Blog / The impact of COVID-19 on in-house counsel and where law firm expertise is valued

A look at how the legal industry has reacted to COVID-19 and why there’s a focus on going digital.

As the demand for legal expertise has increased due to COVID-19 and the emergence of many complex issues, we have seen a significant number of firms pivot their strategies in order to become more digitally focused and support their clients through the pandemic.

With marketing strategies needing to change as firms are forced to become more digital, we’ll take a look at how the insight and guidance provided by law firms has helped ease the growing burden on in-house and c-level executives, including how content marketing is becoming the key trigger in new sales.

Changes to content marketing strategies along with the challenges for in-house counsel

Trying to plan/implement a marketing strategy has been difficult across the legal industry as bumps in the road are to be expected in terms of having to change original strategic plans due to the global pandemic, as face to face events, international travel and spending cuts were either halted or enforced.

COVID-19 has really put the spotlight on content marketing, forcing law firms to focus on a more digital strategy and make a lot of their insight and resources available online for new and existing clients.

As your content marketing strategy now holds more weight due to the demand for legal intelligence from in-house counsel, it’s vital you create and promote content that doesn’t follow the same narrative which other firms will be following as this can cause content fatigue and have less of an impact on the reader.

Often, the same COVID-19 topics are being covered by multiple firms, which is to be expected. The key is how do you stand out from the crowd? Some of the considerations we take when creating content include: 

• Tailoring your content and encouraging engagement through new digital initiatives
• Shifting focus and providing insight on another work area 
• Looking for a unique angle on a legal topic to explore and provide food for thought on
• Optimising your content across multiple marketing channels

With a key focus on content promotion, we know that legal insight is in high-demand as we are able to see the various types of issue that in-house counsel have been facing during the pandemic and also how their workloads are being affected due to the disruption caused by COVID-19. 

In-house counsel are now operating at lower capacity due to team restructuring and redundancies, but one thing has continued to rise: the complexity of legal challenges they’re having to face. Could your expertise bridge the gap in knowledge?

We've picked out an article especially for you published on Lexology by, DLA Piper, which goes into detail around how the role of an in-house lawyer has changed during COVID-19.

So the obvious question is what do in-house and general counsel need in order to support them through the pandemic?  Up-to-date, detailed insight and guidance on ever-changing topics, regulations, policies and more as this information will be communicated to their senior board members throughout advisory consultation meetings.  

Interestingly, in-house counsel have made the point of being extremely complimentary about law firms that have pivoted strategy and in many cases provided high quality content to not only help them through various issues, but often worked as a sounding board on many of the challenges they’re now having to face.

With there being noticeable challenges in the legal sector, are there any visible benefits of pivoting to a digitally led strategy?

It’s no surprise that businesses and firms have had to think on their feet and make the necessary changes quickly in order to run sustainably through this period, but how will pivoting to a digital model be received by clients?

Although this will be the first time you solely put focus on digital content marketing, there is proof that these changes are showing promise as the world reacts to a new way of informing, buying and selling.

For the foreseeable there will be no face-to-face interaction for firms, so it’s time to get creative when thinking about how you will pitch for new business while also keeping your existing clients informed on key areas of interest.

In a recent report by McKinsey & Company, we can see how organisations have moved to a more remote and digital strategy while looking at ways to thrive in the new normal and what has been the reaction so far in terms of success - read in full here.

It’s also mentioned that more and more people believe that going digital is an effective way of reaching and serving clients’ - click here to view the full report.

In addition to the digital stats provided by, McKinsey & Company, on Lexology we have seen a 35.06% increase in pageviews compared to 2019 along with an increase in searches and reads signalling the importance of digital resources that are made available online.

This is not only proof that we are a key source for legal information in a time when it’s needed most by legal professionals to overcome specific challenges, but a sign that there are more users looking online for legal resources across multiple work areas as it's easily accessible.

Using Lexology as a digital route to market

As we have over 570,000 subscribers, with over 60% being in-house counsel, the people you need to influence are already reading Lexology every day, including your competitors which should be seen as a key opportunity or another route to market.

Our daily newsfeed emails allow in-house counsel and other legal professionals to get multiple points of view, insight and guidance across a wide-range of work areas in multiple jurisdictions as they demand up-to-date legal information.

A lot of your competitors will be trying to save money now and you’ll have a competitive advantage if you are the firm sharing insights, opinions and adding value to prospective clients.

Don’t just take our word for it, hear how in-house counsel and other legal professionals’ value Lexology by watching our video here.

Would you like to find out more about how we can help transform your digital strategy and help you win new business? Contact us here for more information and to speak with one of our experts.