Announcing my new weekly Law Podcast “The Social Lawyer” show!

I am thrilled to announce the launch (finally) of my new podcast “The Social Lawyer” where I’ll be sharing strategies, tips, tools and timely updates for lawyers and law firms. To get this all going, the first one – episode #000 – will be an intro to me, my unusual journey from law to marketing agency founder/owner and most importantly, how this 15 minute weekly law podcast benefits lawyers!

And, I hope you all took some time to hit refresh with family and friends over the holidays! As tradition calls for in our family, we celebrated the new year by plunging into the cold Pacific joining a few hundred other crazies in the Polar Bear Plunge. Sans wetsuit. Somewhere inside I still have the weathered Swede who left the motherland for the US back in the late 80s.

My name is Viveca Hess and I’m a Swedish transplant living in beautiful San Diego since 1990 after teaching skiing a few years in Northern California,

I started my online marketing agency, HessConnect back in 2009 when I decided it was time to move away from lawyering and into a space I felt offered more creative and management leeway. I’d created most of the marketing, outreach campaigns for the firm where I worked and absolutely fell in love with this aspect of creating content, communications and engagement – in a way law practice could not provide.

Though I’ve never looked back, my legal background lends itself nicely to offering lawyers and their firms online content and social media strategies. You may (or may not if this goes back too far in time), recall first year of Contracts teaching us about those “Gap Filler” provisions (UCC Article 2). Well, it’s how I often think of myself nowadays. Let me explain…

Keeping on top of the many updates to what lawyers can or cannot say or do online keeps me pretty busy, and provides my clients with the latest best practices which I know they appreciate, makes them feel protected – and more willing to implement online efforts that have the ability to give a great return if done right.

One of the most common hurdles attorneys face when considering how or even whether to incorporate online content, and social media into their marketing efforts is a real fear about staying clear of those sensitivities and regulations unique to lawyers and advertising. This is where I come in – as the Gap Filler – to ensure any at risk blank spaces whether meeting advertising rules, regulations, opinions or interpretations are covered. There are often plenty of myths, misunderstandings and confusion when it comes to especially what social media is. How it can benefit a lawyer, how to measure and track, and finally to manage – all the while ensuring continued quality services to existing clients and scaling a practice.

If you are a lawyer or firm that is looking to stay on top of the ever evolving rules of online advertising, and creative proven strategies to grow your practice, I believe you and your practice will really benefit from this law podcast. Particularly if you are looking to increase your client base through the latest, tested, and streamlined online strategies.

Let me give you an idea of the format I intend for The Social Lawyer podcast. It will be a short sweet 15 minute soundbyte consisting of about 80% of Strategies, Tools, Tips and updates unique to lawyer and lawyer advertising, 10% entertainment (I hope), and 10% inspiration. I really encourage you to share any feedback following The Social Lawyer show in the Comment section. This podcast will publish on Thursday mornings. Just in time for you to listen in during your commute, while walking the dog or – walking/working out yourself!

I’ll be keeping a close eye on any feedback to The Social Lawyer podcast so I am as responsive as possible to what you would like to know more about when it comes to the intersection of lawyering, building your practice and online marketing.

Here’s your handy dandy tip of this introductory episode:

One of the perks of living in 2018 is that there are mobile apps for virtually any task you can think of. Looking for a taxi? You’ve got Uber. Want some food delivered to your doorstep? There are Foodler, Blue Apron. Can’t make it to the gym for the third week in a row? Asana Rebel or Fitbit can help you with workouts at home. Given all this diversity of applications for our personal life, it comes as no surprise that there are applications for different kinds of business too, and experience confirms times and times again, mobile apps are getting increasingly popular among lawyers, while legal chatbots gain the popularity of end customers.

So, here is one that is widely used in a several professional industries, but especially useful for lawyers, it is called NOTARYCAM. A popular online notary service that lets users get their documents legally and securely notarized in all 50 U.S. states. The app is currently available for iOS devices and provides notary services on demand, anytime and anywhere. Online notary services from NotaryCam are made through a professional network of certified notaries who create digital versions of documents that need to be notarized. Also, by means of a webcam that’s connected to the app customers verify their identity and electronically sign the documents. NotaryCam is praised for its security, fraud prevention and convenience.

And, by the way, I am in no way an affiliate of any apps or programs suggested in this podcast, but I do not make a suggestion without having used the tip, tool or strategy extensively!

With this I bid you bye for now and we’ll chat more next week where I will cover some fundamental definitions, descriptions and starting points to ensure you are well and accurately represented online – while you continue to service clients offline! I think you’ll be surprised at how easily together we can implement, manage, and measure your online presence, so you can focus on lawyering while growing your practice. Join me on The Social Lawyer show law podcast and together let’s get your year going with a fresh start, renewed sense of accelerating your practice, clientele, and overall growth! Thanks for taking the time to join me in the launch of The Social Lawyer law podcast show and talk to you next week!