(Following article appeared in PM Magazine November / December 2025)

Barely a week goes by without news of a firm unveiling a creatively named, AI-powered tool designed to deliver greater efficiency. Innovation and technology are rapidly reshaping how professional services are delivered and how firms are perceived.  Positioning innovation has become a central theme in professional services marketing and a challenge for marketers, writes Grahame Jones.

As clients demand greater efficiency and better value, professional services firms are rethinking how they deliver expertise to stay competitive and relevant. Many are rolling out a mix of new products, services, and solutions, ranging from cutting-edge tools to simple, even analogue solutions. What connects them is a shared goal: delivering services more efficiently and effectively. And as AI accelerates this shift, the pace of change will only intensify.

This technological drive has deep implications for branding and presents a complex challenge for marketers. From positioning to proposition, brand architecture to brand identity, marketing communications to internal communications – how to market technology has certainly added to the to-do list.

How are firms performing?

Technology, AI and data are just part of the picture. Many firms are also expanding their services to include flexible resourcing, managed services, advisory offerings and much more. This growing mix of capabilities presents a branding challenge – especially when multiple functions contribute to innovation, including technology, legal operations, learning and development, business development and communications. Marketers often sit at the centre, tasked with joining the dots. They are uniquely placed to collaborate with legal teams to help co-create solutions that not only respond to today’s challenges but also help future-proof clients’ businesses.

So, what lessons can all marketers draw from the performance of law firms?

Our recent review of the Top 100 UK law firms revealed that 30% of the top 50 do not reference their innovation and technology capabilities on their websites – including major names like Gateley, Taylor Wessing and Withers.

The figures are worse among firms ranked 51–100. While many of these firms have strong capabilities, their lack of visibility risks creating a perception gap both externally and internally. And with the rise of AI-powered legal tech, that gap could have real consequences.

Jamie Wallis, former Head of Marketing at Law&, part of DLA Piper, puts it bluntly: “The market is extremely competitive, not just from traditional firms, but from alternative legal service providers, the Big Four and consultancies. Quite simply, we need to evolve or risk being left behind.”

Positioning, more than just ‘innovation’

When it comes to positioning, most firms package their new capabilities under the main corporate brand. That’s often the right move – it draws on the trust and reputation of the firm’s core legal expertise.  Antonia James, former Director of Client Relations at VWV, recognises that “clients value the reassurance that offerings like ‘VWV Plus’ are part of the same trusted group”.

‘Innovation’ is a commonly used label – broad enough to be adaptable but often overused and underdefined. Too many firms default to generic language and clichéd visuals. In contrast, firms like Addleshaw Goddard (Law. Plus More) and TLT (Future Law) have crafted distinct, imaginative propositions that signal their innovation agendas more clearly.

Some firms adopt sub-brands to differentiate legal delivery from legal advice. For example, Ashurst Advance uses ‘Advance’ to suggest progress and efficiency, with Norton Rose Fulbright Transform using ‘Transform’ to signify change and evolution.

Both show the power of going beyond the generic ‘innovation’ label to create something more specific and compelling.

Others take it further with standalone brands: Eliminate (Hogan Lovells), Gravity Stack (Reed Smith) and Jylo (Travers Smith) are good examples. With strong technology credentials, they deliberately distance themselves from the parent brand, providing the freedom to run their own operations, untethered from market associations and interference of the master brand.

Telling the story well

Regardless of positioning, how firms combine everything under a narrative and brand architecture is crucial for partner and client engagement

Firms must organise and present their offerings in a way that is coherent and engaging for clients, partners and the entire firm. Marketers need to ensure that internal audiences understand and buy into the innovation story.  “We conduct regular internal marketing – videos, newsletters, know-how sessions, focus groups – and publish key stats,” explains Antonia James. “Partner-led referrals are the most effective, so we showcase these as case studies.”

Innovation can be overwhelming, especially with AI in the mix. Partners vary in their understanding, interest and available time. Simplifying the story and making it relatable is essential.

“Helping partners understand how tech helps them and their clients is more about motivation than capability,” says Dr Catriona Wolfenden at Weightmans. “You need a hook that’s meaningful to each individual.”

Firms like A&O Sherman, Clifford Chance, Freshfields, Shoosmiths and TLT demonstrate how to do this well, using clear taxonomy, compelling propositions and structured online content to bring their innovation stories to life. When this clarity is replicated internally, engagement follows.

Others miss the mark. Simmons & Simmons, for example, lists numerous tools and platforms on its site, ranging from the descriptive to the abstract, with no apparent naming convention or structure. The result is bewildering even for the most logical of minds. This issue will only persist, especially as the proliferation of AI-powered products continues to grow.

Fostering the right behaviours

Innovation isn’t just about tools or processes – it’s about mindset. And that starts with strong internal communications and leadership.

Firms need to foster a culture of curiosity and problem-solving, encouraging people to look beyond their immediate roles and consider the end customer. Innovation isn’t all about technology – solutions can be tech-light or tech-free. It’s about creating a framework to help people think and behave differently to solve the challenges of external and internal clients. After all, professional services is about developing and strengthening relationships. Tech and AI can help in this, but they are only enablers. Innovation doesn’t have to be revolutionary. It can be iterative; just doing something a little bit different is ‘inventive’.

“We encourage people to share all ideas – from incremental improvements to big, blue-sky thinking,” says Francesca Bortoli, formerly at Linklaters. “We don’t ask them to filter.”

With so many moving parts – people, technology, processes – marketers play a crucial role in orchestrating innovation branding and championing collaboration. Whether it’s bringing the client’s voice into the conversations or ensuring alignment and consistency for effective outcomes, listening and reflecting are key. When done well, it shapes reputation, supports growth and reinforces firm culture. The goal of any marketer.

“Success means building multidisciplinary teams that meet client needs, and where legal advice may only be one component. Innovation becomes a shared responsibility across the firm,” says Dr Wolfenden at Weightmans.

For firms navigating the evolving innovation landscape, weaving together capabilities into a clear, cohesive brand strategy is an essential part of positioning a professional services firm. Done right, it deepens relationships, forms new ones and drives differentiation. It also helps shift innovation branding from yet another task to a competitive edge. Even as new AI tools continue to emerge!