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What does the deluge of law blogs coming really mean?

December 23, 2011

Attorney and media consultant, Bob Ambrogi, picked up on one of the recent surveys which indicate law blogs may be in their infancy and that we can expect the number of attorneys and law firms blogging to grow significantly in his post this morning, ‘Watch Out: A Deluge of Legal Blogs is Approaching.’

I agree with Attorney Scott Greenfield who tweeted, Ambrogi’s post was ‘Solid gold Ambrogi.’

Better start building that ark, because a deluge of new blogs will soon flood the legal profession. At least, that seems to be the conclusion of a just-released survey of social media in the legal sector conducted by LexisNexis and Vizibility. Just take a moment to ponder this graphic, which is just a snip from a gi-normous infographic that was created to illustrate the survey results:

It asks law firms what social media services they plan to use in their marketing. Note the responses for blogging: Of AmLaw 100 firms, 93.8% have or plan to have blogs. Of AmLaw 200 firms, 94.7%. Move on down the list and the percentage for every size firm is greater than 75%. Among 1-5 lawyer firms — which make up the majority of firms in the U.S., 87.8% have or plan to have blogs.

In short, roughly nine out of every 10 law firms will be blogging — some might have multiple blogs. Someone on Quora estimates that there are 50,000 law firms in the U.S. That means we could soon expect to see as many as 45,000 legal blogs, maybe more.

Ambrogi’s right on his follow on comments that many of the law firms who plan to launch law blogs will not and that of those blogs that are launched only some will be worth reading.

Many law blogs that will be launched will done for crass marketing and to drive SEO (search engine optimization). Some of these blogs will be started by lawyers and firms who do not want to spend the time to offer value or engage other bloggers, the media, and the like so as to build relationships and enhance their reputation.

Others will be launched because attorneys and law firms were cheerlead into blogging by marketers who do not understand what it means to be a lawyer nor what it means to grow a practice by being a good lawyer and developing a word of mouth reputation – online or offline.

But with a rise in the number of law blogs comes the opportunity for good law blogs to shine. Per Ambrogi:

…I have no doubt that many new legal blogs will continue to launch and that a fair number of them will be worth reading. The more the merrier, I say. Like cream, good blogs rise to the top. Even if we have a flood of blogs, there will be those that stand out and those that do not.

For readers of blogs, there is a coming feast of abundance. For writers of blogs, the game is on to produce quality, thoughtful posts that will keep your blog from drowning.

As I explained to my team at LexBlog this morning, we ought to make note of what Ambrogi has to say. He’s a bright guy and the only person who’s held the top editorial positions at the two leading national U.S. legal newspapers, the National Law Journal and Lawyers USA.

The take aways from Ambrogi for LexBlog are that many attorneys and law firms will talk blogs and be afraid to act. As a team, we need to educate attorneys and firms why law blogs may be appropriate or inappropriate for them. We need to spend time with attorneys and firms explaining why blogging for professional and business development can be easier, safer, more professional, and more effective with a turnkey solution like LexBlog’s and as part of the LexBlog Network.

Even more importantly, LexBlog needs to up its game in helping the 8,000 lawyers on our network know what it means to blog well. To offer value. To engage others. To understand blogging is not marketing per se, but a relationship and reputation enhancer.

Otherwise, LexBlog will not only be letting its clients and network members down, but polluting the net and legal dialogue with law blogs offering little value that will come and go.

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