2020 has been, to say the least, full of surprises. It has taken businesses, including law firms, that are stalwarts in their industries and flipped them on their heads!   It forced law offices, which, for the most part, were brick and mortar firms, to figure out how to work remotely – overnight.

Pre-March 2020 — Trials: Lawyers physically went into the courts.  Depositions:  Lawyers physically conducted examinations before trial. Client meetings and consultations: People visited law offices, or lawyers went to clients’ offices, homes, or hospital beds.  No matter how it was done,  it was done in a fashion that seems almost antiquated.

Of course, because of the 2020 tumult and shake-up of norms, in addition to learning how to work remotely,  the new normal is ushering in trends and unfamiliar practices attorneys did not expect to experience in 2021.

Of course, in light of technology, social media, mobile connectivity, AI, virtual events, you name it, some of these trends had already been seeping into the way law firms do business because that’s just the way things were headed.  Only now, whether any of us is or not, it’s forcing us all to adjust at a dizzyingly hyper-accelerated rate . . . and, in many ways, threatening our very existence if we choose not to adapt.

But, Imagine coming out of COVID, stronger, more profitable with a structure in place to easily attract or engage your ideal client.  The funny thing is, done right, it can be easier than you think and more profitable than you could ever imagine.

What COVID has taught us is that change, even for law firms, is doable, often mandatory, and we need not resist.

Many legal industry marketing trends are going to undoubtedly shape 2021.  This infographic highlights what research indicates law firms need to do to meet this unprecedented challenge.