Abide by the American Bar Association’s recent ethics opinion on responding to negative online reviews at your peril. One of the longstanding criticisms of the American Bar Association is that its guidance to lawyers often ignores the current business and economic realities that impact the practice of law. At times, the ABA’s guidance feels like it would be more appropriate for lawyers practicing in the 1950s. The ABA’s suggestion in a recent ethics opinion about…

Lawyers should do these seven things in 2021 to make their blog posts, bylined articles, and client alerts better than ever. Happy New Year! I am going to hazard a guess that, in keeping with tradition, you have some New Year’s resolutions on the books. Perhaps your most ambitious resolutions concern your professional development. Like many other lawyers, these resolutions probably include devoting time and resources to your business development and marketing efforts. For most…

While law firm blog posts, bylined articles, and client alerts are often used for general marketing purposes, they can be strategically deployed to boost a firm’s business development efforts. Are you and your law firm using thought-leadership marketing content like blog posts, bylined articles, and client alerts for more than just general marketing efforts? Are you using it to boost your and your firm’s business development efforts? You should. Marketing vs. Business Development Before I…

For lawyers, predictions pieces are effective tools for demonstrating thought leadership. Do these four things to ensure your next predictions piece makes a lasting favorable impression on its readers. Whenever we hit a new period of time — whether it’s a new calendar year, a new court term, a new school year, a new decade, whatever — that is an opportunity for lawyers to demonstrate their thought leadership through predictions in the form of a…

Lawyers and their law firms can boost their referral marketing efforts — and their business — by crafting thought-leadership marketing content aimed squarely at referral sources. If you are like most lawyers, you are familiar with thought leadership as a form of marketing. It is a classic marketing technique lawyers have been using for decades. It follows a simple, logical path: “If I write or speak about issues that arise within the area of law…

When lawyers collaborate with an outside writer to help them craft and publish thought-leadership marketing content, they are making a small investment for which they could realize significant ROIs. I frequently speak with lawyers and law firm marketing or business development professionals regarding their firms’ investment in their content marketing and thought-leadership marketing programs. These conversations frequently touch on those lawyers’ and law firms’ experience and interest in collaborating with an outside writer (also known…

Lawyers should consider working with a ghostwriter when they appreciate the role content plays in their marketing, have a niche or target audience, do not have the time to write marketing content, and do not enjoy writing the content enough to do it themselves. I launched the Law Firm Editorial Service after hearing from lawyers who told me that they were just too busy to write the kinds of marketing content, often known as “thought-leadership”…