Mowbray Woodwards
“As a one-woman marketing team in a firm of solicitors, the support from AMBITIOUS has been invaluable. From brand strategy to website content and social media campaign planning, the team have helped shape our brand and set the foundations for future growth.”

Jo Stevens, Marketing Manager

MOWBRAY WOODWARDS LLP

Strategy & Counsel

About MOWBRAY WOODWARDS

Mowbray WoodwardS LLP is a full service private client law firm based in Bath’s iconic Queen Square. The firm supports people to navigate through the key milestones in their life from buying their first home to planning their retirement and everything in between.

Mowbray Woodward’s delivers this support and advice through specialist, award-winning departments that work closely together, including; family law, residential property, probate and estate planning, commercial and motoring as well as criminal and mental health.

Mowbray Woodwards had a strong foundation and solid reputation being founded in 1946 by the Woodward brothers. However, with many competitors around the Square and across Bath and the surrounds offering a similar suite of legal services, the firm needed to maintain and build competitive edge.

Market share was also being garnered by new organisations outside the traditional law firm structure, set up to provide basic legal services at low cost such as will writing, LPAs and employment advice.

Internally, Mowbray Woodwards felt that its current marketing set up lacked strategic focus and measurable results, with the Managing Partner spending considerable time driving efforts forward. With the firm approaching its 70th anniversary in 2016 and the new landscape within which it was operating, Mowbray Woodwards realised it had to ensure its marketing was future fit to meet the challenge.

Keen not to repeat past mistakes and take a strategic approach, Mowbray Woodwards appointed AMBITIOUS to undertake a review of its current marketing set up, focus, activities and budget.

AMBITIOUS began by working with the marketing executive to review current strategy and plans and spend v ROI. This was followed by a series of face-to-face interviews with partners and staff across the firm to gain an understanding of their departments, business objectives and financial targets. It was also used as an exercise in collating opinion on the current brand and its strength and weaknesses and how it was perceived internally and externally.

Following this review AMBITIOUS worked with the marketing executive to put in place a tactical, budgeted & costed plan driven by the strategic focus and business objectives of the firm and departments within it. AMBITIOUS made a number of other recommendations including appointing a senior marketing professional to the role of marketing manager to ensure the plan was rolled-out internally in line with the firms’ business objectives, on time, on budget, with measurable results.

AMBITIOUS helped develop the job description for the new marketing manager, review CVs and interview potential candidates. A capable, experienced marketing professional was appointed – the most senior marketing appointment the firm had made to date.

AMBITIOUS also recommended the firm develop a new brand, which was futureproof and reflected the proposition and values of the firm and that staff and clients could be proud of.

AMBITIOUS selected an external design partner and worked with the firms staff and partners to identify the values and proposition upon which the brand should be built. Working with the new marketing manager once in place, AMBITIOUS facilitated the process through to the final design stages and the launch of the new brand.

With the new marketing manager in place, a robust & measurable plan and a new brand and website, AMBITIOUS was retained to roll-out the social media, blog, thought leadership, press release and media relations elements of the plan. Working hand in glove with the new marketing manager and her development of the brand across the website, marketing materials and advertising campaigns. With both AMBITIOUS and the internally lead marketing activities working to the same strategy and plan.

The Managing Partner is now able to focus on running the firm and driving forward its strategic business objectives and financial targets due to a capable, experienced, senior level marketing manager being in place.

The new brand was a significant departure from the firms’ previous visual identity, the new design reflecting the modern, dynamic lifestyle of Mowbray Woodwards’ present clients while remaining true to the strong, traditional foundations on which the firm is built.

The new brand was launched externally in April 2016 to celebrate the firms 70th anniversary with a major year-long advertising and marketing campaign based around a ‘Life and Law since 1946’ proposition.

Due to the strength of the new brand and the supporting advertising, marketing, PR and social media activity, during 2016 the firm had 6,000 more visitors to its website than during the same period the year before.