PR ethical public relations for lawyers, litigators Ross Fishman, Fishman Marketing

© 2014 Fishman Marketing, Inc.

Ethical Public Relations for Lawyers, Litigators

Tel: 1-847/HEADLINE FishmanMarketing.com Blog: FishmanMarketing.com/blog LinkedIn.com/in/rossfishman Twitter: @rossfishman


��Everything you see in the papers is 100% true –

Loren A. Wittner, JD 1990 Marketing Partner

Winston & Strawn

What’s �True?�

except that which you have personal knowledge of.”


I keep this on my office wall as a cautionary reminder. You may not always like the quote or context.

The reporter may get it wrong, accidentally or intentionally. Understand the PR rules and the risks.


What is Public Relations?

<� Getting quoted, featured in the press –�Business, legal, trade press, online

<� Writing articles <� Giving speeches <� Online

–�Blogs, Twitter, etc. <� Just one of many Marketing tools

–�Newsletters, websites, ads, mailers, social media, networking, business cards, brochures, sponsorships, cross-selling, committees, etc.


Control

Credibility

Advertising

v.

Public Relations


Why Public Relations?

<� Increases visibility <� Enhances professional resume <� Creates credibility with audience(s) <� Reprints in targeted area(s) <� Can be the most-important marketing tool

–�Referral-based practices –�Personal injury –�Divorce


Case-Specific Litigation PR


What happened?

<� Old-folks retirement condo –� Double-doorway foyer –� Carts, bikes damaging doors

<� New rule – “Wheeled vehicles use the side door.” –� Wheelchair boy pushed through front door

<� Elderly member tells them to use the side door –� Board told it was an ADA violation –� Misunderstanding, apologized

<� Filed lawsuit –� Told defense to hire a PR expert


Nuance Doesn’t Sell Papers

<� Defense declined to hire professional PR help. –� “We have a reasonable explanation.” –� Reporter called defendants’ lawyer for comment� –� At 6:00 pm. The night before the story ran. On the cover.


What’s Newsworthy?


<� Interesting –�Unique –�Trends –�Surveys

<� Timely <� Depends upon the audience <� What we want them to write about�

What’s “Newsworthy?”


Plane Lands Safely

Skilled Lawyer

Moves to Different Law Firm

Lawyer Closes

AnotherDeal

Law Firm Offers Clients a Full-Service Practice Firm Represents Big, Small, Mid-Sized Clients Billion-Dollar Victory! Lawyer Can't Discuss it.

What’s “Newsworthy?”


$100,000 litigation win

<� Exercise: Make it news. –�Against Isis –�For Beyoncé –�With bizarre facts (tragedy, weird) –�Timely, connected to hot stories <� Ebola-related injury

–�When expecting $1,000,000,000 –�Find an audience that cares about it


Sending Press Releases

<� What should you write about? –�Current news, events –�Relevant legal decisions –�Firm news, awards, new hires

<� Keep expectations reasonable


Sending Press Releases

<� Send through paid newswires to increase distribution, visibility –�PR Newswire –�PR Web

<� Media directories / databases to find contacts, reporters, build media lists –�Bacons –�BurrellesLuce –�Vocus


Public Relations and the Ethics Rules

<� Most violations will be under Rule 7.1


Public Relations and the Ethics Rules

<� Most common violations: –�Case results <� Unjustified expectations

–�“Expert or “specialist”


Rule 3.6: Trial Publicity


Working with the Media


Not Woodward & Bernstein

<� Sitting at desk <� Waiting for “daily deluge”

–�“sources” –�PR professionals


Reporters

<� Young <� Bright <� Energetic <� Underpaid <� Professional <� Want to do good job <� Don’t trade ads for editorial


Who covers your “Beat?”

<� What publications write about your issue? <� Reporters have different areas, specialties

–�Law –�Real estate –�Pharmaceutical –�Automotive

<� Befriend those who cover the “Legal Beat”


“Why is it always Gloria Allred?”

<� Narrow subject-matter expert –�Not “Law” –�What’s your topic?

<� Proactive, has a publicist, plays the game


What are Reporters Looking For?

<� Apparent expertise, credentials –�Bar positions, titles, leadership

<� Accessible <� Responsive

–�Meet deadlines <� Quotable

–�Pithy –�Controversial <� “They stink. That's terrible.”


Working with the Media

<� Regularly quoted have worked hard for it –� You can too

<� Understand what reporters need –� Make reporters’ jobs easier –� Make it a priority to help fulfill them

<� Respect their deadlines –� Always ask for it, tell your secretary –� Who call back first? Client or reporter?

<� Don’t ask to preview article


Make Yourself Useful

<� Reporters looking for ideas –�Hot news –�Trends –�New issues –�Exclusive “scoops”

<� You’re likely to be quoted <� “Hmm, really? That’s interesting.”

–� (Who writes about that?)


Niche Experts – Top Sources

<� Always seeking new sources <� Viewed as expert, credible <� You can become a niche expert

–�Association leadership position –�Specialized experience <� industry articles, speeches, op eds

–�Focused practice –�Builds on itself, grows


When a Reporter Calls

<� Ask what their deadline is <� Ask what they want to talk about

–� You want a few minutes to collect your thoughts <� Tell them you’re in a meeting <� Ask if you can call them back in 10 minutes

–� Collect your thoughts, write your outline –� Write the great quote –� Rehearse

<� Call them back within the deadline –� Speak slowly –� Short, powerful, interesting sound bites


Get the Giant Quote

<� You want to be so quotable that the article becomes mostly about you –�Or at least get the giant quote in the box

<� Write down quotable things before the interview <� Read them to the reporter

–� If they’re great quotes, they’ll hear them


Shaping the Story. Getting the Quote


Attitudes


Interviews are Transactions

<� Both sides have goals –�Reporter need not obtain all the benefits –�You control the flow of information

<� Media is a cost-effective way to spread your message: –�Clients –�Prospects –�Potential recruits –�Other key audiences


Tell our Side of the Story

�� <� They'll get the info somewhere

–�Better from us than opponents <� Help “shape” the coverage

–�Add your side of the story


Reporters aren't Lawyers

<� Assume they don't understand this issue or jargon –�Explain patiently –�Be available for clarification

<� May be their first such story


Reporters are Responsible

<� Inaccurate stories? –�Lack of information –�Lack of time to gather it –�Refusal to furnish relevant facts, opinion

<� They might still get it wrong


Remember the Readers

<� Communicating to a general audience through a third person <� Avoid

–�Latin –�Technical language

<� Always define your terms


Where’s the 4-Foot Check?


Looking for a new brand or website? A marketing or CLE speaker?

Ross Fishman, JD Fishman Marketing, Inc. Tel: 1-847/HEADLINE www.fishmanmarketing.com [email protected] Blog: FishmanMarketing.com/blog Twitter: @rossfishman LinkedIn.com/in/rossfishman


Fishman Marketing, Inc. 1356 St. Johns Ave Highland Park, IL 60035 USA Tel: 847.432.3546 (847-HEADLINE) [email protected] www.fishmanmarketing.com

Called “one of the country’s leading experts on law !rm marketing” by Lawyers Weekly USA, Ross is known as one of the legal profession’s most innovative marketers and strategists. As CEO of Fishman Marketing, Inc.,

he helps law !rms dominate their chosen markets and generate signi!cant revenue. Often hired to overhaul a !rm’s message, brand, or website, he is best known for strategic marketing plans, di"erentiation and positioning; and the development of the profession’s most cutting-edge marketing materials. Even in today’s recessionary economy, Fishman Mar-keting’s clients continue to grow, in size and pro!ts.

Ross was a commercial litigator from 1985-90 before moving to Winston & Strawn to practice marketing full-time, later becoming Marketing Partner of Unga-retti & Harris. Called “the creative mind behind a host of law !rm campaigns that have rede!ned the !eld” (San Jose Business Journal), Fishman Marketing has launched e"ective campaigns for nearly 100 !rms from Istanbul to Iceland. FM campaigns have received dozens of international marketing awards, including the LMA’s grand prize, the Best of Show award, !ve of the ten times ever presented. FM campaigns also received one of Inc. magazine’s ten Marketing Masters awards for “brilliant and successful” marketing campaigns. Recipient of a peer-selected LMA

1998 Lifetime Achievement Award, Ross was the !rst legal marketer inducted into the LMA’s Hall of Fame. Known for his “educational and entertaining” presenta-tion style, he has conducted more than 250 !rm retreats and training programs on !ve continents, from Toba-go to #ailand — including once presenting on three continents within 24 hours. A Fellow of the College of Law Practice Management, Ross has written over 250 bylined articles, including !ve monthly columns, and has sat on the editorial board of !ve national magazines.

An active LMA member since 1990, Ross has been the Vice President, a member of both the Strategic Plan-ning and Best Practice Task Forces, and chairman and moderator of seven consecutive QuickStart conferences, later creating and hosting “Just JDs,” LMA’s !rst full-day program exclusively for lawyers. He has been hired as the marketing expert witness in two precedent-setting branding- and social media-related lawsuits.

A 1986 member of the federal Trial Bar (N.D. Ill), he received a B.A. in Speech Communications, cum laude, from the University of Illinois, and his J.D. from Emory Law School.

ROSS FISHMAN, J.D.

“Ross has a stronger sense of what will create ‘buzz’ than anyone else in the market.”

Rick Klau, Google, Inc.

“Ross was going to win in so many categories that LMA created the ‘Best in Show’ so he’d win one grand prize

instead of nearly all the trophies”LMA’s “In The Loop,” Fall 2009

“Ross is a litigator-turned-marketer whose company offers branding services IVL�QLMI[�\W�TI_�ÅZU[�º