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The Blogging Phenomenonby Danny Bronski Most of us are aware of the proliferation of web logs, or “blogs”; the blogging phenomenon has been widely discussed in the mainstream media during the past year. While blogging has been evolving slowly for a decade, “blawgging” has started to take off much more recently. One of the first attorneys to get in on the act was Seattle-based young lawyer Venkat Balasubramani. Venkat, who practices with local IP boutique Newman and Newman, started his blog Balasubramania’s Mania in January 2003 to provide off-center commentary on a host of legal, local and other issues. In early 2004, he closed up shop on Mania to join Begging To Differ, a group blog which features diverse perspectives on politics, law and culture. Begging To Differ is where Venkat’s insightful and irreverent rants can now be found. Danny Bronski sat down with Venkat to discuss how blogging has enriched his life, whether blogging is an effective marketing tool for attorneys, and how blogging is likely to change as it matures. Danny: When did you learn about the blogging phenomenon and how long before you decided to create one yourself? Venkat: I stumbled onto Instapundit's site (I think through GlennReynolds.com on MSNBC) in late 2002. A short time later I also stumbled onto How Appealing, which I started reading daily. Instapundit appealed to me because it had a basement-pirate, short-wave radio vibe to it which I thought was really cool. In January, 2003, I discovered blogger and realized how simple it was to start a blog. As it was, I read a tremendous amount of material on the internet about a variety of topics. I thought it would be fun and interesting to point out some of the more noteworthy but obscure materials. I didn’t see anyone with an irreverent take on the law, and I thought I could provide this, along with a glimpse into Seattle’s retail and restaurant scene. Danny: What are the main pros and cons to maintaining your own blog, in your opinion? Venkat: My favorite thing is making a connection that I would not have made but for the blog. It sounds cliché but this really makes it worthwhile. My least favorite thing is that I'm often up late at night blogging and reading the news. Late nights and hours in front of computer monitors are the bane of a blogger’s existence. Venkat: Yes, a blawg is a great opportunity to display expertise in an area or even to just tell someone that you have an interest in a particular area. A blawg is a great way to sound articulate about the issues (as a client I would love to hire a lawyer that's already following what's going on in the relevant area.) It wouldn't be inconceivable that someone who blogs a lot about the Communications Decency Act comes up when an ISP's in-house counsel is performing a Google search on a case or an issue—from there it's probably fairly easy to form a relationship. A blawg can also establish or strengthen a lawyer's recognition in the media; I imagine that blogging has increased the profiles of both Howard Bashman (How Appealing) and Eugene Volokh (Volokh Conspiracy). Danny: Has your blog has a positive impact on your practice from a marketing standpoint? Venkat: It hasn't had a direct impact. Most significantly, I have always separated my blogging life from my professional life; as a blogger, I am much more irreverent than I am in my professional life. Moreover, my blogging often focuses on political and personal viewpoints, and thus people probably don't identify me as a "blawgger", but rather a lawyer who happens to weigh in on various issues. I think it has helped my writing and given me a better sense of what I know, but hasn’t directly resulted in any clients. Danny: So you don’t use your blog as a marketing tool for your practice. Do you agree that blawgs should generally not be started with the primary goal being a marketing tool? Venkat: I do not use my blog as a marketing tool for my practice. Marketing can be a byproduct of a blawg, but at its root, blogging is more about finding your unique voice and participating in a community. It is a grass-roots medium, and as with any other grass roots phenomenon, the "pure marketing approach" is rarely effective. A blawgger who is primarily marketing (rather than having a conversation with his or her readers) is also likely to find a tepid response from the blogging community. The other question I would ask myself as a blawgger looking to market through my blawg is what is my readership comprised of? For the most part, lawyers, law clerks, academics and media-types read blawgs. To the extent your client fits in one of those categories (maybe an in-house lawyer reads blawgs in a certain area and stumbles across yours) you may get some direct marketing hits. To the extent you are marketing your services to non-lawyers, one thing to consider is that your average non-lawyer—to the extent he or she searches regarding legal issues on the Internet—is not necessarily going to come across your blawg when searching on the Internet. Even if they do, they are not going to experience the same conversational interaction with your blawg as an in-house lawyer or academic. Danny: It seems that we are starting to see large law firms get into the act, using blawgs as a thinly veiled marketing tool. Do you believe that large law firm blawgs will have success finding an audience? Will blawgging succeed in “going corporate”? Venkat: In my opinion, the appeal of a blawg is mostly the personality of the blogger (or bloggers), so it doesn't make sense to have a "corporate blog". Even the more successful blogs affiliated with corporations are run by individuals (for example, both GM and Boeing have blogs). Corporate blogs should still heavily reflect the personality of the individual blogger. Blogging to me is a bit counter-culture. On that level, it's tough to imagine a blogosphere where corporate blogs live in the center and not on the fringe. I think firms will definitely toe the line between newsletter and blog and publish up-to-date daily news that's useful to their clients and which may also generate business for them. Preston Gates, for example, recently started an e-discovery blog that looks like it will be pretty successful. I'm sure there are other examples out there. But I'm not sure how dramatically different their blogs are going to be from their previously existing newsletters and e-mail updates. I don't envision pitched battles in the comment sections of these blogs or significant linking to other blogs. I don't envision a lot of "snark". These are central features of a typical blog. Danny: Do you think we are facing an impending "blawg bubble"? That is, do you think that the character of new blawggers is changing? Are most new blawggers lemmings who fail to grasp the significance of what makes for a relevant and interesting blog? Venkat: I think there's room for a lot more. The medium is really young and not saturated. I think about topics that could use blogs every day, and every day I encounter a new blog that looks like it could end up being prosperous (today, for example I encountered DUI Blog . . . it's been around for 3 months but it looks like it will be around for a while and pay dividends for its proprietor). As with any trend, those who latch on later on in the trend cycle may not really see the true purpose behind the trend. So you are right, more new bloggers than before maybe don’t get the point. But that’s part of the beauty of blogs. You can try it for a couple of months. If you don’t like it or don’t see it as worthwhile then you can close up shop. No harm, no foul. (Although personally, I am ashamed to admit that one of the things that keeps me blogging is that I don’t want to be seen as “quitting”.) As you mentioned, we are also seeing a wave of corporate interest in blogging. There's probably a bubble here. AOL and Google have sunk money into something that's probably not paying dividends for them. Ask Jeeves just bought bloglines, and Salon just gobbled up the Daou Report. These are not necessarily indications of a thriving niche. It was either a fire sale situation or maybe representative of a bubble (where acquisitions at inflated prices are the norm). Apart from Nick Denton (who runs Wonkette, Gawker, etc.) I don’t know of many people who are really making money blogging. Danny: How about burnout? Do you think that would-be blawggers appreciate the dedication it takes to stay relevant? Venkat: I am not sure that many would-be blawggers appreciate the dedication it takes to stay relevant; particularly in the area of blawgging. Most blawgs have to provide some analysis to stay relevant. This takes time and research, even if you blawg in an area you are very familiar with from your practice. As a lawyer you don’t want to put some half-baked opinion out there. You still want to double check things. Very quickly, your blawgging time starts to add up. The other anecdotal issue is that it’s tough to blog directly about matters you are working on. So often, the most interesting stuff and the stuff you know the most about is not the stuff you can easily blawg about. Danny: any anecdotes of blawgging success stories? Venkat: I came across a wonderful piece of secondary authority from networking with a law professor I encountered in the blawgosphere. More than once in my practice I have cited a case or other authority that came to my attention from the blogosphere that I may not necessarily have come across from doing an on-line search. However, I have yet to experience anything really exciting, like a judge citing my blog and then deciding in my favor. Danny: What are your favorite blawgs? How Appealing I read a ton more, but those come to mind off-hand. Danny: I’ll add My Shingle and The non-Billable Hour Danny Bronski practices in the areas of intellectual property (www.VeriTrademark.com) and commercial law (www.BronskiLaw.com). His office is in the Ballard of Seattle. Venkat Balasubramani practices intellectual property law with the firm Newman and Newman (www.newmanlaw.com). |