A law firm should describe what it does in terms of its clients’ markets and situations, not its own departments: who it acts for, what problems bring clients to it, and what it has done in comparable cases. Practice-area labels still have a place, but as supporting detail for legal readers rather than the opening line for business ones.
Most firms know their work is distinctive. The difficulty is putting it into words that a CFO, founder or family office principal will take in at a glance. In Why Do Law Firms All Sound the Same? we looked at why law firm marketing becomes generic. This article focuses on the writing: how to explain legal work to non-lawyers, and what a positioning statement needs to contain.
How Should Lawyers Describe What They Do to Non-Lawyers?
Lawyers should describe their work to non-lawyers in terms of the business situation, the outcome and the evidence: who the client typically is, what problem prompted the call, and what the firm has done in comparable cases. Practice-area labels can follow as supporting detail, not lead the description.
The table compares the two most common ways of describing legal services and shows where each works best.
| Factor | Practice-area description | Situation-led description | Best for |
| Starting point | The firm’s department or service line | The client’s problem or trigger event | Situation-led for business readers |
| Typical example | “Regulatory and compliance advisory across APAC” | “Helping fintech companies respond when licensing rules change in a market they already operate in” | Situation-led for homepages and pitches |
| Proof offered | Adjectives and rankings | Sectors, jurisdictions, deal types, anonymised matters | Situation-led wherever credibility matters |
| Reader effort | High for non-lawyers; reader must translate | Low; reader can judge fit quickly | Situation-led for CFOs, founders, family offices |
| Precision for legal readers | High; familiar terminology | Can feel less technical if overdone | Practice-area for in-house counsel and referrers |
| Legal directory submissions | Needed to fit directory categories | Useful in matter descriptions and client impact | Both, combined |
Which Approach Should You Use?
A situation-led description is the better choice when the reader is a non-lawyer, ie, c-suits, or a business decision-maker comparing firms. A practice-area description is the better choice when the reader is a lawyer, such as in-house counsel or a referring firm, who needs to see technical scope quickly.
Most firms need both, which means writing client-facing copy separately from legal-facing copy. Practice pages can stay technical; homepages and pitch decks need a translation layer that strips out jargon. The same gap appears when firms try to explain new technology or services to clients: the value is there, but it is described in the firm’s language rather than the client’s.
What Should a Law Firm Include in Its Positioning Statement?
A law firm positioning statement should state who the firm serves, the situations it is best placed to handle, what makes it distinctive in those situations, and the evidence that supports the claim. A strong statement is specific enough that a competitor could not copy it word for word and still be telling the truth.
Use this checklist to test a draft:
- Client: Does it name the types of clients the firm serves best (by sector, size, ownership or stage), not “businesses of all sizes”?
- Situation: Does it describe the trigger events or problems that lead clients to the firm?
- Distinctiveness: Does it say what the firm does differently, such as a jurisdiction pairing, sector depth, language capability or a way of staffing matters?
- Proof: Can every claim be backed by a matter, a credential or a client reference the firm is permitted to use?
- Limits: Does the firm know, internally, what work falls outside its positioning?
- Plain language: Would a non-lawyer understand it on first reading?
- Copy test: If a competitor’s name replaced yours, would the statement become false? If not, it is not yet a positioning statement.
Specific positioning also affects how a firm is found. AI search tools, such as Google AI Overviews and ChatGPT, can only describe a firm’s strengths if the firm states them clearly and consistently, a point we cover in making your strength visible in an AI search world.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Who should write client-facing law firm copy?
Client-facing copy works best when a BD or marketing lead, or an outside writer, drafts it from interviews with the lawyers, and the lawyers review it for accuracy rather than rewrite it in legal register. Lawyers provide the substance; the writer translates it for business readers. - How often should a law firm review its positioning statement?
A firm should revisit its positioning when its client base, partner group or market changes significantly, such as after lateral hires, a merger, entry into a new jurisdiction or a major regulatory shift. Matter examples need updating more often, as new work completes. - Does a new website fix generic positioning?
A website redesign does not fix generic positioning if the underlying message stays the same. The positioning decisions need to be made first; the website and pitch materials then express them consistently. Positioning works best as part of a wider business development and marketing strategy.
How Elevare Asia Can Help
Elevare Asia is a business development and marketing consultancy for law firms and professional services firms, with more than 25 years’ combined experience in legal business development, marketing and strategy across Asia and beyond. If your firm is reviewing how it presents itself, share the practice areas and markets you want to focus on and the materials you currently use, and we can help you identify where your clearest differentiation lies.
Contact our team, visit elevareasia.com or email info@elevareasia.com.
