Brooke Goff is everywhere. You can see her on billboards across Connecticut, hear her dispense advice on local television channels, and almost smell what she cooks during livestreams.
Goff first made headlines when she made history by becoming the first female player on her middle and high school football teams, an accomplishment that required drive both on and off the field.
“I came from a small town, a very misogynistic town, where everybody’s favorite word was ‘can’t’ instead of can,” she recalled. “I knew that if I wanted to ever have a family or whatever the case might be I had to do better than everybody else I ever knew.”
“A lot of that drive comes from never wanting to settle for less than I feel that I or my family deserve.”
“And also, I think sometimes people are born with the personality that they just push forward every day,” she added. “And I am wired that way.”
Goff has since gone on to be one of most widely known women practicing law in Connecticut, and a mother twice over. She recently welcomed a new daughter to her family which includes her 11-year-old son and her spouse Angeline Ioannu, another attorney.
The drive from her early days stayed with her through law school at Quinnipiac University and was with her when she began building her business.
“I wanted to be a boss, I wanted to build a firm, I wanted to be a lawyer, I wanted to be an entrepreneur,” Goff said. “Obviously, I cashed out my 401k and I said ‘I’m going to do this and I’m going to go all-in.”
At the age of 29, with a three-year-old son she would get home from a full day of work at launching her firm and put him to sleep.
“I’d get a couple hours of sleep and then I put on a baseball hat and gym shorts and a t-shirt, and I would drive for Uber and Lyft all night so I could pay my employees. I would drive until about 10 most mornings. I would take my one suit I had and my shoes, and some of my hair products and take them into the bathroom of the courthouse.”
She emphasized that she only had one suit. “You’re not exactly rolling in it when you’re fresh out of law school.”
Changed and coiffed, Goff said she would then return to work, helping clients, attending hearings, and getting ready to do it all again without a safety net. Her ambitions though meant she was frequently multitasking.
“I used that experience to build the firm better. I would talk a lot while I was transporting the CEO’s that I wanted to be, and I would pick their brain.”
Goff found herself driving legislators, business owners, and a whole host of interesting people during her night job. She considers sharing the insight she gained while in the driver’s seat as a valuable service she can provide to the public, paying it forward in her commercials, television appearances on local channels and livestreamed discussions.
Goff said that the marketing materials she has put together based on those conversations are among the most valuable to her business and helped her communicate who she is as a woman in a male-dominated field.
“I wanted the longer ad segments so that people could actually be tuned in for a long period of time and really get to know me, I am who I am.” Goff said. “I don’t hide any of it or change any of it to please anybody.”
She said that she can’t allow herself to fail after putting “her big head on a billboard” and working in a male dominated field and acknowledged that not everybody is a fan.
“If you look on Reddit, you’ll see there’s 1,100 or something Reddit posts all about me,” Goff said. “Some people love me. Some people hate me. Whatever, but when you’re a public figure you’re going to get scrutinized and have thick skin. But when you’re true to yourself it doesn’t bother you.”
This is particularly vital in the realm of personal injury law according to Goff. Advertising accounts for one of her primary costs, and when it comes to her field of law is absolutely necessary.
“In Connecticut,” she said, “advertising-wise you need to spend at least north of a million.”
Anything less and she believes it is impossible to have a presence across the entire state.
“You have to spend several million dollars a year advertising here to really be one of the quote-unquote ‘top dogs.’ You’re going to spend a premium pricing per acquisition, so you want to make sure that you get every single case that calls you,” she said.
An aggressive approach to advertising has served Goff well, especially during Covid.
“I never spent more than I spent during Covid because everything was discounted,” explained Goff, explaining how in addition to dominating billboards along state highways she branched out into her signature “Bake and Sip” broadcasts where she bakes treats, sips drinks and provides general legal tips from her kitchen.
Her Bake and Sip videos have descriptions such as “Why are dog bite cases so appealing to personal injury attorneys? Attorney Goff answers this question and more, while making a delicious almond butter torte.” They have proven popular enough that Goff has included a kitchen alongside a new studio in her firm’s new West Hartford offices.
Goff also has no plans to let the birth of her new daughter or anything else divert her from her course to become and stay the top injury lawyer in the state, with offices in both Stamford and West Hartford and an ever-growing media presence.
“People always ask me how big is Goff Law Group going to get? This is the answer I give them: I’m going to get as big as I can while I can still give my clients a luxurious legal experience.”
“If I ever see the quality of the legal work decreasing because of growth that is when I will know what our capacity is,” Goff concluded. “I believe we are not even close to that.”
