Are you experiencing the best return on your Martindale-Hubbell investment? Bob Weiss shares some tips that will maximize your efforts and your results.

It's the time of year when firms are once gain asking hard questions about the rising cost, value and content of their listings in the Martindale-Hubbell.

Here are a half-dozen best practices we recommend you consider as you try to manage the cost, which is solely based on the amount of space your listing occupies, and response you get from the industry's best-known legal directory.

1. You can save 10 to 15 percent by not listing simple membership in the American, state and local bar associations in every attorney's biography.  Current or past leadership positions held in those associations should be listed, however.  So should bar section, specialty bar and trade group leadership positions or political appointments that are relevant to an attorney's work.  Executives and general counsel continually report that knowledge of their industry or of the legal issue at hand are the most important hiring criteria—use your listing to demonstrate that insight.

2. List important CLEs or recent speeches.  Delete those more than a few years old, however. The same goes for articles. Say “Regularly published since 1985 including (list key recent articles.)” That you wrote for law review in 1985 doesn't mean anything any longer. You are trying to demonstrate current competency.

3. If you are hired by other lawyers, list Reported Cases.  Non-lawyers don't know what a Reported Case is, or why they are important. They certainly don't know how to find them.

4. List representative clients. Select those that show your areas of expertise, understanding of an industry and ties to your community.  Make sure you have every client's permission to disclose their representation. Some clients get angry when they find out you have listed them without permission even if representation was indicated in public filings or through news reports. Keep a record of who gave you permission and when. Frankly, most clients are flattered that you are proud to represent them and ask to list their names.

5. Some firms save money by listing only shareholders, their special and of counsel, and senior associates actively involved in marketing.  Some list only the names, birthdays and law schools of associates.

6. If you can write a Firm Profile that doesn't read like every other Firm Profile, you should do it. This is difficult. Alternatively, you could just list practice areas. Do make sure that all practice areas listed in lawyer biographies are all listed at the top of your listing.

We do think all business; defense and plaintiff practices that seek work from sophisticated buyers and through lawyer referrals should be listed in the Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory and, as a result, on www.martindale.com. There are other directories you should consider; depending on your practice, but that will be the topic of another column.