Marketing the Law Firm April 2007

1. L AW J O U R N A L
NEWSLETTERS
Marketing ®
The Law Firm
Volume 20, Number 12 • April 2007
Must-Sue TV
How One Firm Created a High-Profile Blog That Works
By Lynne Donaghy and John Hellerman
constantly looking for ways to stand paper company Dunder Mifflin, a
N ot to be left behind, the
legal community is actively
engaged in the ever-expand-
ing blogoshpere. With more than
1000 active legal blogs on the
out. Launching a blog seemed to be
one way, but without a clever idea to
break through the clutter, blogging
seemed to present too many signifi-
company that could easily represent
any in America. The show focuses
primarily on the politically incorrect
behavior of the office’s general
Web, firms and attorneys recognize cant challenges. manager, Michael Scott, and his
the value of blogs as unique market- Overcoming the Obstacles employees, all of whom are involved
ing and business development The chief concern was the clutter. in storylines that reflect everyday HR
tools. However, for a blog to be The HR market is flooded with issues (e.g., inter-office relationships,
beneficial, it must distinguish itself blogs, as there are already hundreds inappropriate comments, personnel
from the diluted market through on the Web. Another significant conflicts, etc.).
creativity, consistency, and a strategic concern was how to generate a Essentially, as far as Ford &
media plan. sizeable audience for a blog that, at Harrison was concerned, the show
the end of the day, would be about was a weekly visual demonstration
ONE FIRM’S STORY HR issues — especially given that of what not to do for HR managers
Ford & Harrison LLP, a national most law firms’ Web sites are traf- and executives.
labor and employment law firm, was ficked pretty lightly. Lastly, there Gaining Attention
interested in a creative way to was concern over content: Was To mitigate the firm’s concern
communicate with current and there enough to say? How often that the blog might languish in
prospective clients about the difficult would there need to be a new post obscurity, a viable site host was
and complex legal issues facing in order to keep the blog relevant recruited and a deal was made, which
employers in today’s workplace. The and interesting? Did the firm’s meant that the blog would begin with
firm has always been aggressive designated author have the time to a relevant, built-in audience and
when it comes to marketing, and is post regularly? instant credibility.
The firm considered these chal- Julie Elgar, a senior associate in
lenges and decided it would move Ford & Harrison’s Atlanta office,
forward with a blog only if they loves The Office, and willingly
Lynne Donaghy is Director of were overcome. The first, and most agreed to write the blog on behalf of
Marketing at Ford & Harrison LLP. important, step was to develop a the firm. Julie, a true fan of the
John Hellerman, a member of this focus unique to the HR sector, one show, named the blog “That’s What
newsletter’s Board of Editors, is a that hopefully would enable the She Said,” based on Michael Scott’s
partner at Hellerman Baretz blog to generate a following. With trademark punch line. Julie’s
Communications (www.hellerman- this and Ford & Harrison’s other commitment is to create one new
baretz.com). The firm designs and concerns in mind, the idea to use post every Friday commenting on
executes strategic communications NBC’s hit comedy The Office as a the previous night’s episode.
campaigns. Maggie Schmerin, an backdrop seemed like the perfect (Because the show airs only once a
account executive at Hellerman fit. As most know, the show takes week, Julie doesn’t have pressure to
Baretz, contributed to this article. place at a branch office of fictional post more frequently.)

2. LJN’s Marketing the Law Firm April 2007
Keeping the Attention buzz, which piqued the interest of the site every Friday. Several clients
With the right marketing plan, any publications that were primarily have asked about using the blog as
blog can launch successfully. It’s important to the firm: The New York a training tool for their HR execu-
maintaining readership and encour- Times, The Wall Street Journal, tives. Additionally, as a result of
aging repeat visits that’s the difficult BusinessWeek, Inside Counsel, and their exposure through the blog,
task. The best way to entice return popular HR Web sites and trade Julie and other Ford & Harrison
visits is by using a consistent format. magazines. As news about the blog attorneys now receive frequent calls
In the case of That’s What She Said, spread and traffic increased to from top-tier media seeking com-
Julie assigns a litigation value to 12,000 hits a day, unexpected cov- ment on general HR issues unrelat-
each episode of The Office. The erage of the blog followed, as was ed to The Office or the blog. Lastly,
number is a dollar estimate of how the case when New York Magazine Ford & Harrison is considering addi-
much the outlandish behavior of called the blog “brilliant” in their tional ways to leverage the blog’s
Michael Scott and the other Dunder popular “Approval Matrix.” success (e.g., hosting casual
Mifflin employees would cost Thursday night “Office parties” and
real-life companies to defend in promoting it to larger audiences
employment lawsuits. The litigation With the right marketing through event sponsorships with
value is consistent throughout Julie’s groups such as the Society for
posts and attracts people to come Human Resource Management).
plan, any blog can launch
back each Friday to see how much
financial damage Michel caused on CONCLUSION
the previous night’s show. successfully. It’s maintaining This is our firm’s positive experi-
The Launch ence. Because they present a
When it came time to launch the unique communications tool for
blog, publicity efforts were focused readership and encouraging attorneys, legal blogs will continue
on three unique sectors: law and HR to grow in number and popularity.
for the legal advice, and entertain- Like Ford & Harrison’s That’s What
ment given the pop culture status of repeat visits that’s the She Said, the best of the bunch
show. Outreach went beyond tradi- will be distinctive, consistent, and
tional media in each sector, and to well-marketed.
difficult task.
generate real grassroots buzz, con-
siderable attention was paid to That’s What She Said can be read
other blogs (the blogging communi- FUTURE OF THE BLOG online at www.hrheroblogs.com.
ty is close-knit and relies heavily on While the blog is currently only
networking and cross-promotion). authored by Julie, the entire firm
As a result of the launch strategy, takes ownership of it and is proud
That’s What She Said received cov- to promote it. For instance, the firm
erage in all three areas of focus — sent an announcement about the
from The Wall Street Journal to the blog to many of its clients and con-
Life section of USA Today. As tacts. A number of attorneys sent
expected, other blogs were the first clients a copy of a large, front-page
to pick-up on the story, either post- business feature story that appeared
ing Ford & Harrison’s news release
or writing their own reviews.
Having That’s What She Said
in several major Gannet newspa-
pers. The feedback was overwhelm-
ing positive — clients appreciated
—❖—
mentioned in the Life section of USA the firm’s creativity and uniqueness,
Today or on a popular entertain- which reinforced why they had cho-
ment blog might not seem to make sen Ford & Harrison in the first
immediate sense in terms of busi- place. One client shared the blog Reprinted with permission from the April 2007 edition
of the LAW JOURNAL NEWSLETTERS - MARKETING
ness development for the firm. with her CEO, who subsequently e- THE LAW FIRM. © 2007 ALM Properties, Inc. All rights
However, every placement raised mailed it to all of the company’s reserved. Further duplication without permission is prohib-
ited. For information, contact 212-545-6111 or visit
the blog’s profile and generated managers, encouraging them to visit www.almreprints.com. #055081-05-07-0005