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Archive for the 'Technology' Category

Social Intel: Grab the Popcorn

Published April 21, 2008 Law , Marketing , Technology 1 Comment

I had a few days off last week, so Friday’s “Social Intel” post had to wait for today.

Most industries are jumping on social and interactive technologies. I am trying to reduce the use of “2.0″ as it’s really tiresome. Law firms lag a little bit behind others, which isn’t news to most people. However, there is some polarization of the community as social awareness is formed. Take Kevin O’Keefe, champion of blogs and President of LexBlog, who views blogs and other tools as a low-cost marketing tool with a big punch.

In the other corner, we have organizations who take a different view. Legal technology at law.com, with posts such as Is the Party Over for Social Networking? and Web 2.0 Can Be a Pandora’s Box of Liability, takes a limited view on the medium. Others view the space as an opportunity to promote content services, something that already has caused waves within legal marketing.

Which outlook will prevail? Take a look at the landscape. Blogging on the rise and open standards in social networks are being hacked together. This is a resource that is still in its infancy and I don’t think anyone has a clear picture on how it will impact law firms.

In the meantime, add the aforementioned sites to your reader and grab some popcorn.

Law Firm Declares Device-Free Zones

Published April 15, 2008 Operations , Strategy , Technology 0 Comments

The WSJ Law Blog highlighted actions taken by a firm in Mineola, NY to help people focus on important tasks. The groundbreaking initiative: cell-phone and BlackBerry-free zone for major meetings to discuss issues, such as key law changes, that might affect clients or significant internal developments.

Continue reading ‘Law Firm Declares Device-Free Zones’

Twitter: Brand Registration

Published April 12, 2008 Law , Marketing , Technology 0 Comments
Tags: brand protection, copyright, twitter

I’ve been cruising twitter for more companies to add to the Twitter Brand Index. As I’ve been looking around, a number of accounts have been registered and may even have branding (pic, background) but no updates. Take this one for example: http://twitter.com/USArmy

Could this be an initiative by a savvy PR person in the military?

Twitter seems to be ripe with situations where someone could register an account and cause mayhem for a company by blocking their use (passive) or outright spam (active). What if I registered http://twitter.com/HondaMotors and mentioned how Toyota makes a better product, linking to reviews and toyota.com? Or perhaps using it as a personal dumping ground for dealership experiences.

I would be curious as to hear some comments from any IP/trademark attorney.

Gain Perspective: Blogstar Delusion

Published April 2, 2008 Operations , Technology 0 Comments

@Kolbin on twitter mentioned a post on the Blogstar Delusion. From blogger Rohit Bhargava:

This is the too common situation where a semi-famous blogger assumes that everyone has heard of him or her because they have legions of followers at events like SXSW and online. Of course, meeting people who have an outsized view of themselves is not unique to bloggers.

I have to say Rohit is right on… Continue reading ‘Gain Perspective: Blogstar Delusion’

Social Intel: 3 Links to Review

Published April 1, 2008 Marketing , TechBrief , Technology 0 Comments
Tags: blogging, law firm, maslow, wiki

I love reading digests, but to be honest, I start to glaze after the first three. Who has the time during the day! For those of you that are easily distracted, here’s a short list. Enjoy!

Internet Hierarchy of Needs
Think of this as “Abraham Maslow meets the Web.” Courtesy of @marketingprofs on twitter. What? You aren’t on twitter?!

Wiki’s in the Workplace: From the Creator
Wiki’s are constantly mentioned in marketing technology discussions. I have yet to hear of one that actually goes somewhere!(Cough, in a law firm) Here’s an interview from Harvard Business Review with Wikipedia’s creator, Jimmy Wales. Now go learn something and report back;-)

Blogging: Why the Fuss
Legal marketers: Here’s your overview on blogs from Ron Friedmann. The trend for legal blog is only increasing, according to both Friedmann and Lexblog’s Kevin O’Keefe.

WMA: Law Firm Web Sites Suck

Published March 28, 2008 Law , Marketing , Technology 0 Comments
Tags: Innovation, Law, Marketing

I spent some time this afternoon reviewing the WebAward Internet Standards Assessment Report from the Web Marketing Association (WMA). Notably absent from this report is the usual vendor-sponsored “look at us” content found elsewhere. Sites — and industries — are graded on a number of criteria: design, innovation, content, technology, copywriting, interactivity and ease of use. The legal industry fell short in all categories except for copywriting and ease of use.

This really doesn’t surprise me: lawyers are not exactly known for innovation, technology or design. Accurate writing and ease of use (logic) fall right in their wheelhouse.

So does that mean we, as legal marketers, should ignore those elements? No! As the new, tech-savvy generation comes into power, those other elements will become more important. Plus there is the client-side to consider. While there is a large amount engagement by in-house counsel, there are other professionals looking for representation. Sub-par scores in tech & innovation represents a massive opportunity for any firm with a presence on the Web.

Up next: How to Innovate.

Great Execution: Law Firm Web site

Published March 28, 2008 Law , Marketing , Technology 0 Comments
Tags: Web awards

Lexblog is constantly talking up the BS factor in “Best Blog” or “Top 100″ competitions. Do we really need Web awards? For blogs: no way, however, “corporate” sites are an entirely different matter, especially when it comes to law firms.

Robert Ambrogi posted about the 2007 Best Legal Site Winner, Womble, Carlyle, Sandridge & Rice. First off, I like bulldogs, so when the flash-based dog walked out, I thought: Yes!” The presence of flash for main navigation was in my mind a serious concern. I ran two tests: viewing the site from my blackberry and turning off scripting in my browser. I was surprised: the site offers a mobile version and there was a relatively clean execution of a non-flash nav. Whomever executed this site knew what they were doing! Add in substantive content, namely blogs and podcasts, and you have a best in class site that offers a tremendous amount of value.

Back to the issue of awards: this is one case of a site that deserved recognition in the marketing community. Thanks to Robert for blogging about it!

My Take on the Web

Published March 25, 2008 Marketing , Operations , Strategy , Technology 0 Comments

As I write this, I think of the Conan O’brien skit where he and a guest look into the future.. “all the way to the year 2000.” Conan -- The Year 2000

Everyone involved in the Web — and I mean really involved — has a take on where things are heading. The brilliant minds at Forrester, including Charlene Li and Jeremiah Owyang cover off on social computing. Legal marketing has a number of reputable experts, including Kevin O’Keefe, Ron Friedmann and Steve Matthews. Plus my all-time favs: MIT TR, HBR and Wharton.

Here’s my take… Continue reading ‘My Take on the Web’

AT&T Broadband Users: Read Up

Published March 22, 2008 TechBrief , Technology 0 Comments

I just ran across this tidbit: AT&T: More Than 5GB of Data Costs $350/Month + $500/GB

As a WWAN customer, this sucks. I would look at an alternative, but my x61t has a sweet integrated modem.

Open Source Standards

Published March 22, 2008 Law , Marketing , Operations , Strategy , Technology 0 Comments

This past week I received an email from the ILTA listserv where someone was asking about SEO-vendors. In a way this is a shock: SEO doesn’t require any great degree of understanding or inside knowledge. A careful analysis of the market, an understanding of HTML and the ability to find search-optimizations on the marjor engines delivered a sustained 20% jump for skadden.com. This excludes a lot of the buzz about blogging and SEO (there are benefits, but don’t throw away your Web site for a blog).

I believe this information should be in an open source format. Why should we pay vendors, which may or may not have a complete or legit understanding of technology, to maintain ownership. Whereas user-generated content is becoming more important in communications, user-generated standards must be developed. Open-source standards enable us to become better marketers of our organizations and reach out to clients & customers. SEO and SEM are a critical part of business. Let’s take it back from vendors in a space that is free of vendor influence.

Who’s up for the challenge?

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