As any Avvo user knows, professional profiles include any discipline imposed by licensing bodies. Suspensions, probations, licensing conditions – if the State Medical Board, State Bar or other licensing authority has imposed discipline, we will include it in the doctor or lawyer’s profile.

What are people not always aware of? First, Avvo does not have a direct feed into state discipline systems. There is a lag time between when discipline is imposed and when it is reflected in an Avvo profile. And second, we’re scrupulous about only including final discipline. We do not publish complaints or allegations. And we don’t include criminal or civil penalties, unless and until they result in discipline. We made the decision long ago to not substitute our judgment for that of the licensing authorities.

Given the delay inherent in the system, we greatly appreciate it when members of the public bring professional discipline to our attention prior to our update process picking it up. We’ll quickly confirm it with the licensing authority and then update the profile on an ad hoc basis.

However, it’s important to keep our point about professional discipline in mind. Just because you believe a professional is less-than-ethical or has a shady background is not going to cause Avvo to change that professional’s profile. We’ll screen the information to make sure there’s no professional discipline we’ve missed, but that’s the end of it.

The Avvo Rating is simply a starting point for hiring a professional, and is based on a combination of peer review and objective information in a professional’s background (including discipline). Subjective concerns can be handled by leaving a review online detailing your experience, or by making a complaint to the licensing authorities. Just don’t expect us to weigh and consider the evidence you’ve sent us. We’re not the licensing authorities. But if you let us know the minute final discipline is imposed, we will promptly update a profile to reflect it. We promise.

We continue our Lessons from Lawyers series with an interview with New York personal injury attorney Dan Buttafuoco. As the Founder of Buttafuoco & Associates, Dan has been practicing law for 31 years and has handled over 100 juried and non-juried trials involving all aspects of personal injury, negligence, product liability and medical malpractice cases. He shares an interesting perspective representing clients in cases that involve high stakes and big rewards.

Avvo: What is the greatest thing about being a lawyer?
Daniel Buttafuoco: Changing people’s lives for the better. There is nothing quite like telling people you resolved their case for significant life changing money and that they can have a better future because of it.

Avvo: What’s the most challenging aspect of being a lawyer?
DB: Dealing with cold hearted and biased defense lawyers and insurance companies who minimize the toll of human suffering on the injured in an effort to make themselves more money.

Avvo: What was your first job as a lawyer?
DB: My first job as a lawyer was making $14,000 per year as a brand new litigator in a general practice firm, knowing nothing but being forced to learn quite quickly how to deal with arguing and presenting a case.

Avvo: Most significant change you’ve witnessed in the legal industry?
DB: The proliferation of attorney advertising where otherwise incompetent lawyers present themselves as “big case” experts to make a buck by getting your case and then settling it for a fraction of what it is worth.

Avvo: What’s one thing you wished you would have known or would have done differently when you first started out after law school?
DB: Honestly, nothing I can think of.  Maybe writing a book about trials.

Avvo: What advice do you have for a lawyer who wants to start and build their own practice?
DB: Don’t become a lawyer now! We have far too many lawyers already and there are not enough jobs. If you are already a lawyer, pick an area of law where you can do the most good for mankind. Personal injury law is great and does indeed help people but it is too saturated with mercenary lawyers who only care about making money.

Avvo: What is your best tip for managing work/career and life balance?
DB: Never forget your family. Work in such a way that you don’t have to put in too many weekends at the office. Balance is key here. It is not about your ego but about being effective at managing your cases and your time. Take only the cases you can devote the time to with these goals in mind.

Avvo: If you had one non-billable hour free during your day, how would you spend it?
DB: Praying for my clients.

Avvo: What were the three most important things you’ve done to build your professional network?
DB: One – Winning big cases and advertising our results; two – speaking at various events and three – donating lots of money to great causes.

Avvo: Who is your favorite fictional lawyer?
DB: Robin Hood (not a lawyer but he always looks out for the downtrodden in society). He delivers his own brand of justice in favor of the weak against the evil and greedy.

Find Dan on Avvo

Connect with Dan on Twitter

Next up on our series Lessons from Lawyers is New Hampshire attorney Ryan Russman.  Ryan has been running his own DUI and Personal Injury practice, Russman Law, for 12 years.  We asked him about the challenges, as well as the successes he was experienced as a solo practitioner and how he has built his professional network.

Avvo: What is the greatest thing about being a lawyer?

Ryan Russman: The greatest thing about being a lawyer is being able to use my strengths as a persuasive advocate to help people who are in need. Every day presents new challenges and new opportunities to apply my strengths in the courtroom.

Avvo: What’s the most challenging aspect of being a lawyer?

RR:  Balancing the need to be a lawyer as well as a businessman. In law school there were no courses offered on the subject of how to run a law practice, whether it is a solo practice or a large firm.

Avvo: What was your first job as a lawyer?

RR: My first job was in a small criminal defense firm in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. I met my future employer while I was interning at the prosecutor’s office.  I presented a motion for the State in a high-profile sexual assault case. The lawyer who was defending the accused citizen recognized my talents and offered me a job at the conclusion of the trial.

Avvo: Most significant change you’ve witnessed in the legal industry?

RR: The emergence of technology as a means of enhancing storytelling for the jury.  As a society we expect pictures, video and other multimedia presentations. The command of technology in the courtroom is becoming as important as oral advocacy.

Avvo: What’s one thing you wished you would have known or would have done differently when you first started your own practice?

RR: The one thing that I wish I had known was how much time would be devoted to the marketing and business side of the operation. I would have availed myself of courses relating to office management, marketing, and record-keeping to enhance my chances of success.

Avvo: What advice do you have for a new lawyer?

RR: My advice for a new lawyer would be to find a mentor, someone who is truly interested in your success as well as their own.  Experience is the best education.  Finding someone who is willing to share their experience with you will greatly enhance your chances of success.

Avvo: What advice do you have for a lawyer seeking a job?

RR: Lawyers seeking a job should offer their assistance at no charge to public institutions that need legal services. By demonstrating firsthand how your assistance can benefit them, you will earn a position with that organization.

Avvo: What is your best tip for managing work/career and life balance?

RR: Schedule personal time for yourself.  Without making yourself a priority, you will degrade the representation that you offer others by not being refreshed and excited to meet the challenges of the day.

Avvo: If you had one non-billable hour free during your day, how would you spend it?

RR: I would take the time and leave the office and get away from my work, so that I could return recharged and refreshed.

Avvo: What were the three most important things you’ve done to build your professional network?

RR: First, I give my best professional effort in every case – no matter how big or small.  Results build a reputation that others will aspire to and trust. Second, I take additional courses in my respective field to become the most proficient and educated advocate for my clients. By providing cutting-edge arguments for the Judge and jury to consider, your reputation as a zealous advocate will draw other professionals into your network.  Third, obtaining recognition by independent third parties such as Avvo, your peers as well as potential consumers, will be drawn to your professional network.  Trust is the foundation of any relationship.  Associating yourself with trustworthy organizations will enhance your professional reputation and ultimately lead to your own success.

Ryan Russman on Avvo

Ryan Russman on Twitter

In a dynamic legal industry where today’s demand for efficiency and the need to stand out competitively are higher than ever, firms must find alternatives to capture new business.   Refining your firm’s focus and narrowing in on a specialized area of practice can help you gain a competitive edge along with greater efficiencies and credibility.

Five years ago, my law firm made the leap of faith.  We changed the name of the law firm from Gursten, Koltonow, Gursten, Christensen and Raitt, to “Michigan Auto Law.”   Five years later, this decision has turned out to be one of the most important decisions we’ve ever made.  Here are some of the lessons we learned.

What’s in a Name?

Almost all law firm names are a series of last names of founding partners.  But unless you are one of the very few law firms in America spending a fortune on television, and perhaps radio and Yellow Pages, these names mean nothing to the average person on the street nor what areas of law you practice within.  Last names also do nothing to distinguish or separate yourself from any other lawyer.

Michigan Auto Law was very different.  Someone who glances at our website or business card knows immediately what type of law we practice.  And that glance immediately differentiates our lawyers from competitors.  Perhaps most important, it conveys that our law firm has deep subject matter knowledge and expertise.

Choosing a “dba” that clearly states the type of law you practice can distinguish you from other law firms, even other law firms that practice within the same area.

Marketing in the 21^st Century and the Google Age

Advertising legal services as a generalist isn’t only confusing to human beings, it’s  confusing for Internet search engines as well.  In the Internet age, niche specialization makes it easier for web crawlers and search engines to understand exactly what area of law you practice, just like it does for people.

A clearly stated area of practice- well-supported by content that’s thematically relevant and consistent – makes it easy for the search engines to understand and index your website.  This in turn improves how high your website shows up in search results, driving more traffic to your website and more incoming calls to your office.

Our firm’s decision to specialize was rewarded by increased traffic and new clients coming.  What had at one time been just one more unremarkable personal injury lawyer website became top in rankings for important keywords like auto accidents and truck accidents.

Other Advantages of Niche Specialization

Additional benefits to niche specialization, in addition to Internet marketing, include:

Persuasiveness and credibility -The more narrow your niche, the easier it is to establish yourself as the authority in that area of law and for people to perceive you immediately as an expert .

Recognition – Lawyers are more likely to refer cases to you if you specialize.  Your chances of being contacted by media as a source for comments will increase.  You will more likely be asked to speak at legal seminars on your area of expertise.

Increased efficiency. By focusing on only one type of law, your firm will be able to build an extensive document library and work product database that covers specific cases – routine and not routine.   The more you specialize, the more you will develop in-depth knowledge about your area of the law.

Reduction of costs -   Today, with only a few words typed in your document management system, attorneys can quickly find work product on almost every conceivable issue related to your niche area of law – from motions in limine filed in past trials to unusual lien situations.

Better use of forms – Niche specialization allows attorneys and staff to create interrogatories, motions and form documents quickly.

Better division of labor – Specializing allows lawyers to create systems and “go-to” people to add increased efficiencies.  With proper division of labor, complex tasks become easy to break down into simple tasks, which in turn become easy for staff to accomplish.

As you consider your future, consider narrowing the range of services you offer.  Choose carefully and make sure the geographical area you practice in can support a niche practice, or be prepared to travel.  The more narrow your niche — the more effective your marketing and Internet advertising will become.

Steven M. Gursten is a partner of Michigan Auto Law and is recognized as one of the nation’s top experts in serious car accident and truck accident injury cases as well as Michigan No-Fault insurance litigation. Michigan Auto Law recovered the top-reported car accident or truck verdict in 2008, 2009 and 2010, according to Michigan Lawyers Weekly.

You can read more on Steve’s Michigan Auto Lawyers Blog, follow him on Twitter as @MichiganAutoLaw or become a fan on his Michigan Auto Law Facebook page.

For the second year in a row, Avvo was named as one of the finalists for Washington’s Best Workplaces by the Puget Sound Business Journal.

The program was launched in 2007 to identify and recognize best practices in the hiring and retention of great people.  After an extensive and rigorous process workplaces in four different categories have been identified as Washington’s best, based on their various employee benefit offerings, leadership culture and work/life balance philosophies. The finalists – 25 small companies, 25 medium-sized companies, 25 large companies, and 10 extra-large companies – were celebrated at a one-of-a-kind awards event at Safeco Field last night.

Looking ahead we want more great people to join our team.  Avvo is hiring! If you or someone you know is looking for a position in marketing or sales, send resumes to jobs@avvo.com.

Last week Gina Rubel hosted a webinar all about integrated marketing for law firms. If you missed it, we’re happy to share the recording here! Also be sure to check out the schedule of upcoming free legal marketing webinars at Avvo.

Integrated Marketing for Law Firms with Gina Rubel from Avvo on Vimeo.

Yesterday, I talked with KIRO 7 news about a developing story: A man here in Seattle had left a negative Yelp review for his apartment management company. In an all-too-predictable turn of events:

- The management company sued him and subpoenaed his identity from Yelp.

- The reviewer went to the media.

- The story was blown far bigger than it ever would have been had the company not sued.

- In the face of this media attention, the company pulled the lawsuit back.

According to Greg Lawless, the attorney for management company David Poletti, the lawsuit was motivated by the need to correct some statements in the review that were “flat out wrong.”

And this is where things go off the rails. If you as a business owner get so focused on correcting the details in online feedback, you’ve already lost.

You see, it doesn’t matter if the details are wrong. In the vast majority of cases, it doesn’t even matter if the online comments are defamatory.

Your goal is to minimize the impact of negative online feedback. Your goal is to satisfy your customers, keep them coming back, and grow your business. Your goal is not to reflexively focus on everything being written about you being 100% accurate.

Any approach to online feedback – responding constructively, encouraging other reviews, ignoring it – is preferable to seeing your name splashed across the evening news as a business that sues its own customers.

Last week three bigwigs from Google did a panel interview where they talked about a variety of subjects. One particularly interesting bit was when Amit Singhal, the person in charge of Google’s ranking algorithm, revealed how Google goes about making changes to the algorithm.

Step inside the mind of Google

Singhal said that every year Google runs 20,000 tests to find ways to improve their algorithm, and 500 changes are made to the algorithm.  A test would be someone at Google saying, “I bet websites on co.cc domains are less pleasing to users than websites on .com domains. Let’s adjust the algorithm to ding co.cc websites and see if it produces better results.” Testing is a two step process first with humans testers and then with real users on Google. Here’s how it works.

First, Google runs an AB test with humans, in which two sets of search results, one from the test algorithm and one from the current algorithm, are run side by side for humans to pick which one they like better. This is a blind test where the humans don’t know which results are which.

If an algorithm tweak produces statistically better results with the human testers, the next step is to test that algorithm on Google.com using a tiny sliver of Google’s real traffic. But how does Google know if users like the new algorithm without asking them? The answer is that they monitor user behavior.

Google can infer that if a user hits the “back” button to click on other websites for the same search query, that he probably didn’t find what he was looking for. So, if the new algorithm tests well with real users, then a statistician compiles a report and finally a committee makes the decision to release the results to everyone.

What Google’s testing methodology means for you

If you thought SEO was all about stuffing the magic keywords into the code of your website, now you can see how myopic that approach is in modern times. Google inferring whether users like results by watching how often they click the “back” button is surely not something just confined to testing new algorithm tweaks — Google is undoubtedly monitoring this on a regular basis for all results. The full extent to which search engines are monitoring user behavior through browsers and toolbars came to the fore in a recent spat between Google and Bing over clickstream data.

Pleasing users is crucial

In the brave new world of SEO where Google can tell in real time how pleased users are, you need to ask yourself: “When a user types in XYZ and lands at my website, will they find what they’re looking for?” Every time a user clicks on your results from Google and then hits the “back” button to click on someone else’s site for the same search query, Google is watching and taking note.

That’s why even if there are tricks to manipulate Google into serving your website higher than others, all they do is buy you the chance to test your website with users. If the users don’t like it, Google probably won’t keep serving it highly.

So go ahead, dive into your web analytics to find what keywords people are typing in to find your website. Now type those keyword into Google yourself. Look at what other websites are also coming up on the first page of results. Then ask yourself, “Would I, as a user, be happier clicking on my page over the others?”

Use analytics to find your highest bounce rate pages and ask yourself if there are things you could do to make those pages more pleasing to users (if you don’t know what “bounce rate” is, how to install analytics or how to use it, then check out my analytics webinar for doctors tomorrow and for lawyers Wednesday).

How to make people happier

If you have enough traffic or can afford hundreds of human testers, you can be very scientific about what people like through testing.  At Avvo, with over 2.5 million visitors/month, we have that luxury and are constantly AB testing and making changes. But if you’re a solo lawyer, you probably don’t have that luxury – in order for you to achieve statistical significance, you’d have to wait months upon months to see results, or you simply don’t have the infrastructure or expertise to do proper testing.

But there’s good news. This doesn’t have to be an exact science. You can do what people have done for ages, which is put yourself into the shoes of your audience, ask yourself what they want, and then do your best to give it to them.

Pleasing users is the bottom line, and you’re just the person to do it

Pleasing users is to some extent a web design issue, but it’s also largely a content issue, which means you don’t have to be a web designer or marketing expert to make progress.

If you’re a lawyer, then you already know exactly what your clients want to know – you talk to them all day. If you answer questions on Avvo, you have an even bigger sample of what potential clients want to know.  Not only that, but you know the language they can understand, and you understand their decision process.

So, remember, when it comes to SEO make sure you have content that answers your visitors’ questions, and make sure you do it better than your competition. That’s because SEO in 2011 and beyond is as much about keeping visitors on your website as it is about getting them there in the first place.
икони на светци

Only five years ago, very few law firms had blogs, and law firm websites were nothing compared to what they are today. In a few short years, law firms have become incredibly Internet savvy, and many have embraced blogs as an outstanding way for lawyers to discuss important legal topics and even interact with potential clients. Though many of the country’s most popular legal blogs that discuss academia and current are group blogs, law firms have not embraced this model as universally, and typically rely on a single author. But law firms should not shy away from the group blogs, which can be incredibly effective if applied correctly.

To a certain extent, the prevalence of single-author law firm blogs makes sense, considering their numerous benefits. Channeling Outspoken Media guru Lisa Barone, Kevin O’Keefe notes that single-author blogs have a more unified voice, and enable the author to create a stronger personal relationship with his or her intended audience. This would be the best route for a solo attorney, or even some small law firms, which are often driven by the personality and direction of a single attorney.

But larger law firms, or firms that boast attorneys with a diverse collection of specialties, can draw more benefits from group blogs. O’Keefe also highlights the numerous benefits of group blogs, chief among them the ability to build a team of experts, and a larger pool of authors for readers to relate to. Law firms are uniquely suited to these advantages, since they often boast experts from a variety of practice areas among their ranks. A group personal injury law firm blog, for example, could assign blog posts to individual lawyers who specialize in bicycle accidents, motorcycle accidents, and pedestrian accidents, with a larger potential for connecting with specific readers interested in those topics.

This explains why legal academic blogs like PrawfsBlawg and The Faculty Lounge have been so successful. PrawfsBlawg, for one, includes a handful of permanent prawf-bloggers and adds a cohort of highly qualified guests each month. Each contributor is an expert in his or her field, be it criminal law, constitutional law, or corporate ethics, which facilitates a wide variety of topics, academic, political, and trivial in scope. The same is true of current-events focused blogs like Above the Law and The Volokh Conspiracy, which each draw on a group of bloggers and columnists to cover a variety of legal topics relatable to a diverse community of readers. This is clearly a successful strategy, as Above the Law and Volokh Conspiracy are currently the first and third most read legal blogs respectively.

So while law firm blogs don’t usually have the same popular appeal as legal tabloids and general interest blawgs, they can benefit from some of the group blog strategies that have catapulted mainstream legal blogs to the height of Internet prominence. Of course, getting lawyers at big law firms to blog is no small feat, since many attorneys are resistant to the Internet and bogged down by the billable hour. But if you’re currently the only author for your law firm’s blog, consider spreading the word about the many benefits of blogging. If you can coax even one or two other lawyers to contribute, you’ve created a group blog with a much larger potential audience.

If you’re interested in contributing to a group legal blog, don’t be shy. The current author of your law firm’s blog will almost certainly be excited to share the pedestal. Also consider reaching out to other group legal blogs, which are often eager to accept high quality blog posts on a variety of legal topics. Along these lines, I recently started a collaboration called GroupBlawg, with the goal of expanding the reach of smaller law firms and individual lawyers with fresh insight into legal topics.

It’s difficult to tell what role law blogs will fill in another five years, as law firms continue to adapt to the quickly evolving Internet. But you can be nearly certain that group blawgs will be a major part of the picture.

Ben Buchwalter is Director of Client Outreach for GJEL Accident Attorneys in northern California. Before joining GJEL, Ben studied political science at Haverford College and worked as a writer and researcher for Mother Jones Magazine and Talking Points Memo. Find GJEL at www.gjel.com, the blog at www.gjel.com/blog or on Twitter as @GJELblogger.Православни икони

I was looking at Phoenix bankruptcy lawyer Joseph McDaniel’s Avvo profile today and I got a good chuckle from his “About Me” section.  It says:

I’m the world’s most boring man.

How boring am I? My personality is so anti-magnetic I can’t carry credit cards. I have been known to induce narcolepsy by walking through a room.

When I was a kid, I read comic books, and wished for superpowers like super-strength, super-speed, or the ability to fly.

As it turns out, my super power is exactly the correct one for my profession as an Arizona bankruptcy attorney.

Being super-boring is helpful in dealing with terrified clients; they calm down almost immediately when they are fighting to stay awake.

And being super-boring is helpful when I’m dealing with very angry creditors; they forget to be angry when they’re dropping into a soporific state, and then they can think rationally, and decide whether they want to win, or they want more money under my suggested deal. More money always wins, when a large creditor is bored enough to be economically rational.

This seemingly whimsical snippet of Joseph’s Avvo profile is really quite brilliant.  While many lawyers have probably already scoffed at it, for his *target audience* it is spot on.  It adds levity and humanity to a potential client who has already lost a lot.  It basically says, “Let’s all calm down.  I have this bankruptcy thing so wired that we can joke about it a bit.”   

While it is surely not the only way to market a bankruptcy practice, I’ll bet it is highly effective in the highly stressful bankruptcy world.  I would be curious to know if Joseph has had prospective clients mention his self-description when contacting him.

Mark

икони