The Net Impact Roadmap

 Yes, even lawyers can be social

Just a little over ten years ago, lawyers saw websites as simply another entry point to their firms, the other entry points being their office phone and of course, their firm’s front doors. But today’s overwhelming increase in the activity on social networks by legal  professionals, has created an exponential number of entry points for law firms. According to the recently released, 2009 American Bar Association Legal Technology Survey Report, one in eight firms uses social networks. The report also stated that tools that use the Internet are significantly increasing the productivity of lawyers and decreasing their wasted time.

When used to a lawyer or law firm’s best advantage, social media has the power to serve as an effective public relations tool that has the power to increase awareness of a lawyer’s expertise, knowledge or experience in their practice area. In addition social media has the ability to create and build on relationships that will make a positive impact not only on a lawyer’s image, but also on their overall career.

Four ways legal professionals can benefit from social media
 

1.) Enables the exchange of valuable information

The consistent exchange of information is the essence of social media. An example of this would be reading or writing a blog post. Blogging is particularly useful for enhancing one’s legal knowledge. An attorney who commits to maintaining a blog, or frequently participating in conversation on social networks,  builds credibility as they  develop and refine substantive expertise in their area of practice through their online content. Discussing developments through writing and online interaction requires a very concentrated effort and is an ideal way for a lawyer to share their expertise and establish themselves as a leader in their area. In addition, most blogs allow readers to leave comments in response to posts, and many bloggers use this feature to carry on dialogue with readers.

Due to the possibility of user-generated content and ongoing communication, a single blog post can function as an excellent learning tool for a number of people. Many lawyers may reference their own blogs or the blogs of others in their field to research daily questions that may arise. Another positive benefit is if someone is looking for a lawyer in your area of expertise and sees that you are committed and are passionate enough about your career to blog regularly on the topic –  you may be placed a step above your competitors in their minds. Apart from gaining substantive insight and sharing valuable information, social media sites, such as  Twitter, can function as a great resource to find people who are talking about a very specific topic.

In the October Issue of Missouri Lawyers Weekly, I recently came across an excellent article that shared an example of how lawyers can use  Twitter as a tool to find out where a  certain conversation is taking place . According to the article by Jane Pribek, entitled “Twitter Tools for Tech-Savvy Attorneys”, Milwaukee lawyer Sean M. Sweeny, of Hailing & Cayo S.C., utilizes the popular twitter application.”You can enter search terms, and it will create categories where there are posts with only those terms. For example, I’ve been interested in the Milwaukee sick leave ordinance lately, so I entered that as a search term and some some interesting posts on the topic,”  said Sweeny. 

2.) Expands your professional network and opens up opportunities

Social media will put you in touch with others who are interested in your subject area, and getting to know these various groups online will provide you with possible collaborators, employees or employers. Through this personalized means of communication, you can connect with other attorneys, students, reporters and of course reconnect with old and new friends, and each new person you connect with has different value and potential.

According to a LinkedIn spokeswoman, there are 90,000 attorneys with LinkedIn profiles, and 212,000 people registered there as being in the law practice industry. With numbers like this, it is becoming increasingly easy for lawyers to utilize social networking tools to effectively network. For example, a partner at a firm may be looking to hire a lawyer and may come across your LinkedIn profile and present you with a job opportunity, that may not have presented itself had you not developed a strong presence on.  Also, since social networking sites are search engine friendly, don’t  be surprised if you get a phone call from a member of the press asking you to provide insight for a story or to publicize a recently won case.

3.) Social media has the power to humanize your firm
People want to hire other people, not businesses. While it is vital for your firm to have a  website to establish credibility and to provide all of the necessary information, it can be advantageous for attorneys to cultivate a uniquely individual online presence through social media. The overlap between social and professional makes lawyers more personable and more approachable. A major asset to social media is the ability to establish rapport online. Potential clients may be less intimidated to pick up the phone and call or email you if they feel like they know you. Sometimes being able to match a name with a face can increase their trust and comfort level, and put you a step above a competing firm that is a not as personable. People want to be able to speak with a specific person, and many times social networks can place a face with a name.

For example, a Facebook profile demonstrates you have a life outside the law office, and reminds clients that you are a person just like them. What’s more, your use of social media can benefit the profession by functioning as a public service. It is a simple fact that people looking for legal information go online. If you have written about or discussed some topic on which someone needs help, you have in a sense, provided a pro-bono service.

4.) And last but not least, social media can attract potential clients.
One thing we have uncovered through our experience in creating legal websites, is that social media is bringing profound change to law firm marketing. Word of mouth marketing, the leading source of work for the best lawyers, now ocurrs on the Internet. Due to social media sites. clients, potential clients and other attorneys alike can post comments on an individual lawyer or firm, and due to the unique characteristics of social networks, these comments are highly visible in search engines.

Building a positive reputation online and off, is the most effective public relations tool there is and brings in the best clients. Social media has the ability to spread your reputation far and wide to a variety of projects that may have otherwise not been aware of services.    

In conclusion, lawyers who successfully leverage social media tools to communicate, collaborate and network have a distinct advantage over those who do not. The most effective way for lawyers to use social media is to talk to people, not at them. Engage in conversation with others, don’t simply advertise your services or firm. Share information about your yourself and your personal experiences, and most Importantly, don’t be afraid to take off your  “attorney hat” and talk like you would in everyday conversation with friends, social media should be fun too! 

Legal web design and marketing,  is one of our specialties at The Net Impact. Whatever look and feel your law firm desires of its law firm’s online presence, we can help you accomplish it. We are confident that our skills in attorney marketing, social media and web design, can help your law firm’s web site reach the top. Contact The Net Impact today for a complete law firm marketing solution that is customized specifically to meet your law firm’s web site objectives.

A Website can Function as a Credible Marketing Tool for Law Firms

 The Internet is overflowing with law firm websites that all present a very similar message. For this reason, it is extremely important that your law firm has a creative, yet professionally designed website that captures the interest of visitors and holds their attention long enough to convince them that you are the firm that can meet their specific needs. Simply building a website for your law firm is not enough. The website has to be built in a fashion that is user-friendly, professionally designed, visually appealing, informative and also search engine optimized. A poor overall appearance combined with confusing navigation and outdated content will leave your potential clients clicking away to your competitors.

From an internal management perspective, too often a legal website is static, meaning even the simplest changes to the website can get bogged down in an IT to-do list or create added expense from outside technical services. An excellent solution to this problem is using a content management system to build your law firm’s website to have a professionally designed site that can be updated at anytime, from any location by the lawyers and other staff themselves. Content management systems are expediting communications on the company web  among law firm personnel.

How will using a CMS benefit my Firm?

-Content management systems are customizable software solutions. Designed specifically in accordance with the discerning needs of the corporate infrastructure, CMS is all about ease, convenience and the utmost productivity.

-It’s secure. The CMS assures that the right departments and people are authorized to review and add content.

-CMSs deliver efficiency. Partners who are out of the office or working from home can receive and respond to time sensitive information.

With a CMS, you are not only  simplifying interdepartmental productivity. In the marketing sphere, content management systems multitask as a viable marketing tool.

3 ways content management systems can function as an effective marketing tool:

Establish a firm’s credibility in a specific area of law.
A website serves as a firm’s online portfolio. It is a place to announce new laws, litigation scores and other unclassified client-case information. Having the  access to keep this information fresh and updated will send the message out to potential clients that your firm is up-to-date, well-organized and a step above a competitor.

Expose a law firm to media visibility.
Content management systems are developed to syndicate news and events to search engines, ultimately disseminating information among media outlets. Whether it’s a high profile case or a law firm’s achievements, a CMS makes it easy to publish and firm updates and legal victories.

It will be easier for potential clients to seek you out on the web.
Most people refer to the Internet to research legal services. Many web content management systems are built specifically for Search Engine Optimization purposes. This will increase that a potential client will come across your website in search of legal services.

Not all new software integrations are a nightmare. The transition to a content management system is non-intrusive. It does not impose any network outages or require daily operations. Content management systems are customized to accommodate a law firm’s unique communication requirements, making the adjustment and simple and worthwhile process. As for the learning curve, CMS training is minimal. Once the functionality and design decisions have been determined, it is easy to start inserting content and images.

In the end,  using a CMS to market your firm’s area of specialty is an economical and user-friendly marketing tool – well worth the return on investment.

A law firm’s website should attract new clients, communicate with existing ones and aid in the sharing of information among the lawyers of the firm. If an attorney website is skillfully constructed and has regularly updated content, it can prove to be an effective tool for marketing your firm and presenting your business in a professional manner. Law firms should view their website as a living, ever-changing and interactive space for their communities, as opposed to a place to simply lump articles, biographies and press releases. A content management solution may just be the simple solution your law firm needs to meet all of it’s online needs.

The Net Impact’s CMS solution of choice  for law firms is Auctori:Law founded upon the Content Management System Auctori. Unified Development, Inc. (Unidev®) designed the CMS in association with several law firms to give attorneys and legal professionals an easy to use, but powerful system to update and maintain their professionally designed website. To see two excellent examples of Auctori:law™ in action, please visit The Stolar Partnership, LLP www.stolarlaw.com and Paul J. Passanante, PC & Associates at www.passanantelaw.com.

The value and significance of the legal industry demands a certain website environment that The Net Impact has been able to perfect. The Net Impact Team fosters an understanding of your profession and the aggressive marketplace that you are competing within. Contact The Net Impact today to learn more about how we can help your law firm enhance their online prescense!

This isn’t just about the disturbing Domino’s Video

Videos from juvenile associates who can’t tell the difference between a prank on their friends vs a real world crime  are not the issue we are discussing.  This post covers the responsibilities your firm should consider for the safety and benefit of your brand and your people.  Many firms have run helter- skelter into social media with little to no forethought as to what that could  mean.  Yeah, 2.0  can be a good thing to promote the company.  Yeah, it is the USA where everyone has the right to free speech.  Yes, these are adults and you trust them to keep a business from personal separation. Right?

Seinfeld’s “Worlds Collide” theory from The Pool Guy episode  could be the unintentional consequences of having no published policy or at least a dialogue about Twitter, FaceBook, personal blogs and the like.

Let’s say Bob in sales (it’s always the sales guy right?) has a really rough appointment with a big client.  Does Bob know that after a vodka he really should resist pulling out his IPhone and updating his FaceBook about how he is at his favorite waterhole recovering from a meeting with Jane Doe of Your Best Client, Inc.?  What if Sarah from accounts receivable sees and tweets about all of the deadbeats she has to stay late to collect from?  What if Cyd the designer is so excited about a new product line that he scoops your PR team on his own personal blog?  Or, Dean’s wife keys how she is looking forward to going with him on an upcoming business trip to San Francisco, which is supposed to be a secret from your competition.

Does this happen? You bet.   I have witnessed an instance where a developer (not one of ours)  posted code online in his personal blog.  The problem,  the company had developed this code for a client.  He thought the code was “cool” and wanted to share it.  Damage done.  The firm had no 2.0 policy.

I have also seen where schools have “encouraged” their students in leadership to take unacceptable pictures and content off of their personal FaceBook and MySpace site.  Why? The name of the university was thought to be tarnished by the background of a beer sign where the group posed for pictures.

Public companies, like IBM, have a stated Social Computing Guidelines paper that encourages “responsible engagement in innovation and dialogue”.  IBM stresses honesty and integrity.  The use of an online alias or pen-name is discouraged in this policy.   “Be who you are,”  “speak in first person,” and “use a disclaimer,” separating the firm from the “IBMer” are all well thought out principles for an international public company.

Major firms like Dow Jones of course are concerned about how information is given to the public but you don’t have to be a huge company to have an errant post impact your stock, sales or brand.  True, it will be nearly impossible to control every utterance from every person in or involved with your company.  So where to start?  Begin to create a set of social marketing guidelines that assist your associates in engaging in the world, informs them of some unforeseen issues that could innocently arise  and direct them to information regarding your own code of conduct that will guide their journey through this unsettled and evolving world of citizen journalists.

Top Items for a Social Media Policy:

• Let your people  know your level of support for 2.0.  The CEO of Zappos has his own regular Twitter login with over 700,000 followers.   What do you support and what are you concerned about?
• Tell your team “why” this policy needs to exist.  Explain investor relations, legal issues and the business reasons behind your guidelines.
• Give them a go-to person for any questions.  In a non-invasive and private manner, they can get their questions answered.  It’s OK if they have made an error in judgement or make a mistake.  Just don’t hide it.
• Establish honesty and integrity up front.  If an associate has a gamer base where their Warcraft  ID is important and Jim.Gamer@yourcompany.com won’t work, then an alias might be good (even preferred).  But let the staff know that when they are  online, even at 2 AM on a Sunday, they are still a part of the firm as far as the never sleeping WWW is concerned.  Encourage them to be honest about who they are.  The separation between work and play will continue to get more blurred.  If they doubt that, show them Google Wave.
• For the item above, publish a disclaimer that can be used by your associates and either strongly encourage its use or make it a requirement for their personal sites.  Likewise, your brand, logo and IP are off limits.  The reasons are obvious.
• If you have specific rules regarding the safe use of handhelds or proper use of desktops, then make sure that these guidelines are understood.  If texting on a company Blackberry while driving a company car is forbidden, then so is tweeting.  Let everyone know you are serious about this for their own safety.
• Help everyone understand that there are better and more effective ways than a public forum to complain about lousy working conditions like dirty restrooms or no vegetarian items on the cafeteria menu.  If negative postings by associates is happening or could happen, give them a release point internally and privately.
• Have a code of ethics guideline link available for all associates to use as a sounding board for their social activities online.  You hired smart people.  Let them use their brain.
• Lastly, have a review team look at the policy periodically to see what needs to change.  All we know is that the next social phenom is on its way.

Need advice?  Talk to your friendly neighborhood SEO firm.  With a little common sense, a spirit of cooperation and some solid groundwork policies you can develop a great mutually beneficial 2.0 approach with your people, the web and whatever the next MySpace/FaceBook/Twitter coolness turns out to be.  Do you doubt there will be one?

Five Helpful Tips for Above the Fold

Artistic Sensations Quality Kids and Teen Room Decor

Every once in while it’s good to review the basics for conversion like, “What is working on my Home Page?” For this conversation, I selected a small but mighty retailer of teen and kids furniture, Artistic Sensations.  The Net Impact is currently running several Google Optimizer tests on this site including several to improve conversion.  Yes, you always want to improve conversion. Many of the elements on the current home page for Artistic Sensations are the results of previous tests.  What did we learn and how does it relate to this Home Page Pointers post?  Here are a few quick and easy take-aways:

Finally, keep testing and making changes.  All we know is that this version of your site is what the customer likes today.  As for tomorrow?

For years now The Net Impact has been working with clients on the slow and painful process of getting competitors and just plain “traffic trap” sites to stop using trademarked names and terms. In some cases webmasters have inserted competitors names and products right into the titles and descriptions of landing pages engineered to steer searchers to their site rather than the intended destination. E-mails, threatening letters and phone calls from unleashed attorneys can eventually have impact but that is all corrective action after the fact. In some cases the lost sales or even worse, the potential brand confusion that can occur during the misuse interim can be substantial.

This particular “Wild, Wild West” frontier of the web may be coming to a close. According to an April 8th post in Search Engine Watch by Frank Watson titled, Others’ Trademark Terms in Meta Tags Illegal: Georgia Court Rule, there finally may be some definitive standards being put into place. Frank does a great job of defining the issues in this particular case so there is no reason for me to repeat those. From a white hat perspective, all SEO firms have known that this practice was unethical if not defined yet as illegal. Still there were times when a site owner found their site in competition for their own brand with interlopers. This being a state court ruling of course means that we could be 49 decisions away from a standard. Trying to nail down web legalities to physical borders is at the basic level very messy as we have seen in a wide variety of issues including online sales tax, wine sales, privacy, spam and the ADA.

Also to be interpreted (or misinterpreted based upon your side of the courtroom) still are issues related to very generic trademarks. Frank Watson points to the term “Kleenex” in his blog. Eric Goldman in a July 5th post last year titled, Google Subpoenaed for Keyword Purchase Data–Rhino Sports v. Sport Court directly displays how the trademarked term as a common use term issue can become very litigation friendly and involve parties large and small. Google seems to frequently find itself embroiled at least in the headlines for this type of case. Sometimes maybe it’s not so good to be the king.

We will undoubtedly see additional rulings in this arena very shortly. In the meantime, The Net Impact aggressively searches the web through automated (such as Google alerts) and manual efforts looking out for our clients and of course our own growing brands. Like every other element affecting Internet marketing, this one will continue to require study and vigilance. The Wild, Wild West may be getting a little tamer.

Remember that time I noted that provisions of the DMCA could be used to oppress and stifle innovative activity once protected under copyright law (that time yesterday…and the day before…and last week…and probably again tomorrow)? Well here we go again! After being verily crushed as plaintiff in a trademark infringement suit, Healthcare Advocates, Inc. brought its righteous anger to bear on the law firm that had represented on of the victorious defendants. Why the wrath? Turns out that law firm Harding, Earley, Follmer & Frailey had used the Internet Archive Wayback Machine to do a little sleuthing on former versions of the Healthcare Advocates website.

See the problem?

Neither do I.

Here’s what Healthcare Advocates and its bang up legal team saw: circumvention of a technological measure designed to control access to a Copyrighted work–a violation of DMCA Section 1201(a):

“No person shall circumvent a technological measure that effectively controls access to a work protected under this title.”

The gist of the argument is that Healthcare Advocates had in place on its website a robots.txt file instructing the Wayback Machine’s web crawlers not to archive the site (read: a technological measure designed to control access to a copyrighted work). Something got hosed and some of Healthcare Advocate’s pages were archived anyway–and visible to H,E,F & F. The argument, then, was that H,E,F & F’s use of the Wayback Machine to view archived pages was a circumvention of the access control ostensibly provided by the robots.txt file.

Hmmm…

Here’s my beef:

Simply put, the robots.txt instruction is not a “technological measure that effectively controls access to a work…” First, it was apparently not effective, given that a standard web crawl bypassed the measure–but that’s beside the point. Second, adherence to robots.txt instructions is not compulsory. Lots of robots out there don’t comply with robots.txt instructions and they are under no duty to do so. This is a technical measure that requests that another party voluntarily limit its access to a work. Third, it seems there was no circumvention. The Wayback Machine webcrawler employed no nefarious methods to unlock or break the protection supposedly provided by the robots.txt instruction — it just went in, sort of like one might enter a store or office or other physical facility of a company that was open for business.

Now, I’m not arguing that website owners don’t have the right to control access to their content – present, past, and future. I’m also not attacking anyone for developing novel legal theories. My issue is with the perils created by a statute that boots a longstanding, settled understanding of the rights of various parties under copyright out the window and encourages absurd results. Such an application of the anticircumvention provision would have a chilling effect on all Internet commerce, turning every Google search into a potentially criminal activity. To draw an analogy to pre-DMCA law, this would be akin to finding criminal copyright violation to result from someone entering a public library through the out door and reading a book. I didn’t sign up for that. Did you?

Fast forward to the dismissal of Healthcare Advocate’s complaint. For those DMCA fanboys out there who will cite this one as proof that the dangerous provisions of the DMCA will be applied sensibly, I say this: how might this have turned out if the defendant hadn’t been a law firm? What if this theory were used to bring suit against a party without the knowledge or resources to point out it’s ridiculous nature? The worry isn’t so much what happens when something like this goes before a judge — it’s what happens when this type of complaint is used as a tool for bullying and intimidation.