Q&A

Industry Q&A: Marketing with Anthony Lieu

Head of Marketing and Lawyer

Anthony Lieu is the Head of Marketing at LegalVision and is recognised as one of Australia’s Top 50 Chief Marketing Officers (CMO50 List 2018 and 2019).

LegalVision's marketing strategy has received national and international recognition for its innovative approach in combining content, data and marketing automation to deliver exceptional client experiences and promote access to legal services. LegalVision was recently named the fastest growing law firm in the Asia-Pacific by the Financial Times.

In this Q&A, Anthony shares more about his role at LegalVision, his career highlights and advice to those wanting to work in the marketing field.

You currently work as the Head of Marketing and Lawyer at LegalVision. Can you tell us more about what your day-to-day looks like?

LegalVision is a commercial law firm that primarily operates online – the majority of our clients find us through digital channels including content, paid media and social media.

As Head of Marketing, I am responsible for our online presence and the client’s digital experience. No single day is the same and there is plenty of variety in the work I do, ranging from search engine optimisation (SEO) to analysing website user data in order to improve their user experience (UX). Outside the technical aspect of the role, I also lead the marketing team – we are responsible for managing Australia’s most visited law firm website.

How does LegalVision differ from other law firms?

In just eight years, LegalVision has grown from a two-person startup to being named Asia-Pacific’s fastest growing law firm by the Financial Times. Our team of commercial lawyers use technology to deliver a responsive, cost-effective and high-quality experience for clients.

Many traditional law firms don’t measure customer satisfaction or loyalty – at LegalVision, we centre many of our decisions around the Net Promoter Score (NPS), which is a measure of how satisfied and loyal our clients are. We now have one of the highest NPS scores in the industry.

LegalVision also offers a legal advice subscription for clients with recurring needs. This model is the first of its kind in Australia and the majority of our clients are members. LegalVision has assisted more than 150,000 SMEs, startups and corporates by disrupting the traditional law firm model. digital marketing concept

You've been working for the firm since 2015. How has your role evolved?

As the firm has grown, my role has evolved dramatically over the years. I now lead the marketing function and am responsible for the acquisition of our clients and their user experience. The digital marketing landscape moves very quickly, and I invest time in keeping on top of trends, new technology and best industry practices.

My role has also evolved as LegalVision’s marketing function becomes more sophisticated. We use a number of martech (marketing technology) solutions to support our fast growth, including marketing automation. Managing the marketing automation function combines my technical, creative and strategic skillset.

Can you tell us how you managed to build your experience in marketing?

Digital marketing is still a relatively new industry. The majority of practitioners in this space did not develop their skill set through formal education channels, but rather online education courses or external providers. I built my experience by diving into the deep end early – getting my hands on the tools, understanding the levers to pull and constantly experimenting.

Over the years, most digital platforms have improved their onboarding processes to bring novices up to speed with how their tools work. I think it’s now easier than ever to build experience in this field. I also connect and network with like-minded individuals regularly. Whether it’s meetups, Slack groups or 1-on-1 coffees, my experience in marketing is significantly shaped by the community.

What type of skills and knowledge do you need in the marketing industry?

I think a hunger for data and a willingness to take risks is essential. Across all of LegalVision’s digital channels, we are continually optimising, experimenting and running tests to improve our key metrics. If you don’t have an analytical skill set, pick up a few courses to understand the core functions in Excel – this will not only help you make more informed decisions, but also will make you a more valuable team member.

Risk-taking is core to an effective digital marketer. In the absence of data, you’ll likely be making decisions based on your gut. Be willing to take risks and you’ll likely be rewarded (or at least surprised by what you find!). digital marketing concept

What would you say are your highlights in your career so far?

It is rewarding to build a marketing function and see how your efforts impact the growth of a business. I am fortunate to work with driven and energetic team members who work tirelessly to improve the accessibility of legal services in Australia.

For many professional services and law firms, digital marketing is still an untapped opportunity. To be the trailblazer in the industry has certainly been a highlight – and the opportunities to speak at conferences, share my experiences and connect with like-minded individuals keeps me going.

Any advice you'd like to share to future students thinking about studying marketing?

I began my career at LegalVision as a newly minted lawyer, before seizing on the more interesting challenge to turn legal marketing on its head. A consequence we’ve seen from the COVID-19 pandemic is that more businesses are now moving online – and with that shift, the digital marketing skill set will only become more in-demand by employers.

If you are thinking about studying digital marketing, think about what you want to specialise in afterwards. Many successful marketers are ‘T-shaped’ – this means they have a solid understanding of the fundamentals, but also have deep-industry experience in a particular area (for example, SEO). As you undertake the marketing course, think about what aspect of digital marketing interests you the most, and plan how you will continue to develop in this area.

Ready to upskill in marketing?

If you want to level up in your marketing career, consider studying an online course with Upskilled. The following courses can help expand your skills and knowledge in the field, whether that be in content or digital marketing:

Get in touch with the Upskilled team on 1300 009 924 and express your interest in a course today!

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