CALSPro - California Association of Legal Support Professionals

Hackers Are Going After Smart Phones

Posted August 27, 2012 in Education, Membership, Technology

Below is a piece that I came across that I felt may be of interest to many of our members. We are all familiar with computers getting viruses or being hacked into, but how many of you knew that you could get a virus on your smart phone? Two of the main ways that people become more vulnerable to this type of danger would be by connecting to an unsecured Wi-Fi connection and through downloading apps. Personally, I rarely research an app before installing it on my phone, but after reading this article, that is going to change. This article was published on www.insuretrust.com and I have included the full text below.

“When it comes to computers, most of us are at least somewhat familiar with the nefarious tools at a hacker’s disposal, including viruses, spyware, and bogus emails.  However, virtually none of us have been exposed to such security threats on our smart phones.  Yet.

The number of attacks against mobile devices is increasing, and experts see this trend only getting worse.  The main reason is the huge number of people who now own smart phones and use them more and more like handheld computers, to store sensitive data, bank online, and conduct private conversations via text messages, for example.

According to Trend Micro, the malware count for Android devices is 25,000.  Taking on the appearance of legitimate apps (some very popular – like Skype and Instagram), the malware can steal data, spy on phone activity, or defraud users engaging in mobile purchasing.

The iPhone operating system (iOS) and App Store were free of such problems until recently, when reports The Register, an app called Find and Call snuck past Apple’s screeners.  The app secretly stole users’ contacts and also tracked their location.  Other instances of hacks against Apple devices are likely in the future.

But inadvertently installing rogue apps isn’t the only way your phone can be hacked.  Using an unsecured Wi-Fi connection gives a cyber criminal much easier access to your phone.  So does failing to password protect your phone in the event of theft or loss.

Considering the value of data stored on smart phones, it is surprising that only a fraction of users have security apps (think of them as antivirus software for a phone) in place to help guard against attacks.  Hackers know this, which makes smart phones even more of a target.

As if all this weren’t bad enough news for the individual, it is even a more complex problem for businesses, because many employees conduct at least some work functions on their smart phones, leaving potentially valuable data vulnerable to hackers”

This article was published by INSUREtrust.com

Jeremiah Jones
Technology Chairman

The Cloud

Posted July 6, 2012 in Membership, Technology

What is cloud computing? Most often when hearing this phrase people come up with a variety of different ideas about its true meaning due to its complex nature. “The cloud” is used as a metaphor when referring to the Internet. An expansive interpretation of cloud computing is the belief that anything outside of a firewall is considered to be a part of “the cloud”. On the other hand vendors and analysts characterize cloud computing as virtual servers which are accessible on the Internet.

An easy way to understand the term cloud computing is to get to the root what an IT’s needs are. These include licenses for new software, training for personnel, boosting capacity, and additional capabilities all of which are needed without creating a new infrastructure. Anything that can be paid per usage or uses a subscription on the Internet is under the umbrella term we call cloud computing. There are a variety of forms being used today. These different types of cloud computing are as listed: Software as a Service (SaaS), platform as a service, managed service providers (MSP), utility computing, Internet integration, and service commerce platforms.

Cloud computing is beneficial to the Attorney Service industry because many helpful applications have been created by using “the cloud”. Software companies are building their applications to harness the cloud’s efficiency and Process Serving companies would be wise to take notes. Data Integration, .asp or (.Asp .NET) websites, connecting multiple branches; all of these things work better and work faster in a cloud.  Investing in cloud technology makes sense.  Who wouldn’t want to take advantage of improved uptime, quicker access to data, safer server environment, built in redundancy, and application portability?

Dennis Chaples
www.TristarSoftware.com

Court of Appeals e-filing

Posted June 29, 2012 in Membership, Technology

The State of California, Court of Appeals, Fourth Appellate District has just begun electronic filing. On May 1, 2012 Divisions 1 (San Diego) and 2 (Riverside) began to accept electronically filed documents and Division 3 (Santa Ana) is not far behind. More details can be found at http://www.courts.ca.gov/17948.htm.

This represents a drastic change from the previous policy at the Court of Appeals where they would only accept documents with original signatures (in most cases), wanting multiple copies of documents and requiring that documents be specially bound. Although this may not be a major portion of most attorney services business, it will become a loss of some work for many attorney services. More importantly, it is a sign of things to come.

E-filing may have suffered a setback with the Judicial Council halting the statewide deployment of version 4 of CCMS which would have allowed for e-filing in all Superior Courts in California, but eventually it will be here. Court filings are a large portion of many of our members business. For anyone that is involved in the legal support industry, you need to start preparing (if you haven’t already) for how you are going to adjust your business model to compensate for e-filing. Robert J. Ringer once said “If you are prepared, then you are able to feel confident.” As members of CALSPro, we need to take the necessary steps so that we are prepared for any obstacles or changes that may come our way. We need to be flexible, adaptive and always looking towards the future so that we can have the confidence that our industry and our individual businesses will remain relevant for years to come.

Jeremiah Jones

Technology Chairman

10 Ways to Turn your Attorney Services Website into a Marketing Machine

Posted April 6, 2012 in Marketing, Technology

Guest author: Trent Carlyle is the CTO and co-founder of Lawgical, the parent company of ServeNow. Trent works with the technology and marketing teams at Lawgical to create products that help grow revenue and increase operational efficiencies in the process serving and investigation industries.

Recently, Jeremiah Jones (CALSPro Technology Committee Chair) asked if we could help the association members by providing tips to improve online visibility and making a website more useful to your clients.

While best online marketing practices are constantly in flux, here are some simple ways you can start turning your website into a marketing machine.

1. Contact Info on Every Page

We’ll start with an oldie but a goodie. If you walk away from this article and do nothing else, make sure your phone number and a link to your contact form is prominently located on every single page of your site. The ultimate goal of your web site is to get clients to pick up the phone.

The easiest way to pull this off is to build this into a common header / navigation that is part of every page.

2. Have a “Conversion” Goal for Every Page

A “conversion” is getting a visitor to do what you want on a particular page. Every single page should have a specific conversion goal. Conversions are usually achieved by including a call-to-action (CTA). CTA’s tell your visitor exactly what you want them to do on a page. “Learn more!” or “Call now!” are examples. When a visitor takes that action, you have a conversion.

3. Collect User Data with Great Content

Chances are you know a lot more about serving papers and the rules associated with service of process in your area than most of your clients. Turning this knowledge into educational content such as a “White Paper” or a guide can serve two purposes.

First, by requiring users to fill out a contact form to access certain content, you are capturing their data and generating a lead for your business. Secondly, the content itself or even the presence of the content can validate your expertise in the field, hopefully resulting in a visitor choosing to hire you.

At the very least, you are now building a database of potential clients for follow-up calls, emails or marketing campaigns.

4. Simplify Your Web Forms

Let’s say you have a “Request a Quote” form on your web site. Which form are you most likely to fill out?

ENOUGH SAID!!!

The purpose of your external web forms should be to collect the minimum amount of data on a lead to be able to follow up with them. Each unnecessary field increases the likelihood a client will abandon your form. Studies show that reducing your forms fields by 50% can increase conversions by 5% or more.

5. Install Google Analytics

Google Analytics is a free tool that allows you to track how many visitors your site gets, how they are finding you and much more. If you haven’t used a web analytics program in the past, it’s a lot to absorb, but I can promise you’ll get value from it, even if it’s just from a high level.

For example, Google Analytics can reveal:

• If your pages are “converting”
• Your most effective marketing channels
• Your most visited content
• How much time visitors spend on your site
• Where your visitors are geographically located
• The percentage of visitors coming to your site from a mobile device

Already got analytics set-up? Introduce yourself to Google’s webmaster tools for a whole new level of insights.

6. Connect your Social Media

There’s evidence that website rankings are affected by social signals – such as Facebook “Likes” and “Tweets” on Twitter. Growing quickly in importance are Google’s +1’s.

As business owners, most of you don’t have extra time to spend on social media, so at the very least make it easy for clients to connect with you on Twitter and Facebook by including these links on your site as well as your signature block of your emails.

7. Offer Online Tracking

Ninety percent of what your site offers should target new customers as current clients are unlikely to need to return to your site after they’ve got your phone number and email address. That said, one thing you can do for current clients is to offer online status updates that are available with most popular process serving applications. Not all clients will use it, but it shows you are on the forefront of technology in a changing industry.

8. Answer Common Questions

Another way to keep your clients coming back to your site is by answering the most common questions they (and potential clients) have regarding SOP and your company. These can be questions on effectuating proper service or “How quickly can papers be served?”.

Content like this can be posted to a page titled “FAQs” or “News” or “Blog” but these terms are so common that visitors are typically “blind” to them. Try to implement it in a way that’s going to stand out. Title the section something like “Process Service Help Center” or “20 things you should know about Process Serving” – something unique that will catch their eye.

Content like this keeps clients coming back, convinces new clients to contact you and will make the search engines love your site. It’s also great stuff for social media.

9. Point Clients to Online Reviews

At ServeNow, we talk about the importance of “Local” quite a bit. When we use the term local, we are mostly talking about the map listings with the lettered balloons next to them when you do a Google search. These are called Google Places listings.

Assuming you have your places listing claimed and optimized, you’ll want to find ways to get clients to review your company. Studies show that business with five or more reviews in Google places tend to rank higher. Make it easy for clients to review you on Google Places (or other review sites like Yelp) by linking to one or both off of your web site.

If you can find a way to incorporate an ongoing review strategy in your processes, it’ll go a long way.

10. Get Relevant Listings

Yes, even if you build a great client-friendly, optimized website you still need to go out and advertise it. Without getting into the details here, listings on relevant sites can improve both your Local (Google Places) rankings as well as your organic rankings.

Relevant sites include, but are not limited to:

• Process serving-related sites and Directories
• State and National Associations
• Associations for Clients (e.g. paralegal, attorney, etc)
• The Better Business Bureau
• Chamber’s of Commerce
• General Legal Directories

Improving your online presence can and should be an ongoing process. It can be overwhelming, so don’t try to take on too much at once. There are a lot of elements to consider and there’s no one silver bullet to online success.

Similar to traditional marketing, you need to have a “mix” for your online strategy. These concepts might seem siloed but they all feed one another. Each of the above tips will have individual gains, but combining them will yield exponential value.

What successes have you had with your website or online marketing? Join the conversation on
the CALSPro Facebook page.

Data Integration: The Future of Attorney Services

Posted March 23, 2012 in Membership, Technology

A mere two decades ago, landlines and paper were the dominant forms of communication. Business tasks required human involvement at every stage. As keyboards replaced typewriters, the pace of the business world accelerated. Pagers and mobile phones became familiar sights, enabling contact between the office and field.  Over the years, toaster-sized batteries shrank into iPhone and Androids. According to a recent Pew Research Center report, nearly half of American adults are Smartphone owners. Computers are in our pockets, homes, and vehicles, and the attorney service industry has access to new capabilities that did not exist a few years ago.

Communication is evolving at an unprecedented rate and data integration technology is at the core of this transformation. Data integration allows users to see a unified view of data from different locations and sources. When information was primarily conveyed on paper and the almighty FAX ruled the workplace, the system was only as accurate as the humans maintaining it. Revolutionary advances in cloud computing and web services are empowering businesses to work smarter, not harder.  Collaboration and partnerships are the new norm and the desire to expand and network is more pronounced than ever before.

Attorney service companies would be wise to look into data integration. Technology is changing at a rapid rate, and those who fail to adapt will be left behind. How can a company using old human-powered systems stay relevant when their competitors can complete identical tasks with a few clicks? Data integration allows companies to share data with their clients in real-time to complete tasks as commonplace as checking status that can be accomplished immediately using the client’s own program.  Sharing jobs with other attorney service companies instantly and directly is now a reality. How about when you forward a job to an affiliate? You would normally send an email with instructions, only to have your client re-enter the same data. With data integration, you can send the work order directly into your affiliate’s system.  Data integration makes it possible for a single software package to streamline the operations of an entire attorney service company, and to smoothly manage a job from beginning to end.

Attorney service companies should find out what kind of programs their clients are running, as there may already be web services or other tools available to make data integration possible.   As the industry begins to shift to new technologies such as E-Filing and GPS integration, and  cloud computing; companies who are quick to embrace the inevitable tide of change will be in a stronger position.  Data integration makes companies more marketable and effective. Who doesn’t want to save time, money, and significantly reduce the potential for errors?

Dennis Chaples
www.TristarSoftware.com

eFiling in Orange County

Posted January 23, 2012 in Membership, Technology

e-filing. Just hearing the word is enough to make some court runners and attorney services get nervous; especially those attorney services earning a significant portion of their revenue from physical court filing. That being said, the demand for e-filing with the superior courts is on the rise.

When e-filing began in June of 2010, a single Electronic Filing Service Provider (EFSP) provided an interface for attorneys and individuals to electronically file documents directly with the court in Orange. Attorney services had to build their own e-filing interface to e-file with the court, or refer their clients to the Court’s website for them to access the existing EFSP and obtain e-filing capability. As of January first of this year the types of cases that are required to be e-filed in Orange County has grown, and as such, so has the concerns amongst attorney services that cover Orange County that they would lose out on this portion of this business.

The concern can now be eased as there are additional EFSP’s now available for electronic filing in Orange who allows third parties (attorney services) to e-file on behalf of their clients.

Now, if an attorney service has a document that needs to be e-filed with Orange County, they can set up an account and e-file through an EFSP by manually entering the information into their system. For some attorney services, this is another option, rather than building their own  e-filing system or turning their clients away.

We have heard that other companies have built or are currently in the development stages of efiling systems where the law firm clients of an attorney service might have the option of doing the data entry and submitting it through their attorney service’s site or a possibly a site with their attorney service’s name and logo will be on it.

The CALSPro Technology Committee will be keeping a careful watch on the progression of efiling, and will continue to keep our membership informed of any new developments.