Law firms are relationship-driven businesses — and not only in terms of attorney-client relationships. Aricia Gallaher’s recipe for success is to approach marketing with an understanding that nurturing connections is kingpin, both internally and externally.
Aricia is the marketing director at Chambliss, Bahner & Stophel, a full-service law firm in Chattanooga. In this episode, Aricia reflects on the lessons learned during a two-decade career and the role her servant leadership approach has played in the firm’s growth. Host Michelle Calcote King also talks with her about facilitating thought leadership, marketing technology, LinkedIn for attorneys, and maximizing industry networks like Meritas.
Here's a glimpse of what you'll learn
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Who Aricia Gallaher is
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About Chambliss, Bahner & Stophel
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How to capture a distinctive brand on your firm’s website
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Ideas to facilitate content development with attorneys
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How strategic partnerships can benefit a firm’s presence
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The benefits of thought leadership as a long-term strategy
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Why law firms need to prioritize marketing automation
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LinkedIn’s vital role in growing law firm business
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The ways industry networks like Meritas can bolster a marketing strategy
About our featured guest
With over two decades of experience in marketing operations, communications, public relations, event management, business development, and client relationship management, Aricia stands as a seasoned and versatile professional adept at navigating the intricacies of today's dynamic business landscape. Throughout her career, Aricia has consistently demonstrated a remarkable ability to drive impactful results and foster enduring connections. She has collaborated with a diverse range of clientele, including some of the nation’s largest health systems. She has leveraged her comprehensive knowledge to orchestrate successful marketing campaigns, spearhead innovative communication strategies and execute high-profile events that resonate with target audiences. As a visionary leader, Aricia has played a pivotal role in shaping the growth trajectories of numerous organizations, utilizing her strategic acumen to identify and capitalize on emerging opportunities. Her keen understanding of market trends, coupled with her exceptional interpersonal skills, has enabled her to cultivate strong client relationships and foster long-term partnerships built on trust and mutual success.
Aricia's passion for innovation and process enhancement is evident as she diligently uncovers business opportunities, executes strategies with precision and champions customer service excellence. Her relentless pursuit of innovation and her ability to adapt to evolving industry landscapes make her a driving force in any team or organization she is a part of. Aricia consistently pushes boundaries and delivers unparalleled value in each project, showcasing her enthusiasm and commitment to excellence in marketing and business development. She holds a proven track record of achievement and a reputation for excellence, making her a trusted advisor and leader in her field. As she continues to make strides in her professional journey, she remains dedicated to driving positive change and shaping the future of marketing, communications, business development, and — most importantly — the client experience.
When offering advice to aspiring professionals, Aricia emphasizes the importance of seeking out strong mentors. She underscores the value of cultivating connections with individuals at various stages of their professional journey to gain invaluable insights and guidance.
Resources mentioned in this episode
Sponsor for this episode
This episode is brought to you by Reputation Ink.
Founded by Michelle Calcote King, Reputation Ink is a public relations and content marketing agency that serves professional services firms of all shapes and sizes across the United States, including corporate law firms and architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) firms.
Reputation Ink understands how sophisticated corporate buyers find and select professional services firms. For more than a decade, they have helped firms grow through thought leadership-fueled strategies, including public relations, content marketing, video marketing, social media, podcasting, marketing strategy services and more.
To learn more, visit www.rep-ink.com or email them at info@rep-ink.com today.
Transcript
[00:00:00] Aricia Gallaher: And I know a lot of small- to mid-sized firms chase, you know, Am Law, the big firms. And we didn't necessarily want to chase. We wanted to be doing things that they are doing and not always be behind.
[00:00:15] Announcer: Welcome to "Spill the Ink," a podcast by Reputation Ink, where we feature experts in growth and brand visibility for law firms and architecture, engineering and construction firms. Now let's get started with the show.
[00:00:33] Michelle Calcote King: Hi everyone! I'm Michelle Calcote King. I'm your host, and I'm also the principal and president of Reputation Ink. We're a public relations and content marketing agency for B2B professional services firms, including law firms. To learn more, go to rep-ink.com.
So today we're talking to the Director of Marketing and Business Development for Chambliss, Bahner & Stophel. Her name is Aricia Gallaher. Chambliss was founded in 1886. Been around for quite a long time. They service businesses, financial institutions, local governments, families, individuals, and nonprofit organizations. They work at the local, regional and national levels.
And we're excited to pick Aricia's brain about how her team approaches marketing a global law firm with such a wide array of services and industries. So thanks for joining me today.
[00:01:23] Aricia Gallaher: Thanks for having me. I appreciate the opportunity.
[00:01:26] Michelle Calcote King: Yeah, thanks!
So legal marketing is such a niche career. A lot of people, you know, it's not something that you kind of go to school thinking, "I'm going to end up at a law firm marketing." So tell me kind of how you ended up here and I know you've been there for a little while.
[00:01:39] Aricia Gallaher: Yeah.
[00:01:39] Michelle Calcote King: Tell me how you ended up on this path.
[00:01:41] Aricia Gallaher: Yeah, so my path was a bit interesting. I've been able to find some really great opportunities here within Chattanooga. But my dream was to either, essentially, be an attorney or a physical therapist. So that was kind of my path. I went to school to become a physical therapist, ended up taking business courses, really enjoyed that. Have spent my career in marketing, operations, and then I had been working for a marketing and media firm here in town, saw this opportunity to just kind of change gears a little bit.
Wanted to find an organization that was really grounded in the community. Saw the opening for Chambliss's marketing and business development director role, applied, and I'm here today. So I essentially feel like I am living in two of the best worlds. I get to use my business degree and then also I didn't have to pay for law school, but I still get to enjoy the environment.
So that's how I end where I am today.
[00:02:46] Michelle Calcote King: I love it.
And you got-- How many attorneys are you guys?
[00:02:49] Aricia Gallaher: We hover somewhere around 65 to 70. We just hired a couple of more attorneys because we needed to add some additional depth to the roster and provide some additional attorneys some opportunity to continue to grow from a business development standpoint. So we just brought on a couple more team members.
[00:03:08] Michelle Calcote King: Okay. And you're a solo office there in Chattanooga. Is that correct?
[00:03:13] Aricia Gallaher: Yes.
[00:03:13] Michelle Calcote King: Okay. And tell me about your team. Are you a solo marketer or do you have a bigger team? How are you structured?
[00:03:21] Aricia Gallaher: No. Thankfully, I have a team of two full-time employees and then one part-time employee. So I've been able to, throughout my career here, add some additional team members. I've been fortunate. So I'm not one of those solo marketers out there.
[00:03:38] Michelle Calcote King: That's great, yeah. 'Cause a lot of people in the legal marketing profession are having to kind of do it on their own. And tell me about your team and, like, what do you handle in-house? What's your focus there? What roles do they play?
[00:03:50] Aricia Gallaher: So we have two marketing and business development specialists and one marketing coordinator. Our marketing coordinator, she is what I call a legacy employee. She's been with the firm for 25 -plus years.
[00:04:03] Michelle Calcote King: Oh wow.
[00:04:04] Aricia Gallaher: And oh, she is a technology whiz. So anything that you need from a technology perspective, you give it to her and she figures it out.
[00:04:12] Michelle Calcote King: Fantastic.
[00:04:12] Aricia Gallaher: She's definitely more than an admin and serves a very strategic role within our department and team. And then I have two marketing and business development specialists. We manage everything marketing and business development. So anything outward-facing, inward-facing, marketing, PR, comms and business development. So we also-- I do a bit more of the coaching and have a little more interaction with the attorneys on a day to day basis, but I do have a senior marketing and business development specialist, and she sits in a lot of those meetings as well.
'Cause I feel like it's important for our marketing team to have some of that cross-functionality with the business development side because we really are working together to continue to promote the firm.
[00:04:58] Michelle Calcote King: Yeah, that's great.
If you had to describe your strategy in terms of how you approach marketing the firm, what would you say that is?
[00:05:07] Aricia Gallaher: I like to think that I am very innovative. When I joined the firm, I did, like we talked about before, I don't have that typical legal marketing background. I come from more of the commercial world. So when I joined the firm, I really wanted to make a difference. You'll hear a lot of people say, "Well, legal is a bit behind some of the other industries." And so I really wanted to take this firm and move it forward.
So I have tried to instill that in my team as well. Like, we want to do things differently. We want to be seen differently. We want to display our firm, find thought leadership opportunities that are a bit different than what we typically see in legal marketing.
[00:05:50] Michelle Calcote King: Personally, I love your website.
[00:05:51] Aricia Gallaher: Thank you.
[00:05:51] Michelle Calcote King: When did you launch your website?
[00:05:53] Aricia Gallaher: I can't take 100-percent credit for this. We worked with a firm out of Dallas, Texas. And the first iteration had happened before I joined the firm back in 2013. I've been with the firm-- I'm in my 11th year now. So that's kind of--
[00:06:10] Michelle Calcote King: That's an old website to look that good.
[00:06:12] Aricia Gallaher: No, no. This is the second iteration. Sorry to be confusing. No, the first iteration was back in 2013. And then my team and I worked with our web developers and launched the new website three days before the pandemic shut everything down.
[00:06:29] Michelle Calcote King: Wow.
[00:06:30] Aricia Gallaher: So our old sites still looked good. It definitely needed to be revamped, but the functionality and user experience of our new site was able to handle the web traffic that we received, you know, during the pandemic and post-pandemic.
[00:06:47] Michelle Calcote King: Right, right. Yeah, 'cause a lot of firms rushed to update during the pandemic because suddenly everything had to go online. That was good timing for you.
[00:06:56] Aricia Gallaher: Absolutely.
[00:06:57] Michelle Calcote King: Well, and a lot of web development firms were hit, so a lot of the, you know, they didn't have the capacity to help everyone else updating their sites and that kind of thing.
[00:07:06] Aricia Gallaher: Yeah, one of my mottos has always been timing is everything.
[00:07:11] Michelle Calcote King: Mm-hmm. Yep.
[00:07:12] Aricia Gallaher: So, I don't know if somebody was looking out for us, but yeah, three days before we hit "Go live" and yeah, that was perfect timing.
[00:07:19] Michelle Calcote King: Yeah. Well, it has a very distinctive look. It doesn't have that law firm feel to it. Was that what you were trying to achieve with that?
[00:07:27] Aricia Gallaher: Yeah, we wanted to inject some color and light because our firm is a very vibrant and active firm. We wanted to visually display and carry out that we are innovative, that we use technology to our advantage and I feel like we're a very high-touch firm as well. So we wanted everyone to feel comfortable and feel like our firm was very relatable.
And so we had a bit of a limited color palette when we launched the first revamp back in 2013. But in 2020 we wanted to, again, inject some color and some vibrancy to really kind of capture our firm and our culture.
[00:08:12] Michelle Calcote King: A lot of firms ignore that part of it. They're people and they're, you know, they're doing business with people and that there's a personality side to it.
You mentioned thought leadership and you mentioned, like, trying to do things a little differently. How do you facilitate thought leadership at the firm? How do you get your attorneys involved and make sure that that goes forward?
[00:08:33] Aricia Gallaher: Yeah, there's a myriad of different ways that we do that. I really feel like strategic partnerships is important for the firm.
So there are different industry groups-- I mean, we are a full-service firm. What does that really mean? I tell everyone, "We can assist your business needs from start to succession and essentially everything in between." And so it's important that our different practice groups are reflected in their industries in which they are very experienced and we want to ensure that people that are looking for resources find us.
We work with various industry groups, we work with our local bar associations, state bar associations as well. It's important that we speak and write on topics in which we are experienced and are, essentially, experts. So I know we can, we can and can't say that word, you know, but--
[00:09:30] Michelle Calcote King: Isn't that the strangest thing?
Yeah, exactly.
[00:09:33] Aricia Gallaher: Bizarre. But that's one of the things that I had to learn when I joined legal marketing. There's all these rules and I understand why they exist, but yeah.
So that's one of the responsibilities that my team handles. So some of the opportunities are delivered to us by the attorneys, and then we seek those opportunities out as well. But strategic partnerships are very important. And I try to tell and really just continue to hone in on thought leadership really is the long-term play for our attorneys. You know, you're not likely going to get business or a new client immediately after you publish that piece or you speak on that topic. But those things, those opportunities really do, essentially, live in perpetuity. So, they're out there when someone's looking for you or looking for a particular area of interest for their business.
And so one of the best examples was a gentleman had held on to an article that one of our healthcare attorneys had written. Had been sitting on it for, I think, somewhere between three to five years, maybe. He was like, "Oh man, I need to work with this guy. I like him." So, he goes, researches him, goes to LinkedIn, goes to our website, watches the video and was like, "I like this guy, I'm giving him a call."
So I said, in terms of the grand scheme of things, that was probably the shortest technical, like, sales cycle, so to speak. But in terms of the overall length, it took several years to bring that to fruition. So I tell them, "That's why we do what we do. That's why you want to participate in thought leadership because someone will remember you down the road." So it may be immediate, but it may be five years down the road.
[00:11:27] Michelle Calcote King: Yeah, and it's cumulative. Like you said, it adds up. Right. Yeah. It builds on itself 100-percent.
How have things changed? So you've been doing this for over a decade. How have things changed since you started out?
[00:11:39] Aricia Gallaher: I do feel like when I first joined the firm it was a little different. And I know a lot of small- to mid-sized firms chase, you know, Am Law, the big firms. And we didn't necessarily want to chase. We wanted to be doing things that they are doing and not always be behind. So our firm's strategy really was to hire some professionals outside of the legal industry to kind of bring business in.
When I first joined the firm, we were, I would say doing things the typical law firm way. And then we really started managing the firm as a business. And so our culture has shifted in those 10 years.
I think when I first joined the firm, one of the things that somewhat astonished me was that I was still having to have the conversations about the difference between marketing and business development.
[00:12:32] Michelle Calcote King: Right.
[00:12:33] Aricia Gallaher: And now that's no longer the case. And, you know, before-- I'm sure other legal marketers that have been in the industry for a period of time have probably experienced the same phenomenon. But when I'd show up in someone's office, they were like, "Oh no." You know? But now they're coming to us as the experts and for assistance. So it's been very exciting and rewarding to see.
And at the end of the day, we are servant leaders in my department, so we are here to assist. And I don't need the accolades. I want to see the attorneys be successful.
[00:13:09] Michelle Calcote King: Yeah. But that is the best feeling when they start coming to you because that means that they've seen an impact.
[00:13:15] Aricia Gallaher: Absolutely.
[00:13:15] Michelle Calcote King: They're not going to do that unless they have really seen an impact on their business and, you know, and that they've felt that it really helps them. So you know it's working.
[00:13:25] Aricia Gallaher: Yeah. Some days it can be a challenge because you're like, "Oh my goodness. I've created all this work for myself."
[00:13:30] Michelle Calcote King: Right. You've created more work for yourself. But yeah, absolutely. That's success, 100-percent.
You mentioned technology. Can you tell me a little bit about what sort of technologies are kind of central to you and what you do?
[00:13:43] Aricia Gallaher: Well, I know there's a lot of talk right now with regard to CRM. We do use it on a basic level but we will be implementing it completely across the firm by end of year. So marketing automation is very important to me. I would say that's one area within the industry that we really need to concentrate on and move the industry forward.
I had never worked for a business that hadn't had a CRM system before. And to come into this world and just now be working on implementing that is a little foreign, but again, timing is everything. And I just had a meeting with several large law firms and we're no different. So you would think these larger firms are so far advanced. And I said, "Well, if we are a small- to mid-sized firm and we are doing these things, I feel like we are right in line with Big Law." So maybe some are more advanced, but others, we're very much in-line with what they are doing as a business.
[00:14:49] Michelle Calcote King: I find the CRM issue interesting, especially in an industry where relationships are so important. And it is a relationship tool and so critical. But yeah, we're doing the same with a lot of clients, helping them with CRM. And it's an interesting challenge. A relationship-driven industry, but also there's a little bit of, you know, ownership of relationships and they don't want to let go of them. So there's fear of, you know, relinquishing that control and so you have to have that trust in your marketing team to sort of let go a little bit of that control and, you know, turn over those relationships so that you know that they're going to take care of them, you know, to the lawyer's preferences and how they would do that. So yeah, CRM is so critical.
[00:15:34] Aricia Gallaher: That's a culture shift as well. It takes some selling and we've been prepping the attorneys for several years about, "Oh, well, if we had CRM, we'd have this data. You would have it at your fingertips as well." And I'm not saying that that's the solution that's going to solve every issue, but it would provide some efficiencies for all of us even within records and intake. We could provide some process improvement there as well.
[00:16:01] Michelle Calcote King: Right. Yeah, absolutely.
What about LinkedIn? How are your attorneys-- Are they getting involved with LinkedIn? Are you getting them engaged? What are your strategies around LinkedIn?
[00:16:10] Aricia Gallaher: We tell everyone that enters, everyone at all levels within the firm, "LinkedIn is very important. It's how you network professionally out on the internet and make connections." We have some attorneys that do it very well. Some that need a little assistance and coaching, and then we have some people that just aren't into it and that's okay. You need people at all different levels, but LinkedIn is extremely important to our business.
And we'll be offering some training internally as well. That's something that's been on our to-do list for a while is really just getting people more comfortable with using the tool. But we have some attorneys that really are functioning at a high level in terms of networking within LinkedIn that have not only made connections with former classmates, former coworkers... I mean, general counsel moves. You know, they change positions and oftentimes they take people with them or need to make new connections or at least connect the dot and LinkedIn is one of those tools in which to do that. But we have certainly had some success within our efforts with LinkedIn.
[00:17:25] Michelle Calcote King: It's always interesting to watch those attorneys who are particularly great at LinkedIn and if you can use them to influence the others, that's, I think, where you can really, yeah, you can leverage their natural abilities to influence those that maybe aren't as natural at it. So we try to do that as much as possible.
[00:17:45] Aricia Gallaher: Very, very good point. It's kind of like gamification on a different level.
[00:17:48] Announcer: Yeah, absolutely.
[00:17:48] Aricia Gallaher: It's like, "Look what this person did."
[00:17:51] Michelle Calcote King: Right, right. Well, you know, lawyers are naturally competitive, so you can kind of stimmy that a bit.
The other thing I wanted to ask you about is the Meritas affiliation. Can you talk about that distinction and how it plays into your marketing strategy? Or does it? Do you leverage that?
[00:18:09] Aricia Gallaher: Oh yeah, absolutely. We are a single office and I don't feel like we have any desire to change that in the near future. We love the camaraderie that we have built here. It's very collegial but we understand that we may need resources. I mean, we, our bread and butter, is essentially the small- to mid-size businesses and companies. Many of them are family-owned, but we have helped grow some of the businesses here in Chattanooga and they are international corporations. So it's important for us to have a network of like-minded firms that we can call on. Meritas has been a great partner.
So we have an affiliate relationship, essentially, with other firms throughout the world. They're highly vetted. We go through a QC process every three years. We appreciate that. There's a referral process and survey after each engagement.
So we feel very comfortable in our trusted resource and network, Meritas. It's been a great relationship. It has provided a great return on investments. We have some wonderful partners throughout the United States and world that we rely on and so it essentially extends our bench strength.
[00:19:27] Michelle Calcote King: Right. Yeah. And it is really a kind of a distinction. We have a few clients that are Meritas firms and I honestly didn't know about the every three years thing, but that's impressive.
I saw in your company profile that you recently traveled to the Philippines with your grandfather. Was that recent or was that a few years ago?
[00:19:47] Aricia Gallaher: Actually, okay. So that-- I need to practice what I preach. I'm always telling the attorneys to update their bios, but I probably need to conduct some self care.
No, that was actually a few years back and it was really important. My grandfather was originally from the Philippines. He was a Philippine Scout, was a veteran of World War II. And I actually was just in D. C. and visited he and my grandmother in Arlington National Cemetery. So I was very fortunate to host and help ensure he made it back to the Philippines one more time. So, it was a great trip. Great trip. Once in a lifetime.
[00:20:27] Michelle Calcote King: Oh lovely! So I wanted to ask about your multicultural background and how that influenced your work. Obviously, diversity, equity, inclusion is a big focus in the legal industry.
[00:20:38] Aricia Gallaher: Absolutely.
[00:20:39] Michelle Calcote King: Can you tell me a little bit about how you approach that in your role?
[00:20:43] Aricia Gallaher: Yeah, I think it's important for everyone to have opportunities. And one of the things I have, like I said, my grandfather was from the Philippines. I have-- My grandmother was Native American Indian. I like to call myself a bit of a Heinz 57, that melting pot.
And I, you know, grew up around people that were dedicated and worked very hard. And I try to instill that in my team. You know, you are a reflection of your brand. And so I, again, in terms of trying to provide opportunity for others, I feel it's very important to mentor, help that next generation.
I've established relationships here locally with an organization that used to be known as the Black Bar, but now it's the S. L. Hutchins Association. And I just feel it's important to ensure that you have those relationships, those connections to ensure that there's a place for everyone and opportunity if you so desire.
[00:21:46] Michelle Calcote King: I love that.
[00:21:46] Aricia Gallaher: Yeah, so I just think it's important to foster an environment of inclusion.
[00:21:54] Michelle Calcote King: Yeah, and to prepare that next generation through mentorship. I had seen that passion for mentorship as well on your bio.
[00:22:01] Aricia Gallaher: Well, I was fortunate to have some really great mentors along the way. And it's just important. I mean, my grandparents, they participated in philanthropic efforts. And I just saw that in my upbringing and I feel it's important, you know, again, to provide opportunities.
[00:22:20] Michelle Calcote King: Well, if there's one final thought you could leave our listeners with about marketing a firm you know, like your firm you know, that is the full-service firm, is there anything you think that we haven't touched on?
[00:22:33] Aricia Gallaher: I think this is just a very relationship-driven business, and you do have to approach it as a servant leader. Relationships are important, not only externally with your clientele, but internally. We have internal clients, and those are the attorneys. So if you are starting out or if you're a veteran, you have to understand your audience and get to know them. If you can build really strong relationships with your attorneys and the people within the firm that you work with and just understand that you are a part of the whole, you'll be very successful. It's all about building relationships at all levels within the firm.
[00:23:11] Michelle Calcote King: Love that. Well, thank you so much. So we've been talking to Aricia Gallaher of Chambliss Law. So if people want to connect with you to talk further, what's the best way for them to do that?
[00:23:23] Aricia Gallaher: I welcome emails. That's usually the easiest way to kind of introduce one another and get the ball rolling so you're welcome to email me at agallaher@chamblisslaw.com or connect with me on LinkedIn.
[00:23:36] Michelle Calcote King: Awesome. Well, thank you so much. We appreciate it.
[00:23:39] Aricia Gallaher: Thank you. Take care, Michelle.
[00:23:42] Announcer: Thanks for listening to "Spill the Ink," a podcast by Reputation Ink. We'll see you again next time and be sure to click "Subscribe" to get future episodes.
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