As of yesterday, I officially became knowledgeable about blawging.  No, I did not proclaim myself an expert.  No, I did not have an epiphany.  No, I did not learn the true meaning of “search engine optimization,” and I still have no clue what that means or how to actually do it.  For the nuts and bolts junk, you have to go elsewhere.  If that’s your purpose, you may want to stop reading immediately, as I offer no refund on wasted time. 

Instead, I found myself quoted in a Law.com article by C.C. Holland entitled How to Build a Better Law Blog.  If I wasn’t knowledgeable, I wouldn’t be in there.  Walter Olson from Overlawyered was in there too, and for me to be in the same article as Walter is, well, flattering to say the least.  I mean, seriously, he started this whole blawging thing and I’m just a baby in comparison.  I hardly have the right to sit at his bended knee, so it must mean something that C.C. thought that anything I could say would have a place in the same article with Walter.

Now that my thoughts on blawging are worthy of open expression, I feel obliged to share them with others.  It’s a noblesse oblige thing that sweeps over us blawgers from time to time. After all, as C.C. writes:

Are you thinking about a foray into the world of law blogging? If so, you’re far from alone. According to the American Bar Association, there are over 2,000 law blogs now listed in the organization’s Blawg Directory, and the number is growing rapidly.

The benefits of blogging include better search-engine optimization, since frequent updates of attorney sites lead to more attention from Google and its ilk; an appearance of authority due to online punditry; and a combination of push and pull marketing. Blogs are less intrusive than e-mail newsletters and offer an opportunity for a conversation instead of a lecture. They may also showcase attorneys’ intellect or wit, thus personalizing them to potential clients.

Since they’re easy to start and cheap to run, it’s no wonder that so many new law blogs are sprouting. But don’t jump onto the bandwagon with a half-baked blog. If your blog is boring, banal or shamelessly self-promoting, it’ll do you little good and will likely die a slow death.

Did you know there were 2000 blawgs?  Do you care?  Chances are that if you’re reading this blawg, you read a few others.  But one point that’s missed by most blawgers is there are only so many free hours in a day, especially now that twitter has been proclaimed the coolest thing ever, and it soaks up time like nobody’s business.  So it’s critical that a new blawg find it’s way into that tiny niche of blawgs that make it onto peoples’ radar.  After all, why put in all that time if no one will either see or care about your blawg.  That’s just insulting.

That’s why it’s critical that you follow the 10 Blawging “Dos” and “Don’ts”.  Everybody in the blawgosphere loves a list.  Your blawg will be linked in every single existing blawg, for example, if you create a list of the 10 Best Blawgs of All Time.  It doesn’t matter if your blawg has zero content otherwise, Want proof?  This website, called “Criminal Justice Degrees Guide,” which pimps for places that offer instruction on how to become a paralegal, posted the Top 100 Law Blogs, and even the biggest, baddest blawgs, like Above the Law (with the highest demographics around in the age 3 to 7 range)  linked to it and announced how honored they were.  This list made them an overnight smash in the blawgosphere.  And you can too!

Of course, another reason why it’s critical to follow the 10 Blawging “Dos” and Don’ts” is that a spectacular entry into the blawgosphere does not guarantee that you will be able to hold an audience.  After all, even a clock that’s stopped is right twice a day, and huge success by following my rules will mean nothing if it’s not followed up by following more of my rules.  If I didn’t know stuff, would C.C. Holland have put me in the same article with Walter Olson?  Get real.

Walter Olson imagined that his Overlawyered blog would pull an audience of his friends and acquaintances and a cadre of legal policy wonks.

“But you don’t know who your audience really is until you start writing and find out,” he notes. “My readership has a large following among lawyers, but I’ve been surprised to find that a lot of doctors are reading it, as are a lot of people from other countries.”

Let’s face it, nobody knows how to blow money faster than doctors.  Why should they spill it only on Porsche 911 Turbo Carreras to make them look young and cool (as if) when they can be paying it over to you?  It’s just not fair.  If Walter can grab the docs, you can too.  There’s nothing they love more than a blawg whose purpose is to criticize lawyers, and there’s nothing easier to write about because you never run out of material.  It’s a perfect match!

I think I’ve made my point as clearly as humanly possible; If you want to be a smashing success in the blawgosphere (and who doesn’t?) and be able tell all your friends that you’ve optimized your search engine, just follow my 10 Blawging “Dos” and “Don’ts” to the letter and you too can be a Thought Leader and enjoy unbelievable financial success and gain the admiration of all! 

And isn’t that really what the blawgosphere is all about?