November 08, 2009

Courthouse Libraries BC New Website

Courthouse Libraries BC have just launched their new website. The revamped online presence can be found at courthouselibrary.ca and represents a completely fresh take on how the organization interacts with its user base on the web. In addition to a significantly updated design, key features of the new site include:

* Integrated search - a single, powerful search application that can search any or all of 10 different library sources (e.g. the library catalogue, their in-house "asked & answered" database, their unreported decisions database, etc.);

* Practice Portals- practice-specific hubs designed to provide practitioners' with ready access to key resources, texts, legislation, leading authorities and recent news in a single environment. There are five practice portals initially (Civil litigation, Family law, Personal Injury, Wills & Estates, and Practice Management & Technology) with plans already underway to add more;

* User Accounts individual user accounts that can save preferences, order histories and searches;

* News filtering by practice area - self-explanatory; and

* A new blog, "The Stream" which will serve as a platform for Library staff to provide their insight and commentary on law and legal research developments relevant to British Columbia lawyers.

Also of key importance in my view is that CLBC's extensive involvement in the development and operation of a separate (and excellent) legal information site geared specifically to the public - CLICKLAW - has enabled the organization to focus the new Courthouselibary.ca site squarely on the needs of practicing lawyers. While both sites are fully accessible to anyone, separating out the offerings to cater more specifically to their respective user bases can only result in better user experiences across the board.

Skunkworks is proud to have been involved in several aspects of this project although full credit goes to our friends at Habanero Consulting Group for the top-notch site build and to the Courthouse Libraries' team for their vision both in engaging in extensive user consultation and research into what users wanted from a new library website and in their willingness to explore new approaches and priorities even where such choices represented fundamental shifts away from established library processes. It's accepted wisdom in marketing circles that brave clients make for interesting work. For me, this has been a textbook example of exactly that.

Posted by dougjasinski at 10:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

September 01, 2009

Dipity Timelines | Canadian Law Firms on Twitter

I have recently started exploring an extremely interesting new online application called Dipity. Simply stated, Dipity allows you to instantly visualize information in 4 different ways - as a timeline, as a flipbook (similar to Apple's "Cover Flow" if you are familiar with that) as a simple list, or as a map if your entries have a geographic component to them.

A very interesting aspect of the service is that it allows you to pull in all sorts of content (RSS feeds, twitter streams, photos, video, you name it). Feeds update automatically and you can also create manual entries.

Since a picture is worth a thousand words, I created a quick topic of "Canadian law firms on Twitter" by adding the rss feeds from the firms' respective twitter accounts. (The firms I have included are: Borden Ladner Gervais, Clark Wilson, Davis, Gowlings, Hicks Morley, McCarthy Tetrault, Ogilvy Renault, Oslers and Torys). Have a look below. The buttons in the top left corner let you switch between the 4 different types of view available, and the +/- slider bar directly underneath them is similar to the zoom feature on Google Maps, except that it is adjusting for time (i.e. view in hours, days, weeks, months, years) instead of space.

I think the potential of a visualization tool like this for lawyers is considerable. More on that in a future post. For now, consider this an introduction to the concept.

Posted by dougjasinski at 12:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

August 18, 2009

CNW Group White Paper on Social Media Use by Canadian Law Firms

CNW Group (formerly Canada NewsWire) has just released an 11 page white paper on Social Media Use by Canadian Law Firms. The report covers familiar ground for those who are already deeply immersed in the area, but for firms and lawyers who are just coming to the discussion, it provides a good overview from an independent 3rd party and introduces many of the key players in the Canadian legal social media community.

A hat tip to the one-man/law student publishing empire Omar Ha-Redeye for highlighting the document on SLAW.

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August 07, 2009

ICBC gearing up for trademark battle(s)?

Several articles are hitting the wires yesterday and today about the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia's decision to sue Stainton Ventures Ltd. the owner of the www.icbcadvice.com website for unauthorized use of ICBC's official marks. The website offers free advice to the public on dealing with ICBC, links to a variety of "recommended service providers" including plaintiffs' counsel, doctors, chiropractors, physio and massage therapists, and also offers for sale an ICBC advice Claim Guide book for $19.95.

According to ICBC's official news release the Corporation does not object to the content of the website or the manual but rather "it is concerned about the unauthorized use of its official marks and brand for commercial purposes."

In this Vancouver Province news story, ICBC spokesman Mark Jan Vrem says "the issue is they are using our name in their website address".

The Globe and Mail and CBC have also has also picked up the story - find the Globe article here. Find the CBC article here.

The story seems to have hit a public nerve, with over 80 comments on the CBC story online already but there are a couple of aspects that seem particularly relevant to the Plaintiff Personal Injury Bar in BC:

First, in answer to the "why now?" aspect of this lawsuit, it is interesting to note that in the Province story, the Corporation's spokesperson references the fact "ICBC is our registered trademark". A search of the CIPO trade-mark database indicates that the formal trade-mark application for the actual term "ICBC" was allowed by CIPO less than a month ago.

Second, ICBC's own press release as well as the news reports to date suggest there is more to come on this front, potentially setting the stage for a series of hotly contested legal battles with plaintiff lawyers who are using the term "ICBC" in their website urls or otherwise. Consider the following:

From the ICBC press release: Owners of several other websites have adopted and used ICBC's official marks for commercial and other purposes. ICBC considers each situation on a case-by-case basis, but always with the objective of doing what is required to protect its brand and the public."

From the Province story: "ICBC is our registered trademark, it is definitely something we have to protect going forward." [emphasis added] "He added ICBC is contemplating going after other websites like Stainton's that have 'ICBC' in their domain names."

From the Globe: "Mr. Vrem said the car insurer, in the future, will take a harder line against websites that use its name."

I have a sneaking suspicion we haven't heard the last of this one.

Posted by dougjasinski at 11:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

August 04, 2009

Who has the best Canadian Law Firm Website?

Jordan Furlong, intrepid editor of the Canadian Bar Association's NATIONAL magazine has launched a search for Canada's best law firm websites. He has hand-picked a group of judges to make the call, with the results being released this fall. Categories include:
1. Big Firm (national/multi-jursidictional
2. Small firm/solo
3. British Columbia
4. Prairies
5. Ontario
6. Quebec
7. Atlantic Provinces
8. Blogs [i.e. best blog(s) incorporated within a firm site]
9. Multi-media
10. Student/recruiting

The Financial Post/Legal Post's Mitch Kowalski is one of the judges and in a recent blog post invites you to contact him with your firm's site if you think you've got the right stuff. Deadline for submission to him is August 14, 2009.

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April 28, 2009

RSS in plain english

In my discussions with lawyers about blogs and internet marketing at various seminars and events it is usually the case that only a very small percentage are familiar with RSS feeds. In a nutshell, RSS "feeds" allow people to subscribe to the various websites, blogs or sections of websites that are of interest to them. It's an important technology for a whole myriad of reasons and "hardcore" technology and legal marketing folks tend to take it for granted but I think most lawyers are still at something of a loss as to what it is, how it works and why it matters. Therefore, I want to share one of Common Craft's terrifically simple "In Plain English" videos that explains RSS more clearly. (Also, credit to Rex Gradeless at Social Media Law Student for giving me the idea via his own blog which I am shamelessly poaching here because I think it warrants broad distribution).

Posted by dougjasinski at 04:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

January 14, 2009

Social Media For Lawyers Breakfast Seminar - LMA Vancouver January 21, 2009

For Vancouver area lawyers and legal marketers interested in the exploding world of Social Media/Social Networking and wondering what all the fuss is about, I will be presenting a breakfast session next Wednesday, January 21st at downtown law firm Farris Vaughan Wills & Murphy. Any and all interested parties welcome from committed luddites to the merely curious to hardcore techgeeks who will undoubtedly be able to teach me a thing or three along the way.

Details and registration information are available on the Legal Marketing Association Vancouver Chapter website.

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January 02, 2009

Seeking 16 BC Lawyers for focus group January 22, 2009

Courthouse Libraries BC is continuing the development of a major revamp of their web presence to be released later in 2009. As part of the development process, they are seeking input from 16 BC lawyers at a focus group session to be held on January 22, 2009 from 4:30pm-6:30pm. The feedback will help build a more lawyer-friendly end-product and is being facilitated by the good folks at Habenero Consulting.

If you are a British Columbia lawyer that wonders what really happens at focus groups, here's your chance to find out first hand while giving back to the profession at the same time. If you are available and willing to pitch in, please get in touch and I'll get you on the list!

Posted by dougjasinski at 01:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack

December 16, 2008

The Twitter Update: Day 90 and no end in sight

I noticed this morning that it was three months ago today that I wrote my first blog post about exploring social networking website/tool Twitter. At the time I expressed what I have come to learn is an almost universal initial reaction to the service: "I don't get it." (with an implied side helping of "and I don't think I want to get it either.")

Flash forward three months and I continue to be amazed that a service with such a seemingly built-in negative initial reaction can be exploding in popularity the way it has. But catch on it has, both with me and an awfully large number of others, both within and beyond the legal community.

A brief refresher for the uninitiated: Twitter is a service that lies in some new netherworld in between blogs and text messages. The heart of the service is a simple text box that allows you to write brief text-only messages of a maximum 140 characters. You can do it from a website. You can do it from your cellphone/blackberry/iphone. You use it to tell others in your Twitter network what you are working on, what you are currently up to, to pass along links to stories or sites that you think your "followers" might be interested in. When you log onto Twitter, you can see a simple reverse chronological listing of the various entries (called "tweets") posted by the other people you have chosen to include in your Twitter network. It looks like this:

And that's it. No more, no less. And yet that incredibly simple premise is proving incredibly popular - so popular in fact that Twitter has reportedly rejected a recent half-billion (yes you read that correctly) dollar offer from Facebook to acquire the service. Nielsen online has reported that Twitter was the fastest growing Social Network in the United States for September 2008, with year over year growth of 343%. Clearly, something is happening here.

That rapid growth is also being reflected in the legal space. Last month the Legal Marketing Association's Listserv was abuzz with debate amongst legal marketers over the importance of Twitter and other social networking services. Some see it as a distraction and the latest trendy topic du jour, while others think it's an important new development that needs to be better understood and taken seriously. I find myself squarely in the latter camp.

I would say that the negative aspect of my Twitter experience is that it has been in one sense what I feared at the outset - yet another piece of digital management in my already overly crowded workday. However, this negative has been overshadowed for me by the many positives I've also encountered - first off Twitter is EASY. It does not require the same kind of time commitment that maintaining a blog does for example. Additionally, it is not mandatory - If I miss a day, or a week, on Twitter the world will definitely not come to an end. And yet, it is also very powerful because the type of communication it fosters is a different one than we see in other contexts - there is a blend of personal and professional identities within Twitter communication that fosters a more personal, more informal tone than many of us are familiar with in the business context. The result is that I get a better sense for the people in my business network as people, and the relationships cement themselves a little bit deeper than they otherwise would. I've also found it to be an incredible source for breaking news and useful links to information relevant to my business that I would not otherwise have been exposed to. I think many lawyers will eventually embrace Twitter for some of these very reasons: it's fast, it's easy, and it's informative. Lawyers are - to borrow a phrase from my friend Kevin O'Keefe - Power Users of Information and Twitter is going to become one more arrow in their quiver.

For those interested in learning more, a couple of key links:
1. Steve Matthews introduction to lawyer marketing with Twitter

2. JD Supra's list of lawyers and legal professionals to follow on Twitter (This is a great place to start for building your network of people to "follow" on Twitter and continues to grow at a rapid pace).

3. Twitter.com - What are you waiting for?

Posted by dougjasinski at 11:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack

July 07, 2008

wine + marketing + law = new blog

In addition to being a lawyer, a computer programmer and an SEO wizard, Skunkworks' Technical Director Mark Hicken is also an avid wine buff - indeed his unofficial title at Skunkworks is "Agency Sommelier". Now he has combined that expertise into a new blog devoted to issues around the legal regulation and marketing of wine in Canada. He was also quoted in a recent National Post article on the highly regulated nature of the Canadian liquor distribution regime. Skunkworks' clients needing sage counsel on preferred vintages now know where to turn in their hour of need. . .

Posted by dougjasinski at 12:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

April 28, 2008

Take The BC Courthouse Library Website Lawyer Survey & Enter to Win an iPod Touch!

Skunkworks is currently working with our friends at the BC Courthouse Library Society to obtain user input and feedback in preparation for the redevelopment of the Courthouse Library website. One component of the process is a short 3-minute web survey for B.C. lawyers that will help us assess technology and online usage patterns for this key user demographic. Survey participants will also be entered to win one of two 8G iPod Touch music player/portable internet devices. Help us help the library build a better website by taking the survey today. You can access the survey here:

Posted by dougjasinski at 11:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

October 02, 2007

Video is coming to law firm websites

Earlier this month Skunkworks Creative Group launched a new law student recruiting micro-site for Vancouver law firm Bull, Housser & Tupper LLP that prominently features a multimedia section called BHTV. BHTV features video interviews of several of the firm's young associates speaking on topics such as the firm culture, their expectations and the reality of work at the firm, as well as a guided office tour.

My personal view is that you can expect to see a great deal more use of both video and audio content on law firm websites in the year(s) ahead. 5 key reasons why:

1. Video makes a law firm's core offering - it's people - the centerpiece of the marketing;
2. Video is an excellent tool to help law firms differentiate from their competitors;
3. Video is sticky, meaning that people will stay on your website longer;
4. Video is becoming more prominent both in other professional services and on the Internet generally; and
5. Video is becoming less expensive and easier to produce over time.

Will video replace the written word? (I am reminded at this juncture of the late 70's new wave song "Video Killed the Radio Star" by the Buggles) The short answer is no. But will most major law firms have at least some video content on their website within the next five years? My bet is yes, for the reasons already noted.

Posted by dougjasinski at 06:17 PM | Permalink

August 08, 2007

One more vendor for your legal marketing rolodex - Stem Legal

Call me a homer but I continue to be impressed by the depth and quality of service providers to the legal marketing industry coming out of the Vancouver market. Add to that growing list Stem Legal: www.stemlegal.com, the newest brainchild of Steve Matthews, formerly the Knowledge Services Director at Vancouver law firm Clark Wilson LLP, and the man behind the very popular Vancouver Law Librarian Blog.

Steve's work while at Clark Wilson demonstrated his extensive knowledge of internet marketing for law firms. Simply put, Steve was doing things several years ago that many large firms are still trying to get their heads around today - RSS feeds for one. Now he is offering that expertise on an outsourced basis to other law firms both here in Canada as well as in international markets. I suspect Steve's talents are going to be picked up on quickly by some of the larger American firms, but some of the savvy larger Canadian firms should consider getting in on the act as well. Steve is the real deal and a welcome addition to the Canadian legal marketing community.

Posted by dougjasinski at 02:45 PM | Permalink

January 15, 2007

Blogging among top concerns of in-house counsel according to Lawyers Weekly article

According to a new Lawyers Weekly article on concerns of in-house counsel blogging is one of the top concerns of in-house lawyers in Canada. The article cites a qualitative survey conducted by public relations firm Fleishman-Hillard Canada Inc. of a small group of corporate counsel. While litigation concerns, governance, and regulatory issues all were cited higher than blogging, the numbers for blogs were still noteworthy. One third said they would monitor blogs and respond to inaccuracies; 20 per cent said they would take legal action in response to a blog; and fully 50 per cent said they were concerned about liability as it relates to blogging.

My thoughts: 1) it sounds like a very small survey, so take these numbers as very interesting, but not equivalent to the findings of a large empirical study; 2) the concern about blogs suggests to me that blogs are without question now on the radar of corporate counsel but not yet well-understood, and 3) there is an opportunity here for tech-savvy law firms that understand the blogosphere to create a new niche in advising clients on "blog law".

Posted by dougjasinski at 07:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

January 05, 2007

The CLawBies and the Coach

Two points of recognition to start off the new year. First, a big thanks to Steve Matthews of the Vancouver Law Librarian Blog for creating the Canada Law Blog awards (a.k.a. "the CLawBies") to showcase some of the best work currently being done in the legal blogging space here in Canada. There are a number of gems there that are definitely worth exploring further if you are involved in the legal industry in this country. Steve has done a great job turning his blog into a key online resource and this is just another of his many valuable contributions.

Secondly, kudos to Skunkworks' client Allison Wolf, who has recently left her long-time role as the senior in-house marketer at Harper Grey LLP to pursue her own entrepreneurial dreams as the owner of Shift Works Strategic Business Coaching. In conjunction with her new direction, Allison has recently started The Lawyer Coach Blog and, well, insert your own passage about ducks and their natural affinity for water here. In her first month she has already garnered herself one of the afforementioned CLawBies in the category of Practice Management, and is quickly emerging as a thought leader online. Nicely done to both.

Posted by dougjasinski at 11:07 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

November 10, 2006

Canadian Legal Blogging Panel

Many thanks to all who participated in yesterday's Canadian Legal Blogging Panel seminar and to the event sponsor XEROX Canada. We had a lot of back and forth between the panelists and the audience, which was terrific to see and as Steve Matthews noted, it felt we had barely scratched the surface by the time we wrapped up. There is clearly a lot of curiousity about blogging in the Vancouver legal market, even though only a handful of firms have gone ahead and started blogs to date. I anticipate we are going to start seeing the next wave of firms dip their toes in the water early in 2007.

Posted by dougjasinski at 04:56 PM | Permalink

October 30, 2006

Canadian legal blogging panel seminar - Vancouver November 9, 2006

On November 9, 2006 I will be moderating a terrific panel of legal bloggers in Vancouver. The panelists include Kevin O'Keefe of LexBlog, who I would venture to guess has been involved with more law blogs than anyone else in North America at this point. Additionally, Steve Matthews, who is the Knowledge Services Director at Clark Wilson LLP and writes the Vancouver Law Librarian Blog will be on hand, as will Christine Mingie, an associate from Lang Michener LLP who previously blogged on forestry law and now maintains the Gaming Law International blog. Christine is a textbook example of the power of blogging for lawyers in the early part of their careers and I'm certain all three panelists will have some terrific insights to share.

The event forms part of the Legal Marketing Association Vancouver Chapter's fall programming. The event is being held at the Metroplitan Hotel in downtown Vancouver from 12pm -2pm and the cost is $60 for LMA members, $80 for CBA members and $100 for all others. Cheques should be made payable to "Legal Marketing Association Vancouver". If you would like to register, please RSVP to Michelle Beaubien by clicking this link. I hope to see you there!

Posted by dougjasinski at 10:23 AM | Permalink

July 14, 2006

Blawg.ca for sale

We were contacted by the owner of the www.blawg.ca domain name this week, asking us to help get the word out that this web address is for sale. (For the uninitiated, law blogs are frequently referred to as "blawgs" which is why the domain might have some marketing value). If you are interested in this domain name, you can visit the site to learn more.

Posted by dougjasinski at 12:17 AM | Permalink

June 27, 2006

Seven deadly sins of professional services marketing

There is a nice little article on common mistakes in professional services marketing on the MarketingProfs.com website this month: Read the full article here.

The article describes the 7 sins as follows:

1. Self-centredness
2. Wordiness
3. Jargon
4. Staleness
5. cliché images
6. No images
7. Rigidity

The points about wordiness and imagery are well-founded in the legal marketing context. Lawyers are word-savvy by nature, and naturally tend towards heavier reliance on words than images. Most good marketing pieces however tend to have an immediate visual and emotional impact that words alone can't generate. And when law firms do include imagery in their advertising, there is an over-reliance on the familiar - scales of justice, gavels and greek columns abound. The problem with this sort of imagery is that it is so over-used that it fails to generate the visual interest or emotional response that is the touchstone of good advertising. An unexpected image surprises the viewer and compels them to "solve the puzzle" by studying the ad more closely and reading the supporting copy to resolve the question in their mind of what that unusual image is doing there.

Posted by dougjasinski at 11:56 PM | Permalink

May 23, 2006

Legal blogging best practices

There is a good article on legal blogging best practices this morning on the law.com website. The article points to statistics that suggest lawyers are (proportionately) turning to blogs in significantly greater numbers than the general population, and that one of the primary reasons is the marketing value of a good legal blog. In the Canadian context it is fair to say that there is still a significant amount of untapped territory available for lawyers interested in developing a practice-oriented blog.

The article also points out that the appearance of your blog plays an important role in how readers and potential clients perceive your brand, and that as the number of legal bloggers grows, both the design and content of your blog grow more important in ensuring your blog stands out.

You can access the full article here.

Posted by dougjasinski at 07:10 PM | Permalink

February 07, 2006

Google uses BMW to set an example on search engine optimization

Search engine optimization - ensuring that your website shows up at or near the top of major search engines like Google for keywords important to your business - is a complex and constantly evolving field. One thing to keep in mind if you are getting involved in optimizing your firm's site for the first time is that there are some tactics that are considered offside by Google, and you engage in them at your peril.

BMW, the maker of luxury automobiles loved by more than a few of our lawyer friends, found this out the hard way this week when it's German website was de-listed from Google for apparently using what is known as a "doorway" page that contained the German term for "used car" more than 40 times. The page then redirected visitors to the BMW Germany homepage. According to a Reuters UK article yesterday, Google was upset because it saw BMW as trying to artificially attract used car buyers to its site. By today, however, the significant PR Google's move attracted apparently had achieved its purpose, and BMW was allowed back into Google.

You can read an early story here, and a more recent update here.

For information directly from the source, you can find Google's iinformation for search engine optimizers here.

Posted by dougjasinski at 07:18 PM | Permalink

September 16, 2005

Clark Wilson LLP draws attention south of the border with RSS technology

RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feeds in blogs have been around for some time and are now starting to see application in regular websites as well. (RSS feeds allow visitors to a blog or website to "subscribe" to a particular site or topic area within a site and receive notification whenever new content is available).

Vancouver's Clark Wilson LLP is one of the first Canadian firms to employ the technology with 14 different RSS feeds for articles and practice alerts in various legal subject areas. The firm's efforts have caught the attention of American strategic management consultant Larry Bodine who recently cited the firm on his Professional Marketing Blog. Being at the forefront of technology advancements such as RSS is a great way for firms to distinguish themselves in the market and demonstrate forward thinking.

For a look at how Clark Wilson has set up their RSS click here.

Posted by dougjasinski at 05:48 PM | Permalink

June 16, 2005

Davis & Company LLP takes first mover advantage with Video Game Law Blog

Davis & Company LLP appears to be one of the first large Canadian law firms to get on the blog train. Their Video Game Law Blog has been operating since late 2004 and is getting excellent traction on google search results. Now the firm has two newer niche blogs up and running as well: Municipal, Planning and Environmental Law Group Blog and the Japan Group Blog.

Posted by dougjasinski at 07:02 AM | Permalink