How to Use Google Calendar for Law Firms: 5 Time-Saving Tips

Lawyers often struggle with time management. Perhaps it’s from taking on too much, or lack of resources to keep them better organized. Whatever the cause, adopting effective time management techniques can help lawyers be more productive throughout the day and increase their billable hours. Many tools are available to law firms, like Google Calendar to enhance productivity and time management. This tool helps to track time effectively and avoid wasted time, missed deadlines, and inaccuracies that can lead to discrepancies in the billable hours.

Too many lawyers and law firms shy away from technology, but it’s a valuable tool to help with the day-to-day tasks of a law firm. With the shift to remote work, the demands of clients, and the increasing workloads, technology is a vital addition. Even something as ubiquitous as Google Calendar can go a long way toward improving the processes at a law firm, especially when it’s combined with legal practice management software.

What Is Google Calendar?

Google Calendar is a time-management and scheduling calendar service that’s available on the web and as mobile apps for Android and iOS platforms. It’s part of the Google Suite of office software, which includes tools like Google Drive and Google Meet.

With Google Calendar, users can create and edit events, set up reminders, and add special calendars for events like birthdays. Google Calendar also syncs with Gmail to automatically track events from emails and add them to the calendar, avoiding errors and double entries.

The calendar has some other helpful features, including reminders for to-do activities, recommended titles, contacts, and locations when creating events, and goals to set and track personal goals. Events are tracked in the local time, but users can specify a different time zone for an event.

1. Law Firms Can Access Google Calendar from Anywhere

Lawyers are working remotely or in the field more often, fueling the need for a cloud-based solution. Google Calendar resides in the cloud, ensuring that lawyers and other staff members can access and alter their schedules wherever they can access the internet, whether on smartphones or laptops.

The calendar allows you to quickly change views between a single day, week, month, or year view to get a full-picture view of their schedule. If others have shared their calendars, each user can opt to see the schedule or hide it to keep things more streamlined and organized.

2. Leverage Tools and Features

Google Calendar has many built-in tools for organization and time management. Events have a set start and stop time or the option for an all-day event. Users can enable a recurring function with a set frequency for events that take place regularly, such as continuing education or staff meetings that occur weekly or biweekly.

Lawyers and other staff members can also organize events by color. For example, client meetings or events that fall under billable time could be marked in blue, while meetings with staff members or non-billable time could be marked in red. For individual tasks on the to-do list, they can be marked in purple.

3. Enhance Law Firm Collaboration by Sharing

Like the rest of Google Suite, the calendar improves collaboration firm-wide. Lawyers can send invites to anyone with an email address and they’ll receive it in their online calendar with the Google syncing feature.

Calendars can also be shared with the entire firm, so everyone has access to each other’s schedules and important events. Share settings ensure that lawyers and other staff members can limit who can see calendars and events, and who can make alterations to the schedule. Lawyers and other staff members can invite other people to events as well, which then shows up in the calendar. People outside the Google Suite will have options to answer “yes,” “no,” or “maybe” to the event.

4. Prioritize Upcoming Tasks and Events

One of the best time-management tips is to organize the day’s tasks by priority. This ensures that the most important tasks are done first, followed by the medium- or low-priority tasks. Lawyers should begin with a full list of things that need to be done in the near future. These can be organized in Google Calendar. This provides a full list of everything that needs to be done, which can then be prioritized by importance. Lawyers can use colors, tags, or notes to designate the most important and least important tasks to stay on track.

Another option is to start with the most tedious or difficult tasks first, then work toward the easier tasks. Similarly, these tasks can be tagged or color-coded for organization in Google Calendar. This feature also offers optional notifications, such as push notifications, as a reminder to complete different tasks.

5. Use Google Calendar Integration with Legal Practice Management Software

Legal practice management software has many tools to manage time and track billable hours. Bill4Time’s Google Calendar integration keeps track of important events and deadlines, ensuring that lawyers are always on top of their to-do lists. The integration automatically converts events to a time entry to better manage time and avoid losing billable hours. This is helpful for lawyers tracking meetings with clients or related to ongoing cases.

With bi-directional sync between Bill4Time and the Google Calendar, you never have to worry about double entry. Both solutions update, so you always have the most up-to-date information no matter which platform you use. Having this feature safeguards from the inevitable human error and allows for a more streamlined billing and invoicing process. 

How Law Firms Can Use Google Calendar and Legal Practice Management Software for Better Time Management

Google Calendar has a variety of tools that are helpful for law firms, including collaboration, access from anywhere using the cloud, and organizational tools like reminders, push notifications, and color coding for events and meetings. Combined with integrations from a legal practice management software like Bill4Time, Google Calendar can ensure that a law firm runs as efficiently and error-free as possible, maximizing billable hours and keeping the day-to-day running smoothly.

With all of the sensitive and oftentimes personal data law firms store, it’s no surprise that law firm cybersecurity threats are at an all-time high. No matter the area of practice, law firms maintain a wealth of vital client information, valuable intellectual property, sensitive business information, and other confidential or proprietary data. As the legal industry shifts to remote and hybrid work, cybersecurity has never been more of a concern for law firms. In 2020 alone, the American Bar Association discovered that 29% of surveyed law firms experienced some type of cyber attack, which is a 3% increase over 2019. Unfortunately, only 34% of those surveyed had developed an attack response plan.

Law Firm Cybersecurity Threats

Cybersecurity is evolving. It’s no longer reserved for technology, but it’s now one of the greatest risks a law firm can face. In recent years, massive law firms in the United States have been caught up in major cybersecurity breaches that cost millions. Cybersecurity is not just in the realm of the IT department, or for small firms, a risk that isn’t worth addressing. It needs to be part of the general guidelines for using technology in the firm – or in its service.

Cybersecurity is a big undertaking and some firms are too small to have the full weight of IT professionals behind them. Medium and large firms may be delayed in preparing for cyber-attacks because of the costs, or they assume it won’t happen to them.

Overall, law firms have been largely analog until recently. Lawyers and staff tracked client and firm information manually, limiting the risk of a cyber breach. Firms are getting on board with innovation, however, and clients are expecting more technologically advanced communications and approaches – meaning that law firms are now open to the risk of a cyberattack that wasn’t present before.

1. Backing Up Critical Data

Data and IP are critical to law firm operations. Attackers often install malicious software to block access to computers or the data they contain, asking for a ransom to return the data (known as ransomware). This is a major concern for law firms since just one ransomware attack could render huge volumes of data inaccessible.

With regular backups, however, a ransomware attack isn’t as critical. All vital data is copied and stored on an external hard drive or a secure location that’s separate from the network, ensuring the information is still accessible and safe during a cyber attack. This also minimizes the downtime a law firm may experience from an attack.

2. Regular Updates and Patches

Cyber attackers are good at finding ways around cyber security defenses. Software and operating systems that haven’t seen regular updates give cyberattackers ingress points to exploit vulnerabilities and gain widespread access to the system and data within it.

Software updates are usually performed to optimize performance or fix a bug, but they have the added benefit of shoring up cyber security. Patches are a bit different and are intended to address security vulnerabilities. These should always be applied as soon as they become available.

With legal management software through a provider, software updates and patches are applied as needed, keeping security in a law firm’s network as ironclad as possible.

3. Access Control and Authentication

Strong, complex passwords are an excellent line of defense against a cyber attack. Passwords prevent full access to accounts and the sensitive information and data they contain about the business or clients.

Unfortunately, law firms often have integrations with services and systems like DocuSign, DropBox, and more. If just one of these systems is compromised, an attacker could gain access to a lot of valuable information.

Throughout the law firm, all staff members should have strong passwords that combine upper and lowercase letters, numbers, symbols, or phrases that are difficult to guess. When staff members rely on weak, easy-to-remember passwords, especially for multiple accounts, it’s easier for attackers to see what other accounts they can access with just one password.

Tools like a password manager and multi-factor authentication add a layer of defense to ensure that only verified staff members have access to the system. This way, even if an attacker gains a password, they have to go through multi-factor authentication to have full control of the account.

Furthermore, legal practice management allows law firms to configure different users for different access. All functions can be configured with specific user permissions and customizable user access. Contractors can have temporary access, and law firms can track logins automatically to see if anyone is using their credentials inappropriately.

4. Virtual and Physical Protection

Data is not only vulnerable to attackers, but it may be vulnerable to external circumstances like natural disasters and local outages. When these occur, valuable data can be lost or vulnerable.

Legal management software has data centers that are geographically distributed to minimize the effects of regional disruptions. They also have redundant power systems and environmental controls to provide 24/7 uninterrupted service. If service or upgrades are required, the law firm experiences minimal downtime or disruption.

5. Cybersecurity Expertise

Lawyers are good at practicing law, not at shoring up cyber security. It’s best for law firms to outsource cyber security protocols and procedures to experts, which can be achieved with legal practice management software.

Software providers work with trusted third-party leaders in data security to meet or exceed security standards, including putting forth policies and practices for world-class information security. This includes possible threats, how to respond to them, and weak points in devices like desktop computers, smartphones, laptops, removable data storage, security cameras, and more.

Legal Practice Management Software Can Limit Law Firm Cybersecurity Threats

Legal practice management software has many benefits for a law firm, but one of its biggest is that it helps with cyber security. Threats are everywhere and expanding as firms add more users and technology, but understanding the threats and implementing the right software solution can help law firms shore up their defenses.

Those new to the legal profession or fresh out of law school tend to think that success comes from high billable hours, working hard, and serving clients well. While those things are important, more and more lawyers are learning that they need to revisit lawyer networking best practices in our digital world to generate business.

Most lawyers get business from word-of-mouth or in-person connections. In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, in-person events are limited or nonexistent, making it more difficult for lawyers to build a book of business. This is true of both new lawyers and lawyers who are working to build or diversify their business.

Shifting lead generation and networking online can be challenging, but it’s essential for lawyers looking to build a book in the digital age. Below, we cover a few modern lawyer networking best practices that will help build a strong book of business online or in-person.

Client Referral Program

Client referrals are one of the easiest, least time-intensive, and cheapest ways to bring in new clients. A law firm referral program can help firms maximize referrals and create a repeatable referral process that draws more clients in, both now and in the future.

Referral programs require some creativity in the legal industry. For many businesses, simply offering free products or discounts is enough of an incentive, but law firms don’t always have repeat clients or opportunities to offer significant discounts.

Ideally, a law firm referral process will reward both the referrer and the referred. Past clients may enjoy gifts in the form of gift cards or donations, while the new clients can enjoy most discounts, free consultations, or similar incentives.

Law firms should create a robust referral program with clear guidelines that are posted on the website. The site should have a dedicated referrals page with all the information about the referral program, benefits, and eligibility.

Client Reviews

Online reviews are similar to word-of-mouth referrals. Consumers pay attention to online reviews, even in the legal industries, and reviews have a strong presence on search. When law firms encourage clients to leave positive reviews on third-party sites like Google or Yelp, it increases the visibility in search and helps searchers find them more easily.

Case Studies and Testimonials

Case studies and testimonials are a cornerstone of law firm marketing, but it’s not enough to share a case that was won. Law firms need to provide more in-depth information with details, effective examples, and actionable takeaways – even if the outcome wasn’t exactly as desired.

As prospective clients search for information, they may come across case studies and testimonials that are similar to their circumstances. If they can read detailed information about how the law firm won the case, made the process less stressful, or helped the client in a way that’s notable (beyond just the case itself), that may entice them to seek out more information and consider the firm as a solution to their legal issues.

Content Creation

Content is valuable for driving leads. Law firms can leverage content marketing to provide information to prospective clients, such as answers to common legal questions in their practice area, a typical timeline for a case, or client success stories.

Videos are popular across all industry verticals, and law firms can take advantage by turning popular written content into video. Simple videos, such as a Q&A, a client testimonial, or a breakdown of a case timeline can be short and direct, giving prospective clients the information they need and developing trust for the firm.

Interactive Networking Tools

Online tools that clients can interact with offer a lot of value. Quizzes, estimators, and similar tools can not only provide value to prospective clients, but it offers client and market insights for the law firm. These interactive tools should be gated, meaning that prospective clients have to submit contact information for access.

Facebook Groups for Lawyer Networking

Building a community online isn’t as difficult as it sounds. Lawyers looking to network and build online relationships can do so with Facebook groups, which bring together attorneys from across the country to share industry insights and resources.

These groups were highly active during COVID-19, but they’re still going strong. There are also Facebook groups for other industries, interests, and communities, offering opportunities to connect with potential clients.

Virtual Happy Hours

Virtual happy hours are a new trend that’s gaining ground online. Instead of everyone meeting up in one physical location, lawyers and other professionals can spend time in virtual happy hours and connect with people all over the country.

For these events, participants typically make their own drinks and “visit” the happy hour from the comfort of their own home, but they may hop between different happy hour groups. Happy hours are usually hosted on Google Hangouts, Zoom, or other teleconferencing software.

Lawyer Slack Channels

Slack is a communication and collaboration hub that can be used in the place of email. The platform is designed to enhance communication and support in hybrid and remote work environments, making everything more efficient.

There’s a lot more to Slack, however. The platform can be used for non-work-related communications, including channels for different professionals to network and communicate asynchronously. Lawyers can take advantage of these channels to network virtually and discuss important industry issues and topics with similar minds.

Thought Leadership

Thought leadership online is similar to speaking at networking events or industry conferences in person. Though less formal in its approach, the goal is the same – to position oneself as a leader in the industry.

Lawyers have an opportunity to engage in thought leadership to share important insights and topics they’re passionate about in digital publications. This not only improves visibility for the lawyer and the firm, potentially bringing in more clients, but gets the firm’s name out there for increased brand exposure.

Build a Strong Book of Business with these Lawyer Networking Best Practices

With in-person networking events limited in the wake of the pandemic, many lawyers are struggling to build a book and find new leads. There are plenty of options to increase lead generation and networking opportunities online, however, allowing lawyers to draw more clients and grow their practice now and into the future. As we continue navigating our post-pandemic work, lawyer networking best practices will fluctuate, but we hope these tips offered guidance on modern networking skills.

The technology that has emerged in the legal industry offers tremendous opportunities for both fresh law school graduates and veterans of traditional firms alike to transition to a virtual law office. Lawyers can launch, operate, and manage a virtual law office as a low-cost and low-barrier entry to the market, while also serving clients more effectively.

Here are the benefits for lawyers looking to transition to a virtual law office and adopt a more tech-forward practice.

1. Low Overhead

In the past, starting a law practice meant significant startup costs. From utilities to commercial space to office furniture to staff, lawyers who wanted to open a firm had a lot of upfront costs to overcome, often limiting new lawyers from getting a solid start. This is especially true of large cities, which tend to have more competition from large, established firms.

Even with the startup costs covered, it can take time to start drawing in clients and earning income. Sometimes, law firms work on client acquisition for months before they get their first clients.

This all comes with risk and expense, which can take a law firm down before it has a chance to succeed. A virtual office solves this problem, however, but offers much lower startup and overhead costs, allowing lawyers to focus more of the budget on client acquisition and marketing. In addition, law firms with lower overhead can take more time to draw in clients without struggling to maintain the operating expenses.

2. Remote Work

Even at large law firms, lawyers are increasingly likely to work remotely or in a hybrid environment. With secure communication and cloud solutions, lawyers have an opportunity to work from home more or conduct work in the field, offering more work-life balance.

Virtual law firms take this a step further. Lawyers can open a law firm and conduct business wherever there’s a wi-fi connection, offering more flexibility during the often-challenging startup period. Whether they’re balancing a family at home or working odd hours to get work done, lawyers have the flexibility they need to succeed with a virtual law firm.

3. Appeal to Web-Savvy Clients

The generations that grew up with the internet want more access to lawyers online. Despite being a highly sensitive and mostly traditional industry, many law firms are already embracing technology trends – including virtual communication, practice management software, and remote work – and clients are noticing.

These generations already shop, book travel, entertain themselves, and often work online, so they want a lawyer who’s willing to embrace technology in the same way. This is true of both business clients and consumer clients.

4. Broad Reach

With a traditional law firm, lawyers are limited to the regional or local practice areas. Virtual law firms expand the reach to the entire state in which the lawyer is licensed, or in the case of a nationwide specialty like immigration, nationally. Lawyers can now capture clients in different areas, boosting client acquisition.

For some clients, choosing the best fit for a lawyer is more important than location, especially if they have the convenience of handling their legal case online (at least in part). This is also beneficial for clients who have limitations, such as personal injury clients who are hospitalized or clients who are dealing with legal issues while traveling.

5. Client Focus

Virtual law firms come with significant client retention benefits. With an increased focus on “client first” service across industries, virtual law firms have the tools and technology to serve the clients better.

Practice management solutions offer client tools like online bill pay, secure client communications, cloud-based document storage, automated forms, and more, all within a safe and ironclad client portal. This offers many benefits for the client, including better response times, a reduction in phone congestion, more flexible hours, and improved convenience. The virtual law firm is more efficient from both the client’s and the lawyer’s point of view.

Transition to a Virtual Law Office

There’s a key difference between working remotely as a lawyer and being a virtual lawyer, which is all about how the firm connects with clients online.

According to the eLawyering Task Force of the ABA, a virtual law firm must operate with a secure client portal that connects to the law firm’s website. The portal must be secure, encrypted, and password-protected to protect all parties and data.

Lawyers who want to become virtual lawyers or open a virtual law firm must know the rules and ethical implications. For example, some states require lawyers to practice in a physical office space. So, even if lawyers choose to work remotely, they must still have a brick-and-mortar office.

Virtual lawyers also have a responsibility to protect client data and maintain confidentiality. Most of the communications with virtual law firms take place online, and data can be vulnerable to bad actors and breaches. All channels and data must be secure and encrypted.

Transitioning from a Traditional Law Firm

Lawyers who have a traditional law firm must plan the transition to a virtual law firm. In this case, it may be more reasonable for firms to make the shift to virtual slowly, such as using a hybrid model and gradually increasing the ratio of online to in-person services.

Traditional law firms must also adopt more innovative processes and streamlined tasks. Outdated technology, such as scanners and fax machines, will shift to virtual solutions, and this can be a big change to adjust to.

Another option for updating the processes is choosing a cloud-based technology with practice management solutions and automation. Billing and payments can be done virtually, eliminating a lot of paper waste and manual time spent. These solutions must be secure and encrypted as well.

The Virtual Law Office is Here to Stay

Virtual law firms remove significant barriers for new or practicing lawyers looking to open a solo practice, work remotely, or adopt more technology solutions to streamline and automate processes. Along with low overhead and improved processes and work-life balance, virtual law firms also serve clients better, giving them more convenient and accessible legal services in safe and secure portals.

A legal blog has a ton of value for law firms looking to improve their legal marketing and drive new customers to their website. Prospective clients often search for legal topics to familiarize themselves before consulting an attorney, and if a law firm can provide that information, that puts them at the forefront of the client’s mind when they’re ready to get their case started.

Law firms should keep in mind, however, that a prospective client isn’t seeking legal information to handle a complex case on their own. Instead, they’re seeking clarity, expectations of their case, and help identifying the right legal team to bring to their side.

The right legal blog topics are essential for the success of a law firm’s legal marketing tactic. Here are some ways law firms can come up with brilliant law firm blog topics with useful content to attract clients and establish thought leadership in the industry.

Utilize Recent News Reports

The newspaper, news websites, or other legal blogs offer inspiration for timely, relevant topics that are content-worthy. Law firms can browse headlines and identify potential content ideas based on what’s trending in the news, even if it’s not directly related to the legal industry. Perhaps a news story prompts questions about the law related to a broad topic that will be useful to prospective clients.

Try Doing Interviews

Along with written content, podcasts and videos are popular for online audiences. One of the best topics for a podcast or video is an interview, and law firms can leverage this with live interviews with local judges, other lawyers, or clients that had favorable case outcomes. This not only provides valuable information to the viewer but can be helpful for law firm networking and building relationships in the industry.

Use Your Legal Blog as a FAQ

In any legal practice area, clients often have a lot of the same questions about their general cases. The details may vary, but quick keyword research reveals general questions like “what to look for in a lawyer?” and “what’s the timeline for my legal case?”

Law firms can use these questions to their advantage. In addition to having a dedicated area of practice page and frequently asked questions on the law firm’s website, law firm blog topics can follow the most common questions asked by clients. Law firms can consult with other lawyers, paralegals, and staff at the law firm to determine the most valuable questions to answer.

Incorporate Educational Legal Blog Topics

Much like frequently asked questions, law firms may find that prospective clients have a lot of the same questions and concerns about their case and experience. Law firms can provide valuable educational legal blog topics to address these questions and concerns and give prospective clients a little peace of mind.

Here are some ideas for law firms to provide educational content:

• Case Studies: This content is ideal for covering broad law topics and how they apply to specific cases. Typically, case studies are more in-depth than a general blog and cover most of the details and conditions of a case, giving readers an understanding of how a case may unfold. Case studies are particularly useful when they cover landmark decisions or precedents.
• Success Stories: If a law firm had a recent win or exciting outcome, it’s worth posting a success story to show prospective clients that the law firm’s clients’ successes matter to them. Even if the case outcome wasn’t ideal, an inspirational story can serve the same end.
• Q&A Sessions: Q&A sessions can be longer blogs that cover the commonly asked questions with in-depth answers and examples, or hypotheticals, that illustrate a case more comprehensively. With podcasts or video, these Q&A sessions can be live to address questions as they come up.
• Glossary: Legalese can be challenging for non-legal people. Often, these unfamiliar terms have long answers, so law firms can provide legal content that covers the terms and gives them a deeper understanding of the area of practice. Law firms should consider the most mystifying or intimidating terms in their area of practice, such as “tort,” “negligence,” and “prima facie.” The blog should define the terms in lay terms, including pronunciation, how the term is used, how it may apply, and practical examples.
• Events: Blog content can highlight upcoming seminars or conferences that a law firm is attending or that may be of interest to the audience. Not only prospective clients keep up with legal content – industry professionals, including other lawyers, may be interested in these topics.
• Staff Highlights: People want to know the people behind the brand, and that’s no different for law firms. Perhaps a paralegal got admission into law school, or an employee won a distinguished award. These types of stories are inspirational and give clients insights into the day-to-day of the law firm and the people they may want in their corner for their case.

Promote Your Legal Blog to Drive Traffic

Creating content is excellent, but it needs somewhere to go to generate awareness and interest in a law firm. Once the content is created, law firms should promote blog posts on social media and email to drive traffic. Law firms should also keep SEO best practices in mind to make the content discoverable.

With the right practice management system, integrations allow law firms to seamlessly integrate into software like content management systems (CMS) and email platforms. This streamlines the content creation and promotion process to ensure that content is consistent and timely, creating more value and interest for prospective clients.  

Lawyers have a lot to juggle, from client meetings to research to court appearances. Because of this, it may make sense to outsource legal blog content to third-party services to save time and focus on billable hours.

The concept is simple — law firms hire a writer or team of writers to handle the writing and publishing of legal blog content. This may be freelancers or agency writers, but either way, the idea is to outsource some of the work and free lawyers to focus on law.

Legal content outsourcing has a lot of advantages, including expert writing and freeing up time, but it has downsides as well. How does a firm know when it’s the right time to outsource?

The Value of a Legal Blog

Content marketing for a legal blog or guest posts for thought leadership is a valuable component of a digital marketing strategy. Done well, it can be a persuasive tool to boost conversions, attract more website traffic, and build brand awareness.

There’s a catch, however — legal blog content has to be well researched, well written, and aligned with the law firm’s goals and objectives. Poor quality writing does more harm than good, so it’s vital that the firm hires writers familiar with legal writing and concepts.

This is a big motivation behind many firms handling their content writing in-house. But adding content writing to an ever-growing list of tasks and demands for a firm takes away from what lawyers are supposed to do — practice law.

Options to Outsource Legal Blog Content

In-house hires: For the best of both worlds, law firms can hire legal content writers in-house as part of the full-time team. These writers can tackle the legal blog and other content writing, ensuring that the content is high quality and available, but it can be expensive and inefficient.

Professional content writers: Legal marketing agencies, SEO agencies, and other agencies have access to teams of professional content writers and handle law firm campaigns. This option offers plenty of expertise and less upfront effort and investment than an in-house hire, but it can be expensive as well.

Contract writers: If the law firm doesn’t need a full team, whether in-house or from an agency, a contract writer is a valuable third option. With just a few contract writers, law firms can outsource blogs and guest posts to capable, knowledgeable writers who are more flexible than full-time writers.

Benefits of Legal Blog Outsourcing

Hiring an agency or a contract writer has several benefits, including:

Saving Time

Content writing takes time. Most writers take a few hours to write a standard 500-word blog post. If a law firm is trying to have a consistent content marketing strategy with plenty of blog posts, this can add days of work to the month and take away from mission-critical tasks. Hiring a content writer not only saves time directly, but professional writers are also much faster than non-writers.

Saving Money

Hiring a writer or an agency can be expensive, but it’s worth the money a law firm can save over time. A full-time, in-house writer is going to be more expensive than outsourcing, and working with an agency or contract writer ensures professional results and a better return on investment.

Expertise

A law firm’s writers may have all the necessary legal knowledge for the blog, but may not know the ins and outs of marketing and writing content effectively. An agency or contract writer understands SEO, content marketing best practices, and other details that help content perform better.

Scalability

Agencies typically have several writers that can be drafted for your project. As the law firm grows, agencies can provide more writers to handle growing content needs. Many agencies offer tiered plans or packages as well, so outsourcing is accessible to small, new firms and established firms alike.

Consistency

Consistency is vital to content marketing. Agencies have standards or formatting that their content must follow, ensuring that the content is consistent across the board. Agencies also have editors to do a final check of articles before they’re published, so law firms can count on quality content that reflects well on their brand.

Downsides of Legal Blog Outsourcing

Outsourcing is an excellent option for many law firms, but it’s not for everyone. Agencies and contract writers have downsides, including:

Quality Concerns

Not all agencies are created equal. Law firms can find virtually limitless agencies, contract writers, and freelancers to choose from, and they can range from experts and professionals to inexperienced and low quality. Some agencies don’t maintain high-quality standards, which will be reflected in the law firm’s content. It’s vital for law firms to thoroughly vet possible agencies before choosing to partner.

Reliability Concerns

Reliability is important for content writing, especially if a law firm is outsourcing to ensure that content is always available. Reliable writers can be hard to find, especially as contractors, and can result in inconsistencies and poor quality. Agencies are typically more reliable than freelance writers, but not always.

Lack of Ownership

Even if time is strained, lawyers can take pride in writing their own content and promoting their own firm. While agencies and writers are invested in a business’s content, it’s not quite the same as what a stakeholder brings to the table. Because of this, law firms may prefer to handle the writing in-house instead of outsourcing.

High Upfront Costs

Law firms writing the content themselves have no upfront investment – just time. Agencies and contractors have upfront costs that can be challenging for some firms, especially when they’re just starting out. Content marketing is a marathon, not a sprint, and it could take months before that investment pays off.

When Should Law Firms Outsource Legal Blog Content?

If the strain of writing content in-house becomes too much for a law firm, it may be time to consider outsourcing. Here are some ways law firms can tell if they should outsource:

• The workload is piling up and deadlines or important tasks are missed
• The staff is short
• The firm is a solo operation or small firm just starting out
• Writing content takes up non-billable time
• Current content writing is low quality or inconsistent

If any of these apply, it may be time for a law firm to consider outsourcing content writing to an agency or contract writer. Legal blog content writing is a valuable marketing strategy, but it takes time. With the right content writers, however, legal content can offer incredible returns for a law firm.