Using LinkedIn To Get Referral Work
Arguably the social media site most geared towards professionals, LinkedIn is a great fit for attorneys. The reason is because there are many others in similar industries you can connect with on the site, but there are also a number of features that make it a great place for building your referrals. Here are the top tips to help increase the referral work you receive from others using the same site.
Broaden Your Connections
It’s not enough to establish your own profile on LinkedIn and leave it “sitting there”. Instead, you must be interactive with the process. Add individuals into this digital Rolodex by connecting with them. If you’ve worked together before, offer them a review and see if they will endorse you back. LinkedIn makes it so easy to leave positive comments about your connections that it’s easy for others to return the favor. Plus, reaching out to these individuals every so often gives you a chance to reconnect with that individual. This could spark a memory about someone who is a good fit for your services.
Post Content
Want to really be seen as a thought leader in the industry? While continuously reminding your LinkedIn connections of your expertise? One of the easiest ways to do this is by posting content. A good guideline is at least once per week, but you can increase this if you wish as well. Think about common questions that someone considering your services might be looking for to get started. Another good approach is to write articles about “myths” or “mistakes” often made in particular types of cases. When you are regularly posting on LinkedIn, it helps to put your name back out there in front of your connections as well as to address critical questions in your field of law.
Stay Active
In order to get the most out of LinkedIn, you need to be checking the site at least twice per week. The reason is because incoming messages and connection requests should be responded to promptly. There are also features where LinkedIn shows you people that you might know, and this is a valuable tool for broadening your overall network. The more proactive you are in building your network and responding to others, the more you’ll get out of the site. Ultimately, this is one kind of social media that can really help you build your business and have referrals rolling in.
When it comes to LinkedIn, the statement that you get back what you put in is very true. You need to make a conscious effort to grow the number of connections that you have, but you also want to put special thought into how you interact specifically with the site. Becoming an active user has many benefits for building up referrals, especially when you make the effort to reconnect with other users every so often. Whether it’s to share content, offer an endorsement, or interact in some other way, LinkedIn is a wonderful marketing tool for the legal industry.
