Training Tips

On Behalf of | Jul 13, 2011 | General Concepts

People often look to attorneys for help when something in their lives has gone terribly wrong. If your practice includes personal injury or divorce, for example, you may be helping clients through one of the worst situations they will ever endure.

While the reality of your practice may dictate that your blog covers some difficult topics, readers may find an approach that is always serious or somber to be less than completely engaging.

A positive message can encourage engagement

It makes sense that many of the stories you share in your blog will highlight struggles that your potential client may be experiencing. Blog readers expect you to tell them the truth about what they need to know. It’s also true that blog readers in general tend to respond well to messages that are optimistic or inspiring.

If, for example, your practice focuses on birth injuries, you should certainly include compelling blog posts about the victims of obstetric malpractice. But these should not be the only stories you share. Including the occasional inspirational story — a child who has overcome cerebral palsy, for example — as a part of your mix will help you connect with your audience.

Imagine your blog as a conversation

We encourage you to think of social media as a tool for engaging readers in a conversation. Imagine having a meaningful discussion with someone in the target audience for your blog. You would probably share stories about the unfortunate circumstances that lead people to seek out your services, but you would also likely find yourselves talking about a recent success or an exciting new development that holds out new hope.

You would also probably find yourself sharing amusing anecdotes. Humor is a great way to connect in conversation, and it can be a potent tool for driving engagment through your blog. We certainly don’t advocate turning your blog into a comedy vehicle, but taking the occasional opportunity to “lighten the mood” can make your blog more appealing to readers. Where humor is concerned, simply rely on your natural conversational skills and use your best judgment.

Maintain a balanced message overall

In today’s often cynical media envionment, blog readers in general may expect a somewhat negative focus, but they also tend to respond well to messages that are optimistic or inspiring.

To put it another way, readers of a your blog may need to read about the sad stories or cautionary tales (or dry facts) in order to be better informed, but they will enjoy reading about a positive outcome or story of success-against-the-odds or humerous incident that points out a legal truth.

We recommend a balanced approach. Given the nature of most legal practices, there is little risk of consistently writing overly cheery, Panglossian posts. There is, however, a real risk that you may not be connecting with as many readers as you could if there is never a ray of sunshine from your blog.

In the end, sharing a positive outcome or uplifting message will speak to readers’ hopes rather than their fears. It will also speak to your humanity and relatability, which are incredibly important to how engaging your blog — and your practice — is to readers.