BecomingWhoYouWantToBe

It’s difficult to break old habits. The ways in which a lawyer markets his or her firm are no different. I still see lawyers participating in far too much self-promotion. In the world of internet marketing, traditional methods of self-promotion aren’t as effective. Let me explain.

Websites, newsletters, blogs and other advertisements are becoming increasingly self-promoting.

The content you put out on the web can work for you in many positive ways. However, there is a downside as well. Just because people find your writing, doesn’t mean they have a favorable impression of you.

Don’t write content that serves no other purpose than to “toot your own horn”.

Here is a list of ways to avoid blatant self-promotion:

1. Stop talking about yourself. By writing about the material you know best, by positioning yourself as an expert in your field, and by making your content creative and interesting, you will promote yourself indirectly. Think about the last article you read that you really enjoyed. I bet if you didn’t know the author before, at the very least you checked out who they were afterward. This is what lawyer marketing on the web is all about.

2. People on the internet have a short attention span. Marketing your legal services on the web gives you very limited time to make your point. Be informative, but concise with your writing. Create lists, outlines, and short paragraphs.

3. Stay current, but don’t get overwhelmed. In addition to being brief, you need to be current. With web 2.0 lawyer marketing, people don’t want to wait a month for your next blog post. By the same token, you don’t need to produce 3 articles a day to stay current. I would advise planning out a couple of blog posts, perhaps 2-3 a week. Do the same with your social media efforts. This will help you increase the effectiveness of your efforts.

4. Talk with your own voice. In a nutshell, be interesting. The amount of information put out onto the web increases with every second. To rise to the top, you need to be interesting. When you speak in your own voice, the content will take on your personality and will differentiate from what others are writing.