The Lawyer’sGuide to Linked In,

Facebook andTwitter

Landing your next client using social media

Carolyn Elefant,LawOfficesofCarolynElefant.com

WHY USE

SOCIAL MEDIA?

Your clients are usingsocial media: 1 billion

Facebook users (October2012)

Your clients areusing social media.

Over 1 billionFacebook users

(Oct. 2012).

Clients are usingsocial media in a

way that is directlyrelevant tolawyers….

December 16, 2010

In-house counsel & CEOs are usingsocial media

In house counsel are usingsocial media to chooselawyers:•22% GCs said Twitter was afactor in hiring•18% consideredendorLinkedIn profiles andendorsements

Your competitors are using social media•1.8 million lawyers on LinkedIn•56% lawyers have FB or LI profile•Lawyers with blogs have 434 moregoogle links

WHAT TYPES OFSOCIAL MEDIA?

Why the big 3?•Largest collective # of users•Best mix of personal-professional-consumer and variedinterfaces

Resume Cocktail Party

Watercooler

Best practices of social mediacommon to all platforms

1. SetGoals

•Meet clients•Mediaexposure•SEO•Relationshipsw/lawyers•Other

2. Match platform to goals.

Media

Consumerclients

Businessclients

Relationshipswith lawyers

SEO

3. Create robust profiles.

•Match form to format•Strong active verbs & links•1 full profile > 100 sparseprofiles•Photo!•Create 2-3 profiles all at thesame time•Update, update, update!

4. Balance personal and professional;informational and self-promotional

The Social Media Formulafor Twitter (vary for FB & LI)

•50% - links to online content•30% - conversation with others•10% self-promotionalinformation•10% personal hobbies andinterests

B5. Be authentic. Have a pulse

B6. Take online relationships offline

B

Minutes+ Minutes

Results

7. Be consistent!Minutes

+Minutes

__________Results!

3 tweets/day = 90contacts/week

2 link requests/week =100 new connections/yr

8. Time managementtips for social media

Make the most of yourlimited time

•Squeeze work into cracks

•Consistently post a few times inearly a.m. (7 - 10 a.m.) on weekdayssince web traffic is high this time ofday

•Use your smart phone for flexibilityand post while standing in line atstore or at soccer practice

•Post to social media when on “kidduty” since it’s a simple, lowattention task

Leverage mobiledevices to optimizesocial media use

9. Know and follow the rules of social media. Always.

PlatformTerms ofService

Neiqutte

4Sets of

rules forlawyers

onsocialmedia

Ethicsrules

Platformterms ofservice

Firmsocialmediapolicy

Netiquette

Platform-SpecificFEATURES & TIPS

SEOterms

Professionalphoto

Add connectionsOptions: email spamExisting contactsSchool, jobs

Tips for addingconnections:•Personalize intro•Don’t spam•Ask contacts forhelpw/connecting

2 posts aweek = notvery active

Groups•Check groupdemographicbefore joining•Closed goupsbetter•Start your own

Get & givetestimonials:For businesscolleagues & clients -be persistentGiving can enhanceyour profile tooNew feature:endorsement

IDEAS FOR LINKED IN

!Publicize your speaking engagements &invite others!Contact reporters via LinkIn or arrange tomeet with colleagues in different cities!Start a group (but keep it moderated)!For fee advertising - inexpensive & fairlyeffective

Twitter Tips

140characterbio

Search topicsor colleagues

Twitter LEXICON

Hashtag denotes a topic or event.Frequently assigned for conferences; canaggregate hashtag stream

# Hashtag

Direct message. Private communicationbetween 2 Twitterers. Must mutuallyfollow to DM

DM

ReTweet - passing along tweet; do itgenerously. MT denotes tweet is modifiedor shortened

RT, MT

140-character communication on Twitter.Tweet

Twitter “handle.” Try to use your realname.

@carolynelefant

Twitter T ips

•Volunteer to tweet a conference -organizers & speakers love it; others willfollow•Tweet like an industry insider - 5-10news tips per day (Google reader) andgain expertise•Organize tweet-ups (online to offline)•Follow media & other thought leaders inyour industry

The 2 faces of FacEbook

2 Faces of FacebookPersonal professional

FACEBOOK TIPS

FB page may be hard for firmto maintain. Better tool forfirm projects like events orassociation.

Most people use FB anyway.So why not?

Warning: Warn clients re:pros/cons liking page forconfidentiality.

Warning: Don’t discuss caseseven with friends under“limited” privacy. Nothing isprivate on FB. May not want tofriend clients

Purpose: Can post law firmevents, sponsorship of sportsteam, photos from parties,etc…

Purpose: Interact w/friends -they’ll call if they need alawyer. Discoverycommonality - people dobusiness w/those they like.

Professional (Fan Page) forLawyers

Personal

http://www.linkedin.com/in/carolynelefant

Where to find me on social media

www.linkedin.com/in/carolynelefant

www.twitter.com/carolynelefant

www.pinterest.com/myshingle

https://plus.google.com/112199202096472402474

Email: carolyn@carolynelefant.com/ Web: carolynelefant.com