About Intellistart Law Firm Marketing

Our story and why law firms across England & Wales trust us.

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Where it started

Intellistart was founded in 2018 by two work friends, Joel and Arif, after gaining hands-on experience within a Claims Management Company and a law firm in Greater Manchester.

At the time, Joel was working closely with directors across both organisations, focusing on lead generation, systems, and digital marketing.

What began as internal experimentation soon developed into something far more effective: a joined-up system combining websites, landing pages, advertising, and internal processes to generate and convert enquiries efficiently.

This wasn’t just theory. It was built and tested within real legal businesses.

You may have seen us on
The Law Gazette.

From internal system to external agency

Joel Cortez

Within the Law Firm, Joel developed a fully integrated approach to marketing and operations:

Lead generation through websites and landing pages
Advertising campaigns designed to drive enquiries
Automations that delivered leads directly to the team
Dialler systems to improve response times and conversions

The impact was clear: the firm grew rapidly using this structured, data-driven approach.

It became obvious that this wasn’t just a solution for one firm. Other law firms could benefit from the same system.

That’s when Intellistart Limited was formed — to help law firms across England and Wales generate work more predictably and grow with confidence.

Built on real-world commercial experience

Alongside growing the agency, Joel continued to develop his commercial and client-facing expertise across other industries, including working with a multinational home assistance provider supporting millions of customers.

This experience shaped a key part of how we work today:

Understanding how enquiries turn into paying clients
Supporting law firms with real-world sales processes
Bridging the gap between marketing and conversion

Because generating leads is only part of the picture. What happens next matters just as much.

Ewelina Radziewicz

A defining shift: building the agency properly

In 2021, in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, the business entered a new phase.

Ewelina joined the agency full-time, bringing a unique combination of technical, analytical, and linguistic expertise.

At the same time, Joel stepped away from external roles to focus entirely on growing Intellistart.

This marked the point where the agency became a fully dedicated, in-house operation.

Ewelina’s role

Ewelina’s background in linguistics plays a central role in how we approach SEO, GEO, and website design.

Her understanding of:

Syntax (how content is structured)

Semantics (how meaning is conveyed)

Sociolinguistics (how language connects with audiences)

translates directly into building websites and content that both users and search engines (including AI tools) can understand.

Combined with her experience in regulated industries, she brings a strong awareness of:

Regulatory compliance
Accuracy
Risk-sensitive communication

This is particularly important for law firms, where trust and clarity are critical.

Ewelina leads on:

Website design and development
SEO and Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO)
Conversion rate optimisation (CRO)

Ensuring that every website we build is not only visible, but commercially effective.

Why our approach is different

Our experience has been shaped inside legal and regulated environments, working closely with decision-makers and understanding the pressures that come with running a business.

We know:

The expectation for results is high
Cash flow matters
Poor marketing decisions are costly

That’s why we don’t approach marketing as a standalone service.

We build joined-up systems, where your website, SEO, PPC, and internal processes work together to generate and convert enquiries.

In-house, accountable, and built for law firms

Everything we do is delivered in-house.

No outsourcing
No freelancers
No handovers between teams

The people you speak to are the people doing the work.

This allows us to:

Move quickly
Maintain consistency
Understand your firm properly
Deliver stronger long-term results

Client testimonials

“We’ve worked with Intellistart since October 2022 across Google Ads, landing pages and website design. Joel has handled our PPC and landing page work and has also assisted with Trustpilot and review setup.

Ewelina has created the website design work for us, including the Mason & Co site (to make it compliant) and more recently the LFCS Legal website completed in March 2026.

I personally would highly recommend Intellistart for the excellent website development and advertising services for all legal firms and professionals….”

Joanne Feldman – Solicitor Partner at LFCS Legal Solicitors

“Joel and all associated with Intellistart (including Brian and Gemma at Peacock and Mike at Coverex) have been of immense help and support to me when setting up my new law firm and I would highly recommend their services to others.

Intellistart also assisted with the purchase of necessary office equipment, such as a laptop and desk phone. I very much look forward to continuing to work with them in the future.”

Chris Henshall – Chris Henshall Employment Solicitors

“We have been working with Intellistart for a number of years now. It is a great company that provides exceptional services. Joel and Ewelina are extremely professional and diligent and we very much value our working relationship with them. Would recommend this company in a heartbeat.”

Thank you Ewelina for your valued work.”

Tuhel Ahmed – Bentley Sterling & Co Solicitors in London

“Ewelina re-designed and developed my legal consultancy website.

She worked quickly and produced a high quality website which more than met my brief. She was approachable and guided me website amendments and format.

Thank you Ewelina for your valued work.”

Adam Wright – Consultant Solicitor at Setfords Solicitors

“We used Intellistart to set up our web site for our Tenancy Deposit Protection checks, Joel was very helpful and knowledgeable and guided us through the set up really well.

Joel spent time with us going through what we wanted out of the site and how to get there.

Joel checked everything worked properly before going live and since it has been set up it has worked really well for us and we are now getting enquiries on line. We would certainly recommend the services of Intellistart.”

Peter Butler – Phoenix Legal Solicitors

“Joel and Ewelina were great to work with and always responsive with any queries that we had.

The service they provided was second to none.

Would recommend.”

Hakan Jabbar – Law Firm Partner

“Intellistart have been a great addition to our company and their advice in respect of SEO, social media, website redesign and more.

We are grateful for all of the advice they have given us and their hard work.”

Alisha Butler – Phoenix Legal Solicitors

“Simply the best !

Very helpful, professional and good at what they do.
I have re-modelled my website 3 times and Joel and Ewelina have been by far the best. They are honest, knowledgeable and informative.

Before they came on the scene, this time I tried two other firms and it was 3rd time going with lucky with them and I’m so glad I did.”

Helen Grieves – Grieves Solicitors

“Excellent Services on All Fronts

We used Peacock Risk Management and Intellistart’s services in relation to our Law Firm Start Up, as well as provision of Indemnity Insurance and Legal Web Design. All the services we received were excellent on all fronts and the key to this was speedy communication from all members, and in-depth knowledge and expertise, allowing them to guide us through the challenges and concerns of starting a new business.”

Ratika Puri – RPK Solicitors

“Ewelina from Intellistart has been working on my employment law firm’s SEO for some time now. She has since increased the speed of our website and removed defunct plugins. Her SEO has also generated new areas of work and the results have been fantastic!

My experience with past SEO companies is that they hook you on a retainer, take it for granted and do increasingly less. However, this is not the case with Ewelina and Intellistart as she continues to proactively identify areas to work on and improve. Thank you Ewelina!”

Dean Morris – Morris Legal

“I am the owner of a small law firm specialising in immigration law. I instructed Intellistart to take over the management of our PPC campaign three months ago.

Joel is a pleasure to work with. He guided us through the initial onboarding process and has remained proactive on our account ever since. The results speak for themselves.

Our turnover has doubled since we have been working with Intellistart.

I am very satisfied with the service provided by Intellistart and I have no hesitation in recommending their services to other law firms that want to grow their practice.”

Rasab Khan – Saxon Solicitors

“Joel knows exactly what he is doing and is passionate about the data and conversions.

I highly recommend Intellistart for a GoogleAds campaign”

Saimah Malik – Goodwyn Herrera Solicitors

“I honestly cannot praise Joel and the team at Intellistart highly enough. They have been amazing from day one. It has taken my business 8 years to find a company that actually knows their stuff and and delivers what they promise.

This company is by far leaders in their field and they have greatly helped in bringing new clients and leads to our firm. From being totally disillusioned by other companies professing to be experts in marketing Joel and the team make all these folks else seem amateur.

Always on hand and responsive, totally professional and most of all their skills and knowledge are second to none. 5 stars all round!”

Naveen Galal – Amnesty Solicitors

“I had the pleasure of working closely with Ewelina on a refresh of my company website.

Her exceptional problem-solving skills and attention to detail were instrumental in delivering a customer focused website.

I highly recommend Ewelina for her dedication, professionalism, and ability to deliver to tight deadlines.”

Mohammed Sahid – Affinion Partnership

“Joel is just amazing! Always happy to help, always professional and always on point! I’d definitely recommend him to everyone.”

Sanam Aziz – SAZ Solicitors Ltd

“I had a great experience working with Joel. He was very helpful and assisted with a lot of our enquiries.

The website they delivered was really good, our clients like it and find it easy to navigate.”

Ola Popoola – Squares Law

“Professional, hardworking and great customer care in assisting a new business to create a business logo.”

Ms Hughes – Hughes Law Solicitors

“Great people to work with, you will feel comfortable straight away when you speak to them as they are genuine people.

Excellent at what they do and always available when you need them, would recommend Intellistart with full confidence.”

Arif Qadri – MRH Solicitors

– Stuart Matthews, Treadstone Law Solicitors in Manchester

Leadership

Joel Cortez

Co-Founder & Managing Director

Joel Cortez

/dʒoʊl/ “like Billy-Joel but it’s my first name”

Joel Cortez is the Co-Founder and Director of Intellistart® Law Firm Marketing.

With a BA and LLB Law background, he became the youngest manager in a Manchester-based commercial law firm and a Claims Management Company at only 22.

Having co-founded Intellistart, Joel helps legal professionals in marketing and business development, enabling them to achieve annual turnovers exceeding £3 million anually.

Additional Facts about Joel

In his spare time, Joel enjoys cooking and playing strategy games. His surname Cortez is of Spanish and Portuguese origin and it derived from the Old French corteis or curteis, meaning ‘courteous’ or ‘polite’, and is related to the English Curtis.

Ewelina Radziewicz

/ɛ.vɛˈli.na/ “the ‘w’ is pronounced like a ‘v'”

Ewelina is the Head of the Website Design and Optimisation Department at Intellistart.

With a BA hons in Language and Linguistics, Ewelina spearheads SEO and AI-configured website designs. She’s focused on getting the best ROI possible for our law firm clients, turning their websites and landing pages into valuable assets that generate legal enquiries.

Ewelina’s Articles on The Law Society:

The power of a well-designed website for law firms: maximising potential for affordable enquiries

How to use SEO to grow your firm

Ewelina Radziewicz

Chief Operating Officer

Ewelina's Profile

Our Partners

Brian Greevy

Peacock Risk Management

Brian Greevy

Brian Greevy is our regulatory and risk compliance expert assisting new start-up practices and existing firms to convert the legal structure of their practice to a limited company or LLP, and firms applying to be an ABS with their application for authorisation from the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA).

Mike Filson

Mike Filson is Managing Director of Coverex Brokers Limited. As well as being a non-practicing solicitor, Mike has insured more than 450 law firms over the last 7 years and has guided over 150 new law firms through the setting up process.

Mike Filson

Coverex Brokers

Our Guide to Starting a Law Firm is available to purchase on Amazon

Working closely as a team has led to the development of our Start a Law Firm: Guide & Checklist. First created in 2018 and now in its 4th edition, the guide brings together the combined expertise of our team and partners, offering practical insight into starting and growing a law firm in England and Wales.