Legalweek signs Photo by Carmen Natale/ALM
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Read on for some great tips from these experienced marketers to help you get the most value out of the Legalweek experience.

Valerie Chan, Principal, Plat4orm

Legalweek—formerly known as Legaltech—is one of the industry's most prominent events and a mainstay for many, drawing thousands of legal tech providers, legal practitioners and technologists to New York City each winter. Legalweek will look different this year with three focused conferences within the larger event:

  • Legal Business Strategy will delve into the strategies, practices and organizational policies for law firms and corporate legal departments.
  • LegalCIO has been developed for legal professionals who focus on how to leverage the emerging technologies that impact the strategic direction of the law firm.
  • Legaltech and the exhibit hall experience offer a myriad of educational tracks and technology designed to improve law firm and corporate legal departments' processes and workflows.

Now, a few tips for getting the most out of Legalweek:

Educate yourself. Even if you are going to Legalweek primarily to network, take advantage of the super sessions and hear about the challenges that legal professionals are going through so that you can learn from their experiences.

Bring a checklist. Itemize the features and functionality of the technology that you want to see, but also think about the problem that you are trying to solve. Keep in mind some of the newer technology can be repurposed for other use cases. Review products with your organization's workflows in mind.

Old or new? Challenge yourself to assess the maturity of products tech vendors are offering. Different types of underlying software (like SQL Server) do matter, especially if the vendor is creating the product on a standardized platform. Make sure you are evaluating software that reflects the latest capabilities.

Above all, get your rest, stay hydrated and wear good shoes!

Ed Colandra, Founder and President, Mindful Marketing Solutions

For all the money spent on booths, hotels, meals and travel, there are many vendors who literally hide behind their table. It's almost as if they don't want to be seen. They are effectively squandering the investment.

Whether you are working a booth, hosting a panel discussion or just meandering about to see what is going on, what's new, what was supposed to be a hit but has disappeared from the show floor, you must be seen. Use whatever means you can to start up a conversation with a total stranger. Get to know someone new. Ask questions about why they are there. Are they local or did they have to travel to get there? Are they a vendor (if so, for which company and what is their role?) or do they work for a legal firm (if so, what is their primary practice?). Don't immediately jump into sales mode, but if there is a good reason, ask to exchange business cards and explain why you are there. Marketing yourself is the best investment you can make. Every person represents a potential place of employment or a sale.

Christy Burke, President, Burke & Company

Legalweek is exciting, but it can also be exhausting. Consider prioritizing quality over quantity as you determine where your time will be spent. Be sure to check in with as many current clients as possible—don't take their business for granted. Take the time to listen to their feedback, which may present opportunities to cross-sell or troubleshoot problems. Past clients who are not likely to do business with you again perhaps warrant a quick hello or a coffee, but maybe not a full lunch or dinner.

Conserve your energy. Surround yourself with positive energy and people you like whenever possible. People who stop by your booth but don't seem serious or sincerely interested in your product don't need a 15-minute demo and your full energy. Give yourself a few sanity breaks to step off the exhibit hall floor, even if it's just to walk around the block without texting, emailing or talking on your cell phone. Text messages to yourself and your colleagues throughout the show as reminders to follow up on specifics with customers, prospects and partners after the conference.

Wouldn't it be nice to come to the end of Legalweek and feel energized rather than totally depleted? Try to get some sleep. Being smart about where you spend your time and energy will give you strength to shine and say just the right thing when that big deal is on the line.

Amy Juers, Founder & CEO, Edge Legal Marketing

My first Legaltech was 20 years ago when I was working for Quorum Litigation Services as its marketing director. (Yes, I was still in the cradle.) All joking aside, here are some tips I have learned over the years to make the most of Legalweek:

Education: Download the Legalweek New York app and add sessions that are of interest to your schedule. There are three conferences and 42-plus sessions within Legalweek, Legaltech, LegalCIO and Legal Business Strategy. There are also pre-conference workshops on Monday.

Exhibit hall: If you are looking for new technology and big tech announcements from exhibitors and sponsors, the two sources of information that you should not ignore are Legaltech News, and The Edge Room, the online press room for Legalweek. If you find something of interest, reach out to the company and schedule a demo or booth visit. By scheduling ahead, you'll get specific answers to your specific challenges.

Navigation: Get the lay of the land here before you go or you may just find yourself doing owl-like head turns when you hop off the escalators and elevators.

Meals, networking and social events: Legalweek has made some changes this year that open the door for more networking and socializing. Take advantage of lunches for Master Pass holders in the exhibit hall and Tuesday night's networking reception that will be held in the exhibit hall.

Patricia Nagy, Director, Proxy PR

Legalweek can be like the perennial host city itself: a potent, enthralling, annoying mix of total chaos, outrageous expense and endless opportunity. As a seasoned pro at navigating both New York and Legalweek, I have some tips to help you avoid falling into the chasm of expense and chaos and extract more value from the year's biggest legal tech event.

Listen, learn, hydrate. The sales cycle in legal is long. Make your Legalweek about more than pipeline building. There are thousands of legal industry information "databases"—i.e., attendees—walking the halls. This is the largest sample size of the legal industry in one place you will ever get. Meet as many people as possible, listen, learn and build. Drink plenty of water—the reason vocal chords hurt is dehydration!

Don't look down. There's a word for that moment when an eager sales professional sales looks at your face, then the eyes trail downward, evaluating your job title, wondering, "Is this person worth my conversation?" The term is down-looker. If you do it, you are sending all the wrong messages.

The Hansel and Gretel rule. Make sure you are easily found and double-check all the pebbles today. Do a simple Google search for your company and yourself at Legalweek and check your results. Fix the information gaps now. The information competition is intense; don't lose on the basics.

Ari Kaplan, Legal Industry Analyst, Ari Kaplan Advisors

Study the entire agenda. Legalweek is about content and networking, but some of the leaders you want to meet might be delivering presentations at nearby. Know where to find them.

Be generous. I try to understand what my colleagues want to achieve and think of ways to help them bring that to fruition. If it is visibility, I am happy to interview them for my podcast or connect them to a journalist who covers the sector. If they want to meet a new contact at the show, I will email or call during our discussion in an effort to give them a chance to make that happen.

Take advantage of the executive lounge. The weather can be unpredictable during Legalweek, and meeting schedules are packed. If you are staying at the Hilton, consider buying a pass to the executive lounge. The pass includes unlimited snacks and drinks, with ample seating for $35 per day.

Run! ACEDS is hosting its 2nd Annual Walk/Run on Wednesday, February 5, at 6:15am, with support from Berkeley Research Group and Reveal. A donation to the Lung Cancer Foundation of America will be made for each walker and runner in attendance. It's great networking and a lot of fun. Register here.