The following article was written for the Daily Law Journal.
It's been more than a year since my Website, The Tax Prophet(r) (http://www.taxprophet.com) was launched into Cyberspace. That makes me one of the Internet's old-timers. Was it worth the trip? The answer: a qualified "maybe."
To answer the main question, the Internet has not produced a plethora of new clients. Similar to a Yellow Pages advertisement, I've had a lot of curiosity, but few actual gems. At last count, more than 18,400 people have visited the Tax Prophet since January 1st, 1996 and I have receive approximately 300 e-mail inquiries. Many are from students requesting help with their assignments or those seeking free tax advice. However, I have landed a couple new clients. Most importantly, these clients are part of my target audience: emerging high-tech and multi-media companies. And, because of my Website, I now have -- at least -- an entrée into several major companies. Only time will tell whether the Internet is worth the expense and effort to maintain a Website. Like any other marketing endeavor, the payback is over the long-term; clearly, there is no "instant business" on the Internet.
Before creating a Website, lawyers should understand that the Internet is a strange new form of communication and that the medium itself is evolving. Lawyers may be in for a shock: Our stable medium of communicate --paper-- is passé in Cyberspace. The Internet unites and depends on pictures, sound, video, and linked text ("hypertext") in which a mouse-click can send the viewer anywhere on the Web. Also, interactive applications will shortly become a standard feature at many Websites, as the Java programming language comes into vogue. This means that my article on estate planning on my Website might be rewritten as an interactive application in which the viewer responds to certain questions and, based on those responses, is then provided with the appropriate information. This constant change in the medium itself provides excitement, opportunity and, often, frustration in its maintenance.
The second most often asked question is whether a law firm should have a Website. The answer is much more complex than those who are hyping the Internet - mostly web-page designers -- would have us think. A Website has been compared to (and too-often used as) an electronic brochure. Many firms have Web pages that mirror their brochures, including a description of how wonderful the firm is, how it can expertly perform every legal task imaginable and containing pictures of grinning attorneys listing their stellar credentials. While brochures promote a firm to its clients or a target audience of potential clients, their delivery is controlled. If a brochure is poorly drafted, it can be pulled and new ones can be created without much fanfare.
A Website is not a brochure It is akin to a Broadway play in which every person with access to the Web can instantly attend. A law firm's Website will be compared with its competitors' and thoroughly reviewed by an ever-growing field of critics. Get ready for this reality: When the Tax Prophet received its first review, it was a strangely unsettling experience. I realized my Webpage was actually a public performance and that the critics were interested in the design and use of Internet features (graphics and hyper-text links to other related sites) as well as the site's content.
It is one thing to be criticized by a superior in private, it is quite another to receive a review which the whole world might read! Think about it. Understand the power of this medium and its potentially negative consequences to your firm's image, if your Webpage (in the words of my 10 year-old) "Stinks, Big-time." If you do not understand the medium and its potential, if your Website does not work (or is "under construction") for most of its links, do not risk your firm's reputation by placing an inferior product on the Web. Understand the downside before blindly jumping into the Internet.
A Webpage should include the following: (1) An attractive and engaging home page; (2) An e-mail facility that confirms that e-mail has been successfully sent; (3) A design that allows the viewer to navigate though the materials with relative easy; and (4) most importantly, content!
The home page creates the first impression of your law firm. Many firms are using variations of their business cards as the graphic design for their home pages. My approach was different. I decided to create a story-line with my home page, using cartoon graphics of a tax wizard, and then carry it through to the other main pages of my site. This approach seemed to have worked well and can be enhanced as the Web's medium changes to interactive applications.
Although Netscape (and, presumably other Web browsers) have a crude e-mail capability, you should have a separately designed e-mail page in which viewers can e-mail the firm in general or their attorney of choice. Also, once the e-mail has been sent, a screen message should appear confirming it. Email is "the" method of communication. Provide for it throughout your Website.
Design your page with the end-user in mind. How easy is it to navigate through your Website? Are there "back" and "forward" buttons? Is your page designed logically according to subject matter or office location? Remember, a Website is merely a mouse-click away from being dismissed by a frustrated viewer, so make their lives as easy as possible.
Finally, you must have content -- information useful to your reader. It could be a collection of recent cases, analysis of the law in your field or articles or outlines you have published. But if your Website is lacking in content, it will be considered just a superficial attempt to exploit the Web for commercial purposes, and will be rightfully slammed by those reviewing it. Once you have decided on the content, remember the manner in which the information is dispensed will change as sound, video and interactive applications become prevalent.
The Internet empowers lawyers with tools that allow innovation in the communication of information -- in fact, it demands that information be presented in new and creative formats.
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**NOTE: The information contained at this site is for educational purposes only and is not intended for any particular person or circumstance. A competent tax professional should always be consulted before utilizing any of the information contained at this site.**