights, personal injury, commercial and insurance litigation. Successfully positioned attorney Randall Gold as a designated spokesperson on sexual harassment, leading to several national print and television exposures, including People Magazine and the (don’t laugh, it brought in business) Jerry Springer show. Helped position the firm as a leader in sexual harassments commentary in the international media.

Holleb & Coff - Leading Illinois Corporate law firm founded by Sidney Yates and Marshall Holleb. Worked with the firm for 18 months, building up its technology and intellectual property practice groups, as well as real estate and assisted living. Full range of services included significant trade, national and international print and broadcast exposure on a range of issues; Notably conducted an international crisis communications campaign as the firm suffered through a hostile dissolution.

Law Offices of Beverly Pekala - Case Study
One of most interesting campaigns we have worked on. BIGfrontier positioned Ms. Pekala, a family law attorney, as America’s celebrity divorce handicapper. The result was a groundswell of recurring national press and an imposing presence in negotiations.

Schwartz, Cooper, Greenberger and Krauss - Chicago's Business-to-Business Attorneys. BIGfrontier provided firm with a range of regional and national exposure, primarily highlighting case victories.

Law Offices of Peter Canalia - BIGfrontier has helped Peter Canalia, who runs a trust practice, establish a new national business setting up trusts for pets: the Peace of Mind Pet Trust. This innovative online company straddles the fence between startup and legal service. Mr. Canalia has received extensive local and national print and broadcast exposure and is frequently stopped on the street by those seeking the autograph of the “Pet Guy.”