Like a lot of legal marketers, I was curious about how AI could actually help me with my day-to-day work. Not the hype. Just the real stuff: writing, research, planning, staying ahead. What I found is that it’s not a magic solution, but it’s a useful tool when applied in the right ways.
AI has worked its way into nearly every industry, and legal marketing is no exception. But it’s not about trends or shiny tools. For business development and marketing professionals in law firms, AI is most useful behind the scenes. It helps us move faster, improve quality and focus on what matters most.
In my role, I’ve integrated AI into the things I do every day, from writing and editing to research and planning. It’s helped me generate better ideas, save time and spend more energy on the work that actually moves things forward. This article breaks down how I’ve been using AI to make legal marketing faster, easier and more effective, and how you can too.
Research That Starts Smarter
Good research is the backbone of business development and marketing. Whether you’re preparing for a pitch, writing a client alert or helping a lawyer walk into a meeting with confidence, the value is in the details. But research is time-consuming, and when you’re juggling competing priorities, it’s easy to rely on outdated bios, generic overviews or last quarter’s news.
AI has helped me work more efficiently. It doesn’t do the job for me, but it gives me a faster starting point and helps surface relevant insights I might have missed. I use it to:
- Build updated company profiles that highlight recent leadership changes, growth initiatives, funding rounds and news coverage.
- Summarize long articles, press releases and earnings calls into takeaways I can use in pitches or background notes.
- Identify patterns across industries, regions or deal timing to shape our messaging and outreach.
- Gather competitive intelligence on how other firms are positioning themselves and who they’re targeting.
- Spot signals like executive moves, new launches or strategic shifts that can prompt meaningful outreach.
This is about being more prepared, not just more efficient. The better the research, the more relevant our outreach. And the more relevant our outreach, the more likely it is to lead to something real.
Sharpening Pitch Content
A generic pitch deck isn’t going to win work. Clients want to know how your firm understands their business and how your lawyers can solve their specific problems. But writing tailored content takes time. AI has helped me write faster and with more precision. I’ve used it to:
- Customize boilerplate content to reflect industry- or company-specific concerns
- Connect our experience to the client’s strategic goals
- Write more compelling intros and executive summaries
- Identify the most relevant matters to highlight and explain why they matter
What I get isn’t a final product. It’s a well-organized draft that I can review, personalize and refine. This helps me meet tight deadlines while still delivering quality and nuance.
Saying It Better and Faster
Strong writing is essential in legal marketing, whether you’re drafting a pitch, an email, a social post or a speaking proposal. AI has helped me become a better editor and communicator, especially when I’m pressed for time or stuck on how to phrase something. I use it to:
- Rewrite long, dense paragraphs into shorter, more readable language
- Test different versions of headlines or subject lines
- Tighten and clarify language in announcements or partner bios
- Draft talking points or blurbs based on longer content
It’s a tool I lean on when I’m trying to improve tone, structure or clarity, especially for audiences with different expectations, like clients, journalists or internal stakeholders.
Enhancing Social Media Output
Creating content for LinkedIn or other platforms can be time-consuming, especially when you’re juggling competing deadlines. AI helps speed up the process without sacrificing quality or tone. It’s helped me:
- Turn webinars, articles and speaking engagements into multiple LinkedIn posts
- Edit and optimize captions for tone, engagement and flow
- Brainstorm post ideas tied to timely topics or internal milestones
- Suggest hashtags, CTAs and scheduling strategies to improve reach
It’s not about automation. I’m still writing every post. But with AI, I’m writing more efficiently, producing stronger ideas and staying consistent across channels.
Turning Notes Into Usable Materials
It’s easy to end up with a folder full of disorganized notes, brainstorms and outlines. AI helps turn those into finished products that are ready to use and share. For example:
- Turning a bullet-point list into a formatted presentation or client one-pager
- Drafting internal training decks or onboarding documents
- Creating summaries from event recaps, call transcripts or brainstorming sessions
- Drafting toolkits or checklists that others on the team can reuse
This has helped me take half-finished ideas and quickly turn them into something presentable and valuable.
Supporting Internal Training and Onboarding
New hires need resources, and lawyers need training that actually sticks. AI has helped me build better onboarding and internal development tools in less time. I’ve used it to:
- Create templates for recurring BD tasks like pitches, bios and matter summaries
- Draft talking points for partner BD training sessions
- Build onboarding packets that walk new hires through systems, workflows and contacts
- Outline agendas and learning objectives for internal programs
Instead of starting from scratch every time, I now have smart frameworks that can be easily updated and shared.
Planning Campaigns and Content Calendars
Building out a steady flow of content takes structure and foresight. AI helps me generate themes, organize timelines and identify gaps more quickly. I’ve used it to:
- Draft quarterly content themes across different practice areas or audiences
- Identify moments in time, like deal anniversaries, industry events or firm news, to anchor posts
- Make sure we’re balancing client highlights, firm thought leadership and engagement content
- Plan distribution across LinkedIn, email and internal platforms
This gives me a clear, strategic calendar I can share with lawyers and align with broader firm goals.
Editing Under Pressure
Last-minute requests are part of the job. AI helps me move fast while keeping quality high. It’s helped me:
- Rewrite and simplify internal messages before they go out
- Clean up sloppy first drafts from different contributors
- Draft quick responses to award nominations or event submissions
- Smooth out technical language in a way that sounds polished and accessible
It’s not replacing judgment. It’s helping me get a cleaner version out the door more quickly.
Showing Up With Better Work
Whether it’s a client alert, pitch document or social media calendar, people notice when the quality of your work is consistent. AI has helped me:
- Turn around materials faster without dropping the ball on quality
- Walk into meetings with useful background and prepared talking points
- Contribute more strategically because I’ve freed up time to think, not just execute
This has strengthened my reputation as someone who delivers, especially when it counts.
Focusing on the Work That Matters Most
The more time I save on tasks like editing, summarizing or organizing, the more time I can spend on strategy, relationships and meaningful contributions. With AI taking care of some of the execution, I’ve had more capacity to:
- Coach lawyers on personal branding and business development
- Follow up thoughtfully with clients and prospects
- Pitch new marketing ideas internally and get them off the ground
- Support key partners on high-priority matters
It’s not about shortcuts. It’s about removing some of the friction that slows us down so we can do more of the work that actually drives results.
Keep in Mind
- Always review and edit AI-generated content before using it
- Don’t share sensitive information or client data in public tools
- Be mindful of tone and consistency with firm standards
- Use AI as a tool, not a crutch, it works best when layered with your insights
AI Prompt Ideas for Legal Marketers
Here are some specific AI prompts you can try to make your work easier and faster. Tweak the tone and structure to match your firm’s style.
For Content Creation
- “Write a LinkedIn post for a law firm announcing a partner’s speaking engagement at a private equity conference.”
- “Summarize this client alert into a 100-word LinkedIn post with a call to action.”
- “Create five different headlines for a blog post about recent SEC enforcement trends.”
- “Draft a short, engaging caption for an Instagram post celebrating a firm award.”
For Business Development and Pitches
- “Rewrite this deal description to highlight our experience advising founder-led companies.”
- “Draft an email introduction for a lawyer reconnecting with a former client now working at a new company.”
- “Summarize our firm’s experience in digital health M&A into two concise pitch bullets.”
For Internal Marketing Projects
- “Create an onboarding checklist for new marketing team members.”
- “Draft the first version of a quarterly BD newsletter for partners.”
- “Outline a presentation on social media best practices for associates.”
For Strategy and Planning
- “Generate a list of monthly content ideas for our LinkedIn company page that align with business development priorities.”
- “Brainstorm event themes that appeal to experienced founders preparing for exit.”
Use these prompts as a starting point. The more specific your input, the more helpful the output will be and always review before publishing.
Using AI to Your Advantage
AI isn’t going to replace your role. It’s giving you more tools to do it well. When used intentionally, it can help you get better drafts faster, generate stronger ideas and deliver more strategic support.
Start with the small stuff. Edit a draft. Summarize an article. Outline a post. Then build from there.
The more you use it, the more value you’ll find, not just in saving time, but in raising the bar on what you deliver.
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