Are You A Lawyer Experiencing Blog Topic Burnout?

If blogging is a part of your law firm’s SEO campaign, you’ve probably hit a wall when it comes to finding fresh new topics to write about.

As a solo or small firm attorney, you probably started out with an incredible burst of passion, excitement, and energy – setting your sights on promoting yourself and establishing credibility.

And I bet it felt GREAT!

But while I don’t personally believe in “all good things must come to an end;” I have noticed that when it comes to blogging, it usually does.

Assuming you have a niche practice (and you should, wink wink), just how many times can you write about what not to say to insurance adjusters after a wreck or what the differences are between chapter 7 and 13 bankruptcy?

::yawn::

But before you throw in the towel, know that you’re not alone.

“Topic Burnout” happens to the best of us; even those who do it professionally for a living!

The first time I experiences this was three years into writing weekly blog posts for an urgent care clinic.

That’s right: weekly blogs for THREE YEARS.

That comes out to 156 different 600 word blog posts. All about health-based topics related to Urgent Care.

At this point not only do I feel like a self-proclaimed medical expert, but I also started to really dislike coming up with topics and writing posts for this client. So much so that I almost threw in the towel…

But I didn’t, because we LOVE this client!

And you CAN’T, because this is YOUR business!

Future client leads are on the line, so you can’t afford to call it quits.

So here are some tips that I used to recover from Topic Burnout, that I think can help you too:

 

• Look to your clients

 

Every client interaction is a potential blog topic. These topics are pretty universal but seeing as how all clients are different you’ll have variations on each – giving you even more topics.

1. What do clients ask about in emails? Bonus: You likely have these answers stored in your inbox, so you can just cut and paste to get started!
2. During initial consultations, what do potential clients ask?
3. What questions should clients ask but often do not?

 

• Holiday and events

 

This one just involves Googling a list of holidays, commemorative dates, awareness dates, and annual or seasonal events! It’s an easy way to create timely, relevant law firm blog content.

How can law firms benefit from this?

1. DWI/DUI law firms could blog about major holidays that are likely to involve alcohol consumption, such as New Year’s Eve, Mardi Gras, 4th of July or St. Patrick’s Day.
2. Personal injury law firms can blog on awareness dates like Fall Prevention Week or Distracted Driving Month.
3. Employment law firms can write educational content for dates such as Women’s Equality Day or National Disability Employment Awareness Month.

 

• News and current events

 

You can use the news (anything from politics and legal developments to Justin Bieber running someone over) to explain legal issues to potential readers and tell how your firm handles would handle that topic.

1. Check to see what’s trending on social media
2. Are there any new legal developments about your practice area?
3. Can you spin an unrelated news piece into something that might be useful for your clients?

 

• Clear up confusing legal jargon and laws

 

Blogging on misunderstood and confusing legal matters can set your law firm up as a trustworthy source. Most potential clients don’t have a legal background and probably think the legal process is confusing or intimidating. After all, wouldn’t you like your clients to better understand what’s going on in their case?

1. Family law attorney: Misunderstanding of Common Law Marriage, Spousal and child support scenarios
2. Patent and Trademark attorney: Misconceptions about trademarks
3. Criminal defense attorney: Misunderstanding the first amendment / freedom of speech, differences in assault and battery
   

 

• List, List List

 

Numbered list and how-to’s outperform other post types because it caters to the readers short attention span, allowing them to skim your content and take in the information quickly.

1. How to pick the right attorney
2. How to file a claim
3. How to deal with insurance adjusters
4. Top 5 ways …
5. 10 Reasons why…
6. Top secrets to…
7. 5 Favorite…
8. 10 mistakes…

 

So, that’s it. There are my 5 ways to avoid blog topic burnout.

But what about you? Have you struggled with blog burnout?  What did you do to get over the hump?  How many blogs have you given up on?  

I’d love to hear your ideas.  

We can all learn a little something from someone else’s ride on the struggle bus.