Arizona Attorney Blogging Update

Arizona Legal BLOG Recap:

Blogging has really taken off in the Arizona legal community. There are a number of active legal BLOGs in numerous practice areas. Here

Plattner Verderame BLOG - Clean Room Exposure Leads to Birth Defects
One of the most active bloggers has been the personal injury attorneys at Plattner Verderame. Their new BLOG has been a hive of activity since its release earlier this year - generating 10-12 quality posts a month. Besides the numerous safety related posts on boat and hiking safety, the firm is quietly making news with a major lawsuit against Motorola and other major chip manufacturers. A recent post disclosed the link between clean room exposure and serious birth defects. The firm has filed numerous lawsuits against chip makers, claiming that the major microchip manufacturers knew for years that ethylene glycol ether, a chemical that employees used during the microchip manufacturing process, could be harming the children of their employees.

Wendy Hernandez - http://www.phoenixfamilylawattorneys.com/
Posting at least two posts a week, there has been no shortage of interesting content on Wendy Hernandez's Phoenix family law BLOG. Wendy's latest BLOG chronicles an interesting child custody case in Texas - in which the family of a deceased firefighter has filed suit against their son's widow Nikki Araguz, alleging her marriage to their son is void under Texas law because she was born a man. Besides being a source of interesting content, Wendy claims the release of the BLOG has also corresponded with a dramatic increase in her business!

Jeff Hernandez - http://www.phoenixpersonalinjurylawyersblog.com/
Jeff has been very busy - with over 200 personal injury BLOG posts in the last 8 months! In addition to the BLOG, Jeff is close to releasing his new upgraded website, which I am sure will be in the running for some design awards.

Mark Gilling - http://www.arizonaautoaccidentsblog.com/
A focused BLOG on tire and auto defects, the BLOG has quickly ascended in the Google rankings for high value tire defect searches - both in Arizona and nationally!

Steve Leshner - http://www.aztrialblog.com/
Busy with some major litigation, Steve's writings have slowed lately, but he did have time to post on the national Avandia settlement.

Joseph McDaniel - http://www.arizonabankruptcyblog.info/
Prolific and always entertaining, Joe's Bankruptcy BLOG still remains the standard for attorney Blogging in my opinion. In recent months Joe has discovered youtube, at least in terms of incorporating funny videos into his posts. See for yourself how Joe works a "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" clip into his bankruptcy blog. I continue to be amazed how Joe finds the time to do this given how he is conducting 9-12 new client appointments every day. No sleep and a pasty white disposition - perhaps Joe is half vampire?

Scott David Stewart - http://www.azdivorceattorneyblog.com/
Released two months ago, the new divorce BLOG mirrors the design of his award winning main website. The BLOG has already featured a number of helpful posts including "Can a Prenup Prevent a Divorce"

Clark Law Offices - http://www.maricopacountybankruptcyattorney.com/
One of the most visible bankruptcy websites in Arizona now has an active BLOG. Released earlier this month, the BLOG might be the best looking bankruptcy BLOG in the Country.

Solomon & Relihan - http://www.theguardianblog.com/
The most prolific nursing home focused BLOG in the country. After nearly two years, the firm continues to pump out fresh relevant content on nursing home and group home abuse litigation.

Law Offices of Rachelle Ferraro - http://phoenixazcriminaldefenselawyer.com/
This sharp looking criminal defense BLOG was just released this past week. Knowing Rachelle, I expect to see an active BLOG. Her first post dealt with the coming DUI trial for a Phoenix police officer.

Deloughery Law Offices - http://www.phoenixprobatelawyerblog.com/
Attorney Paul Deloughery just released his 2nd BLOG. Paul has been actively posting on his first Blogger BLOG, http://www.azprobateblog.com/ for over a year.

Los Angeles Employment Lawyer in the News - Mel Gibson Scandal

Mel Gibson Ex Meets with Rheuban Gresen

The Los Angeles trial law firm of Rheuban Gresen made the tabloids recently when Oksana Grigorieva, the woman at the center of the Mel Gibson scandal, supposedly met with the firm. Here is the article from TMZ:

oksana-grigorieva-mel-gibson-court-lawyers-civil-lawsuit-domestic-violence-extortion/

While the article suggests that the firm is focused only on employment law, partner Steve Rheuban is a respected medical malpractice and personal injury trial lawyer. In fact, I recently worked with the firm on a second website focused on medical malpractice law.

If you havent heard the crazy rantings of Mel Gibson you can hear them all at www.radaronline.com

Phoenix Legal Networking Event July 21st

Phoenix Legal Networking Group to Focus on Social Media

The July 21 meeting of the Phoenix Legal Networking Group, an assembly of solo and small firm attorneys and staff looking to effectively market their law firms and grow their business, will focus on a topic of great interest to the legal profession these days: Social Media.

The topic will be Unlocking the Secrets of Social Media for Lawyers: Facebook and Twitter. In addition to some great information, there will be some great food, good fun, and a chance for you to reconnect with other attorneys who could turn out to be great additions to your referral network in the Phoenix area.

Join us on July 21 and discover:

Why Facebook is the 800 pound gorilla on the Internet
Who is using Facebook (this will surprise you)
What kind of practice areas are getting clients from Facebook
How to get started fast
Why Twitter is growing so fast
How to leverage Twitter to drive traffic to your blog or website
Top tips for using social media in your legal marketing strategy

The event will be held from 5-7 p.m. on Wednesday, July 21 at Monti’s, 100 S. Mill Ave. in Tempe. Cost is only $20 per person. Make an investment in your firm’s future and join your fellow legal marketers for this invaluable presentation. The information shared and the networking opportunity can open doors that will allow you take your firm to the next level.To register for this seminar, co-hosted by FindLaw, Attorney at Law Magazine and The Rainmaker Institute.

To RSVP CLICK HERE

Attorney At Law Magazine - July Issue

Attorney At Law - July 2010

The July issue of Attorney at Law magazine just hit newstands. The electronic version of the magazine can be seen here.

As always I was asked to provide an article on attorney marketing. This month I talked about "Knowing Your Potential Audience". As always I got valuable insight from senior FindLaw writer Sue O'Donnell. I also want to thank Michael Hill for his editing prowess. I also want to thank Andrew Gorman from www.gormanandjones.com for providing me with a gracious testimonial on the back cover over of the magazine.

Know Your Potential Clients: What Do They Want?

An important aspect of being a successful lawyer is knowing how to run a business — and that includes getting involved in marketing. In talking with lawyers in the Phoenix and Scottsdale area as well as in other parts of the country, I’ve met some savvy marketers, and I’ve picked up some tips from them as well as from my colleagues at FindLaw.

A lot of lawyers have told me, “When I talk to someone on the phone or in the office, I can get them to retain me.” The hard part, they say, is getting them to call. Here’s some advice I’ve heard over and over: Get them to call you the same way you talk to them in your office — use plain language, the language your potential clients use in conversation. By the way, this is also the language they use to search for your firm on the Internet (more about that later).

Who are you trying to reach?
When you’re writing a website or blog -- or when you’re recording a video or a TV or radio commercial -- it can be difficult to remember who you are trying to reach. It isn’t your law school professor or your colleagues. It isn’t the camera operator or the public relations person.

Remember, you are trying to reach people who need an attorney. That might be someone who is considering bankruptcy, who needs a criminal defense lawyer, or who wants to develop an estate plan. Whatever your practice focus, when you plan a marketing campaign, think about who you are trying to reach. Who is your potential client?

What do they want from their lawyer?
It is easy to say that a potential client wants a solution to a legal issue. But they want more than that. They want to know that you have the skills to help them in their particular area of concern. And they want to know that you will listen, that you will take their legal matter seriously. Most of all, they want to feel comfortable that you are the attorney for them.

Will you talk to them in plain language?
Like most professions, the practice of law has its own specialized jargon. Using the same legal terms in marketing materials that you would when addressing the court or writing a brief or motion can make it difficult for your potential client to understand you. If they don’t understand you, they will not call you. Simple as that.

By using language your potential client understands, you are assuring the person that you will talk in a way that is helpful to them. You won’t bamboozle them with language that is incomprehensible.

A book that addresses this subject is “Plain English for Lawyers” by Richard C. Wydick. He is an attorney himself, and he approaches the topic of plain language with humor. Chapter 1 begins: “We lawyers do not write plain English. We use eight words to say what could be said in two.” He warns that the need to be cautious can produce verbosity, and the need to be precise gives rise to redundancy.

When talking to people face to face, the need for plain language is clear: You can see their reactions to confusing language. When communicating by writing or video, try to remember the need for plain language.

How are people searching for an attorney like you?
If you have a website, find out how to use Hitbox, Google Analytics or any other analytics tool. (Call me if you need help with this) That will tell you the questions or phrases searchers used when looking for a lawyer in your practice area. The information you gain puts the focus on the words potential clients use — not the words a lawyer might use.

One attorney I know has used that data to add new pages to his website — pages that are focused on what potential clients are searching for.

Call me to talk about effective marketing for your law firm.
I represent FindLaw, a Thomson Reuters business that designs, writes, optimizes and develops websites for lawyers. Whether you are looking for a website company or simply want to discuss lawyer marketing, I would be happy to talk to you.