Harter Secrest & Emery LLP

Marketing Leadership in a Regulated Environment

Harter Secrest & Emery is a full-service business law firm serving institutional clients ranging from family-owned businesses to Fortune 100 companies. As the firm’s sole marketing leader, I own end-to-end marketing strategy and execution across five offices and more than 40 highly regulated practice areas.

This body of work represents how I build go-to-market systems, translate complex offerings into clear value, and operate without a predefined playbook in a high-stakes environment.

Click below to read the press release.

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The Scope

When I stepped into this role, the firm needed more than execution support. It needed clarity.

The challenge was to modernize how complex legal services were positioned, activated, and measured—while operating inside strict regulatory, reputational, and stakeholder constraints. There was no existing framework to follow, and success depended on building trust with senior partners while delivering measurable results.

My Commitment

I delivered responsive, strategic marketing and business development support by leveraging industry insights, best practices, and innovative technology solutions. As a revenue enabler, I proactively identified and created opportunities for new business, elevated the profiles of HSE attorneys, and strengthened the firm’s market reputation.

My commitment to excellence, collaboration, and agility ensured effective partnership with attorneys to drive growth and generate meaningful opportunities. 

Selected Initiatives & Systems

  • Go-to-Market & Positioning Frameworks

    I partnered closely with practice leaders to translate nuanced legal capabilities into clear, repeatable value propositions aligned to distinct buyer needs and decision cycles.

    • Developed positioning and messaging frameworks used across more than 40 practice areas

    • Built GTM roadmaps to support new service launches and cross-practice adoption

    • Enabled leadership with clear narratives to support business development conversations

      Impact:
      An integrated GTM roadmap increased inbound inquiries by 20% year-over-year and improved lead-to-meeting conversion by 22%.

  • Lifecycle & Campaign Systems

    Rather than running one-off campaigns, I designed lifecycle programs that mapped content and outreach to audience intent, stage, and engagement behavior.

    • Built segmented lifecycle campaigns across email, events, and web

    • Activated long-form thought leadership through coordinated distribution and follow-up

    • Optimized messaging through testing and iteration across buyer personas

      Impact:
      Produced and optimized 400+ targeted campaigns, achieving a 43% open rate and 14% CTR across diverse institutional audiences.

  • Webinars & Events as Growth Engines

    I launched and scaled recurring webinar series designed to educate, build trust, and drive engagement rather than serve as standalone events.

    • Owned end-to-end execution from concept through post-event analysis

    • Designed registration flows, nurture sequences, and post-event lifecycle programs

    • Partnered with attorneys to shape content aligned to buyer questions and pain points

      Impact:
      Launched two new recurring webinar series with average attendance rates of 70%, significantly outperforming industry benchmarks.

  • Analytics, Measurement & Executive Reporting

    To support better decision-making, I built reporting systems that translated marketing activity into actionable insights for leadership.

    • Implemented GA4 tracking and internal IP filtering

    • Built dashboards surfacing engagement trends, content performance, and conversion behavior

    • Delivered regular executive-ready reports to guide prioritization and iteration

      Impact:
      Shifted marketing conversations from output to outcomes, enabling clearer investment decisions and campaign optimization.

  • Modernizing Content & Channels

    I introduced new content formats and channels to improve engagement while maintaining brand credibility in a conservative environment.

    • Launched video and motion graphics for social and web

    • Built reusable design templates to improve speed and consistency

    • Established content workflows to support ongoing thought leadership

      Impact:
      Introduced video content that increased social engagement by over 2,000% year-over-year.

What This Work Demonstrates

This body of work reflects how I operate as a senior marketing leader:

  • Owning strategy and execution end-to-end

  • Translating complexity into clarity for high-stakes buyers

  • Building systems that scale beyond individual campaigns

  • Operating effectively in ambiguity without a predefined playbook

  • Serving as a trusted partner to senior stakeholders

It’s the same approach I bring to education and technology environments—building trust first, then driving adoption through thoughtful, measurable execution.

Attorney Linkedin Education

Click below to view my Linkedin optimization training presentation for attorneys.

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