By Terrie S. Wheeler
Bench and Bar

No one needs to tell you that the business of practicing law has changed dramatically over the past ten years. Among the most notable of changes is the fact that today, many successful businesses are owned and operated by women. So, do law firms really need a different approach when targeting women business owners? Some might say, marketing is marketing, right?

Not really. In order for a law firm or solo practitioner to successfully attract women business owners as clients, a number of considerations must be addressed.

First, consider your firm's ration of female to male lawyers. How many of your partners and associates are women? Is there an attitude of mutual respect, cooperation and support between male and female attorneys in your firm? Most women business owners want to know that the law firms they do business with are supportive of the women professionals they employ. Many women business owners simply will not do business with law firms that don't support and promote their own women attorneys.

Second, marketing legal services should be a gender-neutral process. However, when your target audience is women business owners, you will be more successful if you make an effort to position your firm to attract and retain women business owners as clients. Following are 20 ideas you may want to consider:

• Host a substantive business seminar targeting women business owners and professionals, highlighting the unique skills and abilities of the women lawyers at your firm
• Purchase a current list of women-owned businesses. National data management companies such as Dun & Bradstreet Information Services will help you focus your search by industry, revenue, geographic location or other marketing-specific variables
• Form a practice group to meet the needs of women business owners, staffing that group with interested lawyers, male and female
• Promote the accomplishments and legal successes of the women attorneys at your firm internally, and externally through the media
• Always be aware of gender when "staffing" in-house seminars and other public or firm events. Never allow your firm to portray a "men only," or "boys' club" image. If a woman business owners attends a firm seminar where all of the speakers are men, you can bet she will not send her legal business to your firm.
• Ask a select group of women business clients at your firm to serve as panelists at an all-attorney presentation on successfully marketing to women business owners. The panel could address what they do and don't like about working with lawyers and law firms. The seminar could certainly heighten attorneys' awareness of the perceptions of women business owners and would strengthen the bond between law firm and client.
• Sponsor market research designed to gather and assess the perceptions of women business owners on competing, marketing, and profiting as a business owner. Focus on what they do and don't like about working with professional services firms in the banking, accounting and legal industries. You may even want to cosponsor the research with one of your firm's accounting referral sources. Present the findings of the market research to all attorneys in your firm. Remember that to effectively marketing to any industry or niche group, you must first know what its unique legal needs are.
• Send notes of congratulations when you see your women business clients or prospective clients in the media or gaining other public recognition
• Become active in national organizations that support the efforts of women business owners, such as the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO). Seek to become an active, high profile member of such groups.
• Nominate your women business owner clients for various trade and professional association or Chamber of Commerce awards honoring new business owners, women in business, quality of life awards, or any other area you feel would be appropriate
• Consider approaching a local business publication about their possible interest in a column which would answer some of the most commonly asked legal questions faced by women-owned businesses;
• Fund educational and community programs designed specifically to benefit women business owners;
• Advertise your firm's capabilities to represent the interests of women business owners, concentrating on publications read by your target audience.You may have to do a little research and ask women business owners which publications they read regularly, then make an advertising commitment to those publications;
• Have the attorneys representing women business owners speak at internal attorney meetings to convey your firm's unique abilities and experience in this area, that is, cross-marketing the group to other lawyers and practice areas in your firm; keep in mind that your ultimate goal is to become known as one of the best law firms or lawyers to represent the interests of women business owners. Your firm brochure, Internet website, and other external communications must reflect your focus in this area. You may even wish to develop a short brochure on your firm's unique abilities to serve the needs of women business owners.
• Develop a newsletter highlighting some of the common legal issues (corporate/transactional and litigation) faced by women business owners
• Do business with your women business owner clients. You've heard it before: it's good business to do business with clients.
• Create an "official" plan to market the services of your firm to women business owners. In its most basic form, your plan will answer and elaborate upon three questions:
• Where are we now? (situation analysis)
• Where do we want to be? (setting goals and objectives)
• How will we get there? (tactics, timeline, budget, personal accountabilities)
• Do your homework. If your firm is meeting with a prospective client who is a woman business owner, conduct an online search to gather timely information on the legal and business issues facing the prospective client's business or industry.
• Look for ways to collaborate with your women business owner clients, such as jointly sponsoring a seminar or coauthoring an article for a legal or business journal

The most important ingredient in the success of this or any marketing effort is to be diligent and persistent in your pursuit of results. Know that it will take time to secure a long list of women business owners as clients, and that referrals by your satisfied clients will most likely remain your best source of attracting new business.