When Lara Squires founded Consortium Business Solutions, she set out to challenge the status quo, not just in how SME law firms approach marketing, but in how part-time professionals could thrive in senior roles. Thirteen years on, she shares how Consortium’s unique insider insight, strategic focus, and bold expansion plans are helping law firms grow in a slow-to-adapt industry, and why business development might just be the profession’s next big differentiator.

What inspired you to start Consortium Business Solutions, and how has the journey been so far?

Consortium was started with two main aims. One was to provide SME law firms and professional services businesses with access to excellent strategic marketing support. The second was more personal. At the time, there was a ceiling for part-time senior marketers working in law. It was difficult to progress beyond a certain level, and there was a perception that Head of Department or Director roles were out of reach for part-timers.

While things have improved over the past 13 years, I still believe there is an unhelpful stigma around part-time working and working parents.

What do you feel sets Consortium apart from other marketing agencies that work with law firms and professional services?

Consortium is truly unique in that every one of my account managers has worked in-house at a law firm. I have even worked as a fee earner myself, so we really understand the business of law from all angles.

We focus solely on professional services, which means we’re deeply familiar with the challenges and the wider ecosystem. Over the years, we’ve refined our offering so that our clients need to spend just 90 minutes a month on marketing. We take care of the rest.

How have the needs of law firms evolved over the past few years, and how is Consortium adapting to meet those changes?

To be honest, in my view, not much has changed. Most firms still need a clear strategy and someone to implement it for them. While new tools have emerged (dare I mention AI), the fundamentals of marketing still apply.

All of our account managers are members of the Chartered Institute of Marketing and stay up to date with the latest trends and techniques. The legal industry tends to be slow to adopt new tools, and that’s fine. It means we get to observe how other sectors use and refine them before we apply them ourselves.

It’s also important to recognise the challenge of legal marketing. It’s a distressed purchase. No one wakes up in the morning thinking, “Great, I’m going to use a law firm today.”

What opportunities do you see in the legal industry right now when it comes to marketing and business development?

From a marketing perspective, it’s crucial that firms have a strategy and clearly identify their unique selling point. And for those thinking their USP is ‘client care’ – that’s not enough. Unless you have five-star reviews, a formal client care strategy, relevant awards and client promises in place, you’re simply doing your job.

The real opportunity lies in business development. It’s something that AI will never fully replace, and I believe the lawyers of the future will need to develop strong business development skills. Firms should prioritise this in their training, as it could become a key differentiator. After all, people buy people.

Are there any exciting projects or plans in the pipeline for Consortium in the next year or so?

Absolutely. You may have seen that we launched in Australia earlier this year, and I’m heading out there in September to attend a conference where we’re exhibiting.

Next month, we’re launching a new service line that I believe will be hugely beneficial to firms of all sizes.

We also have plans to launch a northern division, which is really exciting.

What advice would you give to law firms looking to grow their brand and client base in today’s competitive market?

Seek expert advice and outsource the things you’re not trained to do. Lawyers should be busy doing the day job. You need a reliable support network of external professionals.

There’s real value in keeping certain functions outside the firm. It’s easy to become blinkered when everything is handled internally. By working with external experts, you also gain access to broader industry knowledge and insight.