December 28, 2008
Internet Marketing for Attorneys through Jaiku and Plurk
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.
Comments on Internet Marketing for Attorneys through Jaiku and Plurk »
Short answer is no. Busy lawyers should not spread themselves over all of the choices of social media tools. First, lawyers should consider if they should have a blog as their presence on the web. A blog is something one takes an ownership interest in and grows. Social media tools such as twitter are just that, the tools to use to grow your blog.
If twitter is where the majority of the target audience is for most lawyers, than twitter is where they should focus their social media efforts. The other "microblogging" tools are not as popular as twitter for a reason. Most are clunky and not as user friendly as twitter.
Using and trying to monitor a social media tool that is not as popular as twitter would be a waste of time. Especially for a busy lawyer.
Finally, I would also argue that twitter and blogging are not for every lawyer. To make them work, a lawyer has to put in the effort and has to be committed to using them. Just dipping one's toe in the water, so to speak, is not going to cut it. If a lawyer does not have the time to commit to using these tools effectively, than they should not be used.
Hi Bentley, I love what you are doing with social networking and the law.
I practiced law for 18 years and now I am a full time personal development coach. I am new to the whole social networking thing and it has been a huge learning curve for me. I believe it is because I went from being a very conservative bricks and mortar kind of lawyer to being more of an internet marketer. Most lawyers are very conservative about marketing and may not be clear about the rules to feel comfortable enough to do what you do.
Personally, I think it is great!
I will keep reading your blog.
Thanks
Iyabo Asani
Grant, I agree that lawyers need to be careful not to spread themselves too thin with social media and social networking tools. If a lawyer decides to use such micro-blogging services as Tumblr, Jaiku or Plurk, I recommend that they monitor those tools in Google Reader or another feed reader through an RSS feed. I also recommend that instead of individually posting on each micro-blogging service, lawyers consider using a site like http://hellotxt.com/ or http://ping.fm/, which will allow them to make one post that will go to a variety of micro-blogging services.
I also agree that lawyers should focus on their blogs and use micro-blogging services in conjunction with their primary blog or blogs. Blogging and micro-blogging do take commitment and a certain amount of time, and attorneys need to devote that time if they are going to use those tools.
Thanks for sharing your valuable insight.
Iyabo, you are correct that most lawyers are extremely conservative when it comes to marketing. When I recently chaired a panel discussion at the Utah Bar Association's Fall Forum about social media and social networking, the lawyers in attendance were so focused and fixated on ethical questions that it was difficult to squeeze in the substantive discussion about actual methods of social networking. I predict, however, that social networking and social media will catch on slowly but surely with lawyers - especially over the next two years.
I just signed up for your newsletter (via RSS, of course, since I am a "new media" type of person). I look forward to keeping up with what you are doing. Thanks.
Bentley Tolk
Grant,
You fail to realize that the technology, including social media or networking sites, is incredibly fast paced and ever changing. Twitter may be the rage now, but what about in 6, 12 or 18 mos? Although no lawyer should take on more than he or she can chew, I would not eschew certain sites that may enhance your internet presence just because another site appears to be more popular at that time. Look at Facebook. 12 mos. ago, no lawyer or business person would have bothered. But in the last 6 mos. FB has literally leaped over other "business" sites in popularity like Lindedin. I want to position myself to take advantage of other areas that may "take off" at any time. I simply would not discount the other microblogging sites just because Twitter appears to be more popular at this point in time.