Peer to Peer Magazine

BEST I PRACTICES Relying On the Tried and True (and the New) To Maximize Media Exposure remember getting a call from my father many years ago; his best friend had just published a book and was doing a reading and signing at the local book store. This was a huge deal … to actually know someone who was an author (regardless of the topic or genre), who went through all the motions of finding a publisher, often making a substantial personal financial sacrifice, not to mention all the time and stress involved in meeting publisher demands and deadlines. Today, it takes roughly one hour on a website like Lulu or Blurb and $10 (if you go the premium route) and voilá — you're published. The point here is that the universe as we know it is shrinking before our very eyes, and major life accomplishments like writing a book, recording an album or shooting a video are now a mere click away. TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE OPPORTUNITIES Relate this to your ability and opportunity to become an author or presenter in the area that you know best — legal IT. Thanks to associations like ILTA, there are a multitude of opportunities to have your voice and, more important, your subject-matter expertise be heard; you can write an article, participate in webinars and podcasts or land a speaking gig at a meeting or conference. While you might be on the fence about the what (should my topic be) and the where (should I try to gain exposure), the why (should I even bother) rarely comes into play anymore. We all understand the merits of creating value-added content, espousing our expertise and putting our name out there. But, quite frankly, the days of "I'm doing this for me" are gone as motivators to publish because, in today's competitive climate, your boss stresses the importance of touting your knowledge, and your clients expect it. 10 www.iltanet.org Peer to Peer HARNESS THE POWER OF THE WEB At ILTA's annual conference in Nashville, I had the privilege of moderating and participating in a panel discussion on "Generating Media Exposure for IT Leadership," designed to help ILTA members improve their writing and promotional "game" by providing them with tips and best practices on seeking more writing opportunities and maximizing their exposure once published. As mentioned by fellow panelist Ayelette Robinson, Littler's Director of Knowledge Technology and a seasoned author, law firm clients are increasingly looking at your staff's expertise and broader media exposure. Thanks to Google+, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and similar social media channels, clients will know everything you have said, written and commented on before you ever meet them. While this sounds incredibly scary and might compel you to do nothing but hide under a rock, I suggest you actually do the opposite and harness the power of social media overexposure to get yourself, the firm or a special project noticed for the right reasons. Here are some tips and ideas on what you can do now to further spread the word for your article, blog, product review or case study: Download the presentation and free audio recording of the "Generating Media Exposure for IT Leadership" conference session. conference.iltanet.org/downloads

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