Reputation Management, Part Twelve: Building Relationships Now Can Help You Down the Line

Building strong relationships now with respected bloggers can be beneficial if someone attacks your reputation down the line.

The bloggers of today will be the thought leaders in your field tomorrow. For this reason, it is important to build relationships now that will further your legal career down the line. While a blog may just look like an inexpensive website, serious writers seek to increase their audience using blogs. If you can develop a relationship with a respected blogger in your field, you might be able to guest blog for them or otherwise become involved in their Internet community. It never hurts to reach out.

Business relations with press and journal publishers have long been a method of mutual support. Writers get access to inside information and expert opinion, while business owners get access to a large pool of untapped prospects as well as allies when others besmirch their reputation. This is as true now as it was in the early days of newsprint and is something all lawyers should keep in mind when developing a reputation management crisis plan. The relationships you build now will sustain you well into the sunset of your career.

Where relationships fit into your overall crisis management plan

If an online reputation crisis occurs and you need to start promoting what your firm can do for, say, victims of railroad accidents, you should quickly shoot off an email to bloggers who know your law firm and the quality of work you produce. Ask if you can publish an article on their site, or see if they’ll write something positive about the topic related to your crisis while plugging your business. Customers will be more likely to discount negative reviews if they can find unique content on several different websites presenting a positive view of your firm or your firm’s lawyers.

How to use web relationships for crisis prevention

By keeping in regular touch with bloggers you trust, you can make sure positive content about your business spreads across the web on a regular basis from many different sources. The stronger your web footprint, the less likely it is that a single piece of negative content will make a noticeable impact.

Develop relationships with three to five serious, trusted bloggers, and try to identify the online thought leaders in your field. They will be helpful in terms of finding you new clients, helping you manage crises and contributing to your business’ overall health for years to come. They can also help you protect your name brand, a topic covered in Part Thirteen of the CaseDetails.com Reputation Management series.