Spotlight - Conveyed
Melissa Barlas from Conveyed has appreciated property and the impact on people’s lives from a very young age, leading her to start her own business to help people realise their property dreams.
Venture Melton learnt more about Melissa and her story, read on to learn more about success and growth of Conveyed.
Why property law and conveyancing?
From the time I could remember I’ve been conditioned to love all-things property.
As a little European girl living between Footscray and Sunshine, my father, a bricklayer at the time, would take me around to all the jobs he did, admiring his work. As I grew older, we would talk around the dinner table about investing in property, the great Australian dream, even though it was well out of our reach during tough economic times.
That’s how I developed an appreciation for property and how much it impacts peoples lives.
During my bachelor I completed two law subjects – business law and employment law. I then went on to complete a Juris Doctor in Laws at Monash University. Given my love and passion for property, coupled with my interest in law, working as a property lawyer was a natural fit.
What is your connection to the City of Melton
I live in the Melton City Council area and have formed some amazing relationships with other local business owners that I can relate to and support. The Melton City Council embraces diversity amongst our community and invests its time to how small business owners thrive. I’ve attended many Council-run events, including networking initiatives by Venture Melton, their ‘Ready Set Connect Speed’ networking and business education sessions to expand my skill set as a small business owner.
I also had the privilege of being a finalist in the 2022 Melton City Council Business Excellence Awards. It is humbling to be part of a Council area that celebrates the business achievements of its local community.
Why start my own business
In March 2021 I started my journey as a sole practitioner in my own conveyancing law firm called Conveyed (www.conveyed.com.au). It was in the middle of Covid, which wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, as it gave me the downtime I needed for the first few months to work on my business plan, research into my target market and set up my business accounts and registrations. From July 2021 I was ready to start taking on clients as a law firm owner.
What challenges have I faced
One of the biggest challenges I have faced was getting in the way of myself. I had come out of private practice, trained to be a lawyer. That’s where the buck stopped. I wasn’t trained to be a business developer, a marketer, a financial controller, and everything else in between. All I knew was how to do client work because as lawyers that is what we are trained to do. We’re not trained to be the technician that’s required to run, grow and scale a law firm. That a massive undertaking that I must admit, I was never prepared for and had to figure out along the way.
With a developing mindset fit for business growth, my next challenge was marketing. How on earth was I going to put my brand out there and what did that look like? How was anyone going to know about my business? I started from ground zero. No clients, no referral partners. When you’ve been working 9-5 in law firms over a 10-year period, you don’t get out much except for a lunch break.
The starting point was to understand exactly who my target market on a very deep level. To the point that I know how they commute, what they like to do for leisure, what they value, how they live. All of that matters to ensure I am capturing the right audience for my business.
At a high level, my conveyancing law firm appeals to a Gen Y market that are tech savvy, busy professionals looking for convenience. I ensured my website was modernised to suite my desired target market. I introduced a podcast called The First Home Show for first home buyers and have that available on my website, Spotify and iTunes because that how my target market loves to learn. They love DIY, so I have loads of blogs and FAQs on my website to educate my customers on all-things property and conveyancing. I had to relate to my customers on a deep level so that can walk away and say “she totally gets me”. I became active of social media and developed my own personal brand, participating in a variety of podcasts and events, writing articles, bloggings and sharing my knowledge to the world to help my customers feel more empowered and less vulnerable in the property market. It is essential in today’s competitive landscape to have a point of difference.
What are my achievements
In 2023 I won the Lawyers Weekly Australian Law Awards for Sole Practitioner of the Year. I am so proud of this achievement after just 2 years of starting Conveyed and as a Law Institute of Victoria Young Lawyer member. To put the award into perspective, over 1000 people applied for this award across the country.
I was a finalist in the 2022 Melton City Council Business Excellence Awards for the work I have done to service my community through my business, as I live in the Council area. I consider my law firm a social enterprise dedicated to doing good for people, by people with every property settlement and in everything we do. Conveyancing is a vehicle we use to achieve that purpose. It was humbling to be recognised for the work I have done for my local community.
Where to from here?
The vision for Conveyed in the next 5 years is to grow the business into a national brand and service every State in Australia. I’m committed to being a thought leader in our industry and inspire other lawyers through my own experiences on how to run a successful law practice.
We’ve just expanded into Queensland which means we are now servicing clients who are buying and selling in both Victoria and Queensland!
I’m really passionate about improving mental health in our legal industry. I encourage you to check out my LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram for content where I’ve talked about what more law firms can do to improve the mental health of their workers, including my guest appearance on Community Heart Radio 98.9 North West FM and on the Lawyer Lending LIVE podcast hosted by Cullen Haynes, Director of Sales at Legal Home Loans.
If you would like to speak with Melissa, she can be contacted at:
Website: www.conveyed.com.au
Phone: 03 8832 8032
Email: info@conveyed.com.au