Law Firm Public Relations Strategy

Company: Keller Postman LLC (formerly Keller Lenkner LLC)

My Role: Marketing Director

CHALLENGE

A primary focus of my role at Keller Postman involves elevating the firm's reputation, practice areas, and attorney profiles in front of a B2B audience comprised of prospective referral firms, current and prospective co-counsel, and judges/arbitrators who make decisions or rule on our cases.

Of the most effective strategies I could employ, I believed that a robust public relations program is critical to reaching these audiences. I was tasked with identifying an agency to partner with me in this endeavor (as it would be a major undertaking). And I was also tasked with working hand-in-hand with this agency to develop and manage the public relations/media plan and ensure a collaborative relationship in order to reach our goals around placements, media relations, and audience engagement/brand awareness.

APPROACH

In partnership with our PR agency, I led the development of a public relations plan that included the following elements:

• Key areas of focus and business development goals outlined by firm leadership, including promotion of business of law initiatives, priority practice areas, important cases, and individual attorney profiles.

• Topics, pitch angles, and primary messaging to support the firm's key areas of focus, which included: Business of Law Outreach, Primary Practice Area Promotion (Antitrust, Arbitration, Privacy, Product Liability, Public Institutions), and Firm Initiatives

• Primary and potential media targets

• An editorial calendar, outlining opportunities for third-party commentary and bylined content on the primary focus areas outlined in the public relations strategy.

• A sub-strategy for elevating attorney profiles and building relationships with the media.

RESULTS

*Program results covers June 2021 to July 2022.

7.8 - Average number of media opportunities delivered per month

6.5 - Average number of media placements delivered per month

64.8% - Opportunities delivered that resulted in coverage

AUDIENCES REACHED

Keller Postman engaged with audiences across 16 different industries regionally and nationally through interview opportunities and coverage. Regional coverage appeared in Chicago, Washington, D.C., Pennsylvania, Connecticut, and California.

READERSHIP

According to data from Cision: The firm, our attorneys, and our cases appeared in 43 publications, with total potential reach of over 236 million readers.

BUILDING MEDIA RELATIONSHIPS

In partnership with our PR agency, I worked to develop several trusted media relationships on behalf of Keller Postman, positioning attorneys as go-to sources for commentary on news and industry trends and creating opportunities to secure favorable coverage around major cases and significant firm news to elevate the firm's profile among target audiences, including co-counsel and potential new hires.

These relationships included:

• After connecting Bruce Love of the National Law Journal with the firm for several articles and features on the firm after its launch in D.C., I worked with our agency to arrange exclusive coverage of the firm’s rebrand and leadership transition with Bruce in April 2022. Efforts resulted in: “High-Profile Plaintiffs Firm Keller Lenkner Becomes Keller Postman as Co-Founder Leaves”

• Following a November conversation on remote work, the National Law Journal’s Bureau Chief Christine Schiffner turned to the firm several times over the course of the year for commentary on trends and developments in the plaintiffs’ bar: “Plaintiffs Firms Finding Success Against Big Law in Talent Wars.”

• Ben Whiting became a go-to source for Law360’s Chicago courts reporter, LauraannWood, as she worked on coverage around major cases in the Chicago courts. Ben was quoted in “Illinois Cases to Watch in 2022,” and “Biggest Ill. Decisions of 2022: A Midyear Report” around major Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) cases he is paying attention to.

• After taking over the plaintiffs’ bar beat at Reuters, Diana Novak Jones turned to Keller Postman for insights on industry developments and trends in class actions, both for coverage and background information. She continued to be a valuable relationship throughout the course of the year, reporting on the firm’s D.C. launch: “Keller Lenkner expands its plaintiffs' firm strategy into D.C.” In partnership with our agency, we also worked with her on exclusive coverage of the firm’s motion for consolidation in Illinois lawsuits filed against the makers of Emfamiland Similac: “Consolidation of baby formula lawsuits sought in Illinois.”

INTRODUCING UP & COMING ATTORNEYS

I worked with our PR agency to identify interesting stories about the firm’s young attorneys, with the goal of featuring up-and-coming talent and showcasing Keller Postman’s commitment to supporting and mentoring the next generation of the plaintiffs’ bar. These campaigns included:

• Promoting the firm’s recruiting strategy, featuring its first summer associate, Fred Messner. We shared with Fred to learn more about his goals as a law student and summer associate, as well as his perspective on disrupting the standard Big Law career path, then used responses to inform media outreach. Resulting coverage included:"Look Out, BigLaw: This Plaintiffs Firm Is Hunting Top Talent“ (Law360 Pulse) and “Can the Plaintiffs' Bar Loosen Big Law's Grip on J.D. Students? It's trying” (Reuters).

• Identifying opportunities for associates to contribute to legal trade publications with perspectives and advice for law students and associates. Efforts resulted in two Bloomberg Law pieces of coverage: “Thriving as an Associate in the Hybrid Workforce” by Amelia Frankel and Albert Pak and “Practical Tips for General Litigation Practice” by Frank Dylewski, Albert Pak and Brooke Clason Smith.

• Highlighting associate Daniel Strunk and his journey to compete on "Survivor," including messaging around the firm’s supportive culture. This included speaking with Daniel to learn more about his story and liaising with the CBS News team for approval processes and promotional materials. Resulting coverage included:"A Courtroom Castaway: Keller Lenkner Associate Tries to Outlast Competition on 'Survivor’”, “Plaintiffs Attorney Talks Strategy For Competing On 'Survivor’”

• Promoting the nontraditional legal career opportunities that come with a firm like Keller Postman, through associate Marquel Reddish Longtin’s story on developing the proprietary tech infrastructure. We connected with Marquel to learn more about her approach and goals and secured an exclusive story with Law360 Pulse. Interview was ultimately declined due to client sensitivities.

ACTIVITY ANALYSIS

We worked with several individual attorneys to promote case developments and wins, tell stories to illustrate the firm’s culture, and position attorneys as spokespeople on issues that are of interest to the firm’s clients, prospects, potential recruits, and the broader legal industry.

A wide range of opportunities and placements were delivered. And we worked on content projects with 15 attorneys and the firm’s 2021 summer associate since July 2021.

Third-Party Commentary & Analysis

• “Google is in the hottest antitrust seat, but Apple and the rest of Big Tech shouldn’t breathe easy” Marketwatch, quoting Ashley Keller

• “'The Tide Is Turning' on Big Tech as Plaintiffs Firms File More Data Privacy Lawsuits" - The National Law Journal, quoting Zina Bash

• “Biggest Ill. Decisions of 2022: A Midyear Report”- Law360, quoting Ben Whiting

• “Legal Tech's Predictions for Privacy in 2022” - LegaltechNews, quoting Ben Whiting

• “Nearly 1.6 million Illinois Facebook users could get their $400 checks soon after appeals court upholds $650 million settlement” - Chicago Tribune, quoting Ben Whiting

Case Promotion

Drafted press releases and promoted filings around major cases, positioning the firm at the forefront of lawsuits and class actions with the goals of securing leadership appointments, obtaining more class members, and promoting attorney experience.

• Dominguez et al v. Johnson & Johnson Consumer, Inc.: Resulted in coverage in Law.com’s Critical Mass and Ligation Trendspotter columns, Beauty Packaging, Law360, and Daily Journal.

• Hestrup & Peiss v. DuPage Medical Group. Ltd. d/b/a DuPage Medical Group: Resulted in coverage in The Chicago Tribune, Daily Herald, Patch.com, Becker’s Hospital Review, and Government Technology.

• Matthew Cydylo v. Agilis Engineering, et al: Resulted in coverage in The Hartford Courant, Yahoo! News, and Aviation Pros.

• Left Field Holdings LLC, et al. v. Google LLC: Resulted in dozens of pieces of coverage across legal, business, IP, technology, and restaurant / food industry publications including The Recorder (ALM), Food & Wine, Nation’s Restaurant News, Ars Technica, and CNet.

• Destin Jupiter and Dana Jupiter et al. v. Mead Johnson & Company, LLC, Mead Johnson Nutrition Company, Abbott Laboratories: Law.com and Reuters.

Activity by Practice Area

Trademark: 22%

Privacy: 14%

Antitrust: 10%

Consumer Protection: 10%

Arbitration: 5%

Product Liability: 5%

The remaining 34% of opportunities were around firmwide news or issues impacting the plaintiffs' bar.