Whether you are a small or big law firm, getting a spotlight in the media can be a great way to boost your legal authority and law firm’s brand image with the public.
There are three big advantages to being featured:
- More credibility with clients.
- More potential backlinks for your SEO strategy.
- More client referrals.
Recently, you might have seen your competitor’s firm getting featured in a news article or being interviewed on TV.
At the time, you were thinking to yourself, “Hey! Why didn’t that news reporter reach out to me for that story? I know more about that legal topic than my competition does!”
The reporter never reached out to you because they did not know how or why to reach out to you. For some reason however, they knew about reaching out to your competition.
Your competing law firm has been going out of its way to network with journalists, reporters, and build connections with people in the media. They’ve been blogging about these experiences and adding the stories they’ve been featured in on their website.
This has been the secret for them getting featured and getting all of the media attention!
Let’s review some options so you can do the same for your law firm.
A Press Release For Your Law Firm
Publishing a press release is the fastest way for you to get your law firm’s brand mentioned in the news. You can use many distribution services, and the cost varies depending on the industry.
The Legal and Finance industries are the most expensive because of the quality writing which is required. Another reason is the competition for getting your Press Release picked up in quality publications.
To help guarantee that your law firm’s press release gets picked up on big sites like Time, Forbes, Life, and mainstream news sites, services like NewsWire offer a guaranteed media placement program.
It won’t be cheap though, expect to pay upwards of 2,500 dollars or more for this type of premium PR Distribution service.
There is a cheaper option if you are just looking for local news media coverage and don’t have high expectations for the exact sites you get picked up on.
You can do a standard Press Release for around $500 to $1,500 dollars and still get picked up by many local affiliate sites for Fox, CBX, ABC, etc.
Should you go directly or use an agency?
Instead of going directly to a PR Distribution company like NewsWire, EIN PressWire, or PR Newswire, it’s best to go through a Legal Digital Marketing or PR Agency. They’ll save you lots of time by knowing which distributions have the best deals for the kinds of sites you want to get featured on.
Plus, an agency will know precisely how to write your press release and get it approved for distribution!
Another huge advantage of working with agencies is the volume discounts they get from the PR Distribution companies. Because agencies get a better deal on publishing costs, they can add even more value working with you.
Qwoted and HARO Services
There are mailing lists that exist called Qwoted and Help a Reporter Out (aka HARO.) These services connect reporters and journalists with sources.
Someone from your law firm could join one of these mailing lists as a source and read the various emails that get sent out asking for information about a particular story that a journalist is working on.
When a request comes up for a story relating to a legal topic your firm can comment on, you’ll have a great chance of being featured in that article.
Many of these big stories will end up on big news sites like Forbes, Fox Business, CNN, ABC, or other influential blogs for your industry.
Both HARO and Qwoted have plans where you’ll need to pay a monthly fee to have priority access to pitching. HARO will be your best choice if you are just looking for a free plan.
Social Networking With Other Legal Bloggers, Journalists, etc.
If you read law blogs or news articles regularly, you can begin commenting on stories you read if comments are allowed. This will boost your name brand with the writer of that story. You can also follow that writer on their social media profiles.
LinkedIn, Instagram, and Twitter are excellent social media platforms for following news writers and members of the media.
Show a writer your expertise by commenting and interacting with them on various topics and ideas they post or write about.
Over time, that writer will remember your name, significantly increasing your chances of being contacted directly for an upcoming news story they are working on, and an expert legal source is needed.
Being The Local Subject Matter Expert For Your Legal Field
If you network with enough people in your local city, you will eventually become known as the local legal expert in your field.
Other small business owners at events through local business associations like your Chamber of Commerce are the best people to network with. You can even check sites like MeetUp and see if any legal organizations in your area host events.
Over time, you will cause a network effect and get connected with contacts in the local news to get quoted for a story.
Coincidence, Luck, and Being in the Right Place at The Right Time
A lot of lawyers get in the news because they are just in the right place at the right time.
So it’s recommended to engage with anybody in your social circle regularly. Also, go to events in your local city where you think you can build a connection with someone in the media.
It could happen that you bump into a media person at a local event you are hosting or giving a donation on. The possibilities are endless!
The bottom line is this: Sometimes, you’ll have luck on your side, and if all the right circumstances line up, you’ll land your name in a featured story because you never gave up trying.
Increase Your Chances Of Luck and Getting Mentioned By Doing Something NewsWorthy
To add more to the idea of coincidence, luck, and being in the right place at the right time, lawyers and law firms who have a Blog, Youtube Channel, or a Book, etc., can greatly increase their chances of being discovered by the media.
You’ll most likely get discovered by someone in the media doing a Google search, or browsing on YouTube. Then, they magically click on your article or watch your video. Now, call it luck or what have you, but next, they’ll be reaching out to you for a quote on an up-and-coming news story.
Here’s a list of ideas to pull some inspiration from:
- YouTube channel
- Blog For Your Law Firm
- Writing a Book
- Publish an article about a big deal you won for your client.
- Host a Charity or Volunteer Event.
- Highlight a News Event that happened recently on your law firm’s blog.
- The list can go on forever, so never stop brainstorming for ideas.
Consistency, Patience, and Follow-Up
If you are consistent, patient, and follow up with your contacts on an ongoing basis, you’ll always be on the top of the list for a referral to a media request for a source on a legal news story.
This involves keeping your blog up to date, checking in daily with emails from HARO or Qwoted, being available to meet people at live networking events, and providing the best possible legal services for your clients.
Final Thoughts
Many of the ideas we have listed for getting your law firm featured sound time consuming.
The fact of the matter is that it is time consuming.
If you are a new lawyer just starting your law firm, it may make sense for you to invest a bit of time building out your connections until you get busy handling cases for clients, etc.
If you are a more prominent, more established law firm, the better way to go is probably publishing a press release and working with an outreach team to build your PR Connections for you.
Either way, the fact remains that blogging and content marketing is the secret to attracting journalists and new clients to your law practice.
If you need any help with your SEO Content Marketing, please get in touch with us here at Real Authority media for help. We’ll gladly answer all of your questions and never pressure you to sign up for any of our services.
