With so many legal sites and blogs around today it may seem surprising that 10 years ago it was considered daring for a law firm to launch a website that offered more than just a brochure. When we launched OUT-LAW.COM on 5th May 2000, in truth we didn't know how it would evolve or be received.
We had a clear strategy, though much of its implementation was based on trial and error. We set out to build the leading online legal brand and the leading brand for online legal services. We published a load of legal guides and, while we didn't really plan to write legal news, we had to find something to fill four little boxes that our web designers put on the homepage (which you reached after an irritating Flash intro, like all the coolest sites of the day).
So we took a stab at tech law journalism, starting off with a story about the Love Letter Virus to which we added a bit of legal commentary. That became our blueprint. Give or take, we have written four stories a day ever since (that's 10,000 or so to date). The news section has become the biggest and most popular part of our site.
OUT-LAW has always been free to anyone, even rival law firms, but it's not an altruistic endeavour. Its goal was to raise the profile of our technology law practice. Our approach is now known as 'content marketing', though that’s not a term we knew 10 years ago.
This approach has succeeded for us commercially (otherwise we'd have switched off its lights), but there have been other benefits. Among them is the warm, fuzzy feeling we get when we hear that our content has helped someone who couldn't afford to instruct a lawyer (that's right: some lawyers get warm, fuzzy feelings from things that aren't billable).
We want to take this opportunity to thank you, our readers. We know that some of you have followed us from the very start and we hope you've enjoyed your time here and benefited from our reporting and ranting on all things tech law-related.
Kind regards,
The OUT-LAW Team
