Many law firms treat their website as a project to be handed off to an external agency: the website is developed, content is added, and then the site goes live. After that, control rests almost entirely with the agency.
However, this is not an ideal model. Outsourcing all or most of website management is a strategic – and, more often than not, financial – mistake.
A law firm’s website is not just a marketing tool. It’s a business asset that supports business development, talent acquisition, brand reputation, and lead engagement. That’s why it’s vital that this asset is owned and actively managed in-house.
1. Your website is an extension of your firm.
The strongest law firm websites reflect their identity in an authentic, real way – their values, expertise, and approach. Relying on an external party to put up updates or make changes is a sure way to have the site quickly fall out of sync with the firm’s reality. Whether it’s an announcement of a new hire, showcasing newly won awards, or running campaigns around a recently developed guide – in-house ownership ensures that the website always tells the firm’s current story.
2. Agility matters.
There are daily or weekly news and developments that websites should be able to accommodate: new deals closed, regulatory updates, industry events, and so on. Having someone in-house trained to manage the website means having the ability to respond instantly to these changes as a firm.
3. In-house website management helps control costs.
Relying on an external agency to implement updates is expensive and inefficient. And here is a secret that most agencies won’t tell you: with just a bit of training, your marketers can implement those changes yourself in a matter of minutes. But instead, you are making your marketing execs submit an expense request that you need to approve; the change request is then submitted to the agency, which will take days to implement it. What takes a week could’ve taken your marketers literal minutes.
4. Avoid vendor lock-ins at all costs.
Many agencies build websites on proprietary CMS platforms or custom frameworks. The result? Clients who depend on them entirely. Often, there is an ongoing retainer agreement and insane restrictions on what can be done in-house. By maintaining in-house ownership of a website built on a widely-supported CMS platform, firms retain control over their business asset. They can then switch partners, negotiate contracts, and evolve the site on their own terms.
Your website management shouldn't feel like a hostage negotiation. The moment you can make a change without sending a ticket, marketing gets easier.
By Saida Ayupova, Founder, Five-o-eight
