Page 62 - 2019 - Leaders in Legal Business (q)
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As you move ahead, here are tips to make your blogging experience more worthwhile:
1.) Listen to What’s Happening in the World Around You
Blogging involves authentic audience engagement that requires you to listen (read) first
and then talk (write) later.
For most bloggers, advanced listening tools are integral. You can set up listening tools to
follow influential bloggers, reporters, and news publications. In addition to these sources, follow
subjects relevant to your niche. The listening tools of choice for lawyers are Feedly, a popular
news aggregator, and Twitter.
Reference and share what you have read while providing your own insight and
commentary. More important than simply covering legal updates, joining the “conversation” and
demonstrating that you are tracking developments grows influence and a following.
2.) Write to the Medium
This is a blog, not a legal alert, corporate whitepaper, or newsletter. The best law bloggers
write conversationally and with personality.
Write on general news and apply it to your niche. For example, if a hurricane is hitting the
Gulf Coast, write about how HR professionals should treat those missed workdays. With the Apple
iWatch and other wearable tech, how does that stand to impact privacy issues? Unlike writing on
the latest legislation, litigation, and regulation, the opportunities are limitless.
Proper formatting is important. Avoid long block paragraphs. People scan on the web, so
use short paragraphs — one to three sentences long — and bullets as appropriate. Use block quotes
to make sources stand out. Use subheads to break up sections. Don’t worry about an exact word
count, but a post as brief as 300 to 500 words may be appropriate.
Use images for every post. It’s low-hanging fruit that many lawyers miss, but images show
personality and subtly add a great deal of visual appeal. Posts without images are less attractive on
social media such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Such posts are also less likely to be shared
on social media.
Keep titles short (65 characters) but descriptive. Your titles determine how your posts get
indexed on Google and how they are displayed in news aggregators. Do not pack your titles with
keywords; just make sure they describe what you’ve written. Short, professional, and enticing titles
get shared on social media.
3.) Be Proactive
Too many lawyers get tunnel vision when it comes to blogging, only reacting to the latest
legal tidbits. Merely reporting on litigation, legislation, regulations, and narrow news stories in a
reactive fashion won't cut it; you need to add value. Readers want to know what’s inside your head.
What’s your take? What’s it mean for them? What’s coming next?
Depending on your niche and firm, being an advocate can work well. Immigration, food
safety, employment, privacy, cruise, medical malpractice, IP litigation, and divorce lawyers have
developed large followings because they take stands on issues that matter to their clients. They
champion the cause of the people they want to represent. Lawyers who take a stand will be
surprised at their ability to instill change.
47
1.) Listen to What’s Happening in the World Around You
Blogging involves authentic audience engagement that requires you to listen (read) first
and then talk (write) later.
For most bloggers, advanced listening tools are integral. You can set up listening tools to
follow influential bloggers, reporters, and news publications. In addition to these sources, follow
subjects relevant to your niche. The listening tools of choice for lawyers are Feedly, a popular
news aggregator, and Twitter.
Reference and share what you have read while providing your own insight and
commentary. More important than simply covering legal updates, joining the “conversation” and
demonstrating that you are tracking developments grows influence and a following.
2.) Write to the Medium
This is a blog, not a legal alert, corporate whitepaper, or newsletter. The best law bloggers
write conversationally and with personality.
Write on general news and apply it to your niche. For example, if a hurricane is hitting the
Gulf Coast, write about how HR professionals should treat those missed workdays. With the Apple
iWatch and other wearable tech, how does that stand to impact privacy issues? Unlike writing on
the latest legislation, litigation, and regulation, the opportunities are limitless.
Proper formatting is important. Avoid long block paragraphs. People scan on the web, so
use short paragraphs — one to three sentences long — and bullets as appropriate. Use block quotes
to make sources stand out. Use subheads to break up sections. Don’t worry about an exact word
count, but a post as brief as 300 to 500 words may be appropriate.
Use images for every post. It’s low-hanging fruit that many lawyers miss, but images show
personality and subtly add a great deal of visual appeal. Posts without images are less attractive on
social media such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Such posts are also less likely to be shared
on social media.
Keep titles short (65 characters) but descriptive. Your titles determine how your posts get
indexed on Google and how they are displayed in news aggregators. Do not pack your titles with
keywords; just make sure they describe what you’ve written. Short, professional, and enticing titles
get shared on social media.
3.) Be Proactive
Too many lawyers get tunnel vision when it comes to blogging, only reacting to the latest
legal tidbits. Merely reporting on litigation, legislation, regulations, and narrow news stories in a
reactive fashion won't cut it; you need to add value. Readers want to know what’s inside your head.
What’s your take? What’s it mean for them? What’s coming next?
Depending on your niche and firm, being an advocate can work well. Immigration, food
safety, employment, privacy, cruise, medical malpractice, IP litigation, and divorce lawyers have
developed large followings because they take stands on issues that matter to their clients. They
champion the cause of the people they want to represent. Lawyers who take a stand will be
surprised at their ability to instill change.
47
