Counsel Cast

Recent Episodes

1. [Counsel Cast Chambers] Your Podcast Is an Authority Asset

   Jul 21, 2026

   Alex San Filippo, founder of PodMatch and host of Podcasting Made Simple, discusses why podcasts are authority-building assets for law firms rather than vanity metrics. The conversation challenges conventional podcast success metrics (download counts) and instead emphasizes completion rates, targeted audiences, singular calls to action, and conversion-focused strategy as true measures of podcast ROI.

2. How Do You Build a Referral Engine? with Delisi Friday

   Jul 14, 2026

   Delisi Friday, a referral strategy consultant for law firms, joins host Karen Conroy to discuss how to build a systematic, engineered approach to generating referrals. The episode challenges the misconception that referrals require networking events, instead focusing on the four audiences for referrals (former clients, current clients, current referral partners, and future referral partners). The conversation emphasizes that referrals are driven by relationship quality and memorable experiences—not just good legal work—and provides actionable frameworks for implementing referral systems through time, team, and tools assessment, gratitude protocols, and segmented communications.

3. [Counsel Cast Chambers] Why Nobody Says Yes After Your Presentation

   Jul 7, 2026

   Juanita Wheeler, a speaking coach who has trained over 100 TEDx speakers and spent two decades teaching professionals persuasive communication, discusses why lawyers and professionals fail to secure agreement after presentations. The episode covers the fundamental mistake of making presentations about the speaker rather than the audience, techniques for distilling messages into 12 words or less, anticipating objections before they arise, and tailoring the same core idea to different audiences to achieve buy-in. Wheeler emphasizes that strategic persuasive speaking is fundamentally audience-centric, requiring clear understanding of the listener's starting point and the specific outcome being sought.

4. Counsel Cast Compendium: Q2 2026 | The Future of Legal Marketing, AI Search & Building Authority Beyond Google

   Jun 30, 2026

   Karen Conroy hosts the Q2 2026 Councilcast Compendium, a quarterly strategic briefing on legal marketing trends. The episode synthesizes insights from Q2 episodes featuring Pete Everett, Joe Toscano, Gert Melick, Bill Shander, Neil Schaefer, TJ Robertson, and others, exploring how AI is reshaping legal discovery beyond Google, why generic LinkedIn strategies fail, and how law firms can build authority through strategic modernization rather than tool adoption. Key themes include search fragmentation across AI platforms, the importance of third-party authority signals, and positioning clarity as the differentiator when AI tools are democratized.

5. Search Everywhere Optimization for Law Firms with Gert Mellak

   Jun 23, 2026

   Gert Mellak, founder and CEO of SEO Leverage, discusses how law firms must fundamentally rethink their marketing strategy in response to AI, shifts in search behavior, and changes in how potential clients discover legal services. He introduces the "Search Everywhere Optimization Pyramid," a framework that inverts traditional content marketing by starting with audience research and platform participation rather than blog content creation, and covers practical tactics for LinkedIn, YouTube, and Reddit engagement.

6. [Counsel Cast Chambers] What Your IT Provider Should Be Telling You

   Jun 16, 2026

   Dave Sobel, a technology strategist with over a decade of IT services experience, discusses how law firms make ad-hoc technology decisions without strategic alignment. He breaks down critical gaps in IT provider relationships, cybersecurity threats targeting law firms, and the importance of linking technology investments to business outcomes rather than chasing trends. Key topics include evaluating IT providers on business impact, website security vulnerabilities, separating AI hype from reality, and why investing in people before platforms drives firm growth.

7. Why Your LinkedIn Strategy Isn’t Working with Neal Schaffer

   Jun 9, 2026

   Neal Schaffer, author of "Age of Influence" and LinkedIn strategy expert, discusses why most lawyers struggle with LinkedIn despite being active on the platform. The episode covers personal branding fundamentals, profile optimization (cover images, headlines, about sections), content creation aligned with brand positioning, and engagement strategies. Schaffer emphasizes that influence begins with a clear personal brand and strategic content, not random posting, and recommends tools like Condo and Relatable for relationship management.

8. [Counsel Cast Chambers] Ad Mistakes Draining Your Budget

   Jun 2, 2026

   Ryan Birch, a digital advertising specialist with 15 years of experience managing campaigns for Fortune 500 brands and local service businesses, discusses why law firm ad budgets are being wasted. He explains that advertising cannot solve underlying marketing problems, and that firms must establish proper foundations—including audience targeting, analytics tracking, and website optimization—before launching paid campaigns. Birch emphasizes an 'audience first' methodology and provides actionable diagnostics for law firms to audit their digital advertising effectiveness.

9. When Everyone Has AI, What Sets Your Firm Apart? with TJ Robertson

   May 26, 2026

   TJ Robertson, founder of TJ Digital, discusses the evolving landscape of AI adoption in law firms and professional services. With AI becoming ubiquitous, he argues the real competitive advantage lies not in having AI, but in using it well through structured knowledge bases, iterative skill development, and human expertise. Robertson emphasizes that firms should focus on building comprehensive internal documentation, defining content guidelines, and avoiding common pitfalls like over-investing in technical SEO rather than authority-building.

10. [Counsel Cast Chambers] Your Law Firm's Image Problem

    May 19, 2026

    John DeMato, a visual branding strategist who has spent nearly a decade helping thought leaders align their appearance with their message, discusses why law firms' photography undermines their credibility despite strong websites and SEO. The episode covers why stock photos destroy trust, how to develop a photo strategy before hiring a photographer, and the critical question every firm should answer to ensure imagery matches their hard-earned credibility. DeMato breaks down specific visual branding mistakes law firms make and provides actionable steps to align perception, personality, and photography across all platforms.