Can a real, live lawyer use social media for real, live business?

Social media for lawyers – specifically Twitter, Facebook, and Linkedin – has been getting a ton of coverage in the past few days on the heels of this article in Mashable.  And it seems to have ignited a bit of a debate on Twitter because there are a few attorneys who question whether the experts quoted are able to speak from experience.

I don’t think there is such a thing as a social media expert.  I do believe that there are people who are well-qualified to discuss how to build trust, relationships and communities for business purposes.  These are the experts, the ones who teach us how to be more human in the way we conduct business.  When these people talk about using the platforms at our disposal, I listen and take notes.

Social media is an all-encompassing term that speaks to platforms, and how they are used to accomplish a particular goal.  Those platforms currently include legal blogs, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, MySpace, Tumblr, Posterous, Foursquare, Gowalla, and the list goes on and on.  But bear in mind that these are platforms only, and are subject to change without notice.  A few years ago it was Friendster.  A decade ago it was Usenet.  And on and on.

To say that you’re an expert in Twitter means that you know how to set up an account and use the tool.  It doesn’t mean you know how to connect with people or businesses who may have some use for your service.  When Twitter goes away or, more likely, evolves in ways we can’t currently imagine, the “Twitter expert” will be as useful as a “mimeograph expert”.

The person who’s skilled in the broader skillset of creating and maintaining relationships will continue to thrive.  Because that’s not just good marketing, it’s good for life.

Now that we’ve got that out of the way, I thought it would be useful to outline how I use the various social media platforms to achieve my goals.  Those goals, by the way, are fluid.  Sometimes I’m looking for help with something.  Other times I’m promoting my expertise as a bankruptcy and consumer protection lawyer, or as a guy who knows a thing or two about marketing a law firm.  Maybe I’m going to be a new place and need some recommendations for a good place to have dinner.  In all cases, the song remains the same overall (hat tip to Robert Plant and Jimmy Page).

Content Distribution And Promotion

Every time I create content on this or any other platform, I promote it on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.  Doing so exposes my work to people who find the subject matter compelling, and cements my standing as someone who knows about the fields in which I spend my time.

Information Sharing

I’m a newshound, and read hundreds of blogs each day.  When I find something that catches my eye, I share it with people.  More information is a good thing, no?

Connecting With Interesting People

Here’s where people say Twitter is a waste of time, right?  I mean, why would I spend time typing out 140 character messages to strangers?  Well, why would you spend an evening at a networking event filled with a diverse group of people?  To meet them, get to know them better, and establish a relationship.  Maybe that plumber I meet will never have need of my legal services, but I’m betting that he knows of someone who will eventually need me.  The stronger my relationship with Mr. Plumber, the more likely I am to be the name and number (OK, email address) that he passes along to his friend who’s going into foreclosure and needs help.

What if Mr. Plumber is in Oklahoma, far from my state of admission (which is New York)?  No worries – I can send the referral to one of my colleagues in Oklahoma.  I’ve connected with some of them on Twitter, others on Facebook and some on “old school” listservs.  Send a referral to a trusted colleague and I get good karma in return.  It’s happened so often I’ve lost count, and it increases the chance that I get a referral in return.  Karma’s like that, you know.

Strengthening Bonds Established Elsewhere

Let’s say you meet someone offline – a networking event, a social event, whatever the case may be.  You connect with them on Facebook, or LinkedIn, or Twitter or whatever platform you choose.  Now you’re exposed to them on a regular basis, and they to you.  Share information, keep up with one another, and allow your humanity to continue to unfold before one another.  It takes a causal meeting with a total stranger and allows you to make something more of it.

Now you want me to prove that it works, right?  Here are a few of the things I’ve accomplished by using the platforms available to me:

• coverage in print and broadcast television (Twitter and LinkedIn);
• paying clients (more than I can count from Facebook in particular, Twitter less so);
• quotes and attendant backlinks from highly-regarded online sources, which has increased the ranking of my own site and resulted in more clients (primarily Twitter, but Facebook and LinkedIn to a certain extent); and
• referrals from other lawyers as well as from non-lawyers who deal in consumer finance issues (Twitter).

Of course, none of this speaks to the business my firm has received over the years as a result of a never-ending commitment to content creation through our blog and elsewhere.

Is this list comprehensive?  Does it take into account all of the nuances of how a real lawyer can use social media to help his or her practice?  No, but it does give you the high notes and prove to you that this isn’t just another time suck.

What do you think?