If You Don’t Have New Features, Rebrand

In the days before blogging, I never would have done anything with an announcement from Omega Legal Systems, Inc. that mentions a new version of an

” integrated front and back office time & billing,
accounting and practice management software suite that enables instant
access to a firm¹s most up-to-the-minute financial, statistical and
historical information from a single server . . . .”

that won’t be available until the end of the year. But the show (in this case, apparently, the Association of Legal Administrators’ Expo in San Francisco next week) must go on and a vendor must show something new. So, the new version not yet ready for prime time, the company will be “rebranding” instead.

Omega Legal 6.0 to Offer Significant Ease-of-Use, Productivity Enhancements

Renowned Artist Chris Gall Unveils Omega¹s New Branding at ALA Conference

PHOENIX, Ariz.‹April 12, 2005‹Omega will be introducing the latest version
of its integrated front and back office software suite at the ALA Conference
in San Francisco next week, with the goal of strengthening the foundation
for successful law firms nationwide. Omega Legal 6.0 will provide
productivity and ease-of-use improvements for more streamlined workflow and
feature/function capability in the base product. Also at the conference, the
award-winning artist behind Omega¹s new branding campaign, Chris Gall, will
unveil the company¹s new look with a book signing for his first ­ and highly
praised ­ picture book, ³America the Beautiful.² The first 200 visitors to
Omega¹s booth on April 20 will receive personally signed copies.

Chris Gall, they tell me, has an impressive resume:

Gall specializes in fine line engravings, both in black and
white and color. He received his BFA from the University of Arizona in 1985.
After several years as a designer and art director, he launched into the
illustration market with a style both nostalgic and modern in its feel; a
style with strong, graphic compositions and delicate linework. He has worked
with diverse clients all over the world, including the New York Times, Time
magazine, Harper Collins and Warner Book. He produces illustrations in
formats ranging from small logos to 300 ft. murals.

And, oh yes, he is the son of Omega’s CEO. Not that there’s anything wrong with that.

Of course, there is some talk about the new product’s new features:

With the latest version of Omega Legal, law firms will have complete
individual user control over menus and toolbars to make learning and using
Omega Legal even easier; streamlined work-in-progress (WIP) editing,
requiring fewer steps to support faster bill editing and generation; and
simplified time entry for faster, easier use. It will also include a
flexible bill printing report writer capable of producing multi-color,
multi-font bills with the firm¹s logo and letterhead. All of these features
are included in the base product with no hidden third-party, upgrade or
customization fees.

But with the blog, why not mention it, in case some reader is going to San Francisco next week and may be interested in Omega’s new branding. Or maybe in the new Version, to the extent that the vendor may be willing to talk about it. (And if you’ll be at the ALA convention, drop me a line and tell me about it.) And if Omega will send me a copy when Version 6 is ready, I may even write about it, then.