Lawyers should consider directly promoting their services via Twitter. While lawyers need to be careful to follow applicable ethical rules, members of other industries are seeing results from selling and promoting directly on Twitter.
Take the music industry. A recent article posted on Tech Crunch describes the powerful role of Twitter in promoting a newly released album, Asleep in the Bread Aisle. Asher Roth's first album rose to the number one position for digital albums the week of its release. And Twitter played a key role. Roth apparently Tweeted his 69,566 followers that his album would be on iTunes the following day. He also Tweeted a link for locating the album on iTunes. According to the article, the main advantage of Roth's Tweets is that it made the information feel more like an insider tip than promotion or marketing.
While lawyers sell their services and usually don't have a generic product to sell to the world, a law firm could promote a white paper, article, seminar, or speaking engagement through Twitter. Likewise, if an attorney wished to share guidance or a newsletter about a new development in the law, the attorney could share a link or other information through Twitter.
Obviously, law firms and lawyers need to be careful to follow accepted protocol and norms for social media sites. Thus, if an attorney is only using Twitter to barrage followers with promotional materials, such promotion will likely fail. But if a lawyer first cultivates relationships, contributes to the "conversation" and shares helpful information, an occasional promotion is generally accepted and appreciated.
Please leave your comments below about whether and when lawyers should use Twitter to promote their services.
Marketing for law firms should be a subject that is taught in law school. A May 28, 2009 article in the New York Law Journal notes that hiring partners, practice chairs and recruiters at law firms would almost universally like to see law schools teach students about business development and networking. According to the article, one solution would be to offer such subjects in the context of non-credit courses. The article further notes that new lawyers need to realize that a law firm is a business and that lawyers need to contribute to the firm's bottom line. New attorneys in law firms need to understand law firm economics.
Although the New York Law Journal does not focus on this angle, the fact is that new media and social media are becoming more and more important in the world of client development and business development for lawyers. The growth rate of Twitter is phenomenal, and law students should be learning about microblogging strategies. Law students should also be learning about blogging, Internet audio creation and distribution, Internet video creation and distribution, and podcasting. In addition, law schools should provide new lawyers with the basics of copywriting and marketing a legal practice.
The third year of law school is mostly a waste of time anyway, and part of that year should be focused on client development. Will law schools take the hint from law firms and economic conditions as to what they should be teaching students to prepare them for the realities of the new economy? Probably not. Law professors generally lack marketing savvy and skills. In addition, elite law schools frown upon practical courses. If law schools ignore the necessity of giving their students grounding in social networking and social media, however, they may find themselves less relevant and in danger of forced structural change.
Is podcasting a viable means of marketing for law firms? My law firm's audio ERISA Litigation podcast should be an interesting case study. Although the first episode was released in October 2008, the first "regular" episode only recently became available. In that episode, I interviewed Michael J. Salmanson, a prominent lawyer in Philadelphia whose practice focuses on ERISA litigation.
While writing articles and blogging are an effective means of getting one's name "out there," there is a more personal touch that results from a podcast. The human voice is one of the most persuasive media. When a potential client subscribes to my podcast in iTunes, I suddenly have a voice on the subscriber's iPod. The subscriber can listen to me while commuting to work, exercising, or getting ready for the day. Audio makes it easy for a subscriber to get to know me, my law firm, and some of my skills.
Feel free to use the iTunes subscribe button on the ERISA Litigation Podcast (which is, of course, free) and to let me know what you think.
Lawyers and law firms should consider making Twitter one of the standard tools of the profession. Is Twitter mainstream among non-lawyers? Although Twitter has a long way to go to catch up to Facebook, Twitter is being used more and more by non-lawyers and in popular culture. Doctors are tweeting from the operation room, jurors are tweeting, and celebrities are becoming more active on Twitter. An NBA player recently tweeted during halftime of an NBA game, revealing to his followers what his coach had told the team, and vowing that he needed to play harder during the second half of the game. Although the player was subsequently reprimanded for his in-game tweet, Twitter is increasingly becoming part of the popular consciousness.
Attorneys and corporations need to consider how and whether they jump onto the Twitter and microblogging bandwagon. While lawyers have historically been relatively slow to embrace cutting edge technologies, it is time for them to look more seriously at Twitter. Lawyers should consider whether their firms or companies need to adopt Twitter, microblogging, and blogging policies. As with lawyers presently and in the past being encouraged to participate in Bar and community activities and forums, it makes sense to consider whether lawyers should be urged to "participate" in Twitter and other microblogging and social networking platforms.
As newspapers either die or go online, the volume and significance of online communication and "chatter" is increasing. Should lawyers consider it their duty to be part of communities like Twitter, so as to stay apprised of trends, to keep up on the news, to protect their own reputations, to protect the reputations of their clients, and to be part of the Web 2.0 conversation?
"Applications" on iPhones and in the iTunes store are growing in importance and popularity, and lawyers should carefully consider the implications for marketing and content distribution. In a March 4, 2009 article, The National Law Journal noted that more and more lawyers and law firms are embracing the iPhone. The article conceded that the BlackBerry is still the PDA of choice for many lawyers, but that iPhone usage among attorneys is growing. For example, according to the article, more than half of Chapman and Cutler's lawyers now use iPhones. The article states that some other law firms boasting significant iPhone usage are Howrey and Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal.
One of the iPhone's biggest advantages is its connection to Apple's App Store, which is easily accessible from the iPhone. The number of applications is growing quickly, and many of those applications are free; others are available for a nominal price.
Should lawyers and law firms have all or some of their content available through an application that can be downloaded to the iPhone? The prestigious TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) conference has made many of its talks available through a free iPhone app. Using that application, one can listen to the talks directly on one's iPhone. A lawyer or law firm could follow suit by having its own "channel" in Apple's App Store. The particular law firm's application would then be a way for the firm to distribute its speeches, seminars, and other content on an expanded basis.
I welcome your thoughts on how attorneys and law firms can leverage iPhone applications, and whether apps are a viable avenue for the legal profession.
Lawyers generally seem less "sold" on the the iPhone than the rest of the population. The iPhone has been called the most popular phone not only in the U.S., but in the world. Yet from my unscientific observation, lawyers have been relatively slow to adopt the iPhone; some would say that attorneys and iPhones are not a good match. The reluctance among lawyers to adopt the iPhone may stem from the trend among lawyers to lag behind in implementing technology that is new or on the cutting edge.
One of the common concerns among lawyers is that the iPhone will not be as effective in retrieving e-mails. The BlackBerry is a great tool for pushing out e-mails, and many lawyers rely heavily on their BlackBerry smartphones. When I was a BlackBerry user, I was concerned - as are many attorneys - that switching to any other mobile device would slow down my e-mail retrieval process.
Since switching to the iPhone, I have been pleased that my e-mail connectivity has not suffered. In fact, I have not found the iPhone to be any slower than my BlackBerry in retrieving e-mails. Thus, the number one lawyer concern about switching to the iPhone - speed of e-mail retrieval - should not be an obstacle.
What has been your experience with retrieving e-mails via the iPhone? Are lawyers and iPhones a good fit? I welcome your comments below on whether iPhones for lawyers are a good idea.
As part of your lawyer and law firm marketing, do you make room for "critical thinking time?" One of my mentors, Alex Mandossian, highly recommends that all marketers engage in "critical thinking time" on a weekly basis. Critical thinking time involves taking an hour or half hour to be alone and simply think and strategize about a certain aspect or aspects of one's business.
For example, if you would like to increase your business development for lawyers through social or new media, you could devote 30 minutes or an hour to strategizing about how you will do so. Alternatively, if you would like to join the burgeoning number of lawyers on Twitter who are successfully leveraging that microblogging service in their client development efforts, you could devote a "critical thinking time" session to that topic.
There are various ways for lawyers to engage in critical thinking time. Sitting down with a legal pad and writing down 20 or 30 ideas about how to implement one strategy or achieve one goal can be effective. For me, however, critical thinking time works best in front of my computer. My preference is to take 40 minutes or so to strategize - in a document on my computer - about a certain goal or strategy that I would like to implement in my business. The focus, direction, and inspiration that result from doing so are worth the effort.
As you begin 2009, I recommend that you consider implementing into your routine a weekly "critical thinking time" session. Choose a day for your weekly session and start slowly by devoting 30 minutes per week.
Has anyone had success with this strategy or something similar?
My belated 2009 social media/new media predictions on marketing for lawyers, law firms, and attorneys:
Business and/or law-related social networking sites such as LinkedIn, LegallyMinded, Legal OnRamp, and at least one new site will grow in importance for client development among lawyers
Law firms will gradually become less skeptical of blogs, and blogging will catch on among more and more attorneys
In light of the state of the economy and fears about a "recession," law firm marketing directors and marketing committees will increasingly turn to social media and new media
Use of video on law firm websites will still be sparse, but some lawyers will begin to appreciate and harness the power of video for purposes of SEO and effective communication
A small segment of lawyers will start posting more videos on YouTube and other video-sharing sites
Use of Twitter among lawyers will grow relatively slowly, due to the perception and reality that lawyers are very busy
Few lawyers will use "article marketing" or content marketing (through content sharing sites) in their client development efforts
Social bookmarking will not yet catch on among lawyers
Podcasting will not yet become widespread among lawyers
An increasing number of lawyers will start to view Facebook not solely as a social tool, but also as a business tool
Lawyers and the legal community are historically slow in adopting new technologies and social media strategies. However, lawyers generally seem to become ardent adopters of certain technologies (e.g., Blackberries and other mobile devices) once their clients and the business community have adopted them. During 2009, attorneys will make the social media advances described above (I think!).
What are your thoughts on the use of social media among lawyers during 2009?
One of the cornerstones of Internet marketing for attorneys and lawyers should be micro-blogging. The current leader among micro-blogging services is Twitter. If you are not yet on Twitter, I recommend that you set up an account as soon as possible.
Having a presence on Twitter is becoming more and more crucial to the marketing of legal services. Many lawyers and potential clients spend significant amounts of time posting on Twitter and reviewing the "tweets" posted by those whom they follow. In fact, lawyers - who are often a source of referrals - are constantly searching for other lawyers to follow on Twitter. Using various search features, lawyers and potential clients are looking to follow lawyers who establish themselves as thought leaders on a variety of topics on Twitter.
While the number of lawyers and potential clients on micro-blogging services other than Twitter is considerably less, those services should not be ignored. Thus, in addition to Tumblr, lawyers should not ignore such micro-blogging services as Jaiku and Plurk. While those services currently appear not to have the reach or popularity of Twitter, it is beneficial to have a presence on them. Potential clients can be found on a variety of different social media and social networking sites. In addition, sites like Jaiku and Plurk may increase in their influence over time.
At this point in time, lawyers should focus their micro-blogging resources and efforts on Twitter. However, the other micro-blogging services should also be part of the mix - preferably using a service that will allow for one post to be submitted to a variety of different platforms. I welcome your comments on whether Jaiku, Plurk, and other non-Twitter micro-blogging services should currently be used in marketing for law firms.
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