Hindsights, Insights and Foresights: Producing Content That Clients Value

Thought leadership or content marketing has gained attention as an effective way to establish credibility, generate awareness of a lawyer's capabilities and promote an attorney's unique expertise. (The term content is used broadly to describe any and all information produced by the law firm and delivered to the client or published in public mediums. This includes newsletters, client alerts, blog posts, white papers, speaking engagements, interviews, advisories and memos, training programs and any other information which is intended to inform and educate clients and their business line managers.) Done well, it can also generate inquiries and lead to new engagements. However, not all content written by your lawyers is perceived as valuable. In fact, some content can actually detract from the client-attorney relationship and be seen as irritating. This article describes a model to help your lawyers evaluate the relative value of the information they are sending to their clients and help you communicate the importance of delivering value in their written communications to clients.

Three Degrees of Value: Hindsights, Insights and Foresights

Content can be evaluated by the value or benefit it delivers to clients and prospective clients. Think of content as being on a continuum of value ranging from negative in which the communication presents no new information, is delivered late or is difficult to read to, on the other extreme, highly valuable information delivered timely. This latter category of content is unique in its analysis, relevant to its readers and delivered well enough in advance that readers can take full advantage of the information.