Larry Bodine: Turning your bio into a magnet for business
As my regular readers know, I believe that most attorney biographies are a waste of valuable online real estate that only hit on one persuasive cylinder -- and not very well at that.
Marketing tools (and I include bios in this category) work best when they demonstrate three qualities (first outlined by Aristotle in his Rhetoric) -- intelligence, good character (shared values) and friendliness (concern for the client).
Most attorney bios attempt to demonstrate intelligence through a boring list of credentials, and totally ignore shared values and client-centricity. Intelligence can be further enhanced and client-centricity demonstrated by the use of good "case stories" (more than simple case citations) that show how you solve problems for clients. Shared values can be demonstrated by personal quotes that demonstrate your personal and professional character.
Lawyer and consultant Larry Bodine elaborates on this subject in an excellent recent article, "Turning your bio into a magnet for business."
Smart lawyers turns their bios into a marketing magnet that generates leads, as opposed to a mere resume or a CV, which recites only your education and epxerience. The trick is to turn a feature of yourself into a benefit to the client.
Bodine continues:
You may have a great resume, but it will just list all the place that you worked. But when you go into practice, your bio should answer these questions: What have you done for people? What have you accomplished? How have you helped people? Can you give me some examples? Writing a bio is completely different from a resume. it really requires a mental shift.
I agree completely. Invest in the re-writing of your attorney bio as a persuasive marketing document -- and then post this "profile" not only on your firm Web site, but also on the full range of relevant social networking and content sites. By doing this, you can easily and inexpensively "own" the first page of search results for your name.
