Lawyers sell their knowledge and know-how. But how does one demonstrate what they know or that they are a player in a particular field? Jennifer Schaller joins us on the Legal Marketing 2.0 podcast to discuss content marketing, and in particular, thought leadership marketing.

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Our guest, Jennifer Schaller, is the Managing Director and co-founder of the National Law Review on-line edition. She started her career as an insurance coverage attorney and most recently, served as in-house counsel. She’s also held marketing and business development roles and she brings that uniquely varied background to our conversation. Twitter: twitter.com/JeniSchaller

Do you see a trend in law firms producing more content?

Firms used to have newsletters that focused on firm news, but now they are understanding that offering knowledge in the form of thought leadership content is much more valuable. Law firms are now producing more high-end, well written content than in the past. Firms are also beginning to understand SEO concepts more which encourages them to write longer pieces that go deeper into topics.

Do you find that the strategy behind content is lacking?

It depends on what the goals are and if there’s a structure behind the content marketing strategy. If it’s just people writing stuff, it tends to be more scattered and goals are less likely to get accomplished consistently. It takes a collaborative effort and people need to keep goals in mind for each piece of content produced.

What exactly is content marketing?

It’s ultimately thought leadership marketing  in which you are sharing your knowledge and expertise through content. Develop content around common client questions in order to provide useful information. If clients see that you’re answering questions that they have, they are more likely to find you online and want to work with you.

How does content play a role in the relationship between attorneys and in-house counsel?

Content can be the deciding factor when in-house counsel is choosing an outside firm. When choosing the right attorney or law firm in-house counsel may base their decision off of not only the attorney bio and level of expertise, but the content that the attorney has published.

When your name is attached to great content that is relevant and specific to your practice area, it helps you stand out and connects with those looking for the type of knowledge that you offer.

How do attorneys share what they know in a particular field?

You have to begin with the end in mind. Consider who you want your audience to be and then cater the topics you write about to these clients and prospects. Start by thinking about the questions people are asking you, considering the geographic region you’re targeting, or writing for the audience within your industry.

Also, remember that it’s more important to have the right people reading your content rather than a lot of the wrong people.

How can lawyers get started with thought leadership marketing?

Lawyers can get started by taking small parts of their briefs or whatever they’re already researching daily and centering blog posts around these topics. From there, it’s essential to create an editorial calendar and decide how often you want to post each month.

There is also the opportunity for law firms who already have a content marketing strategy to optimize it for semantic search. They can do this effectively by tying content with social media and enhancing different parts of their law firm’s website.