Why bother to write an article if no one reads it?
Too many lawyers think that merely writing and publishing an article somewhere–anywhere–helps their rainmaking. These lawyers delight in checking off “write/publish article” from their Rainmaking To Do List.
Yes, publishing articles can boost client development–but only if the articles attract the attention of potential clients. Just getting published is not enough. By analogy, if a tree falls in the forest and no one hears it…does it really make a sound?
Earlier this month I listened to a panel of journalists talk about how law firms can interact well with the media and attract coverage. The panel shared lots of good suggestions: customizing story pitches to each publication; contacting, but not pestering, journalists; and making sure that a story idea is truly newsworthy, up to date, and timed right for the particular media outlet (e.g. whether daily, weekly or monthly).
Panel member Mary Flood, a lawyer turned journalist, shared some witty insights with the audience. According to Mary, lawyers, law firm marketers and PR firms too often pitch stories devoid of interest. Instead, lawyers and their staff should try to pitch (or, during an interview, let the journalist uncover) story ideas that are really novel, interesting, unusual and off-beat. Those are the stories that will capture a journalist’s (and a reader’s) imagination.
You can use that same principle when writing your own articles for publication. Don’t just dryly report facts. Try to take a new and interesting approach to your subject, even if you are writing on an esoteric topic for fellow lawyers. Interject stories, quotes and anecdotes to add interest. Try to find an unusual twist to your topic.
Perhaps most important, engross your reader from the get go. Make your title so intriguing, unusual or shocking that you grab each reader’s attention by the throat, so to speak. Mary Flood, who used to write for the Wall Street Journal and now writes for The Houston Chronicle (including in her Legal Trade blog), chatted with me about this after the panel discussion. I was flattered to know that Mary had read my blog several times–when a blog headline had caught her eye.
Headlines are the critical point of entry for any reader; if titles are too boring–or too offensive–readers may bypass your article. For lawyers working across cultures, make sure that your titles and content are culturally appropriate for your readership. What’s considered clever, engaging and engrossing in the States may be confusing, misunderstood or wholly inappropriate abroad.
Any writer has but a few seconds to ensnare a reader. So, crown your articles with enticing titles; grab your reader’s attention by the throat; and then don’t let go.
A few days after posting Plum Lucky Lawyers Probably Advertise in Color, I noticed that Akin Gump’s newest home page incorporates this very berry hue. Maybe Madison Avenue proposed the color–or perhaps a trend-savvy AG lawyer. Regardless, kudos to the firm on its plum choice.
Which colors appear in your law firm ads? Grey? Probably. Plum? Probably not.
Yesterday’s New York Times explored the current wave of popularity for plum. As described, corporations both big (American Express) and small (PlumChoice Online) are incorporating berry-tinged hues into their products and advertising. Experts describe the color plum as everything from zesty and distinctive to regal and sophisticated. Madison Avenue has gone plum crazy for plum.
Madison Avenue–but not law firms.
While walking in an airport yesterday, fresh from reading the Times’ plum-focused pontification, I spotted a large but dreadfully boring law firm billboard. Not only did the ad’s taglines mix metaphors, but the ad sent its incongruent messages in black and white. Stark black and white–no other colors.
Why do so many law firms stick with conservative colors like grey, white, black and beige? Not that I’m recommending plum per se, but I do suggest that lawyers step out of their comfort zone and create zippier, more colorful ads. Too many law firm ads (and websites) look, feel and sound exactly the same. They are not memorable, and clients can’t tell the difference among them.
Many lawyers hire me to help distinguish their firms in the crowded international field. All to often, the lawyers and firms do not stand out from the rest. And very often, the law firms’ advertising is too boring.
Snappy advertising in an attractive and interesting color palate communicates that a law firm is innovative–and it makes prospective clients take notice.
So, will law firm ads ever include unusual colors–like plum? Who knows? One day, a lawyer may dare to advertise in plum–and become the plum luckiest lawyer of all.
Last week’s meeting of the ABA’s Section of International Law offered a lot of interesting sessions, including one on the importance of branding. Life and career coach Diane Costigan led the session, discussing how to define a lawyer’s brand (his/her reputation), and how a lawyer can improve his/her brand (take responsibility for mistakes and work hard, among other things).
Diane also discussed “brand blockers”, which are behaviors or traits that block the positive parts of a lawyer’s brand. She listed stress, disorganization, poor communication skills, and time management problems as some of the most common brand blockers.
Of course, poor judgment and resulting faux pas can also block a brand. Diane regaled the audience with stories of some of the most notorious summer associate faux pas–from the sublime (accidentally hitting “reply all” to a corporate department email, and complaining about the boring corporate department attorneys) to the ridiculous (drinking too much at a recruiting party, jumping naked into a river thereafter, and then resisting arrest).
Even lawyers who are well past the summer associate years can block their brands; they, too, must ask themselves, ”Am I engaging in behaviors that “block” the good aspects of my brand? Do any of my habits sabotage my reputation–and thus my professional success?”
Many lawyers don’t realize how their unflattering personal habits (like sloppiness, tardiness, and procrastination) really do negatively impact their professional reputation. Even their behavior outside the office can negatively influence their brand.
During the session at the conference, I shared a story of one talented lawyer who sabotaged his success by behaving like a jerk outside the office; as an overly aggressive parent who yelled at referees during his children’s soccer games, he unwittingly lost the respect of the other parents–many of whom were prominent leaders in his community–and potential clients. This lawyer had to be coached about how to dilute his negative brand as a “jerk” and regain the respect of his fellow professionals in the community.
Do you know whether you are engaging in brand blocking behaviors? To find out, and as discussed in my prior blog post, ponder what would your clients say about you? Try this simple exercise for some answers. Email more than a dozen clients, colleagues and co-workers and ask them to reply honestly with 5-10 words or phrases–positive AND negative–that describe you. The feedback may be enlightening–and you may uncover some big brand blockers that beg to be discarded.
For tips on how to Become a Versatile, Flexible, Nimble–and Exceptional–International Lawyer, read my latest article for the international column of The Complete Lawyer online magazine. Click on the links to read the article on the TCL website, or peruse the text below:
Become A Versatile, Flexible, Nimble—And Exceptional—International Lawyer
Adjust your international practice to meet market demands.
By JANET H. MOORE
Become A Versatile, Flexible, Nimble—
And Exceptional—International Lawyer
International lawyers need to spot issues that arise both across jurisdictions and outside their expertise
By Janet H. Moore
Click these links for a specific section or read the entire article below:
- Be Versatile, Flexible and Nimble To Succeed In International Law
- Gain Exposure to Different Legal Systems and Jurisdictions
- Spot Critical Issues
- Adjust Your International Practice To Meet Market Demands
Exceptional international practitioners realize that remaining versatile, flexible and nimble benefits their practice. This versatility helps them resolve client inquiries—even though clear-cut answers across legal systems are often impossible to find. Good international lawyers know how to handle this uncertainty by drawing on their wealth of experience when advising their clients. They are able to notice and analyze important issues in complex international matters, and track down the requisite answers from foreign counsel, original legal sources and other resources.
Law firms are beginning to acknowledge the benefit of such versatility. According to David Morley, Worldwide Managing Partner of the London-based Magic Circle firm Allen & Overy, “…we need to develop versatile lawyers capable of working in more than one discipline. So when a partner has career discussions with an associate who wants to experience other practice areas, we must encourage that where we can.” 1
Gain Exposure To Different Legal Systems and Jurisdictions
How can international practitioners enhance their versatility? Gaining exposure to legal issues in different geographic areas, under different legal systems (such as Sharia and civil law, as well as common law), and in a variety of legal disciplines, will broaden a lawyer’s experience.
As Gerard Meijer, a partner with the Benelux firm NautaDutilh who specializes in international commercial litigation and arbitration notes, “As a litigator, I have become versatile as I have acted in a wide variety of disputes.”
In fact, Gerard’s international practice has exposed him to clients and issues across the world. “We represent a Dutch insurance company in an investment arbitration against the Republic of Poland regarding the Republic of Poland’s refusal to comply with its commitments to transfer shares in a Polish insurance company to our client. We also act for a UK defense company regarding the setting aside of an arbitral award between our client and the Iranian Ministry of Defense. At the moment, I also sit as arbitrator (inter alia in a matter regarding the distribution of professional skates in Korea).”
Like Gerard, many international practitioners handle matters involving a wide variety of jurisdictions. Looking for opportunities to become familiar with the laws of various jurisdictions, and to get some real world experience in those venues, will increase an international lawyer’s effectiveness and prepare him or her for whatever arises.
Salli Swartz, a partner in the Paris-based firm Phillips Geraud Naud & Swartz, often works on complex border transactions involving multiple jurisdictions. As an American trained attorney who now lives and practices in France, Salli specializes in assisting foreign companies investing or otherwise doing business in France. During one transaction she found herself “drafting and negotiating in the English language when I was the only native English speaker present: the others were from 6 different countries with 6 different languages and at least 3 different legal systems and all of them thought that their English was better than mine!! For one simple sentence there were 6 different interpretations of the meaning.” Having an understanding of the laws of these different jurisdictions helped Salli handle this situation with aplomb.
Spot Critical Issues
Becoming versatile as an international lawyer does not mean becoming an expert in multiple fields. No practitioner can master and keep up with the countless legal specialties that exist. However, an international practitioner should try to amass enough knowledge to be able to identify critical issues on a client’s behalf.
Sébastien Savage, who practices in the Montreal office of Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg, may face hundreds of different issues in any given month, which makes his work challenging and exciting. “Sure, it is stressful,” he says, “but I firmly believe that staying flexible and versatile as an attorney has enhanced my practice, both in terms of the number of clients and in terms of the quality of services delivered.”
Sébastien also stays informed about his clients’ businesses: “I find that the more I know and the better I understand the businesses of my clients, the better equipped I am to face the requirements of evolving in a global economy.”
Lawyers living and working in foreign offices particularly need to be able to spot issues. Rather than remain isolated from the wealth of knowledge in their home offices, these foreign-based attorneys must sharpen their issue-spotting skills so that they can raise red flags when needed.
Once an international attorney spots an important issue outside of her expertise, she must then know how to resolve it. Sometimes this requires bringing in foreign counsel, and perhaps most important, knowing the right questions to ask in order to get a clear response. For example, asking a civil law lawyer questions while using purely common law concepts and lingo will confuse the situation—and may result in an inaccurate or unclear answer. Salli Swartz notes the particular challenge of “trying to explain to American/Anglo Saxon legal systems clients the differences between consequential damages under U.S. law and direct damages under French law…”
Many successful international lawyers improve their understanding by digging into the original legal sources—even those written in foreign languages—rather than relying on secondary translations. Using a dictionary, and comparing an original legal text with multiple English translations of it, can give a lawyer critical insights about what a foreign law really says and means.
Adjust Your International Practice To Meet Market Demands
Sometimes a lawyer plans to develop a particular international specialty, but client and market demands cause the lawyer’s practice to evolve in a different way. A versatile international lawyer is well positioned to respond to these changes. As Ed Lebow, who practices in Haynes & Boone’s Washington, D.C. office, explains, “My college concentration was in Japanese language, history and culture, and that set me up to handle antidumping cases for Japanese clients into the middle 1990’s. However, with the changes in the Japanese economy and the decreasing number of new US antidumping cases brought each year, particularly against the Japanese, I needed some flexibility. For me, that has meant a subtle shift in both my subject matter and geographic emphasis. While I still do handle antidumping and countervailing duty reviews, much of my newer work is in the much more active area of ITC Section 337 investigations that address imports that allegedly infringe US patents. And my clients are now more likely to be located in India (dumping and countervailing duties) and Taiwan (Section 337) than in Japan.”
Having the flexibility and versatility to respond to market changes, as Ed does, helps an international practice thrive even when the market shifts.
In other words, versatility makes a lawyer more attractive to clients. As Gerard Meijer explains, “I really get the impression that clients appreciate that I have been involved in a variety of disputes, which gives the client the confidence that I can make myself familiar with their case.”
After all, that’s what all lawyers strive for: a client’s confidence and satisfaction.
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FOOTNOTES
1. “We Listened to Associates. Now Partners have to Do Their Bit”, TheLawyer.com, 23 October 2006.
