Law Firms and Web 2.0: Wiki Marketing

Yesterday the Wall Street Journal published an article entitled "The Secrets of Marketing in a Web 2.0 World." While many of the examples provided relate to consumer products marketing, there are also insights for law firm marketers and managing partners.

One Web 2.0 technique that some law firms are adopting is the use of "wikis," or web sites that allow visitors to add, delete, or edit content. The best known example of a wiki is Wikipedia.

Here are examples of a few law firms with a profile on Wikipedia:

Akerman Senterfitt
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akerman_Senterfitt

Baker & Botts
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baker_Botts

DLA Piper
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DLA_Piper

Greenberg Traurig
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenberg_Traurig

Howrey LLP
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howrey_LLP

Skadden Arps
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skadden_Arps

Surprisingly (or not), many major firms checked by this Rainmaking Lady were not present on Wikipedia. It does perhaps take a leap of faith and a deep breath to open up the firm's profile to all comers, but that is a trend being found on directories like Avvo and even the venerable Martindale.

Is a wiki right for your law firm? Only you can answer that. Perhaps the answer is yes, with regular oversight by your friendly marketing professional. The primary benefit is additional search engine visibility, which should be a top legal marketing priority.

Another variation on a wiki is to use one in a dedicated area of your law firm's web site, another I have not seen these in use yet.

Remember, you must be present to win on the Internet! If someone is looking for your services online but can't find you, you've just lost a qualified prospect.

Here's a related article on Wikipedia Marketing for law firms that I came across in this research:
http://www.articlealley.com/article_607635_18.html