Promoting legal services online - plaintiff firms lead the charge

Social networking sites have become an important tool for attracting clients for legal services – especially for plaintiff firms. The article gives a number of examples of the ways firms are promoting their services online. Parker Waichman Alonso LLP took the initiative soon after the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig sank in the Mexican gulf, setting up websites that provided news related to the environmental disaster and calling on those affected to provide their names and contact information. The firm employs 20 technology specialists for its roughly 300 websites, and promotes the sites via search ads and social networking sites. The digital marketing budget is now over $1 million a year – about a third of the annual marketing budget. Sokolove Law LLC, a Massachusetts-based plaintiff firm, employs a digital marketing team of 20, and spends $12 million a year on digital marketing. One recently launched project is YazTalk.com, a website that supports litigation alleging that YAZ birth-control pills cause health problems. YazTalk.com includes blog posts, short videos and links to social networking sites.

Promoting legal services online - plaintiff firms lead the charge online.wsj.com Tue, Jun 15, 2010