The Topography of a Strong Attorney Biography

In addition to following the best practices of composing strong, easily readable bios, there are a number of technical tips that may be helpful in understanding how to develop strong bios. You may remember, I mentioned earlier that concisely focusing the first sentences could help improve the SEO value of a well-crafted bio.

SEO is a series of technical steps that you take on individual Web pages (such as a bio) to make it appealing to search engines, helping that page appear higher in the search results. Below are a few keys that can help improve the SEO value of a bio:

• Reviewing and updating a bio routinely not only keeps the information fresh and current, it also makes it more appealing to search engines. Static pages — or pages that have not changed in a long time — tend to be pushed farther down in search results.
• Take the time and thought to ensure the introduction pops and contains key words and phrases that someone searching for an attorney is likely to use. Search engines just crawl the first few hundred characters or so, so post the important information right up front.
• Finally, awards and accolades. From a client's perspective, awards and accolades are not important. Research (and from my own experience speaking with clients) shows that clients do not place much value about attorney awards accolades. Having said that, though, if an attorney includes details about some of her awards in her bio and a potential client IS interested in using that as a qualifier, that can improve the SEO and the bio may appear higher in the search results.

SMO: Social Media Optimization

“Increasing the awareness of a product or service by using a number of social media outlets and communities.”

In addition to SEO, there is also SMO — social media optimization — that involves using social media to raise an attorney's online presence. The incredible connectivity of social media can be a very powerful tool in getting a bio in front of potential clients — and there are a few important SMO keys to keep in mind:

• Make sure to include links to any social media (SM) on which the attorney is active (LinkedIn, Twitter, etc.) “above the fold” — meaning right at the top of the bio. You want to ensure that the social media icons are readily visible.
• If an attorney plans to use SM as a marketing tool, he needs to remain active. There is nothing more pitiful than a Twitter feed that shows the last tweet from 2016 or a LinkedIn page that is years out of date.
• As with all things connected with bios, KISS, which can mean Keep It Short and Sweet or Keep It Simple, Stupid — whichever one is easier to remember!
• Finally, and this is something that I don't think law firms and attorneys thoroughly understand: when an attorney posts on SM, she should focus on posting content of value, especially to their idea clients. Connections and readers are primarily interested in information that they can use. SM can be an amazing vehicle for helping people understand issues or complex ideas. One of the key tenets in SM is “sharing.” Sharing information — and information that is of interest and can be used — is one of the most important functions of SM — or it should be, at least.

LinkedIn

A whole article could be (and probably has been …) devoted to LinkedIn — but given its close connection to an attorney's website bio, it is worth including some pointers:

• Feature a current photo. Attorneys should not use their high school yearbook mugshot. Depending on an attorney's particular personality and practice, the photo can be a professional headshot or something more casual. A picture is worth a thousand words.
• In the profile headline, include the attorney's practice focus or exactly what she delivers to clients.
• The professional headline field defaults to the attorney's current title (e., Attorney, Partner, Owner, etc.), but that can be changed by clicking the “Edit” button next to the attorney's name and adding keywords to the professional headline (e.g., Leading M&A specialist or Nationally Recognized Trademark Attorney. etc.).
• As with the Web bio, the LinkedIn Summary should be focused, specific and differentiating. The more detail an attorney includes here, the better.
• Update the individual LinkedIn URL to the attorney's name — the attorney will appear in searches much higher and it looks better if the attorney decides to include a link to his LinkedIn profile in his auto signature (which is a growing trend).
• Links make a profile richer and more SEO friendly.
• Routine posting keeps the attorney in front of her contacts. Posting thoughtful and useful content is one of the greatest values of a LinkedIn profile (as I noted earlier about “educating not pontificating”).
• Updating the profile routinely keeps it fresh and keeps the attorney in front of his contacts. When the attorney makes a changes to his profile, his contacts are notified.

Takeaways

I addressed considerable information in connection with composing and promoting a strong online bio/profile. Below is an iteration of the main points to help attorneys with their bios:

• Keep bios short and sweet;
• Focus on results;
• Be authentic and unique;
• Be easy to find; and
• Make SM do its work.

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John J. Buchanan, Senior Manager of Communications at Sheppard Mullin, provides senior level public relations and communications counsel to lawyers, helping them raise their visibility in the media, strengthen their personal brands by using a variety of communication platforms, and manage their firms' reputations.