As I mentioned last week, it may not seem like the most important time to be digging into discussing content. But since many of us are publishing SO much of it right now, we want to make sure we’re doing it in a way that’s adding value and not detracting from it. Recently, I came across the “one content marketing question” that we should all be asking ourselves, and it really brought me up short. A reminder, when we talk about “content marketing,” we’re using that to encompass the universe of articles, blog posts, conference presentations, webinars, podcasts, informational videos, etc. – essentially all substantive content that is and can be shared with others.
These days, I think it’s safe to say that we’re pretty much all producing content. So what’s the one question we should all be asking ourselves?
Would anyone miss your content if you did not publish it?
Continue Reading Become the Beyonce of Legal Content with These Three Tips
People have remarked that the word “unprecedented” is certainly having a moment right now. I think that’s something we can all agree on. And one of the things that is truly unprecedented is the sheer amount of content coming out of law firms. While firms have long been known for producing a variety of client alerts, articles, blog posts, and more, the amount of information that is pouring forth from legal minds around the world is quite a torrent.
Among my most popular posts last year were those dedicated to talking about LinkedIn, which tells me that it continues to be the tool that resonates most in the legal industry. I know that it’s in part because it’s become such a robust and useful platform, but I also suspect that it’s in part because some of us are still hoping that there’s a silver bullet out there when it comes to networking and relationship building. I hate to tell you – there isn’t. Even when you’re using social media, which can supersize your efforts, you still need to have goals, develop a plan, and invest time and effort in order for it to pay off for you.
It’s the last month of the year, and I can feel your motivation for business development flagging. It’s okay, you’re not alone.
It’s easy to think that the hard part of networking is the event itself, and if we can navigate that successfully, we’ve done our jobs well and the work will come in. But a big part of successful relationship development is continuity, and that means following up AFTER an event to ensure that you don’t drop off the other person’s radar. Particularly at this time of year, it’s easy to become very busy and distracted (both you and your prospects!) and no longer be top of mind with someone that you really may want to be better connected to.
Daily, we interact with lots of people – this happens in person, at our offices, in the coffee shop, at our kids’ sporting events or art classes. It happens online, through our group chats, text messages with friends, Facebook shares, LinkedIn comments, etc. We interact so much and so frequently, that we’ve reached a real saturation point with these interactions, and even with our professional messages, we can see a lack of care that a lot of us are giving to the details over the tools and the shiny new thing. Instead, we’re just blindly producing more and more and more and more, adding more noise (as
Content marketing can feel like the opportunity to be the author or podcaster or speaker that you’ve always wanted to be.
Content marketing is a tool in your arsenal for building effective business relationships.
We know and are comfortable with the idea that the legal industry is a business of relationships. Lawyers do good work, their clients talk about it (hopefully) and that brings them other clients. That’s the basic principle behind the standard “word of mouth” reputation.
Depending on your business/relationship development goals and strengths, one of your strategies may be to write and share content. When you’re considering augmenting your reputation and building your practice, it might seem counterintuitive to share the spotlight with someone else by quoting or referencing them in your articles and posts, but I’m here to tell you that it’s both essential, and a good business development practice. How so?