Tips for the Trade

A few weeks back I had the privilege of speaker to a class of law school students about to market yourself as a lawyer. Since the class, I’ve had a few follow up calls with some of the students to discuss more deeply what we do at our firm to meet new clients.

Really, it’s not that complicated, or maybe it is and we’ve been doing it so long, it seems second nature, and I’m happy to share a few tips for lawyers in today’s Blog.

1. Remember, you are your own brand. This starts even before you’re in law school. This applies to non-lawyers. Every opportunity you have to meet a new person is your opportunity to market yourself to them. “Hi, my name is Inga and I’m going to Osgoode Hall Law School in the fall” was a very common refrain for me in the summer leading up to Law School .

2. Create a social media strategy that suits you and follow it. There are many services that will run your social media stream for you. If you find one that tweets out topics that suit your “personality” then go with it. However, you’re likely better off to spend some time thinking about what information you want to share and what “voice” do you want to use. For example, our firm uses LinkedIn, Twitter and a Blog. We consciously don’t do FaceBook as it doesn’t have the reach to the business clients we are introducing ourselves to. If we were a family law firm, we likely would up our FaceBook presence as that would make more sense for that type of law.

3. Don’t stay behind your desk – go out for coffee, go out for lunch, just GO OUT. Seriously, meet people, tell them what you do. This is key: word of mouth is the best source of referrals.

4. Don’t let your Blog die. If you stop posting, take it down. This is key. Nothing is sadder than a dead Blog. Well, many things are, but you get the point.

That’s all the free advice I’m doling out today lawyers and lawyers of the future. If you have more tips for the trade, share them with us !

Inga B. Andriessen JD