The idea
Aperture Arc
Aperture Arc is about seeing the bigger picture, crystallizing what matters about your brand and strategy, and creating a clear path forward.
I work with small and midsize professional services firms that are strong at what they do but whose marketing, messaging, or business-generation systems may not reflect the quality of their work. Not a traditional branding agency, advertising shop, or abstract strategy firm — I offer practical marketing and positioning support grounded in decades inside professional services firms, for leaders who need strategic clarity, calibrated identity, and the structure to support it.
Founder & strategic advisor
Heidi Andrew
Who I am
For more than 25 years, I've worked inside AmLaw, regional and boutique professional services firms, building and leading marketing and business development functions from the inside.
That means I've sat at the leadership table when the decisions were made — where the firm should focus, how it should compete, what to pursue and what to leave alone — and then carried the responsibility for making those decisions real.
I start by identifying what genuinely makes a practice different, then translate it into sharper positioning, stronger materials, and messaging that reflects real value.
My background includes senior marketing and business development roles at top-tier law firms such as Paul, Weiss, Akin Gump and Phillips Lytle, a CMO role at a full-service law firm serving private funds, real estate and high-net-worth clients, a leading marketing role at a fashion and entertainment firm, and similar roles at specialized boutiques including an expert witness search firm and a professional investigative services firm.
Prior to my legal marketing career, I was a professional chef and catering director, so event planning is also high on my list of expertise.
What I've built
Functions, systems and programs built from the ground up.
Centralized pitch & RFP operations
At a top-tier international law firm, pitch and RFP volume had grown past 300 submissions a year while content requirements more than doubled. I built a centralized pitch function — standardized templates, response protocols tied to opportunity verification, instant access to tailored experience and relationship intelligence, tracked outcomes, and weekend on-call coverage — and led a team of pitch managers and trained junior staff.
Higher-quality work produced with fewer resources, staff retention up roughly 82%, and pitch retention increased from 12% to 40% over three years.
Proprietary matter intelligence system
Matter, time and financial data at the same firm sat in disconnected systems with inconsistent coding and no firmwide search, making experience and pricing analysis painfully slow. Partnering with IT, Finance and Knowledge Management, my team conceived and deployed a proprietary Matter Intelligence System: one integrated portal to matter data, approved marketing descriptions, robust search, and attorney-level time and financial detail.
Redundancies and errors all but eliminated, daily compliance monitoring in place, and firmwide confidence in matter data established.
Partner activity & relationship intelligence
Business development activity across practices was untracked and unsynchronized, creating real service gaps with clients and prospects. I worked with the firm's technology team to build a proprietary Partner Activity Database covering partner activity, strategic initiatives, pitch activity and target research — then drove adoption through leadership champions, a daily partner activity email, and training support staff so the input burden never fell on partners.
Over 90% partner participation within 18 months, and a cultural shift toward real-time information sharing across the firm.
Junior talent & production support program
Demand for skilled business development support was outpacing the firm's capacity. I oversaw a boot-camp style Assistant/Coordinator program on three-year contracts, cross-training recent graduates and paralegals across communications, content development, pitch response, events and market research, backed by an aggressive summer intern pipeline.
A skilled bench of junior professionals, reduced reliance on temporary and senior staff, lower human capital costs, and an in-house pool for promotion.
Cross-practice industry groups
Working with firm leadership, I initiated and launched nine industry groups that allowed the firm to compete on expertise, depth and focus rather than headcount, with the positioning and go-to-market planning to support them. The initiative also revamped the website and the firm's go-to-market platform.
Practices able to lead with sector credibility against significantly larger competitors, greatly enhance the visibility of the firm in major industry market sectors, and created leadership opportunities for talented younger partners.
Pitching & business development coaching
Across AmLaw and boutique firms, I have designed and led business development training and pitch coaching for new and seasoned partners, associates and support staff. At one firm, I launched the first dedicated partner development program for newly elected partners, combining an elite external consultant with individualized coaching sessions. At another, I provided ongoing attorney training on business development skills, tools and presentation dynamics.
Activities and trainings significantly increased partner engagement and demonstrated a measurable rise in business development activities, and enhanced cross-selling across the firms. Pitch training also increased the firm's ability to compete.
Website visibility, SEO & social media
For an expert witness search firm seeking inbound leads, I led a systematic SEO and SEM program — quadrupling industry-based content and case studies, sharpening messaging to reflect credibility and value, and directing a focused social media strategy. I have since applied the same discipline across website refreshes, content strategy and digital campaigns for professional services firms.
Exceeded inbound lead quota within six months, increased organic search traffic by 700%, and grew LinkedIn followers and engagement by 55% in the first year.
Awards, rankings & credibility enhancement
I have managed directory submissions, awards and third-party validation programs across AmLaw and boutique firms — from Chambers and Legal 500 rankings to industry awards and league tables. This includes building workflows that keep submissions accurate and timely, ensuring referee communications generate response, aligning lawyer credentials with the right categories, and using the results to strengthen market positioning.
Elevated Chambers rankings, first-time Legal 500 recognitions, and industry award rankings at several firms.
How I work now
Aperture Arc puts that in-house experience directly at the leadership table for smaller firms — working alongside partners to decide where to focus, what distinguishes the firm, how business should be developed, and what infrastructure is needed to execute.
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