Since the 1980s, marketing has been a growing presence in law firms. Or, more correctly, I should say “Promotion” has been. For the last 50 years, it’s been understood that marketing is rooted in four divisions: Place, Price, Product, Promotion (collectively, the four Ps). It is Promotion—advertising, branding, public relations, websites—that has been the focus of legal marketing. Even the recent emergence of business development is, at its core, a promotion strategy.

It’s time to welcome “Price” to the law firm. 

Actually, the American Bar Association first used the phrase “alternative billing arrangements” in 1987, and it published its Commission on Billable Hours Report in 2002. So, pricing has been around at least a decade, if not a generation!

But in the last five years, as Big Law has formalized the pricing function with the hiring of more than three dozen professionals dedicated full-time to pricing, Price has found credibility within law firms. In fact, I could argue the subject of pricing is the hottest trend in law firm management.

This blog—the first of its kind—is dedicated to helping law firms understand pricing. As the industry’s only pricing resource, my goal is to provide a Library of industry knowledge, to aid in our collective learning and growth; a Glossary of key concepts, to provide a common understanding of this subject; a list of Upcoming Events, to promote current learning and on-going discussions; and regular posts, to help advance the evolution of pricing within law firms.

Happy reading, learning, thinking, growing, discussing and evolving.
I hope you find value in this blog.