Legal Networking Archives - Page 13 of 37

Making These 3 Errors in WordPress Makes Your Law Firm’s Blog Less Effective

Here are three common WordPress mistakes that will make your legal website less effective than it should be:

Posting content that is not unique, engaging or well designed. Unstructured information, filler materials and overly general articles do not motivate a user to interact with the site. Your goal should be to create content that users want to share or bookmark or research further by following your in-text links.
Getting caught up in finding the perfect WP template and design. Many inexperienced website authors expend all their energy before even considering content development. A lot of sites use generic content that reads like it was added as an afterthought. It is hard to schedule time to generate good content but when most people say, “Oh, I’ll come back to improve that later,” they never do.
Failing to design each page for its intended purpose. Out-of-the-box WordPress themes use similar forms and sidebars on every page. It is important for the design (as well as the content) to serve the page’s purpose.

Article By:

Of:

The Power of Professional Presence

Transitioning from school – – college, law school, grad school, etc. can be a shocking and confusing time for a young professional.

Until now, you may have gotten up, thrown on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt and been good to go. Transitioning into the professional world and the manner in which you present yourself every day can either strengthen your reputation or detract from it. And, in some extreme cases, ruin it.

Understanding that it may seem frivolous to be so picky on how you dress and how you present yourself, let me assure you, it is not. It matters, every day. The manner in which you “show up” speaks volumes not only about how you feel about yourself, but the respect with which you regard those around you and your position.

If you have not heard this before, and I hope you have, below is a list of “best practices” to use as a reminder for those items to be attentive to any day you may interact in a professional setting:

For Women:

DO

Make up. Apply at least a little foundation as it provides a smooth finish on your skin. Just a smidge of blush, a whisper of lip gloss (not the super shiny kind that blinds us), a bit of mascara and brow pencil to frame your face, and you’re good. I understand some women have no interest, patience, or time for make-up but it matters in the overall professional presence. Not to go overboard on too much color in the office, but rather to enhance your natural beauty.

Be mindful of:

Skirt and dress length. To the knee is appropriate in a workplace so as not to create any awkward situations should you bend or stoop down.
Blouse and top necklines. Though you may be proud of your well-endowed chest, the office is not the place to show it off. Believe me, the fellas won’t mind but “the” fella who is in charge of your professional progression, will notice that you appear a little “loose”…not in a good way.
Shoes– yep, women love shoes, but the stilettos and ankle breakers are not for the office. Leave them for the Saturday night clubs. Invest in a couple of pair of boring pumps (black, navy and neutral) and you’ll be good.
Hair – it is not an accessory. Fix it and let it be. It is distracting to see women lawyers constantly with their hands in their hair, tossing it, curling it, flipping it around. If you are nervous, then doodle. Messing with your hair in the office around others does not speak well of you. Don’t do it.

Putting one’s best foot forward (literally and figuratively) will get you noticed and heard quicker and more positively than showing up on shaky group in connection with your professional image.

I’ve addressed some helpful hints for guys below to take note of for a stronger professional presence.

For Guys

Shave before coming to work. Maybe that rugged look is in for young guys, but the workplace is not Abercrombie & Fitch, and you need to be well shaven.
Be well groomed – no long fingernails, no super gel hair, etc. It matters and others in roles of authority are noticing how you present yourself in the office.
Tuck shirt neatly into pants. The “shirt-tail out” look may be appropriate for many occasions, but definitely not in a professional environment.

Be mindful of:

Socks. Match socks to your pants (not to your belt or tie) to provide a continuous monochromatic presentation from your pants to your shoes.
Shoes. Keep shoes in good shape. No mis-matched laces on the tie ups, or wearingany type of shoe which may resemble a sneaker, golf shoe, running shoe, etc. Invest in a sturdy pair of lace ups and a pair of “cordovan” (burgundy) loafers, and you’ll be well covered with most suits.
Suits. Be measured for your suits, even if you have only one. Wearing an ill-fitted suit negates the professional image you are trying to portray.
White Undershirts. There is a reason they are called “under” shirts mainly to keep guys warm in the winter months…with one exception. If you wear a white dress shirt, depending upon the fabric weight, it may be advisable to wear a white undershirt under the white dress shirt. Provides a more professional image than being able to see chest hair under the dress shirt or, worse, poking out of the shirt…eeew.

Along the professional journey, there will be plenty of times that “best practices” may elude you of feeling secure in your professional image. Easy to understand as there are rarely any “classes” in how to most effectively present your professional self. One way to allay some of the uncertainties is to look around and observe others more senior to you whom you respect and regard highly. How do they show up? Do they appear polished and refined?

Another option to “find” your professional style/image is by engaging the services of a professional stylist/consultant. Many of the higher end department stores (like Neiman Marcus and Lord & Taylor) offer these services. We also maintain a resources list of highly specialized experts who can also put you on the right path.

Regardless, remember, we have one shot at making the best first impression which may materially impact your professional success. Harness the power of professional image now to get and keep you on the right track.

Article By:

Kimberly Alford Rice

Of:

KLA Marketing Associates

The Importance of the First Impression For Attorneys

It is often said that a first impression can be a last impression. For attorneys, especially Personal Injury Attorneys who have to fiercely fight for business in such a highly competitive market, making a great first impression is essential!

Studies have shown that it takes approximately 3 seconds for a person to evaluate you based on appearance, body language, demeanor and mannerisms. This first impression sets the tone for the relationship to follow. Just as you are judging whether they are a good fit for you as your client, they too are judging whether you are the type of attorney they see fit to represent them in their case.

Although many first impressions can be misconceptions, they are almost entirely irreversible. As you know, trying to grow your firm and acquire good clients with strong, lucrative cases, can be very difficult. Putting in the extra effort to make the best impression possible, can give you that edge many of your competitors don’t have!

As obvious as it seems, not only should you present yourself physically professional with appropriate clothing, grooming and hygiene, but you must also present yourself conversationally with excellent manners. As simple as this is, these small things are what “makes-it or breaks-it” when signing a new client. If you appear to be too casual, you may give the impression that you will approach their case with the same casual attitude and not with the urgency and concern they feel is needed.

We are all guilty at times for forgetting to put our best foot forward. Sometimes we are having a bad day or have other things on our minds and it can come across negative. In order to cultivate a good relationship and maintain a high standard of service, here are some tips we can all use for making a great first impression and leaving behind our other daily stresses:

Show interest in their case immediately
Be confident
Demonstrate knowledge and competence
Be positive
Have a smile on your face and in your voice
Be courteous and attentive to their needs
Be reliable

You are being judged from the moment a potential client reaches out to you. Bringing in new cases is what keeps your firm in business and you cannot bring in new cases without clients. Your first impression is the key to your success.

Article By:

Anush Alexander

Of:

RW Lynch Company, Inc.

The Right Way To Get Free Publicity

There’s a saying that goes “any publicity is good publicity,” and while I’m not so sure about that, I do know that positive publicity can do wonders for your law firm. But do you know what’s even better than positive publicity? FREE positive publicity. That’s right, you can get great publicity that won’t cost you a single penny and I’m going to tell you how:

Contact your local TV news station. Email, fax, or call your local news station and introduce yourself. Tell them who you are and what you do, and don’t forget to mention what you specialize in. Tell them that you are available if they ever need an expert to speak on a legal topic, especially in your niche. Do this once a month until they contact you to be interviewed. If you do a good job, they’ll keep coming back to you and your face will continue to be broadcast on local television for free.
Notify different mediums of the media. Once you’ve been interviewed on TV, let your local radio stations and newspapers know. They will see you as a leading expert in your field and they will follow you and want to ask you to interview with them. This way, you can recycle interviews and information without being redundant.
Clip and recycle. Once you have been interviewed on TV a few times, you’ll want to compile all of your interviews into one video that you can share online and use on you website to show potential clients that you are the leading expert in your field. With an easy editing software, you can clip the highlights of all your interviews and recycle them into one powerful, credibility-building video.
Testimonials. If you host an event or seminar, bring a cameraman along with you. After the event, have your cameraman politely ask attendees if he can interview them about their experience. If you’re a great lawyer, then I’ll bet you can host a great event, so you know that everyone who agrees to do an interview will do nothing but rave about you and the knowledge you possess. Take these testimonials and upload them to YouTube, your website, and social media so everyone can see how awesome you are.
Be educational. The best way to show that you are a credible expert in your field is to prove it rather than just advertise it. In order to prove this, you need to be the source of information for all questions and topics in your field of law. So, you should blog, write articles, make videos, and even publish books on your wealth of information that you have about your practice area(s). When you hand someone a book that you authored instead of a flimsy advertisement with your face on it, you are creating great publicity and credibility for yourself and your firm.

Article By:

Ben Glass

Of:

Great Legal Marketing, Inc.

To Satisfy New Search Algorithms, Legal Websites Need Quality Content

The success of a law-firm website is determined by how many clients and potential clients visit the site, spend time there and take action based on what they discover.

Over the years, law-firm marketers focused on keyword and link strategies to enhance search engine results and increase traffic to their websites. While these are still valuable tools, recent developments in the search universe have shifted the emphasis to content strategy.

Quality content includes well-written articles, blog posts, videos, webcasts, presentation slide decks, infographics, eBooks and white papers. Quality content addresses client needs.

Sixty-seven percent of the time, online searchers use Google to find what they are looking for. To provide the best results, Google is constantly tweaking its search algorithm. (An algorithm is a process or set of rules to be used by a computer in calculations or other problem-solving operations.) These algorithms are designed to maintain search engine integrity and punish violators.

Sara Downey Robinson and Chris Davis discussed the changing landscape of digital marketing and search engine optimization at the monthly meeting of the Rocky Mountain Chapter of the Legal Marketing Association, held May 13 at Guard and Grace in LoDo Denver.

Davis is business development director at Burns Marketing, a full-service B2B marketing agency that combines traditional and digital marketing to help clients drive demand. Robinson is marketing coordinator at Inflow, a top inbound-marketing firm specializing in search.

Panda, Penguin and Hummingbird

Panda and Penguin are two major changes to the existing Google algorithm made in 2011 and 2012, respectively. In 2013, Google released a totally new algorithm called Hummingbird (which incorporates and enhances the updates made by Panda and Penguin). These three developments have completely changed the way law firms must look at search.

“Law-firm sites that regularly showed up on page one now find themselves on page 20,” said Robinson. “Since searchers rarely go beyond the second page of results in an online search, this is a real problem.”

Google Panda focuses on keywords. Sites with keyword “stuffing” are demoted or flagged as spam. Panda also penalizes low-quality content, thin content, duplicate content and the amount of advertising compared with the amount of useful content on a site.

Google Penguin focuses on links. It focuses on “black hat” tactics like links that come from poor-quality sites, from sites that aren’t topically relevant to a target market, paid links, and links where the anchor text is overly optimized (exact-match anchor text). Use natural language in your links, and vary it.

“Quality inbound links are not found at garage sales, “said Robinson. “Steer clear of link farms. A few high-quality, carefully developed links perform much better than a large number of weak, irrelevant links. It takes time and perhaps a dedicated staff person to develop and nurture quality links.”

The new Google Hummingbird algorithm looks for a steady stream of high-quality, relevant content and natural language on webpages – and rewards those who provide it. Hummingbird attempts to decipher a search engine query by using the context of a question rather than the specific keywords within the question. Thin content, keyword stuffing and lack of relevant content will cause significant demotions.

“Content marketing is a technique that creates and distributes valuable, relevant and consistent content to attract and acquire a clearly defined audience,” said Davis, “with the objective of driving profitable customer action.”

Identify client personas and clarify their needs

Before a law firm can create relevant content, it needs to know with whom it is communicating. In marketing talk, this is called the “user persona” – or target market.

“In user-centered design and marketing, personas are user types that might use a legal service in a similar way,” said Davis. “A small law firm might target one user persona. A large law firm will target numerous user personas.”

One law-firm user persona might be high-income individuals going through divorce. Another might be small businesses in need of venture capital. Another might be large medical equipment manufacturers facing product liability lawsuits. The more specific the persona, the more specific a law firm’s content can be. Relevant content will answer the questions these users are asking, using natural language.

A user personal is a representation of the goals and behavior of a hypothesized group of users. In most cases, personas are synthesized from data collected from user interviews.

“An effective law firm website will focus not on the firm’s capabilities, but on the identified needs of a persona or personas,” said Davis. “It will use industry- or interest-specific terminology within a context familiar to the targeted persona.”

Create relevant content

Law firms that want to prevent or correct loss of search engine result page rankings and traffic should publish meaningful, original content on a regular basis. The goal is content that will establish a firm, practice group or lawyer as a though leader in an area relevant to a user persona.

“Take the time to discover the common questions your clients have, and provide the answers to these questions,” said Davis. “Relevant content can be written, but it also can and should be visual. Video content posted on YouTube (which is owned by Google) is particularly powerful as ‘Google juice.’”

Instead of using keywords like “car accident,” use more specific terms like “car accident lawsuit” or “car accident insurance”, or better yet natural language terms like “What should I do if I am sued for a DUI car accident?” or “What should I look for when buying car insurance for an older vehicle?” Think in terms of full-fledged questions that a person might ask Siri on a smartphone.

Once search brings users to a law firm’s site, there must be a way to create and nurture a relationship and convert the potential client into a real client over time. Each item of posted content should contain a call to action – some way for the user to interact with the site so that the firm can capture data. This could be a way to comment on a white paper or download information about an upcoming event.

Use analytics to measure success

“Take advantage of Google Analytics to collect data that can be used to improve the quality of your webpages – adding more of what works and eliminating what does not,” said Robinson. “In Google Analytics, which is currently free, law firms can set up specific goals to study how users are entering and interacting with your website.”

Google Analytics lets a law firm know which content is most-viewed and acted upon, so that similar content can be added. It lets the firm know which content is ignored, so that it can be eliminated or improves. It lets a firm know the exact path users take through its site, so that adjustments can be made to create a better user experience.

If observation and analytics show that a law firm website is not getting the results it wants, an audit can help determine the source of the problem, take steps to fix the problem, measure the results of these steps, and look for any others areas that could be improved.

“Increasing inbound traffic to your website is not magic – it is a combination of art and science,” said Robinson. “You should select any agency that makes you feel comfortable and uses language that is easy to understand. You should never feel intimidated.

“At the same time, do not expect miracles,” said Robinson. “Go into the process with reasonable expectations. It takes time to make changes, add quality content and wait for the search engines to find and reward this content. Each day, more than one million pieces of new content are posted to the Internet. It takes time to rise above the fray.”

A law firm that has experienced worsening search engine results in the wake of Panda, Penguin and Hummingbird can take positive steps to restore performance. Google will continue to reward webpages with strong content marketing efforts, including answer-driven content. It also rewards sites that generate social media buzz – especially an active presence on its proprietary YouTube and Google+ platforms.

Article By:

Janet Ellen Raasch

Of:

Strategic Writing And Ghostwriting

One week until the LMA P3 Conference, June 12-13 in Chicago

The National Law Review is pleased to bring you information about the LMA P3 Conference to be held in Chicago June 12-13, 2014.

When

Thursday – Friday, June 12-13, 2014

Where

Hyatt Chicago Magnificent Mile
633 N. Saint Clair St.
Chicago, IL 60611

Dig deeper into project management, pricing and process improvement.

The 2013 LMA P3 Conference set the bar high with fantastic breakout sessions, partner presentations and networking opportunities, but this year’s conference looks even more promising.

Join us for P3 – The Practice Innovation Conference, where pricing, project management, and practice innovation experts will discuss the use of various tactics to explore solutions to real issues face by law firms today.

This execution-focused conference will have attendees roll up their sleeves and collectively work out solutions. Click here to view the full conference schedule.

There is still time to register! Register now!

The National Law Review is Going Back to the Future. New website coming up soon!

The National Law Review is honoring its roots as one of the country’s first nation-wide legal journals by returning to a more journalistic style. At the same time, we’re adding enhanced features to help our readers more quickly find the nation’s breaking legal news and analysis.

Look for changes over the next few weeks.

Launch date soon!

2 more weeks until LMA P3 – Practice Innovation Conference, June 12-13, Chicago, IL

The National Law Review is pleased to bring you information about the LMA P3 Conference to be held in Chicago June 12-13, 2014.

When

Thursday – Friday, June 12-13, 2014

Where

Hyatt Chicago Magnificent Mile
633 N. Saint Clair St.
Chicago, IL 60611

Dig deeper into project management, pricing and process improvement.

The 2013 LMA P3 Conference set the bar high with fantastic breakout sessions, partner presentations and networking opportunities, but this year’s conference looks even more promising.

This execution-focused conference will have attendees roll up their sleeves and collectively work out solutions. Click here to view the full conference schedule.

There is still time to register! Register now!

2nd Conflict Minerals Reporting and Supply Chain Transparency Conference- June 23-25, Chicago, IL

The National Law Review is pleased to bring you information about the 2nd Conflict Minerals Reporting and Supply Chain Transparency Conference, June 24-25, 2014, presented by Marcus Evans.

Click here to register.

Where

Chicago, IL

When

June 24-25, 2014

What

The 2nd Sustaining Conflict Minerals Compliance Conference will break down each SEC filing requirement as well as examine direct filing examples from specific companies. Discussions will tackle key issues including refining conflict minerals teams to create a more successful conflict minerals management program, managing and developing consistent communication within the supply chain, and building an IT program that will continue to secure data from the various levels of the supply chain.

This conference will allow organizations to benchmark their conflict minerals management program against their peers to more efficiently meet SEC expectations and amend their program for future filings. Seating is limited to maintain and intimate educational environment that will cultivate the knowledge and experience of all participants.

Key Topics

Scrutinize the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requirements and evaluate external resources for a more efficient conflict minerals rule with Newport News Shipbuilding, Huntington Ingalls Industries
Engineer a sustainable conflict minerals program for future filings with Alcatel-Lucent
Integrate filings and best practices from the first year of reporting with BlackBerry
Maintain a strong rapport with all tiers of your supply chain to increase transparency with KEMET
Obtain complete responses moving throughout the supply chain with Global Advanced Metals

May 28th – NAWL Pipeline to Equity Partnership Program, Chicago

The National Association of Women Lawyers (NAWL) and Chicago’s Coalition of Women’s Initiatives in Law are joining forces to help usher the next generation of women law firm leaders into place with a program entitled Pipeline to Equity Partnership (P2P). The program will be held at Loyola University Law School from 11:30 AM to 5:00 PM, followed by a networking reception. P2P is aimed at women on the brink of equity partnership, in either a one-tier or two-tier law firm system. This is the third presentation of NAWL’s P2P program nationwide, and its first time in Chicago.

The P2P program is an attempt to move the dial on the numbers of women in law firm leadership by offering a forum to identify and discuss challenges women face as they reach for the top.

The P2P program will begin with a luncheon presentation from Andrea (“Andie”) Kramer, a partner at McDermott Will & Emery. Andie Kramer is well known as a longtime motivating force in the effort to both advance more women to leadership roles and equity partnership in law firms and to ensure that women are fairly compensated along the way. She is a founding member of McDermott’s Diversity Committee, and chair of the Gender Diversity Sub-committee. Andie previously served on both the Firm’s Management and Compensation Committees.

The P2P program will continue with facilitated roundtable group discussion of multiple issue-based scenarios that women face in their journey towards equity partnership. Discussion will focus on real world experiences such as the departure of a young partner’s sponsor, the loss of previous opportunities for business pitches, handling ethical issues that used to be handled by superiors, the reluctance of a new partner’s colleague to address a client conflict, flexibility and perception of work ethic, or perhaps the overloading of a new partner with uncredited firm administration.

The scenarios will be familiar to attendees and presenters, and will offer an opportunity for both a unique, peer-to-peer discussion and the counsel and perspective of a resource panel of distinguished women law firm leaders, who will offer their counsel and advice. The panel consisting of law firm leaders, managing partners, and general counsel includes Susie L. Lees, Executive Vice President, General Counsel & Secretary of Allstate Insurance Company, Jennifer A. Kennedy, Managing Partner of Chicago office, Locke Lord LLP, Amy B. Manning, Managing Partner of Chicago office, McGuireWoods LLP, and Angelea Ulum, Co-Chair, Partnership Promotion Committee, Mayer Brown LLP. The panel will be moderated by Margo O’Donnell, President of the Coalition of Women’s Initiatives in Law and Shareholder at Vedder Price, and Maureen M. Reid, President of Maureen M. Reid, LLC and a co-founder of the P2P program.The resource panel will offer advice for handling the scenarios discussed in the roundtables and will answer attendees’ questions about navigating the way to equity partnership.

Program participants will leave the program with a much better sense of what roadblocks may exist on the path to equity partnership and how to overcome them. Those interested in registering for the P2P Program can get all of the information and register at http://www.nawl.org/p/cm/ld/&fid=168.

Category: Legal Networking