Differing Views of Lawyers on Twitter: Savvy Marketing Tool or ‘Nonsense’?
Some lawyers see Twitter as a marketing tool that allows them to promote their law practices without all the expense of advertising.
Among the Twitter converts are New York criminal defense lawyers Matthew Galluzzo and Zachary Johnson, who first started tweeting during their representation of Angel Alvarez, the Wall Street Journal (sub. req.) reports. Alvarez was shot more than 20 times by police; he survived and grand jurors declined to indict him for gun possession.
Now the lawyers use Twitter to announce media appearances, comment on criminal justice news and link to their blog posts. According to the story, “The old tools of branding—snazzy ties, confident bluster and gimmicky ads—are being replaced by a prominent web presence.”
Not everyone agrees that Twitter helps gain clients. Scott Greenfield has a blog and more than 1,500 Twitter followers. But, he tells the Wall Street Journal, “To be honest, I don’t think it’s done a damn thing for me” in terms of clients. But he does like the opportunity to “say my piece.”
Bronx lawyer Murray Richman has the opposite concern—he worries that Twitter and blogs are being used to “hustle the cases” away from other lawyers. “You’re being judged on being cute or having a cute expression and all the nonsense that goes on with Twitter,” he said.
Additional coverage:
ABAJournal.com: “Most BigLaw Firms Have Twitter Accounts, But Few Tweet Very Often”
