12 Big Trends Facing the Legal Media, PR and the Business of Law

Posted on April 1, 2016

March 21, 2016

 

Last Thursday I spoke on a panel in San Francisco with Jenna Greene, editor of the AmLaw Litigation Daily, and David Houston, editor of the Daily Journal — who is also my former boss.

The event, titled “What’s Now & What’s Next for the Legal Press,” touched on trends in the legal media and, of course, tips for PR people trying to put their best foot forward to get coverage from reporters and editors.

One of the trends I think we all spotted was the increased need for media outlets to publish quick, bloggy articles on a consistent basis. So in keeping with that, below I’ve listed a breakdown of what I remember to be the key takeaways from this LMA event.

Let us know what you think.

Trends in the Legal Media
Increased competition in the legal market is driving more lawyers and vendors to produce commentary.
Everyone has to do more with less: quicker, bloggier, shorter.
Video is the new big thing.

Do’s and Don’ts for Law Firm PR
Don’t try to control the story. Asking for quote review on simple stories will earn you a reputation of wasting reporters’ time.
Play the role of facilitator.
Don’t dress up press releases with fancy colors and formats – the information matters.

Trends in Social Media
For the most part, lawyers aren’t using Twitter.
Lawyers use LinkedIn and seem to have started using it as a publishing platform.
LinkedIn is using its data to serve as a match-maker between legal service buyers and lawyers.

Legal industry stories to watch
The rise of the boutique.
Changes in corporate law departments.
Big firm merger mania.

 

Casey Sullivan

Casey Sullivan writes and edits Big Law Business. Email him with tips, press releases and inquiries at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @Casey_BigLaw

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