5 LinkedIn Tips for Lawyers: How to Build and Use an Effective Online Profile for Networking

This post is written by Cogent Legal’s senior advisor, Kevin L. Nichols, who’s assisting me in the areas of litigation support and communications. Kevin is the founder of two professional networking LinkedIn groups in the Bay Area with roughly 2,500 members combined. 

Engaging in social networking is somewhat of an oxymoron when it comes to lawyers. Maybe it’s because it goes against much of what they were taught in law school and what they reassure their clients: that they will neither disclose, break confidentiality nor privilege.  Nevertheless, creating and maintaining a social networking profile has become as common as having a cell phone. It’s time for lawyers to get off of the sidelines and network where their clients/potential clients are.

Most professionals use LinkedIn to reconnect with people they went to school with, worked past jobs with, share organizations with, just met and want to remain connected with, or to create connections with new colleagues, because LinkedIn is more professional and highly regarded than its counterparts, Facebook and Twitter. In fact, a recent survey of professionals, reported by Mashable, showed that 61% used LinkedIn for professional networking, compared to 22% using Facebook and 4% using Twitter (13% answered “none”).

Whatever your reason is, while using common sense and exercising moral character, here are five tips on how lawyers can get more out of using LinkedIn: (more…)

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