As I was doing some reading on content marketing, I came across this post from almost a year ago, which is, ironically, about staying current with your content marketing to avoid becoming a dinosaur.

And while it’s true that it’s important to stay on top of the trends and "hot" ideas in content to make sure that what you’re producing is being consumed and shared, there are some excellent tips in there that lawyers, firms and law firm professionals will find of use in their own content marketing strategies, and are actually still fairly current. 

Today, let’s look at two of them. 

Tip One: Make your Content Mobile-Friendly

It was true in June of 2014, and it’s even more true now – people are accessing content from their mobile devices. Some statistics for you: 

• Just over half of all searches on Google are performed on mobile devices. (USA Today)
• 60% of global mobile consumers use their mobile device as their primary or exclusive internet source (Internet Retailer) 
• Local mobile searches (85.9 billion) are expected to exceed desktop searches (84 billion) for the first time in 2015. (eMarketer)
• Global smartphone use will reach 2 billion by 2015. (Bloomberg)www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2015/04/20/mobilegeddon-could-impact-your-business/26090627/

Importantly, you may have recently heard about Google’s Panda update, which led to what many people called "Mobilegeddon" – the short, non-tech version of the story is that this update makes Google more favorable to websites that are mobile-friendly. And while it didn’t merit the wailing and gnashing of teeth that preceded the April 21st launch, it does have an impact on sites that are not mobile-friendly.

So what does this all have to do with content marketing? 

A lot actually. As Entrepreneur’s post says: 

In other words, if your content strategy is desktop-centric, you may very soon go the way of the dinosaur. Content Institute explains how the adoption of a mobile-first content strategy may soon determine the success, or failure, of entire content-marketing strategies."

Basically, more mobile use means users have shorter attention spans and less patience for your content – so you’ve got to make it short and sweet. 

That doesn’t mean there isn’t room for longer form content – there absolutely is – but it does mean that one part of your strategy needs to address how you capitalize on shorter, more mobile friendly content. 

What might that look like? 

• Having a robust Twitter presence that allows you to engage with others in 140-characters, sharing articles that you find of interest, responding to questions and comments, and sharing your own thoughts. 
   
• Using an RSS reader on your phone to share content from – those social share buttons are there for a reason: use them!
   
• Ensuring that the content you do post is targeted and to the point – avoid legalese, headlines that are not easily read or shared (the shorter and more concise, the better!), and make it visually digestible, as we talked about last week. 
   
• Make sure your site is mobile friendly. Not sure? Check it out here on this mobile-friendliness test page that Google set up for you! 
   
• Translate your wordy content to visual content – put together a video, turn your blog post into a slideshow, create meme-like images to illustrate an important phrase or point – get creative to turn longer form content into shorter, more easily accessible content.

If you’re stumped, consider what you like looking at on your mobile device – what speaks to you when you’re browsing around on your phone while on the train, or standing in line for lunch? What are sites or apps doing that drives you crazy? How do others share in a way that you admire or despise? Take a cue from those that you like, and avoid those that you don’t, and put together a strategy that works for you.

Tip Two: Become a Curator

Sometimes, lawyers and firms can get caught up in the idea that they need to create all new content all the time, and this is an overwhelming task. But another way to be a thought leader is to become a content curator. 

Now, this will involve you having to step outside of your comfort zone, and you’ll see why in a moment. The idea here is that in addition to the original content that you’re creating (through blog posts, articles, videos, presentations, etc.), you will focus on the area of the law that you specialize in and want to be known as a thought leader for, and become a curator for others’ content. 

Yes, others’ content – and that DOES include your competitors. 

We’ll talk about why that’s not the worst idea ever in a minute. 

To do this, there are a couple of steps to take. 

• Set up your research tools: 
  • Use Google alerts: You can monitor google searches, and have them come right into your email inbox by setting up google alerts for keywords that are unique to your practice area. You can specify when you set up the alerts whether you just want to receive news on this, or news and other internet items as well. 
     
  • Use an RSS reader: This is my favorite tool, and I use Feed.ly. Find an RSS reader that you’re comfortable with, and in addition to subscribing to the blogs and publications that you respect and want to follow, you can also set up search terms to follow. For me, it’s things like "legal marketing" and "content marketing." That way, when these terms are mentioned, they come into my reader, and I can read more about them and choose to share that content (more on sharing in a moment). 
     
  • Use Twitter: Twitter is an excellent research tool, and even if you’re not comfortable with engaging, you should be on there for research (I mentioned this to an IP lawyer last week, and it blew his mind, because he hadn’t even thought of Twitter that way). Clients are on there, potential clients, news sources, influencers, amplifiers, your competitors – you name it. You can follow along with what they’re saying, and watch trends happen in real time, and you can also set up columns (using a tool like Tweetdeck or Hootsuite) to monitor search terms as you’re doing with your RSS reader, so whether you’re following someone or not, mentions of that term will come into that column and keep you up to date. This is a good idea for monitoring your name, your firm’s name, and your clients’ names as well. 
     
• Once you’ve got your research tools in place, you have a couple of options: 
  • Just share: You can just share things of interest directly. Find the social share buttons on the various things, and share away. Tweet them, post to LinkedIn, post to Facebook, etc.  In general, you’ll want to add your comments before the link about why people following you should read the piece, but you’re showing your connections that you’re on the cutting edge by sharing the latest and greatest information in your area of expertise with them. 
     
  • Curate a little bit: My friend, Lance Godard, is a pro at this. He finds content that he sees as relevant to his audience, puts it in a blog posts, and adds his commentary on why the audience should read it. Not only is he setting himself up as an industry expert with his finger on the pulse of what’s going on, but he’s actively engaging with everyone he highlights (so, networking with the top people in the industry) and creating his own original content by adding his own thoughts. 

    You can do this too – let’s say you’re a trademarks lawyer – do a weekly roundup of trademark-related posts, with your own comments on why people should read or pay attention to them. Even if you only choose one or two, it’s giving your audience an insight into who you are as a lawyer, as well as sharing with them what else they should be reading. Then, of course, share that like crazy.

Now, here’s the part where you may be feeling a bit itchy about including content from your competitors. But here’s the important note – if your competitors are producing good content, your audience will be finding it anyway. Isn’t it better if you can show yourself as such a thought leader that you have the confidence to share content no matter where it comes from, and with your own commentary? 

We live in a share culture these days (and yes, some of that is a generational thing, but because of that, it’s more and more prevalent). So the more open you can be with your expertise, showcasing that you are a thought leader because you not only work every day in this field of law on these cases, but also because you read and think about what everyone else is writing on the subject, the more those in the industry seeking your services will respect you. I say this because I have seen it work time and time again. 

So on this Two for Tuesday, get out there and think about how you can make your content more mobile friendly, and switch things up by curating and not just creating. Let me know in the comments what has worked for you!