Social media raises the bar on what's required of lawyers in client development
With thousands of lawyers becoming more active in social media, the bar is rising on what you need to do as a lawyer to get seen in a favorable light by your target audience.
Seth Godin makes the point in his blog post, 'Fabulous,' this morning.
...[W]e only look at things we want to look at, only talk about things worth talking about, the amount of fabulous in the world continues to rise exponentially.Even though we're at the tail end of the great recession, think about all the cool stuff in your life. Not just stuff you can buy, but experiences, works of art, innovations of all kinds... the bar has been raised for what you need to do to be noticed, and the market is responding.
Not only do I notice more fabulous, but it sure seems as though the creators of it are more engaged, dedicated and yes, joyful, than I can remember.
If you're not actively blogging, using Twitter, and building out a strong web profile through social media and social networking, how do you look to those sizing up a lawyer to hire? Not near as strong as your competition who demonstrates their expertise, care, and passion by engaging their target audience through the Internet.
How do you start using social media. Seth gives you some sound advice.
If there was ever a moment to follow your passion and do work that matters, this is it. You can't say, 'but I need to make a fortune instead,' because that's not happening right now. So you might as well join the people who can say, 'I love doing this.'
There's never been a better time for lawyers to follow their heart. Get out the magic wand and ask 'What type of work would I love to do? Who would I like to do it for?'
With the advent of social media, the world has been turned upside down on the 'establishment' in the legal profession. When else have lawyers who have not been practicing for decades or who are not practicing in a 'politically correct' law firm been given the opportunity to compete with the 'haves' in our profession?
The easy decision is to stick your head in the sand as to all this social media junk, hoping that it will all go away. But all the while you'll be looking less and less fabulous.
Kevin- Both you and Seth make excellent points. Even when times are good, it is the work we are passionate about that keeps us going.
Social media represents more than just a change in how we can market ourselves. It's also a change in what consumers expect from businesses. For the past fifty years, consumers have been fine with the faceless corporations--chain stores and restaurants that don't recognize them and to which they have no personal relationship--but now consumers expect to be able to connect to businesses, know more intimate details, and have their needs be more thoroughly understood. Social media allows us to form relationships, not just find new clients. While today's established forms of social media are likely to change, the new attitudes and expectations will linger. Lawyers need to catch up with social media today, so that they're prepared for the business model of tomorrow.
I grew up in the small town of Tyler, TX. It is a town where socialites want to be seen, and there is a magazine dedicated to their cause. It is called BSCENE. It is every Tyler socialite's goal to be featured in BSCENE. After all, if you are featured in the magazine you must be fabulous.
The reason your blog reminds me of the magazine is because having a web presence is similar to being featured in the magazine, only on a larger scale. But the difference is, it is difficult to get featured in BSCENE and it is easy to establish a web presence. Everyone can set up an account on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. No one is rejected. Everyone is allowed to create a website or write a blog. So, online popularity is easy to achieve. Lawyers should use this to their advantage. After all, isn't their goal to be seen?