LSSO Executive Profile: Rachel Haaland Watson
LSSO Executive Profile Q&A
Rachel Haaland Watson
You’ve been in the legal industry for five years now, after starting your career in tech
and consulting. What initially drew you to make the shift to legal?
I was excited by the challenge of taking what I’ve learned in other industries and finding ways to adapt or build new, innovative ways to do business. There are some very interesting nuances to legal given the high level of trust required for this type of work, however we’ve been successful by focusing on behavioural/intent insights, cross-selling and client-first methodologies, which are industry agnostic.
What experiences or expertise do you bring from tech that you're most excited to contribute in your current role?
I specialize in data-driven behavioral and intent Marketing which has been very interesting and fun to bring to legal as most lawyers don’t realize things like behavioral profiling or intent automation are possible. Combining this with an understanding of how to implement complex technology stacks has allowed me and my team to quickly enable new and valuable tools and data for our lawyers.
What exactly is ‘data-driven behavioural and intent Marketing’ and can you provide examples of the types of signals you look for?
Behavior-driven marketing looks at what clients are doing (like visiting your website, opening emails, or downloading a guide) while intent-driven marketing goes a step further by spotting early or fragmented signals which can imply why they’re doing those things. For example, a client at a privately owned company who is suddenly looking at high asset wealth management allows you two things:
- Behavior: provide high asset wealth management information and services
- Intent: they are likely coming into large sums of money so they are either being acquired or have an IPO on the horizon
What’s something you think is often misunderstood about what it takes to win work and grow client relationships?
Active listening is the most important step that I think often is overlooked or is done poorly. There’s a huge difference between listening and actively listening for the cues, the pain points, the triggers for success. If you don’t really hear what your clients are facing or ask the right questions, you miss the opportunity to become their partner and grow the relationship in an authentic way.
Your background in data and analytics is impressive. What’s one common metric you think legal marketers and BD professionals should stop tracking, and one they should start?
I’ve spent a good amount of time discussing how total opens, visitors or impressions are just guiding principles and that large numbers are not necessarily best. When someone is getting started, I recommend focusing on setting up the engagement metrics – click through rates, micro-conversions, return visitors, registration to attendance rate – and then gathering these metrics for each touchpoint. From there, you can slice the overall data by practice, channel and tactic to determine where and how you may be targeting incorrectly. As you mature, building attribution models, especially more complex ones based on individual practice or services, will be more successful from these initial insights.
You’ve helped convert marketing campaigns into measurable sales opportunities. What’s the key to doing that well inside a law firm?
The challenge within a law firm is getting the right insight to the right group of highly individualized specialists at the right time with a simple actionable plan. Relationships are complex and the responsible attorney isn’t always the only person to engage. As we begin new campaigns, we 1) start with the goal, and 2) ensure that group of lawyers understand how they can actually use the insights we provide to prompt conversations.
We typically will amend a logic driven playbook which includes key questions such as current vs new client, current vs new service, known relationship vs new prospect. This leads to different best practices which may include individual introductions, targeted outreach or client specific offerings to ensure the lawyers do not have to spend too much time figuring out “what do I do with this?” and spend more time with high quality client engagements.
What are a few ways you’ve seen marketing campaigns turn into actual sales opportunities? Could you share any examples or tactics that worked particularly well, that our members might borrow?
We have had several very successful campaigns since joining Akin. The most successful always start with a clear understanding of what we are trying to accomplish as well as an ongoing feedback loop with recommendations.
For one of our recent focus areas, we have been added as an agenda item on the biweekly calls and provide metrics as well as recommended actions based on the client engagement for immediate feedback. We are also proposing next phases and content for the campaign to create a sustained message for 6 months.
LSSO is all about sales and service in the legal industry. How do you see that landscape evolving in the next few years, and what role does data play in that transformation?
Every industry is rapidly evolving. And while the legal industry is a bit further behind in a few ways, there is often less complexity in the current technology stack, meaning there is an opportunity to leapfrog with transformational investment.
Most firms are currently trying to figure out how to leverage AI, understand the ROI of their BD investments, and who their lateral and client target markets will be in the next 5 years. What we will likely see is a deep investment in system architecture, data management and integrity to expand beyond single, small and manual use cases and analysis to a more ongoing and comprehensive system.
As one of the newest members of LSSO’s Board of Advisors, what excites you most about getting involved?
Sales is often thought of as not necessary in the legal industry. I am excited to help showcase how sales is not about becoming ‘an ambulance chaser,’ but how it enhances the value brought to clients as they are more educated and engaged with multiple lawyers, services and new opportunities from a firm. With more complex buying teams, there is the ability to transform sales and marketing into a driving and strategic force for the firm by taking advantage of data, buying psychology and being the central hub of communication.
What’s a recent win or project you’re proud of? Big or small.
We just completed our transition to a new CRM, ERM and Marketing Automation system, which has centralized all of our disparate data sources. It has been an incredibly challenging but rewarding project. When we present to individuals or groups, their eyes light up with how quickly and proactively we are able to provide data and insights. I’ve even had new laterals tell me that they texted friends at their previous firm that this is game changing and they should be jealous.
What’s something that you are currently exploring or excited to push forward at Akin?
Now that we have our new CRM and Marketing Automation systems installed, we are working through our finalizing our Legal Focus Area attribution model. This will allow us to better read complex or disparate signals for an individual, across a client, or a group of clients to ensure we are delivering content, engaging with clients and being able to be more proactive about the incredibly broad but specific services we can provide as a firm.
About Rachel:
Born and raised in Iowa, Rachel has lived in Chicago, Dallas and now Connecticut with her husband, two children and two cats. She loves traveling and is enjoying settling in and exploring her new home state. She can often be found at karate tournaments with her son, dance with her daughter, decorating and house projects, and reading way too many books.
