LinkedIn is a large professional online platform full of resources and, when used correctly, has lots of opportunities for lawyers wanting to expand their network and get new clients. If you only use one of the many social media options out there, it should be LinkedIn.
Unlike other social media platforms, LinkedIn is curated for professionals and businesses looking to connect, and in the legal profession, these connections often mean more paying clients.
Have I convinced you yet? If so, here’s a three-step process for expanding your network, and reaching potential new clients, using LinkedIn
1) Make a Personal Profile and a Law Firm Page
Your first step is to make a personal profile and a company page if you have your own law firm. If you work at a firm, your firm may already have a page that you can link to your personal profile.
Why have both?
A company page for your law firm is less personal and has fewer options for interacting with fellow LinkedIn users. However, having the firm page is still important because it will be one of the first links to show up when people search your firm. Furthermore, when employees list your firm, your logo and a link to the firm page will be visible on their profile.
While having a firm page is useful for these reasons, you will also need a great personal profile too, as people are more likely to interact with another human, rather than just a firm/company.
When making your profile, keep in mind personal branding, and use the profile picture and header options to represent who you are as a lawyer. Be specific with your title (What law do you practice? Who do you help? How do you help)? This is where you want to include searchable keywords so that when someone searches for lawyers like yourself on Google, your profile will show up.
Use the “about” section to expand on why you are the best lawyer for the job; what makes you unique? Make sure you fill out all these sections to have a complete and polished profile and remember to keep this information up to date.
2) Connect with other LinkedIn users
LinkedIn is good for professional networking because, unlike other social media platforms, following and messaging people you do not know personally, is not only acceptable but invited. When following someone who you may not know, try sending a message with your request, explaining who you are, and why you are interested in connecting.
Look for both potential clients and other lawyers or legal professionals to connect with, because lawyers are great referral sources.
You can use these connections to increase the visibility of your profile and expand your network by engaging with their content.
Engagement can include “liking” and commenting on their posts or sharing their content. Doing so will bring new followers to your page and increase the likelihood of reciprocal engagement.
3) Publish Content
This brings us to our final step: create content!
This is a place to post interesting and relevant content that people will want to engage with. Think about your potential clients and what they will want to read, such as helpful tips in your area of law. You can use the post option for short content pieces or write a blog post using the article function. You may not even have to make new content, but just reuse past content (perhaps a firm blog post) that you never thought to put on LinkedIn. (Or if you would like one of our freelance lawyers to assist with writing content for you, please let us know!)
Like everything on LinkedIn, your content is searchable, so remember to use keywords. To increase the visibility of your posts, use hashtags at the end of every post. For example, we include hashtags like #freelance or #lawyerlife in our posts, so that anyone interested in freelancing or the life of a lawyer, can easily find our content. You can also encourage your employees to share your content for further reach.
Final Thoughts
LinkedIn is useful for selling your legal services and growing your legal network, but it also can be just a fun place to learn and share. This is the spot to keep up to date with what your colleagues are doing and to share your accomplishments. We love connecting with lawyers on LinkedIn, so feel free to follow us there and keep up with what we are up to.
Looking for more information on how to use LinkedIn in your legal career? Consider reaching out to lawyer turned social media consultant, Eva Chan.
Other helpful sources for marketing yourself on LinkedIn:
Sophisticated Marketers Guide to LinkedIn
By Maggie Piper, Client Services Manager
