April 22, 2009
- "Green" New Media Marketing for Lawyers
In honor of Earth Day 2009, here are just a few of the "green" aspects to marketing for lawyers through new media, social media, and the Internet:
Communicating with clients and potential clients through RSS, rather than through the print media and through sacrificing trees;
Communicating with clients and potential clients through Twitter and other micro-blogging services (again, rather than cutting down trees);
Conducting seminars via webcast, webinar, videocast, and telephone, thus avoiding travel via car and airplane;
Working from a home office via the Internet (again avoiding travel by car);
Communicating via podcasts, rather than physical meetings;
Communicating through video sharing sites, rather than the phonebook; and
Networking through social networking sites like LinkedIn, Legal OnRamp, Facebook, etc. (…)
December 5, 2008
- Internet Marketing for Attorneys - Speed Counts, Part 2
As addressed in my previous post, Internet marketing for attorneys and lawyers demands speed. Working with speed provides momentum, allows for testing and "failing fast," and allows one to keep up with the tidal wave of social media and new media that is affecting lawyers with dizzying rapidity. (…)
November 24, 2008
- Social Media Marketing for Attorneys an Oversight Nightmare?
Does the intersection of social media and internet marketing for attorneys and lawyers create management and oversight headaches for law firms? Last week, I moderated a panel discussion at the Utah State Bar's Fall Forum on new media, social media, social networking and e-marketing. Following the panel, an attendee who works in IT and knowledge management confided in me that services like Twitter and Facebook would create nightmares of logistical control from the standpoint of overseeing lawyers' content, controlling the expression of opinion, maintaining continuity of a company or law firm's marketing message, and maintaining control of branding. Thus, the attendee was not a proponent of having those within his company participate in social media. (…)
October 30, 2008
- 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. (…)
October 26, 2008
- 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. (…)
October 23, 2008
- Is Social Media or E-Mail a Better Marketing Tool?
Social media is still in its early stages as a marketing platform for law firms. According to a recent study performed by Ball State University and ExactTarget, as reported by Digital Response Media, e-mail is still more effective than social media in influencing purchases and buying behavior of those between the ages of 18 and 34. In addition, although teenagers are the heaviest users among all age groups using social networking, teenagers are more influenced by email marketing and direct mail than any other group. (…)
October 11, 2008
- New Media Marketing for Attorneys through Blogging
In my previous post about new media marketing for attorneys, I mentioned that the first pillar of such marketing is blogging/mini-blogging. This post will focus on the importance and efficacy of blogging as part of a new media marketing for attorneys strategy. (…)
October 9, 2008
- New Media Marketing for Attorneys
In the marketing for attorneys context, what is the meaning of the term "new media?" Although a hundred marketers might provide a hundred different definitions, new media marketing for attorneys would certainly include the concepts of subscription, interaction and feedback, dialogue, time-shifting, content in small chunks, and the lack of of a "middle person" in terms of producing and distributing content. As my friend and mentor, Paul Colligan, might say, the lawyer or the law firm becomes "the media."
There are many potential vehicles and aspects to a new media marketing for attorneys strategy, including social networking sites, social bookmarking sites, content sharing sites, online articles, etc. Each new media outlet has its pluses and minuses and could be considered by a lawyer or law firm. Depending upon the marketplace that a lawyer is trying to reach, one new media outlet may have greater or lesser value. (…)
