Blog / Taking the plunge: How to launch a successful law practice blog

The face of law firm marketing has changed in the past several years. No longer do practices sink the majority of their marketing budgets into traditional advertising such as business publications or expensive high-end brochures. Content marketing-- specifically, blogging-- has taken the legal field by storm.

Law firms worldwide have embraced the blog, as evidenced by the increase in attorney-authored blogs, and it's not only small to mid-size firms doing the posting. According to the 2015 Am Law 200 Blog Benchmark Report-- a report on large law firm blogs published by the blog company LexBlog-- among the Am Law 200 law firms, 163, or 82%, now have blogs. And it is not just one blog. All but 27 of these firms have multiple blogs and one firm, Fox Rothschild, has 39.

Blogs allow lawyers to push out content on their specific areas of specialty, focus their thought leadership towards their target audience, comment on relevant judgments and share pertinent news and analysis - creating rich digital publishing repositories of excellence for their firm's legal niche areas.

To understand why blogs are such powerful marketing tools for attorney, let's examine how clients actually seek out a new law firm in specific niche areas. Say you're the owner of a mid-size business that you wish to sell and you've already exhausted your network asking for referrals of M&A law firms. So you navigate to Google, and search for firm that specialises in "lawyer, mergers and acquisitions, California."

Chances are that the San Diego firm that blogs on this topic consistently and is quoted and shared by readers will appear on page one of the search results. More importantly, by focusing on its area of expertise, that firm has built up a portfolio of blog posts that demonstrates that it is a credible experts in that specialty.

Here is some advice if you want to launch a blog for your law practice:

• Focus on your primary areas of expertise to build a loyal following of prospects, clients and peers.

• Blog regularly-- ideally publishing a new post each week. Creating an editorial calendar with a list of topics in advance will enable you to present topics in logical sequence and to keep on a schedule.

• Present high-quality, well-thought-out content that represents your unique point of view. Readers will return if they find helpful information and insights, which is what builds readership, fosters new client relationships increases your search engine rankings.

• Engage your readers. Use graphics and charts to illustrate and reinforce your message. Ask questions of your readers to encourage blog comments, or take a poll on a current business trend. Converting passive readers into active discussion participants will draw them in and keep them returning for more.

• Use web metrics such as Google Analytics, a free tool that reports on web page traffic. Track which blog posts were most read and which attracted the most discussion so you understand which topics are most compelling among your audience. In addition, metrics will also make clear the low performing subjects and inform your overall content strategy.

• Optimise your posts by using keyword-rich content that your target audience will most likely use to search for legal information in your practice area as well as geographical location. This will improve your blog's search engine (SEO) rankings.

• Always include a biography of the blogger and blurb about your firm to build awareness and reinforce thought leadership.

• Never give legal advice in your blog or give the impression in any way that an attorney-client relationship has been forms. Be sure to research the ethics and responsibility guidelines for your bar association.

• Market your blog by including links to each new post on your LinkedIn company profile and on social media. Also include a link to your blog home page in your company boilerplate and marketing materials.

• Stick with it. Consistency will help to build your dedicated following over time.