denotes premium content | Jan 9 2009 Feature
posted 25 Jun 2007 in Volume 2 Issue 2
Web recruitment with honours
A major differentiating factor for clients, as mentioned by Gillian Gilthorpe in this issue’s ‘Thought leader’, is the law firm’s people. Following the successful launch of its graduate recruitment website in 2004, Lovells LLP has used feedback from graduates and career advisors to maintain and help steer the direction and content of the site – with award-winning results.
By Clare Harris, Lovells
Lovells’ graduate website was recently awarded first place in the ‘Best Graduate Recruitment Website’ category at the 2007 TARGET National Graduate Recruitment Awards, after winning the same award in 2006. The site was judged against those of several leading professional-services firms. The Lovells website excelled when assessed under factors including visitor hits, ease of navigation, good quality design, functionality and the overall integration of its marketing campaign.
Lovells launched www.lovells.com/graduates in August 2004. The objective was to produce a website that was not only highly informative, but also at the leading edge of recruitment websites in the
Our audience
The website primarily targets people who wish to pursue a career in law via the training contract route. However, university careers advisers were identified as a secondary audience so that they can direct any student interested in law to the Lovells site, which contains much generic information about the route to becoming a lawyer.
The website is regularly reviewed. Feedback from students and careers advisers is taken on board and updates made to the site accordingly. Feedback has demonstrated the elements that are important to students include design, layout, a sense of fun when navigating the site, ease of navigation and professional presentation.
In 2007, Lovells subscribed to the High Fliers Law Student Survey, which 12,000 undergraduates at some 20 top universities took part in.
Student comments from the High Fliers survey included:
“The website is fantastic. The opening screen is clever and eye-catching. The tabs on the left easily navigate you to the main areas and the font is colourful and appealing. All information that is required can easily be found and has just the right amount of depth.”
“Aesthetically top-notch. Has a feel of quality – obvious that time and money has gone into the design.”
“A very clear, friendly, yet informative website, which takes you through the firm and its application process step by step. Images of the firm enhance the appeal. The trainee and partner profiles are helpful, as are the trainee diaries. It gives the reader an idea of what it would be like to work at Lovells.”
Our message
As one of the largest international legal practices in the world, Lovells seeks to attract and retain the brightest and most able people. The aim of the website is to help differentiate the firm from its competitors by highlighting elements that are unique to Lovells, for example, the working environment, the integrated international network, the people that make up the organisation and the quality of the work undertaken by its lawyers. This information gives visitors to the site an insight into Lovells and helps prospective trainees get a feel for what it is like to be a part of the organisation.
Delivery
In developing the site, the recruitment team wanted to use eye-catching design and the latest technology to reach out to the student market and help to bridge the gap between being a student and the world of work. Through the development of the virtual tour, visitors to the site feel like they are actually visiting Lovells. This element has received consistently positive feedback from prospective candidates.
The site is conspicuously placed on the firm’s main website. This enables visitors to the main site, who are interested in learning more about Lovells careers, training contracts and vacation schemes, to find the relevant section very easily.
The site also profiles trainees, lawyers and partners so that readers can learn about the various routes to becoming a solicitor and also find out about other aspects of life at Lovells, including information regarding benefits, pro bono work, sports and social events. There is also an opportunity to see video footage of the Lovells graduate-recruitment partner, to hear what he has to say about the firm and the careers on offer.
The website is extremely user friendly. A site map clearly subdivides site content and careful design ensures that visitors who are unable to access the virtual tour and video clips can still view a text alternative. The site is also an excellent information source for prospective candidates, offering useful tips on preparing for an interview and links to relevant websites in the business and finance sector. A career timeline is also available, which helps visitors to visualise what they need to do to plan a career in law.
Another innovative and well-used part of the site is the interactive critical-thinking test. Students can try their hand at the test and see if they think like a lawyer. While the test is not assessed, it helps readers to select themselves in or out of the recruitment process, giving them more control over their decision making.
Award winning
Since the launch of the website in 2004, it has been recognised at a number of awards including:
The Times Graduate Recruitment Award for Best Graduate Recruitment website in 2006. The firm was shortlisted against BAE Systems, Freshfields, Lloyds TSB, JP Morgan and Sainsbury’s. Lovells won the award for its “… engaging and contemporary design, slick navigation and virtual tour of the firm’s offices.” (The Times Careers Supplement,
In a 2007 'High Fliers Survey', the Lovells site gained the highest score for design out of all the law firms, higher than the highest score achieved in the general graduate recruitment research;
Lovells was also presented with the TARGET National Graduate Recruitment Award for Best Graduate Recruitment Website in 2006 and 2007. The firm was shortlisted against several leading professional-services firms
Lovells’ graduate website harnesses the latest technology to deliver distinctive business and recruitment messages in a way in which prospective trainee solicitors and students can relate to. The content and delivery has been carefully considered with the target audience and message in mind.
Potential recruits expect leading law firms to be accessible through a corporate website. We are now also seeing new ways of communicating through blogs, audio and video podcasts that are downloadable to iPods, and even whole new virtual worlds, such as Second Life. Lovells, along with other leading professional-services firms, will keep assessing the way it communicates with its recruits of the future to ensure it responds appropriately to these changes.
Clare Harris is associate director of legal resourcing at Lovells LLP. She can be contacted at clare.harris@lovells.com
