Back to Basics: Why Branding Is More Than a Visual Identity

By Strawberry Nevill, Roy Sexton, Alissa Pinck
August 25, 2026 | 38-minute episode

Message and Strategy Planning Advertising and Promotion Marketing Management and Leadership Marketing Planning Graphic Design and Branding Podcast

Communications

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A successful brand is about much more than a logo, color palette, or website redesign. In this episode of the LMA Podcast, Strawberry Nevill (Strawberry Nevill Communication Consulting) sits down with Roy Sexton (Vedder) and Alissa Pinck (Greenbaum, Rowe, Smith & Davis) to explore the fundamentals of branding and how legal marketers can leverage brand strategy to drive business goals.

Drawing on decades of experience leading branding and rebranding initiatives, they discuss the critical role of internal alignment, stakeholder engagement, change management, and client feedback in creating a brand that people embrace and use.

Covering everything from rebranding to demonstrating value to firm leadership to measuring impact, this conversation offers valuable takeaways for legal marketing and business development professionals at any stage of their branding journey.

Tune in to learn:

Why branding is about the client experience, not just logos, websites, and visual identity.
How internal alignment can make or break a rebranding effort.
Common branding challenges legal marketers face and strategies for overcoming them.
How to build buy-in across large, complex organizations,
Why successful rebranding often requires significant change management and education.
The importance of tying brand initiatives to business goals and strategic priorities.
Why the real work begins after the brand launches and how to keep your brand alive and evolving.

LMA Podcast · Back to Basics: Why Branding Is More Than a Visual Identity

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The content in this feature correlates with the Marketing Management and Leadership domain in the LMA Body of Knowledge (BoK). Dive deeper and access the latest edition of the BoK online.

The Third Edition of the LMA BoK showcases enhanced expertise across every domain, introduces new competencies in Client Services, Communications and Technology Management, features more advanced skills across all domains and broadens coverage of competitive and business intelligence skills. Plus, it emphasizes a stronger commitment to nurturing diversity, equity, and inclusion across the entirety of the BoK. Learn more.

Strawberry Nevill
Strawberry Nevill Communication Consulting

Strawberry Nevill spent 15 years in legal and policy roles, including three years as a litigator at a small law firm, before opening their consultancy. They help small law firms build more peaceful, productive practices by getting better at client communication, from marketing to closing the file (and beyond). You can find them at https://www.strawberrynevill.com/ or on LinkedIn.

Roy Sexton
Vedder

Roy Sexton is the chief marketing & client development officer at Vedder. He is responsible for developing and implementing the firm’s overall marketing strategy and overseeing all projects and personnel in the marketing department.

Roy brings over 25 years of experience in various industries, with nearly 15 years of experience in the legal marketing field at prominent global firms. His career knowledge includes public relations and marketing planning, business development strategy, digital and social media outreach, attorney onboarding, and practice development.

Beginning in 2020, he served as an active international board member of LMA and was elected as the organization’s international president from 2023 to 2024.

Roy has also been recognized by a number of legal publications and organizations including Crain's, INvolve People, and Corp! Magazine for his leadership capabilities, particularly as an executive within the LGBTQ+ community. Throughout his career, he has served as a board member for a number of Michigan-based charitable organizations, such as the Mosaic Youth Theatre of Detroit and Ronald McDonald House Charities.

Alissa Pinck
Greenbaum, Rowe, Smith & Davis

Alissa Pinck has more than 20 years of experience at the intersection of brand, communications, content, and PR. She pivoted to legal marketing after more than two decades in agency, nonprofit, startup, and professional services environments. Driven by a love of the written word and an insatiable sense of curiosity, Alissa has deep experience in brand positioning and messaging, media relations, reputation management, thought leadership, multi-channel content development, awards submissions, and business development.