Branding is more than skin deep

It is unfortunate that Sean Brierley (City Column, 11 January) has misrepresented the contribution that marketing provides to legal and other professional firms. He assumes that "marketing" and "branding" are virtually synonymous, which they are not, and goes on to portray marketing people as brand obsessive and akin to ad people, constantly chasing new business armed with pots of money for logo identity and promotions, unconcerned with client retention or development.

I know most marketing professionals spend a significant part of their time coaching and advising partners on client retention and development. Many marketing professionals and managing partners recognise that branding is encapsulated in a firm's culture, people, quality, consistency and differentiation, and not surface visual issues such as logo identity.



Tony Firth, practice development manager, Cartwrights