Getting quoted in a trade publication or landing a conference speaking slot sounds straightforward. You have the expertise. You have the experience. So why are the same names showing up everywhere while yours is not?
Press coverage and speaking engagements have always been effective ways for attorneys to build credibility and attract clients. In 2026, they matter more than ever. AI-powered search tools now surface attorney names and expert commentary directly in search results, often before a potential client ever visits a website. Trade publications, legal podcasts, and conference stages reach decision-makers who are actively looking for counsel. Thought leadership is no longer a nice-to-have. For attorneys in competitive markets, it is increasingly the difference between being found and being overlooked.
Getting there requires more than expertise. It requires knowing how the media game actually works. Here is what attorneys who have successfully built visibility through press and speaking understand that most of their peers do not.
1. Have Your Materials Ready Before You Need Them
When a reporter or event organizer asks for a bio and photo, they are usually on a deadline. The window between being asked and being passed over for someone else can be hours, not days. Attorneys who want to capitalize on media and speaking opportunities need to have a professional portrait and a well-written bio ready to send immediately.
The photo matters. A polished, professional headshot signals that you take the opportunity seriously. A dated LinkedIn photo or a cropped conference snapshot does the opposite. The bio matters too. It should be written by someone who knows how to write, not adapted from your firm’s website attorney profile. Both should be updated whenever your practice, title, or notable work changes.
The practical rule is this: getting your materials in quickly beats getting them perfect. An editor who does not hear back moves on. Do not let a slow turnaround cost you placement.
2. Follow Up, But Follow Up Smart
Journalists and event organizers share a defining characteristic: they are always on deadline and rarely have time to chase down sources or speakers. If you want the opportunity, the follow-up is your responsibility.
If an email goes unanswered, try another channel. Find out who else covers the beat or manages the event. A timely, relevant follow-up is not pestering; it is professionalism. That said, read the room. A reporter filing a story by end of day does not need three messages before noon. Before you reach out at all, make sure you have the right person and a legitimate reason to contact them. Reaching out to the wrong editor or pitching a topic that has nothing to do with their coverage area wastes everyone’s time and damages your credibility for the next pitch.
The standard to apply is simple: follow up the way you would want someone to follow up with you if the roles were reversed.
3. Think Before You Speak, Then Follow Through
When a journalist calls with questions, the pressure to fill silence with words can work against you. Attorneys who speak to the press before they have thought through their answer risk being quoted saying something imprecise, incomplete, or worse. If a question catches you off guard, it is entirely acceptable to say you need a moment to think, or to ask if you can call back shortly with a more considered response.
What is not acceptable is promising a callback and not delivering one. Journalists are on deadline. If you say you will get back to them in an hour, get back to them in an hour. Missing that window does not just cost you the quote. It costs you the relationship. Reporters have long memories for sources who made them scramble, and short memories for sources who made their jobs easier.
The goal in any press interaction is to be useful and accurate. That means taking the time to be both.
4. Become a Resource, Not Just a Source
The attorneys who consistently generate press coverage and speaking invitations are the ones who stay in contact with journalists and organizations between opportunities, not just when they want something. Editors and event organizers naturally turn to people they already know and trust when they need an expert voice or a speaker on short notice.
Sharyn O’Mara of Futterman, Lanza & Pasculli, LLP, Elder Law & Estate Planning in Smithtown, Bay Shore and Garden City, New York, describes this approach directly: “Actively cultivate relationships with local reporters to become a resource for them for any stories that have to do with your practice of law or other topics you want to offer insight about. Share important information that is relevant to their readers. Inform them about upcoming events and relevant news. Stay in touch, stay available and stay ready.”
That posture, available, relevant, and consistent, is what separates attorneys who get called once from attorneys who get called every time.
5. Respect How Journalists Work
Attorneys who have not dealt with journalists before sometimes make the mistake of treating a reporter like a publicist. They suggest angles, ask to review copy before publication, follow up repeatedly asking when the piece will run or what it will say. This approach damages the relationship quickly.
Journalists control the story. That is their job. As long as the facts are accurate, small omissions or framing choices that do not go your way are not worth raising. Pushing back on minor editorial decisions signals that you are difficult to work with. Reporters and editors talk to each other. A reputation for being high-maintenance closes doors.
The right response when a piece runs is a short, genuine thank-you and an offer to be available for future stories. That is how sources become regulars.
6. Be Honest and Play the Long Game
Media relationships are built on trust, and trust is easy to lose. One of the fastest ways to damage a journalist relationship is to offer an exclusive and then share the same story with several other reporters at the same time. If you tell someone they have the exclusive, mean it. If you are not offering an exclusive, be clear about that upfront.
The same applies to accuracy and transparency in everything you share. Do not overstate a development, misrepresent a case outcome, or provide context that is technically true but designed to mislead. Journalists eventually figure out when they have been spun, and they do not forget it.
These relationships compound over years. An attorney who consistently delivers accurate, useful information and treats journalists as professional partners will have access, visibility, and goodwill that no PR firm can manufacture. That is worth protecting.
Building Visibility Is a Practice, Not a Campaign
Attorneys who generate sustained visibility treat it the way they treat client development: consistently, deliberately, and with a long horizon. That means keeping your materials up to date before you need them, maintaining relationships between placements, following up without being asked, and showing up prepared every time an opportunity arises.
The returns are not always traceable in the short term, but they compound. A body of published work and a reputation as a reliable expert source build over time. Increasingly, it gets surfaced directly by AI-powered search tools that pull expert commentary into results before a potential client ever clicks through to a website. Attorneys who have been quoted, published, and cited have a distinct advantage in that environment over attorneys who have not.
This is not about chasing press. It is about being findable, credible, and top of mind when the right opportunity or the right client is looking.
Building visibility is one part of the equation. Knowing how to use it to drive your next career move is another. If you are ready to think strategically about where your practice is headed, On Balance Search Consultants can help.
About On Balance Search Consultants
Who’s driving your career?
On Balance offers great insight and industry intelligence. Shari Davidson, president of On Balance Search Consultants, advises law firms on how to take a firm to the next level and helps rising talent make the transition to the right law firm.
Contact us today. Call 516.731.3400 or visit our website at https://www.onbalancesearch.com
Please note that the content of this blog does not constitute legal advice and is only intended for the educational purpose of the reader. Please consult your legal counsel for specifics regarding your specific circumstances and the laws in your states pertaining to social media and any legal restrictions regarding the law.
