Futurelawyer

Lawyers, Is LinkedIn A Waste Of Your Time?

Lawyers, Is LinkedIn A Waste Of Your Time? | The Myrland Marketing Minute Blog by @NancyMyrland. I don't spend time or money marketing my practice. I am of the school that says: "If you build it, they will come". By that I mean that content is the most important thing. Every lawyer should use blogs, and social media, to be helpful and post good content. I do agree with Ms. Myrland about many of her points about LinkedIn, which also apply to Google Plus, Facebook, and other social media. But, too many lawyers think that posting ads about their firms, or bragging about their accomplishments, will attract prospective clients. Just be yourself, and try to be helpful and real. The clients will come. You don't need to make an effort to market. Try making an effort to be authentic. 

What May Lawyers Do To Check Social Media Profiles Of Prospective Jurors?

Lawyers may look at what jurors post online, but only if it's available to the public. A colloquy on Twitter got me thinking about the rise of Social Media, and the duty of lawyers to zealously represent their clients. On the one hand, adequate preparation is more than a smart move by a lawyer; it is an ethical imperative. On the other hand, going too far can subject the lawyer to ethics charges for invading privacy. Where is the line? This excellent ABA Journal article from 2014 is a good place to start learning about the issue. In summary, anything that is available to the General Public is fair game. So, if a prospective juror overshares on Twitter, Facebook or other site, the lawyer has a duty to review the Social Media posts to determine bias and to properly represent the client. Where lawyers get into trouble, they have used ruses, or subterfuge, to trick other persons into revealing more about themselves than they are freely willing to share online. As more information makes it online, a lawyer's duty to a client becomes a problematic study in research and preparation. Be careful out there.

Social media - It's The Relationships, Stupid

Social media for lawyers is about giving, not distribution and attention. Okay, the "It's The (Fill in the Blank) Stupid" meme is overused. But, ever since Bill Clinton won the Presidency by pointing out the economy as the Elephant in the Room, it has become the way to point out the obvious. While many lawyers are fixated on page rank, and Search Engine Optimization, and metrics, and hiring people to come up with ways to drive more potential clients to their door, they are missing the point, and the strength of social media. Before the Internet and Social Media, people chose lawyers that they knew, and with whom they had a relationship, and with whom they were in frequent contact. Sure, there are some lawyer client relationships that begin with a billboard ad; but, by and large, the one on one relationship between client and lawyer can only thrive with a give and take of people connecting with people. Social media is the way that people connect in the Twenty First Century. Understand that, and you will be well on your way to creating relationships, some of which will become lawyer client relationships. And, if they don't, that is okay. Life is about a lot more than practicing law, isn't it? It is, at its core, about relationships. Be your true self, and get out there and connect. Never be shy or ashamed to be who you are. The persons who want to connect with you will come. The persons who don't will find someone they like better. There is an audience for everyone.

All Social Media Is Local

The Social Media Revolution: Exploring the Impact on Journalism and News Media Organizations - Inquiries Journal. Many pundits and authors are predicting the death of mass media; or, at least, the reduction of it to just another source of news that fewer and fewer of our Internet connected world will follow. In an inverse way, just as all politics are local, so is social media. Politics tend to first revolve around local issues, and each of us is most concerned with what we see around us; do we have a job, is our family safe, and so forth. Social media has made each of us into media sources, and we are able to share our views with the world by being localized. The young, especially, do what they know; and, what they know is what they grew up with, computers, the Internet, social media, and the ability to state their views on any issue, and share them immediately with others. I choose to believe that most of them; at least the technologically savvy of them, are not "snowflakes" who need "safe spaces" to expound. They are intelligent, opinionated, and have the ability to create new and interesting ways of interacting with their world. Exhibit A is the Florida Bar Social Media initiative, which is bringing Bar news to more and more of the legal profession. I may be old in age; but, I share their enthusiasm for this "new media", and I believe that it is the future of human sharing of news and information. Twitter on.

Google+ Is Not Going Away

Google won%u2019t go away | TechCrunch. Facebook friends, I love you. I love my relatives, my high school acquaintances, my immediate family (usually), and the friends of my Facebook "friends". However, I don't have a lot in common with most of you. Our connections are related to blood, or place, or time of life, and you each have your separate lives. I hate your political rants, I hate (or love) your food, and I envy you the trips, vacations, and wonderful life you lead. However, if I want to commiserate with like minded people, who love tech, and photography, and Shakespeare, and gadgets, I go to Google+, where they hang out. So, call me happy that Google is working on upgrades and updates to Google+, the social networking platform for people you really like. I don't care if your thing is collecting rug fibers; you will find some people there who like the same weird stuff you do. And, some of them live on the other side of the world, and you would never meet them otherwise. So, get thee to Google+, and communicate with like minds.

Social Media For Lawyers And Parrot Lovers, Explained

Social Media Explained. My fraternity newsmagazine, Phi Alpha Delta Reporter, had a little article in it this month, explaining Social Media. It is informative, and establishes that Google+ is the best social media application for building your law practice. I have modified it slightly:

Twitter: I have Parrots in my office.

Facebook: I like Parrots.

FourSquare: This is where my Parrots live.

Instagram: Look at the cute pictures of my Parrots.

YouTube: Watch my Parrots perform tricks.

LinkedIn: My skills include Parrot litigation.

Pinterest: 10 tips for raising Parrots.

Google+: I am a lawyer who has Parrots in my office.

You Don't Need To Game Google

You don't need to game Google - Real Lawyers Have Blogs. I am honored to be mentioned in this post by Kevin O'Keefe, who is one of the first law bloggers, and whose company has assisted hundreds of law firms in their efforts to blog about the law. I always think of the movie line "If you build it, they will come" when I consider the topic of blog visibility and reach. Kevin is right that the content is king, and regular quality writing is the best way to build visibility for a blogging lawyer. Now, get out there and blog what you know.

Google Search - You Don't Need To Game The System

legal technology - Google Search. I am always unimpressed with pitches for companies promising to increase my visibility in Google searches. I have never attempted to increase my visibility online; but, have opted to continue providing content which I think is pertinent and valuable (a matter of opinion), and to do it often. After 20 years of web writing, and 11 years of blogging, I think the secret is providing quality content on a frequent and consistent basis over time. As an example, a Google search on "legal technology" brings up Futurelawyer posts at Google+ in the top 25 results. This proves another maxim. Publish consistently and often; but, publish everywhere. Blog posts should be duplicated at Google+, Facebook, Twitter, and other sites. So, don't pay money to someone who claims to increase your visibility. Do good work, do it often, and do it everywhere you can. No big secret.

Tweeting Is Forever - Get Over It

This App Shows What You Were Tweeting Up to 9 Years Ago. I suppose that there are people who regret things they said 9 years ago. Haven't we all? But, in the Internet Age, we are creating a record of our stupidity or crassness or whatever that will last long after we are gone. For lawyers, this Internet history is a rich motherlode of information that can be mined for relevant data in litigation. For prospective employers, it can be a window into the true nature of the prospective employee. For parents and stalkers, it can be a way to follow the objects of their affection. Yes, it can be a tool to reach an audience; as many entertainers and politicians have shown. But, what if someone could follow your tweets from long ago? Now, you can, and there are apps out there to help you. In the case of iOS, the new Tweetstory app makes it easy. So, be careful what you tweet. Someone will be watching, and they have a long memory.

The Rumors Of My Death Have Been Greatly Exaggerated

Facebook mistakenly asks many users if they're dead - Tampa News. If Facebook thinks you're dead, are you? If Social Media kills you, will you speak from the grave? Apparently, elections aren't the only thing Big Data finds difficult to predict. Many Facebook users have been receiving messages from Facebook asking if they want to create a memorial page for their Facebook account, since they are dead. I haven't received one yet; so, I guess that I am still alive. I suppose that the fact that I post every single day has something to do with my ability to be alive. Trust me. If I am dead, and am still posting, it is because I set some posts to publish in the future. For now, please, Facebook, don't kill me. I have so much living to do.