LinkedIn allows you to quickly create targeted lists and send InMail to that group with ease and efficiency. Without LinkedIn, time would need to be spent researching specific groups and then determining who you would reach out to and what means you would employ to connect with them. For example, a lawyer might want to target a group of legal costs accountants to see who can provide the best quote for case files. When you send an InMail to a pre-selected group, you will likely get a more targeted response and know who is available and willing to connect, network with you and provide a timely response to your query. Lawyers can connect with a large number of professionals and then gain referrals through those connections. Those lawyers who would like to leverage LinkedIn can see multiple benefits if they go about it in the right way.

The following are some tips on how lawyers can get the most out of LinkedIn:

1. Utilise a premium account: LinkedIn Premium provides greater access to features that aid in direct contact like the InMail feature.
2. Ask your referral sources for endorsements and positive reviews in the “recommendations” section of your profile.
3. Utilise video: Video is so important today if used properly. If you have testimonial videos these would be a great addition to your profile and if you don’t, make it a priority to get some video content produced. This will also help establish credibility and trust.
4. Choose connections that appear to be putting some effort into the network. If they don’t put any time and effort into their profile, it’s unlikely they will check their messages anyway. Be smart with your time.
5. Create a community of like-minded professionals: Your LinkedIn is part of your lead generation funnel. If you are a real estate lawyer for example, you can connect with real estate agents who may refer their clients to you if they are in need of legal advice.
6. Create a network of media professionals: More media professionals are on LinkedIn than any other social media site. In fact, 92% of media professionals are on LinkedIn.
7. Demonstrate that you are an expert by getting relevant information in front of targeted prospects. This is the best way to attract new clients and additional sources for referrals.

Here are a few tips of things not to do when using LinkedIn:

1. Don’t connect with anyone and everyone. This will only clog up your feed and cause you to miss potentially important posts.
2. Be mindful of connecting with competitors. This doesn’t mean don’t connect with any other attorney or colleagues; it does mean to be selective about who you connect with because by connecting with someone, you are also sharing your connection list with that person.
3. Don’t share irrelevant content. Be sure to select content that will be desired by your network audience. If you post too many things that are of no interest to your audience, they will eventually breeze right over anything you post thinking that it is not important to them anyway.

LinkedIn can help lawyers position their “brand” and increase visibility. LinkedIn is now being considered the “business-to-business directory” as well as the most popular social network for professionals. Interacting with people is the key. Utilise updates by posting your blog or news about new areas of expertise in your practice. Seek out and join the right groups to leverage your professional network and then participate.

LinkedIn is powerful, but you will only get out of it what you put in. You can’t simply set up a profile, add your basic information and expect the referrals to come rolling in. Used properly, it is one of the most effective referral tools available to lawyers today.

The post How Lawyers Can Get the Most Out of LinkedIn appeared first on Lowes Legal Costs Accountants.

As the Christmas holidays approach, most people will be zapped by the swirl of activity that accompanies this time of year. However, this is the perfect time for lawyers to gain the edge and make use of their time during the holidays.

Top 5 productive things lawyers should do during the Christmas holidays

Inspire the Mind

The brain is a muscle and there is only one way to strengthen it; it must be exercised just like any other muscle in the body. Reading, studying, and learning new material are productive and stimulating ways to exercise the brain. So, during the holidays, put your mind to work by watching our recommended picks of TED Talks or here are several other top TED Talks recommended for lawyers:

“The Power of Story” by Greg Power.

“Leadership Storytelling” by Steve Denning.

“How your Working Memory Makes Sense of the World” by Peter Doolittle.

“3 Ways the Brain Creates Meaning” by Tom Wujec.

“Hear Yes! More Often With the Science of Influence” by Dan Norris.

“The Impact of Persuasion” by Don Norman.

“Why We Should Trust Science” by Naomi Oreskes.

“The Science of Stage Fright (and How to Overcome it)” by Mikael Cho.

Update Your Skills

Whether you enlist in an online class, webinar, or seminar, you will be able to learn new skills or update existing ones. One great resource for lawyers is Udemy. Udemy is the online learning platform that helps professionals add new skills to their resume. With approximately 40,000 courses to choose from, lawyers can sharpen their expertise and even expand their knowledge base. Udemy offers a slew of classes for lawyers to expand their knowledge and continued education.

Try one of their personal development classes such as:

Acumen Presents Seth Godin’s Leadership Workshop this is one of the top courses on Udemy and some of the primary takings from this class is the concept that leadership is a choice and provides motivation for professionals to step up and be a leader.

Achieve Productivity – How to Become a Human Time Machine this class will teach you how to master the clock and use it to your advantage. The class teaches a principle of how to use time as leverage, and how to focus.

Relaxation Techniques to Relieve Office Stress this class is designed for people who work in an office environment and includes simple techniques and exercises that will help relieve tension and promote a healthier work life.

Reassess the Past and Plan for the Future

The holidays mark the end of the year. This is an appropriate time to look back at the past year and assess how things went. The end of the year also marks report card time for those still in school. Why not make it report card time for your work, as well. Write down a list of the main categories of what you did over the last year and give yourself an honest grade in each area. This will help you know how to plan. Actually, this may guide you in what skills to update, what TED Talks to watch, or what books to read. Assessment is a key step in moving forward.

Research

You most likely do quite a bit of some research throughout the year on the job. However, other areas of research will be just as beneficial. Here are two such areas to consider during the holidays:

Competitors

While your competitors are potentially relaxing a bit during the holiday season, you can be one up on them by delving into what makes them successful. Finding out their strengths and weaknesses will benefit you if you use that information to your advantage.

Clients

Discover all you can about your clients so that you can give them the best and most personable service. When clients sense you understand and know them on a deeper level, a certain kind of bond forms. This is good for you because every client has a circle of influence, and word-of-mouth advertising has well-documented benefits.

Volunteer

When people think of doing volunteer work, they usually think of the interpersonal rewards including feeling good about helping the community, seeing others happier due to your work, and knowing you made a difference in the community. However, there are other tangible rewards for the lawyer, as well. Here are three such benefits of contributing to community service:

Increases your skill in the area in which you volunteer. People learn by doing.

Increase your presence in the community. More people get to know who you are and may recommend you.

The post 5 Things Lawyers Should do During the Christmas Holidays appeared first on Lowes Legal Costs Accountants.