Odd announcement from someone who feigns the hype of numbers in the social media world.
But the number, itself, is significant. Not that it's 25,000, but that it's 25,000 comments, written by humans (yes, some spammers) who have touched a keyboard for the purpose of responding to something written about a real issue by a real (lawyer) person.
Twenty-five thousand.
There will be no love for Scott Greenfield today due to this feat, and let's be clear, it is a feat. It's a feat because Scott violates all the new rules of blogging. He doesn't let (a marketer) someone else write his posts, he doesn't throw up all over his blog with links to his law firm, he doesn't spend his days blogging about how all the shiny new toys of Apple will change the lives of lawyers, he doesn't ask others for links, nor allow others to gratuitously link to their garbage marketing site du jour, and he responds to almost every comment left for him.
The social media marketers, the failed lawyers who (are broke) work daily to convince lawyers how to blog, stay clear of Scott. He has reached the success in the blogosphere of which these (scam artists) marketers can only dream. While they attempt to create blogs for their desperate lawyer clients who simply (no pun intended) "want to be on the internet," Scott wakes up every morning and types. Sometimes he types about criminal justice, sometimes he types about books, and sometimes he types whatever is on his mind, no social media strategy for this lawyer.
Scott's blog is read and appreciated and criticized because it has something the social media marketers will never understand - a point of view. Scott writes what he thinks. He is not blogging for profit, or trying to gain the love of the young pups who know everything, right down to the newest drink they're serving at Starbucks.
The same baby lawyers and marketing bloggers that privately comment to each other how much they can't stand Scott, comment on his blog, and wake up every day wondering if they'll ever have the practice, the blog, the respect of real lawyers and judges and prosecutors, like Scott Greenfield.
They curse the rain while they stand outside with rainbuckets trying to collect every drop for themselves.
So congratulations Scott. In an internet world where there are much less bloggers and many more marketers, thank you for keeping the real conversation going. Thank you for reminding us what blogging was meant to be.
That's my comment.
Brian Tannebaum is a criminal defense lawyer in Miami, Florida practicing in state and federal court, and the author of The Truth About Hiring A Criminal Defense Lawyer.
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Thanks, Brian. My noting the passage of the 25,000 comment mark primarily comes from my being astounded by it. It's not a metric that shows success or self-importance as either the social media gurus or whiners would call it. It's utterly meaningless in terms of ROI or blogospheric hegemony. Those are things that only seem to matter to those seeking them, and who apparently can't achieve their goals.
ReplyDeleteAs you say, I failed miserably to follow the 10 Rules the gurus explain, ad naseum, for blogging success. I have no clue when I write something whether anyone will read it or no one will read it. I just write. Everything else is up to others.
I can't make anyone read or comment. Whether someone loves me or hates me is outside my control. My blawg is just a bunch of letters like everyone else's blawg. I appreciate that people stop by to read and engage in some discussion. It could all stop tomorrow, not that it would change what I do. In the meantime, I just write about things that interest me.
Mr. Tannebaum,
ReplyDeleteThank you for the insightful post. I have just recently began blogging for the law firm I work at, Bennerotte & Associates, P.A. (Eagan, Minnesota) and have found myself lost as to what to blog about. What is interesting to people? What isn't? What will get people to visit my page more often? Maybe Scott Greenfield has the right idea. Maybe I need to be more interesting. Sure, people need to be informed, so it is always good to include informational topics, but maybe I need to throw a few curve balls.
Thanks for the new perspective.
Rachel
It's "many fewer bloggers," not "much less bloggers."
ReplyDeleteKudos to Scott on having a great blog to read and to Brian for recognizing it and also having a great blog to read, despite the poor grammar.
I think becoming a successful blogger depends on what's the content and just being informative for readers to be interested in. You won't be motivated unless you enjoy what you're doing. If you're blogging about a topic like Criminal Defense that you don't enjoy, either create a blog about something else or tweak the blog up a bit.
ReplyDelete