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Social Media Use

By Ed Poll
January 30, 2013

The expanding use of social media ' whether it encompasses blogging, a LinkedIn or Facebook page, a Twitter post, or any number of other new iterations ' is perhaps the number-one trend reshaping law firm marketing. Many lawyers can attest that the interactivity on the Internet as epitomized by the give and take between online users of blogs and social networking sites is enriching and valuable on both sides of the virtual relationship. But social media use also vividly illustrates the dilemmas posed by the law's dual nature as a business and a profession.

On the business side, social media can be an effective, low-cost marketing channel ' or a fragmented time-waster if not diligently applied and integrated. As a professional tool, social media facilitates direct engagement among lawyers, clients and prospects ' but also raises the specter of violating the Rules of Professional Conduct through unethical marketing contact and questionable interaction with judges and other counsel. Granted, one of the oldest lawyer jokes concerns the client who wanted a one-armed lawyer who wouldn't constantly temper advice by saying, “But on the other hand ' .” However, social media raises so many “on the other hand” concerns that its promise should not overshadow the need for caution in using its tools.

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