Primary reason for lawyers to blog is not to draw traffic to law firm’s website

There is huge number of lawyers and, unfortunately, a good number of so called Internet marketing experts who believe the primary reason for lawyers to blog is to draw traffic to a law firm’s website. That’s bunk and anyone who tells who so is wrong.

Go back to pre-Internet days. That’s only 10 years for most lawyers. Did lawyers network with business associates, speak to industry groups, and write articles for trade publications for the primary reason of having people read the firm’s brochure?

Would it be okay if in-house counsel contacted you because of a word of mouth reputation you established as an authority in your niche? A reputation earned because of other thought leaders citing your blog on a regular basis.

Would it be okay if a consumer contacted you because they liked the way you answered common bankruptcy questions on your blog? Real questions and answers in story format based on phone calls from prospective clients or meetings with existing clients.

Would it be okay if a conference attendee came up to after a presentation you made to an industry group and asked to speak to you about a legal issue? A presentation you got to make because of your blogging.

You’d talk to any of those prospective clients about the legal issue they faced and how you may be able to help them. Ain’t no way you’d respond, I’d like you to look at my law firm’s website first.

I ask attendees at my presentations around the country if any of their law firms only take clients from their website. No one as answered yes.

But with all the goofy discussion going around that you do a law blog to draw traffic to a law firm website, you’d think it was the case.

The primary reason to blog for most lawyers is for client development. The best lawyers in this country, both today, and 100 years before the Internet got their clients by word of mouth. They got to be known as an authority in a niche area of the law. Word spread offline by meeting people, networking at professional and social events, doing legal work whether transactions or in court, speaking, writing, and probably nine other things I’m missing.

Blogging is more about marketing pre-Internet than post Internet. Effective blogging results in a word of mouth reputation as an authority. And by virtue of effective blogging, prospective clients are more likely to call, email, or approach you at a conference directly as opposed to going through your firm’s website.

It’s only common sense. Think of a senior lawyer who’s established herself as a lawyer’s lawyer. She got the best clients without doing a lick of what we now label marketing and client development. She got this work by word of mouth.

This senior lawyer developed this reputation without the powers of the Internet. She did it the old fashion way – networking, speaking, people witnessing them doing a dam good job in transactions or litigation, constant honing of her skills etc.

Blogging’s just like that. Today commerce is driven by the Internet. There are dam few people who don’t turn to the Internet for virtually all they do. That’s why today you develop the reputation the senior attorney has via the Internet. And that reputation is developed via blogging and the complementary and effective use of social media.

Sure lawyers who blog will have the most viewed profile at the firm’s website. Sure there will be traffic from strategic links on your blog to the law firm website and lawyer profiles. Sure the blog will achieve high search engine rankings which in turn will help your website’s search engine rankings. But those are not the primary reasons for a law blog.

Blogs are for reputation enhancement and developing a word of mouth reputation that keeps growing year after year. Use a little common sense. Don’t buy the misinformation that the primary reason for a blog is to grow traffic to the firm’s website.