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Internet Marketing for Attorneys Begins with Tracking
In Internet marketing for attorneys and lawyers, tracking and testing are key. If you are not tracking and testing your results online, you are not taking full advantage of the power of the Internet. The same is true for social marketing and social networking for attorneys: tracking your efforts is the only way to know if they are having any effect. (…)

Is Blogging a Dangerous Form of Marketing for Attorneys?
While an October 28, 2008 post in the Am Law Daily warns that blogging can have dangerous implications for job searches, there is an implication that it could also be dangerous as a form of marketing for attorneys. The post recounts the example of a spouse of a law student who listed in a blog the cities in which the couple was interested in living. The law student had interviewed at the law firm of Bryan Cave, but the spouse's blog failed to include the city where Bryan Cave is located as one of the cities in which the couple was interested. (…)

Is Social Media Incompatible with Billable Hours?
While social media and social networking seem like promising marketing vehicles for the general public, their utility for attorneys in a system of billable hours could seemingly be less obvious. After all, many attorneys live their lives in six-minute increments and constantly have to watch the clock in order to provide value to their clients. Lawyers are uncommonly busy, and within the billable hour system, they often have relatively uninterrupted focus and a "steel trap" mind in churning out legal work. (…)

Vanderbilt and Marketing for Attorneys, Part III
In the third and final installment of the series, this post examines the example of Vanderbilt University's recruiting efforts as they relate to marketing for attorneys. While attracting new work and new clients is a key element of marketing for attorneys, another important element is attracting talented lawyers to a law firm. The Vanderbilt View article that I reference in my two previous posts notes that the younger generation is especially receptive to new media and comfortable with using it. Thus, the Vanderbilt admissions department is using new media to attract candidates who will be a good fit with the school. For example, admissions officials sometimes respond to questions on the College Confidential website. (…)

Marketing for Attorneys and LinkedIn
Social networking is playing a larger and larger role in the world of marketing for attorneys. A September 22, 2008 article in the Wisconsin Law Journal explores how attorneys in Wisconsin are using LinkedIn in their marketing and client development efforts. The article profiles the Milwaukee law firm of Davis & Kuelthau s.c., where approximately 70% of the lawyers have joined LinkedIn. One of the partners at that firm asked two clients to connect with him on LinkedIn, with the result that they did so and sent him two new matters. (…)

Marketing for Attorneys and the Death of Destination Websites
The marketing for attorneys world should take note of a September 30, 2008 TechCrunch article about whether opening up their portals will save and assist Yahoo and AOL. According to the article, AOL and Yahoo changed their home pages in September 2008 to include additional links to such outside services as social networks. For example, AOL's home page now has integration with MySpace and Facebook, as well as links to Hotmail, Gmail and Yahoo Mail. The article notes that Yahoo is positioning itself to become the leading starting point on the Internet. (…)

Marketing for Attorneys, Facebook, and Spies
In a September 28, 2008 article of interest in the marketing for attorneys world, Yahoo! (…)

Facebook Pages as Marketing for Attorneys?
Facebook has become dominant in the area of social networking, but does it have a role in marketing for attorneys? While Facebook profiles are generally limited (in theory) to individuals, Facebook "pages" are intended for businesses and can be used by law firms. In fact, some law firms have already set up pages on Facebook. One such law firm is New York City-based Curtis, Mallet-Prevost, Colt & Mosle. As of today when I looked, Curtis Mallet had 90 "fans" on its Facebook page. Curtis Mallet's Facebook page appears to focus on recruiting of attorneys, showing the summer associate class, interview schedules at law schools, information on diversity, awards and rankings, and assessments from former summer associates. (…)

Facebook for Lawyers
On May 13, 2008, I interviewed Mari Smith in a Utah Bar-sponsored teleseminar about how lawyers can use Facebook as a client development tool; Mari is one of the leading experts on the use of Facebook for marketing and business purposes. If you're not already a Facebook user, I recommend that you add Facebook (www.facebook.com/profile.php) to your legal marketing mix. In the world of social networking and web 2.0, becoming an active Facebook user is becoming more and more important.