Robert Ambrogi Blog
Nicole Abboud-Shayan, the lawyer and legal marketer who founded and hosted the popular podcast, The Gen Y Lawyer, has joined editing-software company WordRake as business development associate, where she will be responsible for helping to drive the company’s growth and support its strategic initiatives.
“I’ve always been really intrigued by how people communicate,” Abboud-Shayan told me during a recent call. “As a blogger, a podcaster, and a speaker, I have always been interested in helping lawyers communicate.”
A former practicing attorney in California, Abboud-Shayan has run her own legal marketing company for the last three years, working with lawyers to develop their brands and drive the growth of their firms through content marketing.
From 2015 to 2019, she produced and hosted The Gen Y Lawyer, a podcast she created, she once wrote, “out of a desire to find and connect with young lawyers across the U.S. who were seeking happiness and fulfillment in their careers and lives.”
The ABA Journal recognized the podcast in 2016, 2017 and 2018 as among its 100 best blogs and podcasts.
Abboud-Shayan is a frequent speaker at legal industry conferences, including the Clio Cloud Conference and Avvo’s Lawyernomics, and her writing has been published by the ABA Journal, Attorney at Work and Forbes.
At WordRake, Abboud-Shayan will work closely with Ivy B. Grey, director of business strategy, who joined the company in 2018 after working with another editing software company, PerfectIt, to develop its American Legal Style.
Her responsibilities will encompass not just business development, but also sales, marketing and relationship-building.
“Nicole is an outstanding public speaker, podcaster, and community leader,” Grey said. “She has the unique ability to connect deeply with mass audiences — seen or unseen — and get to the heart of their thoughts and concerns. Every relationship feels special; you immediately trust her.”
While WordRake is a tool intended to help lawyers with their writing, Abboud-Shayan told me that she has come to see its value as something broader.
“I know that we can look at our product as something to help with writing, but I like to zoom out a bit and think about the macro result,” she said. “It helps not just with good writing, but also with more effective communication in every aspect.”