Bruce Allen has a great post. The guy’s got a way with words, and can always do a great job of using a personal anecdote to illustrate a point. Read it here.

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We’ve all heard of myspace. We know the basic premise behind flickr. Every day a new piece of “social software” comes out and is touted as the next big thing.

But are any of these new services useful to the attorney or blawgger?

The answer, in a word: sure.

But the problem, to me at least, is finding the time to try these new services out. There are just so many of them! So, in this post, I’d like to highlight a few 2.0-ish services that may be useful to this blog’s readers. If you’ve got others, please feel free to add them in the comments section.

RSS:

Bloglines. I’ve been using bloglines as my RSS reader since the day I’ve heard about it. You sign up for an account, add your favorite RSS feed addresses, and you’re done. Exactly what a “Web 2.0″ service should do: simplify the complicated and be reliable.

Project Management:

Basecamp. This is a great “project collaboration” tool that allows you to assign “to dos”, post messages, schedule meetings, share files and track time.

Business Networking:

LinkedIn.  LinkedIn is basically an online rolodex of connections. I can’t say I’ve used it much, but I do like the idea.

Connecting With Entrepreneurs:

BuildV1. Still in its infancy, BuildV1 is an interesting idea: Entrpreneurs ask for help from advisors, service providers, etc through the web.

Blog Traffic:

Technorati.  I have a love-hate relationship with Technorati. Sure, it can be very slow. Sometimes it takes days for a post to be indexed. But either way, technorati sends readers to blogs. If you’ve got a blog, you will want to set up a technorati account and add their small piece of javascript code. Your posts will be indexed in technorati, you’ll get traffic, and you’ll be able to see other blogs that link to you.

Blog Message Board:

BlogString- This is a very shameless plug. BlogString.com is something I’ve been working on for some time now, but it’s going to be at least four more months before the “service” is launched.

Until then, I’ve put up a message board with one simple premise: I haven’t seen a forum dedicated to blogging issues. So if you’ve got a blog and can’t get something working, want advice on anything blogging related, or just want to meet fellow bloggers, the BlogString board is the place for you. Again, this is VERY new. If you’re interested, sign up for an account here.

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I’m sure most of this blog’s readers have heard of the recent controversy over the SuperLawyer designation. In short, a committee appointed by the New Jersey Supreme Court decided that calling yourself a “Super” lawyer violates the professional code of conduct.

So, I think I’ve got the answer.

This morning, I created an award. I’ll give it out each year, and the selection process is absolutely a no-brainer. There are just two qualifications:

1) You need to be an attorney.
2) You have to post a comment on the Adequate Attorney page.

All adequate attorney honorees are encouraged to display the following graphic on their blog:

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This weekend while driving, I was listening to an NPR segment about why U.S. automobile manufacturers are lagging behind their Japanese counterparts in revenue and innovation. Some of the suggested reasons for this were:

• American auto workers are being paid too much
• US car makers are reluctant to introduce fuel-efficient vehicles, as they are much less profitable
• Manufacturers do not know their customers
• The notion of “buying American” is no longer compelling in an increasingly interdependent global market

And so on.

One commentator noted that the average American automobile buyer is more educated than ever (an obvious statement, but a powerful idea). Rather than walking into a showroom and just looking around, today’s car buyer goes to the dealership after hours of research on the internet. Sometimes, the commentator suggested, consumers know more about a car than the salesperson.

That was interesting to me. Is an educated consumer a positive or a negative?

Thinking in terms of law firm clients, I would have to say that it’s a good thing.

First off, having an uninformed customer is only beneficial when you’re trying to hide something. In general, I like to think of law firms as being more ethical and professional than that.

Secondly, having an educated client speeds up the process. When a client really understands their problem, the attorney has a much easier time getting to the solution(s). I think of it this way: You’re walking down the street in your home town, and someone approaches you asking for directions. Which case would you prefer?

a) someone that has never been to your city before and knows nothing about the area

or

b) someone very familiar with the area

Obviously it would be easier to give directions to person b. You can use landmarks (”It’s over by the old Dunkin’ Donuts”) and draw on their previous knowledge to get them to their destination.

This is another reason I like blogs. As a legal blogger, you can provide the information you’d like your clients to have. Teaching as marketing. Now that’s a win/win.

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Yesterday, while checking my stats, I noticed some traffic coming from a Yahoo Group. I went to check it out, and found a great resource I recommend for small firms and solo attorneys looking to ask questions and get feedback from peers on all things legal marketing related.

Yahoo Groups: Solo Marketing
Description: This group is set up to discuss marketing ideas for small law firms and sole practitioners.
# of Members: 424

This is a VERY active list. I’d encourage any legal blogger to check it out. This discussion group is not limited to blogs or web sites. Rather, it is a place to discuss anything a solo or small firm professional could ask. It’s a great place to learn from others in the legal marketing business.

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All right. It’s early and I’m still trying to wrap my head around this one (I was moving over the weekend, so I’ve been out of the loop…..so if I get the timeline wrong here, I apologize). Kevin O’Keefe from LexBlog and the anonymous editor of BlawgReview are now engaged in a public spat.

July 27th- Kevin O’Keefe asks “What’s ALM paying Elefant and Ambrogi?” In the post, Kevin wonders if ALM (American Lawyer Media) appreciates their star bloggers enough. When newspapers and magazines are taking a revenue hit, they need to explore other outlets to generate new cash. Giving the example of Lisa Stone leaving ALM to work on BlogHer, Kevin asks whether ALM will really follow their bloggers’ lead in reconfiguring their blogging (and new reader acquisition) strategy.

Okay. Now part 2.

Then, on August 3rd, the anonymous editor at Blawg Review posts: “What’s with Kevin O’Keefe: Kevin O’Keefe’s panties are in a knot again.“

Now, I’m skipping a lot of details here and there were emails sent back and forth between the two parties. Then, emails that were intended to be “private” were published…..etc.

I’m not involved with this at all, and this isn’t a post taking sides with one side or the other. My interest here is in the results.

To be completely honest here, this isn’t really a blog FIGHT. It’s more of a gentlemanly discussion, though a little bit of spirited and colorful language is thrown in. So, what are the possible outcomes of having a public blog fight?

1. Increased Readership: Since the two fighting parties are referencing each other’s posts, they link to each other. Readers of one blog will definitely check out the other blog to see where the beef started, and to take sides.

2. Increased Loyalty: There’s nothing that brings a group of people together like an enemy. Look at armies. Look at sports teams. When you’ve got a concrete enemy to be against, you develop an identity.

But at the same time, a blog fight could:

3. Lead to a tarnished image: Getting too personal or too vulgar can make even the most professional blogger seem childish. It can also make someone look like a bully.

4. Take over the agenda: Both the writer and the reader can get so consumed with the fight that they forget the reason the blog exists in the first place. Trust me, this has happened before.

So, with that all said, I’ve got an idea. Since this blog isn’t the biggest, most read blog on the block, I’m going to start something. I’m going to target someone that has a lot of readers, so I can increase my traffic. And I’m going to come up with such a heinous insult that the blogger just has to take notice.

Here goes:

Seth Godin hates blind manatees.

There. I said it.

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