Talk of The LexBlog Network : Linda Evers of Smart Grid Legal News
Linda Evers is new to this. No, not just blogging, but simply working in a law firm. The Stevens & Lee attorney behind Smart Grid Legal News came to the firm last January after 16 years of experience as in-house counsel, and then to the legal blogosphere just this past December. In both her legal practice and blogging, she’s had as great a start as anyone possibly could.
Crediting the unique perspective she brings from her years of experience as in-house counsel for major electric utilities, Evers quickly rose to the role of Chair of Stevens & Lee’s Energy, Communication and Public Utility Group in just six months.
“You can’t erase a whole career of being in-house just because you switch jobs one Monday in January,” Evers said. “It still feels new to me and I’m glad because my background helps me relate well to my clients.”
Stepping into that role, Evers immediately looked at ways to further establish her practice group, not only within the firm’s Mid-Atlantic footprint, but well beyond that area. With that as her focus, she pushed hard for a blog, which launched after much discussion on December 22nd of 2010.
“It’s a way for me to talk to people without spamming them, show what I know and reach my target audience on a broader scale. That’s why I wanted to blog, because I needed to have people outside of my circle know what I can do for them,” Evers said.
“It’s not a substitute for some of the other hands-on things because you do have to have relationships. It’s not meant to be a substitute but it’s certainly meant to be in addition to those other things—you leverage the blog with those other things.”
Leveraging the blog is exactly what Evers has done. Going beyond simply writing great content and waiting for people to come to her, she’s reached out and engaged influencers. As an example, she recently interviewed Scott Harris, General Counsel of the Department of Energy, after a breakfast seminar at which he was presenting. Not only did it result in great content for her publication, but as one of her clients was also in attendance, she had the opportunity to introduce him to Harris.
“The client knew I had the blog but you have to believe that’s pretty impressive for him to know I’m interviewing the general counsel of the Department of Energy for it,” Evers said. “He got to see me interact with government officials that regulate our industry without me ever planning it.”
Evers was also contacted recently by EUCI, a leading education provider in the energy industry, to help plan and then eventually speak in a webinar whose attendees include a number of professionals at large utilities. Some may credit luck or happenstance over hustle and creative leveraging for Evers’ accomplishments, but even if someone wrongly chooses the former it’s hard to imagine these things happening so quickly without Smart Grid Legal News.
While warning that authoring a blog as strong as Smart Grid Legal News takes a great deal of work, Evers said the best thing curious attorneys can do is just get going.
“I think the advice is, if you want to do it, if you’re really thinking about it…for those thinking ‘Oh, this might be a smart idea’ they just need to do it.”