As you read this, I will either be in Shanghai, or on my way there (my brain is currently too fried from conference prep, getting ready for a blog launch, and a variety of other projects to calculate the time/travel difference!). And that’s actually a perfect segue for this week’s Two for Tuesdays, in which we look at the biggest challenge that you’re going to see to content marketing in 2015. 

The inspiration for this post comes again from Business 2 Community, with a post from Asaf Rothem, "3 Major Challenges Your Content Marketing Department Will Encounter in 2015." Admittedly, I chuckled at the title, because for the most part, none of us will have a full blown content marketing department.

Even more to the point, for the legal industry, clients and potential clients really want to hear from the experts – lawyers. They don’t want content from a "department." They want it right from the source. So even if you have help with distribution, editing, etc., the original words must be coming from you, the lawyer, to be most effective. 

With that being said, what struck me about this article is the first challenge – it’s one we hear all the time when it comes to content marketing, so it’s one that bears discussion here: Not enough time.

Continue Reading Two for Tuesdays: Tips for The Biggest Challenge to Content Marketing

I could not be more excited to announce that today, the Intellectual Property Specialty group of the International Lawyers Network is launching their first collaborative blog (indeed the ILN’s first collaborative blog period!) – ILN IP Insider! 

It’s been a labor of love with myself and our dedicated IP lawyers from around the world, to put together this resource for the latest in global intellectual property trends. 

The blog provides a variety of benefits, including: 

  • The latest legal intellectual property content and news from law firms around the world
  • RSS feeds to deliver highly targeted and specific content directly to your desktop
  • The ability to engage with ILN member authors through blog comments, email and LinkedIn

I’m thrilled to be launching ILN IP Insider today, and showcasing the strength and depth of the combined expertise of our IP lawyers.

You’ll want to get a first look at the posts already published to the site: 

Continue Reading ILN IP Insider Blog to Tackle Latest Global Intellectual Property Trends

Today marks six years since Zen & The Art of Legal Networking made its debut in the legal blogging world. In some ways, it feels like it’s been longer than that, while in others, the time has just flown! 

I’ve only ever marked this "blogiversary" three other times – on the second, fourth and fifth anniversaries, when I shared a sort of "state of the blog," things I had learned, and tips for blogging. Blogiversaries, like anniversaries, should be a time of reflection, so today has got me thinking about what I’ve learned in the past year, specifically six things I can share with you from Zen. 

Before I jump into that, however, I’ll tell you another thing I learned today – the traditional gift for a sixth anniversary is candy! For those who know me personally, you’ll know that I have a terrible sweet tooth, so it’s a rather appropriate gift for me. Last year, for the 5th anniversary, I donated trees in honor of wood, and this year, I purchased some candy from my niece’s school fundraising efforts to help her meet her goal!

Lesson One: Blogging is NOT Dead

I’ve heard whispers in a few corners recently that blogging is dead; that no one is really doing it anymore or at least not in the same way that they used to. But I beg to differ. I still see it as a hugely valuable component of any content marketing strategy, and one of the best ways to own your content and engage with readers. 

Continue Reading Happy 6th Blogiversary to Zen & the Art of Legal Networking!

Staying with our theme of content marketing, today, I want to look at what happens once you’ve produced your content. It’s not enough just to write, present or produce something smart and insightful – you’ve also got to promote it. 

That may feel a little bit icky, but it’s important – it’s not about tooting your own horn; it’s about making your content available to those who may not be able to find it otherwise. And there are ways to do it without being pushy or obnoxious (which is very important). 

Through my RSS reader, I found a great website that offers a number of posts related to content marketing. Recently, there was one focusing on this very idea – "The Three Step Plan to Increase Your Content Marketing Reach" from Samantha Ferguson. 

Because it’s two for Tuesday, we’re just going to focus on the first two – but also because I think the third point might be pushing it a little bit for this audience. Let’s not reinvent the wheel just yet! 

Before we get into the tips, I want to start with the why. Ferguson does an excellent job of explaining why promoting your content is so important: 

Continue Reading Two for Tuesdays: Promoting Your Content

And here we are, at the last of my Superbowl Commercials posts. We’re talking about the worst of the worst of this year’s Superbowl Commercials and while there are only a couple for a change, they are really doozies. 

I’ll start with the least terrible of the two, to ease you into the cringing. 

T-Mobile: #KimsDataStash

https://youtube.com/watch?v=ZTwzsV3I3OQ

Continue Reading Superbowl Commercials: The Ugly of 2015

I’m rather liking this theme of content marketing for our Two for Tuesdays posts, so we’re going to be sticking with that for a while!

Since the post I linked to last week offered us four mistakes to avoid when doing content marketing, and we touched on two of them, it only makes sense to revisit it to look at the final two in this week’s post. As a reminder, the post was by Amanda Jesnoewski, owner of Velocity Media + Communications, on Startup Smart, who discusses "Four content marketing mistakes you need to avoid." Let’s dive in.

Tip One: Write Your Own Content…But Use Others for Inspiration

This is a fine line – the best bloggers out there are the ones who are able to find inspiration in someone else’s content and put their own spin on it (and subsequently create relationships with those amplifiers and influencers whose content they’re linking to). 

But it’s a delicate balance.

 

Continue Reading Two for Tuesdays: More Content Marketing Mistakes to Avoid

Our firm of the month will also be welcoming us to Shanghai in just about two weeks for the ILN’s 2015 Asia Pacific Regional Meeting! Congratulations to Zhong Lun Law Firm!

   

 

 Member of the International Lawyers Network

The ILN is proud to announce our latest "Firm of the Month" – Zhong Lun Law Firm, China! 

Founded in 1993, Zhong Lun is a leading full service PRC law firm. With over 200 partners and 900 professionals strategically located in eight of China’s key corporate and financial centers and four international offices including Hong Kong, Tokyo, London and New York, they are consistently chosen as legal service partner by clients who require comprehensive services in an increasingly complex legal environment across the vast geographic area of China. Their major practice disciplines include Real Estate and Construction, Corporate Financing and Capital Markets, Mergers and Acquisitions, Private Equity and Venture Capital, Foreign Direct Investment, Banking and Finance, Structured Financing and Securitization, International Trade and WTO, Technology, Media and Telecommunications (TMT), Intellectual Property, Bankruptcy and Corporate Reorganization, as well as Dispute Resolution.

They are proud to serve a broad range of blue chip clients that include numerous Fortune 500 companies, banks and financial institutions as well as international organizations and government authorities. They strive to provide quality, efficient and practical legal advice on complex business transactions in China. Their outstanding work has achieved broad recognition. Their practices and lawyers are frequently cited and recommended in their respective markets by publications such as the Chambers Asia Guide, Asian Legal Business, Asia Law & Practice, International Financial Law Review and others.

 Full descriptions of Zhong Lun’s services, expertise, and lawyer profiles are available on their ILN profile.

Lindsay Griffiths
Director of Global Relationship Management
International Lawyers Network

Lindsay Griffiths

 

Learn More

 

Main Contacts: 

Scott Guan

Scott Guan

Email: scottguan@zhonglun.com
Telephone: +86 21 6061 3068

Practice Groups:
Mergers & Acquisitions, Dispute Resolution, Capital Markets/Securities

Steven Huang

Steven Huang

Email: stevenhuang@zhonglun.com
Telephone: +86 21 6061 3085

Practice Groups:
Mergers & Acquisitions, Capital Markets/Securities, Private Equity & Investment Funds


 
Alan Griffiths

“Zhong Lun Law Firm is a truly excellent law firm, and a valued member of the ILN. All of us look forward to traveling to Shanghai in March as they host the 2015 Asia Pacific Regional Meeting." 

Alan Griffiths
Executive Director
International Lawyers Network

+001.201.594.9985

www.ilntoday.com

 

With this year’s crop of commercials, there actually weren’t too many that fell into the ‘bad" category – the commercials were either pretty good or really terrible. But I did manage to find a few that I wasn’t happy with. 

The first one on my list will surprise many people, because it made a lot of "good" lists and seemed to be a popular favorite: 

Snickers: The Brady Bunch

https://youtube.com/watch?v=rqbomTIWCZ8

Continue Reading Superbowl Commercials – The Bad of 2015

I’m finally back with another Superbowl commercials post! In today’s post, we’ll cover my second tier commercials, those I’m calling the "good" of 2015. I’m going to look at three of them, as well as the lessons that lawyers and law firms can learn from them, and then I’ll list the other commercials that I liked and would consider worth a watch. 

Always #LikeAGirl

https://youtube.com/watch?v=XjJQBjWYDTs

Continue Reading Superbowl Commercials – The Good of 2015

Focusing on content marketing for last week’s Two for Tuesdays worked so well that I’m doing it again this week. Today, we’re looking at mistakes that you want to avoid making in your content marketing. I found this great piece by Amanda Jesnoewski, owner of Velocity Media + Communications, on Startup Smart, where she discusses "Four content marketing mistakes you need to avoid." 

Her piece is excellent, but all of the marketing speak may scare of some lawyers – I’m here to tell you that her advice applies to you too. We’re going to focus on two tips today. 

Tip One: Think Like a Publisher, Not Like a Lawyer

How many times do you watch a medical show on television, and see someone ask the doctor to "tell it to them straight," meaning  give them the diagnosis in layman’s terms without all of the medical jargon? Lots, right? 

It’s not because the person isn’t smart enough to understand what a subdural hematoma is, it’s just more efficient to tell them that it’s a brain bleed. 

 

Continue Reading Two for Tuesdays: Content Marketing Mistakes to Avoid