Law Times

LAW TIMES / MAY 26, 2008 FOCUS odcasts and video stream- ing are becoming valuable marketing tools for law firms and organizations commu- nicating their brand. Those that have been suc- cessful — tracking thousands of listeners to a single broadcast — disclose that audio or video ses- sions to update clients on legal developments has translated into tangible business. "We received a great response," remembers Stuart Wood, director of marketing and business devel- opment, who oversees broadcasts for the video centre at Torys LLP. "The first one we did was Video and audio podcasts prove valuable P 'Casting for clients BY DARYL-LYNN CARLSON For Law Times in interview with the Globe and Mail that when I approached her with the request, she wanted to run screaming," he says. "So yes, the first group was a bit reluc- tant. I think they're naturally a little reluctant to do things that haven't been done by another firm before. The second wave had more interest, I think, be- cause we had such good public- ity and response from clients." Early on, it was evident the downloaded about 2,000 times in the first week." Torys was said to be the first law firm in Canada to launch a video centre on its web site. At the time, in 2006, a national newspa- per featured the firm's foray into video, the first that had a series of short broadcasts about develop- ments in mergers and acquisition, which likely contributed to the in- terest and viewership, says Wood. But it put the firm and its vid- eo centre on the map, so to speak. The concept and format of the broadcasts' content was modeled after the informational breakfast meetings that Torys held for cli- ents. The idea is to provide clients or prospects with an introduction to the lawyers so they could get to know them as well as learn about their expertise. "We were trying to copy our videos were generating business. The next batch of videos the firm produced featured Cheryl Reicin discussing developments in her life sciences practice. "We actu- ally got at least one matter from somebody who didn't know the firm but contacted us after watch- ing the video and ended up retain- ing the firm for a matter, and that paid for the entire project." Viewers can watch the videos at Torys either on its web site or by subscribing to the firm's RSS feeds. The videos require either QuickTime 7 or Windows Media Player, which can be downloaded from the firm's site free of charge. Hull & Hull LLP in Toronto provides audio and video pod- casts along with regularly updated blogs. "As lawyers, we believe we're really in the business to provide information to our clients," says partner Suzana Popovic-Montag. a broadcast in part or in its en- tirety whenever they choose. Through discussions with cli- ents, the firm has learned that it has a wide variety of people who tune in to certain topics, includ- ing other professionals such as financial planners, trust industry practitioners, along with people looking for an estate lawyer. Often, new clients will feel like they have a rapport with a lawyer they've heard deliver a broadcast. People are doing their homework. Hull & Hull specialized in wills and estate planning, so it might seem especially chal- lenging to create compelling broadcasts. But it was Pop- ovic-Montag who initiated the media at the firm when the concept was still cutting-edge nearly three years ago. "I think really the flexibility is the key to its function," she says, noting that people can listen or watch they have a rapport with a lawyer they've heard deliver a broadcast, she says. "People are doing their homework," she says. This summer the firm is re- Often, new clients will feel like & Hull TV that might show up or get picked up by YouTube so we can spread out presence." Osler Hoskin & Harcourt LLP has also pioneered law firm broadcasting, launching au- dio podcasts in 2005. Nanette Matys, Oslers' director of client development, says the first few broadcasts the firm released had nearly 1,000 downloads. It also provides an RSS sub- scription to the audio podcasts and ensures the topics are in keeping with other publications and materials it provides for its client base, she says. A series of tips posted on a blog PAGE 15 vamping its Hull & Hull TV to feature content it hopes will get picked up by other Web 2.0 fo- rums such as YouTube, she says. "That's our goal, to get a bunch of snippets that we can post on Hull called TechnoLaw suggests law firms that want to produce video podcasts hire a professional for production, optimize their search engines, promote the video by e- mail or press release, embed the video on the firm's web site, and produce sequels or have several short clips made during a session for economy. LT breakfast seminars in terms of feel," explains Wood. "We wanted to make it unscripted and more like a conversation between the lawyer and attendee. So the law- yers don't come with scripts; they come with three questions that they should be asked," he says. "What we wanted is to give peo- ple a feel for what it's like to talk to these individual lawyers. That comes across in person, but you have to think about that when you're doing these videos. They can't be too structured." Nor can they be too lengthy. Generally the videos at Torys are less than five minutes in duration. "We were aware that if you're ac- tually designing the video pod- cast for people to download it to their iPod and watch it, then you can make it longer because then they're watching it on the subway or while running on a treadmill or something," says Wood. "But if you're designing it for people to watch at their desk, where we think most people watch it, then you have to make it shorter." The firm also tries to be cre- ative in content. "One of the things that we've tried to do is not make it gimmicky," he says. "We won't do a batch of podcasts if we don't have a good topic." The videos at Torys are pro- fessionally shot by a camera operator, and the firm oversees content and editing. At the outset of production, Wood shares that lawyers at the firm were reluctant to partici- pate. "Sharon Geraghty was the second video podcast. She said www.canadalawbook.ca Canada Law Book is A Division of The Cartwright Group Ltd. 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