Page 58 - Legal Leaders 2018 Master Copy - 999
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● Your competition is blogging. Attorneys from AmLaw 200 U.S. firms publish more
than 750 blogs. In-house counsel are blogging and contributing to online publications.
● Be more profitable. Online business development is efficient and productive. The
greater the proportion of work generated online at professional services firms, the
greater their profitability.
Lawyers do not blog for visibility per se. If getting seen, alone, were the goal, every
lawyer would have his or her face on billboards and in magazines. Visibility means something
more for good lawyers. What do people discover about you and your reputation when they ask
around?
Online, people are looking for your insight and commentary, how other leaders in your
field cite and share what you are saying, how reporters are quoting you, and at which
conferences you are speaking.
Your law blog delivers this form of visibility.
Blogging is more than writing content. It requires a strategy. You begin with the end in
mind.
How Do You Develop a Blog Strategy?
You need not have everything resolved in advance. On some things, you develop a feel as
you go — but here are a few considerations as you start.
● Identify your passion. If you’re not passionate about an area of the law or business, what
could you be passionate about? Blogging can be hard at times; make sure it’s an area you
enjoy and can get excited about. It may be privacy and cybersecurity law. It may be
probate litigation in Florida. We’re all different, but in blogging, a lot of the finer points
on strategy come naturally to those with passion.
● What area do you want to excel in and be known for? What type of clients do you want to
work for? Be aspirational, throw your heart over the bar, and let your body follow. If
lawyers are developing local, national, and international reputations as a result of
blogging, why not you? Want to be the go-to lawyer for immigration issues for
international professional basketball players? Blog.
● Focus on a niche. Broadly focused blogs are more challenging. People do not follow
blogs covering multiple areas of the law; they look for the “go-to” publication on a niche.
Niche blogs get cited and shared more often. Their authors are more likely to be quoted
by the media. Niches do not restrict your practice; niches open doors. “Niches lead to
riches” is a worn cliché, but some things are a cliché for a reason. Here are a few
examples of those who have done it right:
○ CommLawBlog5 is regularly read by not only in-house counsel, but also by the
FCC;
5 COMMLAWBLOG, http://www.commlawblog.com/.
44
than 750 blogs. In-house counsel are blogging and contributing to online publications.
● Be more profitable. Online business development is efficient and productive. The
greater the proportion of work generated online at professional services firms, the
greater their profitability.
Lawyers do not blog for visibility per se. If getting seen, alone, were the goal, every
lawyer would have his or her face on billboards and in magazines. Visibility means something
more for good lawyers. What do people discover about you and your reputation when they ask
around?
Online, people are looking for your insight and commentary, how other leaders in your
field cite and share what you are saying, how reporters are quoting you, and at which
conferences you are speaking.
Your law blog delivers this form of visibility.
Blogging is more than writing content. It requires a strategy. You begin with the end in
mind.
How Do You Develop a Blog Strategy?
You need not have everything resolved in advance. On some things, you develop a feel as
you go — but here are a few considerations as you start.
● Identify your passion. If you’re not passionate about an area of the law or business, what
could you be passionate about? Blogging can be hard at times; make sure it’s an area you
enjoy and can get excited about. It may be privacy and cybersecurity law. It may be
probate litigation in Florida. We’re all different, but in blogging, a lot of the finer points
on strategy come naturally to those with passion.
● What area do you want to excel in and be known for? What type of clients do you want to
work for? Be aspirational, throw your heart over the bar, and let your body follow. If
lawyers are developing local, national, and international reputations as a result of
blogging, why not you? Want to be the go-to lawyer for immigration issues for
international professional basketball players? Blog.
● Focus on a niche. Broadly focused blogs are more challenging. People do not follow
blogs covering multiple areas of the law; they look for the “go-to” publication on a niche.
Niche blogs get cited and shared more often. Their authors are more likely to be quoted
by the media. Niches do not restrict your practice; niches open doors. “Niches lead to
riches” is a worn cliché, but some things are a cliché for a reason. Here are a few
examples of those who have done it right:
○ CommLawBlog5 is regularly read by not only in-house counsel, but also by the
FCC;
5 COMMLAWBLOG, http://www.commlawblog.com/.
44
