If your LinkedIn profile isn’t generating engagement, clients, or referrals, you’re not alone. The good news? A few key shifts can turn your LinkedIn presence from invisible to irresistible.

The Importance of LinkedIn for Law Firms

1. Why LinkedIn is a Crucial Platform for the Legal Industry

LinkedIn is a vital platform for law firms, offering a unique opportunity to establish their online presence, build their brand, and connect with prospective clients. With over 800 million users worldwide, LinkedIn provides an extensive network for lawyers to showcase their expertise, share knowledge, and engage with their target audience. By leveraging LinkedIn, law firms can increase their visibility, credibility, and reach, ultimately driving business growth and attracting new clients.

2. How LinkedIn Can Help Lawyers Establish Their Personal Brand

LinkedIn is an ideal platform for lawyers to establish their personal brand, showcasing their expertise, and building their professional reputation. By creating a strong LinkedIn profile, lawyers can demonstrate their knowledge, skills, and experience, making it easier for potential clients to find and engage with them. Additionally, LinkedIn’s publishing platform allows lawyers to share their thoughts, insights, and expertise, further solidifying their position as thought leaders in their field.

For more on building a personal brand as a lawyer, see our article on the Power of Personal Branding for Lawyers.

3. The Benefits of Using LinkedIn for Networking and Business Development

LinkedIn offers numerous benefits for law firms, including networking opportunities, business development, and access to a vast pool of potential clients. By joining relevant groups, engaging with other professionals, and sharing valuable content, law firms can build relationships, establish trust, and ultimately drive business growth. Furthermore, LinkedIn’s advertising platform provides a targeted and effective way to reach potential clients, increasing the firm’s visibility and credibility.

To learn more about how lawyers can create an effective content strategy, see our article LinkedIn for Lawyers: How to Leverage a LinkedIn Content Strategy for Business Development.

The Biggest LinkedIn Mistakes Lawyers Make

1. Cookie-Cutter Profiles That Put People to Sleep

Take a look at your LinkedIn profile. Does it sound like this? “Experienced attorney with 10+ years of practice. Focused on civil litigation.” Or worse, is your headline just your job title and firm name?

If so, you’re blending in with every other lawyer on the platform. Your LinkedIn profile isn’t just a biography—it’s a crucial part of your law firm’s brand.

🔹 Fix It: Craft a compelling LinkedIn headline that highlights your expertise, personality, and the value you bring. Instead of:

❌ “John Smith, Attorney at Law”

Try this:

✅ “I help small businesses fight back against corporate bullies. Turned $50K disputes into $500K settlements. Dad. Marathon runner. Disruptor.”

One tells. The other sells.

To learn more about building a strong profile, see LinkedIn for Lawyers: How to Build the Perfect LinkedIn Profile.

2. Zero Personal Branding for Your Law Firm’s Brand

Many lawyers think expertise alone is enough. Wrong.

Your degrees and credentials are table stakes. What makes you memorable is your story.

Consider this employment lawyer’s approach:

❌ “Focused on employment law.”

✅ “Fought workplace discrimination cases that changed company policies. Helping professionals reclaim their dignity, one lawsuit at a time.”

Which one stands out? Clients connect with people, not job descriptions.

🔹 Fix It: Weave your story into your profile. What drives your practice? What unique perspective do you bring? Share real-life examples that showcase your impact. Sharing practical legal tips can also help you stand out and provide value to your audience.

To learn more about building a strong profile, see LinkedIn for Lawyers: How to Build the Perfect LinkedIn Profile.

3. Zombie Networking (a.k.a. The Spray-and-Pray Approach)

If your LinkedIn strategy consists of:

• Sending generic connection requests
• Posting once every six months
• Expecting “connections” to turn into referrals without engagement

…you’re missing the mark.

🔹 Fix It: Instead of sending a bland “Let’s connect” message, personalize your outreach:

❌ “Hi, I’d like to add you to my professional network.”

✅ “Loved your post on AI and employment law. Your insights on algorithmic bias were spot-on! Would love to hear more about how you see this evolving.”

The difference? The latter builds relationships instead of just adding numbers to your network. If your network is full of connections that don’t count, you lose the opportunity to build professional relationships that matter.

Additionally, join relevant groups to engage with peers and share valuable content. The professional organizations you’re in can help you find valuable insights to share and give you access to key decision-makers or key influencers in your industry. Finding those with larger audiences than you who can help introduce you to your key audience is key to building strong network on LinkedIn. This is all the key to mastering LinkedIn for Lawyers.

Setting Up Your Profile for Success

1. Use a Professional Headshot Photo That Presents You Well

A professional headshot photo is essential for creating a strong LinkedIn profile. A high-quality photo presents you in a professional and approachable light, making it more likely for potential clients to engage with you. When selecting a headshot photo, consider the following:

• Use a recent photo that accurately represents you
• Ensure the photo is well-lit and in focus
• Choose a neutral background that doesn’t distract from your face
• Smile and make eye contact to convey approachability and professionalism

Using a professional headshot photo, you can establish a strong first impression, build trust with potential clients, and increase your chances of success on LinkedIn.

How to Win on LinkedIn as a Lawyer

1. Craft a Story-Driven Profile

Your LinkedIn profile should:

• Showcase your human side (beyond your job title)
• Highlight unique perspectives
• Use conversational language; ditch the legal jargon

Instead of just listing your practice areas, make your profile engaging. Tell people why you do what you do and how you can help prospective clients.

2. Create Thought Leadership Content

Thought leadership isn’t about posting legal textbooks. Share real insights that your clients and referral sources can’t Google.

• Provide practical takeaways
• Share case studies (anonymized)
• Give your unique take on industry trends

Posting consistently (at least 2-3 times per week) will establish you as a go-to resource. And if you’re not ready for 2-3 times per week, start with 1 time per week until you feel comfortable creating content for LinkedIn. Remember, the goal is consistency, not burnout.

Effective legal marketing involves sharing insights that demonstrate your expertise and attract your target audience.

3. Engage Strategically with Potential Clients

Social media is meant to be social. Yet, many lawyers forget this and use LinkedIn as their own personal megaphone instead of as a tool to connect, engage, and create digital touchpoints with their key clients, connections, and contacts.

Here are a few ways to re-think this approach:

• Comment on your ideal clients’ and referral partners’ posts
• Share your experiences and perspectives
• Add value before asking for anything

Instead of just scrolling, be part of the conversation. Relationships are built in the comments section. Building a strong social media presence requires consistent engagement and meaningful interactions.

To learn more about building a strong profile, see LinkedIn for Lawyers: How to Build the Perfect LinkedIn Profile.

FAQs: LinkedIn for Lawyers

Q: Why should lawyers use LinkedIn?

LinkedIn is the #1 social media platform for professional networking. It helps lawyers build their personal brand, attract clients, and create referral relationships.

Q: How often should lawyers post on LinkedIn?

Ideally, you should post on your social media accounts, including LinkedIn, 2-3 times per week. Consistency is key—your audience needs to see you as a regular presence.

Q: What type of content should lawyers post in the legal industry?

We wrote a whole article on how lawyers can build a LinkedIn content strategy that works for them. Nevertheless, the types of content we see be more successful is content that falls into one of four content pillars:

• Service-based content that adds value and sparks interest while establishing credibility
• Personal branding-based content that helps establish the lawyer’s brand
• Practice tips-based content that attracts other lawyers and establishes potential referral sources
• Promotional-based content that promotes the lawyer’s accolades, speaking, webinars, etc.

When lawyers share content around these four content pillars, they are more successful on social media because all their content doesn’t sound self-serving or overly promotional. Thus, it attracts potential clients. A content strategy also helps lawyers build a content calendar they can stick with and ensure they maximize their marketing efforts.

Utilizing social media tools can help you schedule posts and maintain consistency in your content strategy.

Q: Should lawyers send cold connection requests for professional networking?

Only if they’re personalized! Always include a thoughtful, short message explaining why you want to connect, especially when contacting other law firms.

Q: How long does it take to see results on LinkedIn?

It depends on your consistency. Most lawyers start seeing engagement within a few weeks, and new business opportunities within 3-6 months of consistent social media marketing efforts.

The Bottom Line

Most lawyers fail on LinkedIn because they treat it as a resume instead of a relationship-building tool for their law firm’s success. By optimizing your profile, posting valuable content, and engaging with the right people, you can turn LinkedIn into a client-generating machine. Take these steps to master LinkedIn for Lawyers.

The post LinkedIn for Lawyers: Why 99% of Attorneys Fail (And How to Fix It) appeared first on By Aries.

Lawyers often question if using social media would actually be beneficial and if it would make a marked difference in their firm’s and personal brand’s visibility.

We get it. The evolving social media platforms and viral crazes can seem a bit juvenile and daunting, but the numbers really don’t lie. Social media is imperative for business.

We’re not here to convince you that your firm needs social media to succeed in their marketing efforts… because it’s factual; however, we are here to shed some light on why your firm should step outside of its comfort zones and into the newest and fastest growing social media platform: TikTok.

Why Professionals Need TikTok and Short-Form Video

If TikTok makes you immediately recoil, shouting “TikTok is for kids and dances” in objection, we’ve got good news for you. 

Not sure if you’ve read, but Google is no longer the number one search engine in the world anymore for Gen Z. In the top spot now is TikTok, and that ranking has Google concerned. A senior official at Google recently said that Google sees TikTok as a threat.

Now, we know how much lawyers spend to stay on top of search. We see lawyers throwing thousands of dollars into SEO, Google Ads for keywords that matter, and investing countless hours into getting positive reviews on Google, then working hard to optimize their Google Maps listing.

This means, if you’re investing heavily in Search, then you should also be investing in short-form video platforms like TikTok.

What is Short-Form Video

You may have managed to shy away from TikTok until now, but short-form videos are nothing new to any business who already has a social media presence on other platforms. If you don’t have a strategy around short-form video content on your other platforms, let alone TikTok, whew!… YOU ARE IN THE RIGHT PLACE. 

Let’s get to it. Simply put, any video under 60 seconds is considered short-form, with the optimal length between 31 and 60 seconds.

See, nothing scary about that. You’ve probably been creating these types of videos and animated graphics already, right? So what are the different strategies or ways to take advantage of the growing hype behind short-form videos, especially on TikTok?

Here are 6 tips to get started with short-form videos on TikTok and beyond.

Tip #1: Identify Which Platform to Make to Use for Short-Form Video Marketing

Ok, let’s see if you’ve been paying attention. What is the fastest-growing social media platform that uses short-form video? If you guessed TikTok, you guessed right.

Create Your TikTok Account

Start by setting up your account on the platform of your choice (you know which one we mean). We recommend TikTok over Instagram because of it’s easier discoverability and better algorithm. + Instagram is making a lot of updates and changes lately that have driven a lot of people away from the platform, and we’ve found their changes are mostly an attempt to replicate and chase the growth that TikTok is experiencing organically.

Maximize Visibility and Searchability with Your Setup

There are some pretty cool ways you can set your TikTok account up for success before you even create your first post. To learn more about setting up a business TikTok account that will help your target audience find you, be sure to review our Ultimate Guide for TikTok for Lawyers.

A key part of account setup is ensuring that the name on your account is searchable. It may seem weird, but we recommend setting your name on your account to a keyword your clients would type in the search bar. 

For instance: Immigration Lawyer Austin, Texas versus the name of your firm. You’re probably wondering how that is supposed to build brand visibility for your firm. Sounds counterintuitive, right? 

In order to connect your firm with that highly searchable service you provide, we recommend making your TikTok handle the name of your firm. We know it might be a bit confusing if you’ve never laid eyes on the TikTok platform, so be sure to check out our Ultimate Guide we mentioned for a full breakdown of these terms and practices.

Tip #2: Start with Keyword Research Before You Film

OK, so you have your account established and your brain is abuzz with great content ideas. Before you dive headlong into filming your brilliant video, you should do research on your target audience and for what your ideal audience is searching.

Research Your Target Client

You have to identify your target audience and build a specific persona for them. The key attributes that are common in your clients will help you develop the most relevant short-form videos.

Another way to determine what piques your clients’ interest is using the data you already have. If you have done quite a bit of content marketing in the past and your website has a decent amount of traffic, we recommend going back to your old blog posts to identify what content has the most views. This data from your existing content is a great place to start building your new short-form video ideas.

Use What You Already Know Works

Other ways to identify search terms that are popular with your target audience include online tools like Answer the Public and even Google Also Suggests to get ideas of what your target client base is already searching for so you’re able to make content around this topic.

Tip #3: Take Time to Plan Out Your Video Content, So You Spend Time on Your Highest and Best Use Work

Set a Schedule

One of the most common complaints I hear from busy lawyers is they don’t have enough time to do marketing.

This is typically because those lawyers are spending too much time each day trying to do marketing, when instead, they would be much more successful at marketing if they spent 1-hour per week working on strategically planned out marketing, versus trying to do a little each day.

Batch Your Content

Social media marketing, regardless of the platform used, should be planned months ahead of schedule. We recommend batching your video content. What do we mean by batching?

Start with filming all of your TikTok videos for the entire week, which ends up taking roughly one-hour to 30-minutes of your week. It doesn’t have to be perfect, and it can even be a few different takes. Giving the big batch of videos to your marketing team allows them to edit, upload, and schedule in a strategic manner.

If you don’t have a marketing team, then we still recommend the batching technique to save time and sanity. Just note you’ll have to spend a bit more time than 1-hour each week in marketing and should plan for likely 2-3 hours per week of marketing if going it alone in your short-form videos.

Tip #4: The Most Important Part of Your Video is the First 5 Seconds

We know a lot of lawyers who spend a ton of time writing lengthy intros to their videos. We’re not here to shame the power of the plume, only suggest you keep those expanded explanations for your filings and keep it short and sweet on your short-form video. They are called short-form for a reason.

Keep Your Messaging Short

Those mile-long diatribes against injustices won’t work on Tiktok. TikTok is all about the hook – the first 2-3 seconds where you capture the viewer’s attention. You reel them in with matter-of-fact, jarring bait in order to engage them. 

Again, we know it can be tough to curtail the power of the pen. We are just as guilty and have so many videos with long intros, which is how we know for sure that the abridged version of your most popular topics are much more likely to perform well.

You get it, right? People click on the video to learn about the promised topic at hand – right? So keep those hooks (intros) short and to the point.

What a Good Hook Looks Like

A short and engaging hook typically involves the word “You” and some problem, mistake, or mindset shift that needs to happen.

Take for example: “3 things you should never say to an immigration judge” OR “2 reasons why your trademark application is going to get denied” or “why you should never lie on your taxes.”

Notice the hook/intro immediately calls out the viewer and contains the topic of concern at hand. These could be things viewers didn’t realize were problems they had.

Want some more good ideas of hook formulas that work well for law firms? We put together a list of 10 of the best ones we’ve seen on TikTok in this handy guide. Download it now.

Tip #5: Lean Into Experimentation on TikTok

Although you’re a lawyer and you’ll likely want to make substantive content, it’s actually a good rule of thumb to experiment with different types and styles of content on TikTok. Yes, we know that means loosening up that tie and unbuttoning that stiff collar a bit, but it’s worth being a little bit more relaxed.

Some of the best content we’ve come across from professional service firms on TikTok actually comes from professionals who are using unique styles and approaches to content to market their services. We’re not talking Johnny Knoxville level of jacka** tomfoolery. You can be creative and stand out from the crowd without being foolish.

A few of our favorite styles of content that aren’t too formal but don’t require dancing or singing on camera include:

• Text Over Video
• Talking Head
• Trending Sounds
• Green Screen
• News Jacking

When you are willing to try different content types and styles, you learn more quickly what resonates with your audience and what you should continue to do vs what you should not do again. This helps you build more engaging content without wasting time and effort on something that’s not working.

Tip #6: Get Over the Idea that You’re Bad on Video

So many lawyers (and professionals, in general) are afraid of video because they think they don’t have camera presence. We’re going to let you in on a little secret:

Camera presence isn’t a natural talent, it’s a learned talent.

Your first video is definitely not going to be your best video, and that’s ok and to be expected. The more frequently and authentically you show up on camera, the more it all will feel more natural and build a deeper connection with your audience.

It’s important to remember that the point of all this marketing is to build connections and help clients see you’re a real human being who cares about them and helps them resolve their legal matters. So, save the self-shame for another day, because your next clients need your help and won’t know they can hire you if they don’t know you exist.

That’s it. You’re ready to conquer short-form video.

Now that you’ve learned how to use TikTok for your law firm, the next step is to learn how to fit TikTok into a larger marketing strategy. Watch this video where we’ll teach you how to develop a cohesive marketing strategy for your law firm so you can maximize results.

If you’re still a bit apprehensive about taking the dive into short-form video or need to supplement your in-house marketing team with some short-form video enthusiasts, reach out to By Aries to start perfecting your digital presence using short-form video and more!

The post TikTok for Lawyers | Six Tips for Getting Started with Short-Form Video for Lawyers appeared first on By Aries.

Contrary to popular belief, social media marketing for lawyers is not a vanity metric. I know you’re probably rolling your eyes right now because you heard that song and dance before. You’ve probably wasted a lot of time and money investing in to social media only to see it do well, nothing. Trust me. I used to have those same doubts.

Until I figured out what makes social media marketing tick. If you want to know how to make social media marketing actually work for your practice, then you’re reading the right article.

Too many lawyers I work with will openly tell me they don’t think social media marketing works. And they’ll tell me flat out, it’s a losing strategy. If you’re reading this article and you’re in that boat, well be prepared to have your bubble burst. Because you’re wrong.

Here my top five strategies for using social media marketing to build a following and a sustainable and thriving practice.

Strategy #1: Lawyers should start using video.

Video is becoming ubiquitous among professionals. As we’ve become accustomed to using video in our daily interactions, we’re going to become more accustomed to video marketing as well. Video is so powerful. I have clients who’ve literally paused all of their marketing efforts in favor of video and their slaying.

Let’s be real. There’s a pandemic going on and there’s no safer and easier introduction to you and your prospective clients than video. Video marketing is a great way to not only display your expertise, but also establish rapport and put down the first building blocks of relationship building with your perspective clients.

So, pull out your ring light and start polishing your ideas into great content because you’re ready to be on video. That leads me to strategy number two.

Strategy #2: Revamp your social media content for your audience, not your accolades.

One of the most common questions I get asked when it comes to social media marketing is how to increase engagement. Engagement is defined most commonly as likes, comments, and shares.

I follow the 80 / 20 rule outlined in Social Media Success for Every Brand by Claire Diaz-Ortiz.

The rule is simple. 80% of your content should be focused on delivering value and 20% should be focused on promotional content. In other words, if you’re writing content for your audience, it shouldn’t just be focused on you. That includes your video content.

A simpler way to say this would be, if you post content five days per week, one post per week can be about you. The other four days, your country, it should focus on industry insights, sharing content from your network, or commenting or providing a unique perspective on something taking place in your practice.

It’s important to remember that social media marketing is not about you. It’s about your audience and your followers. You want to create content that resonates with them, not content that serves you and your self-interest. When you create great audience-focused content, you’ll establish your credibility and trust with your audience.

Once you’ve established that credibility and trust with your audience, they’ll come knocking on your door. You won’t have to knock on theirs.

Strategy #3: Plan your social media content before you post.

Before writing a social media post it’s so important you do your due diligence to plan out your content. One of the fastest ways to ensure you’re delivering what your audience wants is to research the most common questions your clients are asking.  Each time you go into a consult, write down the questions being asked of you, compile a list and then use it to draw inspiration for your next social media post.

And if you don’t have a well-established library of questions that you’ve been compiling, use Google.

Start by typing in your practice area and see what Google includes and its people also ask section on the search results. This is a great jumping-off point for you to start discovering what your audience is looking for.

Once you have a list of questions, see if you can draw a common theme from those questions. I recommend that my clients then plan out content around those themes.

Example:

An estate planning attorney may have a theme around will disputes another around special needs trust, and another round COVID related estate planning. Armed with these themes this lawyer can now draft social media posts that resonate with their audience tackling questions like:

“How to avoid a will dispute?”

What makes it work will dispute more likely?”

“Will my children fight over their inheritance?” and

“Can an ex-wife dispute a will and win?”

This is the power of planning your content before you create it.

Strategy #4: Build an email list to help promote your social media content.

Now that you’ve built a following on social media. It’s time to entice those social media followers to get to know you even better. The best way to do this is through email marketing. Now you may be wondering what does social media marketing for lawyers have to do with email marketing?

Social media marketing is a gateway to your prospective client’s eyes. Whereas email marketing is a gateway to their minds.

The truth is you and I are not Zuckerbergs. We don’t own any of the social media platforms that we use daily. We cannot control when Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, or even Google changed their algorithm and leave us scrambling to find a way to reach our audience.

But we do own our email lists. This is why using email to market to your ideal client can be such an effective and necessary next step in your digital marketing strategy.

Strategy #5: Be overly generous with your knowledge on social media.

I once had a lawyer tell me he was never going to post on social media because he felt his prospective clients should have to pay for all the knowledge he learned over his 30 year career.

He wasn’t wrong. But he also wasn’t entirely right either. 

Being generous with your knowledge is a differentiator and an authority builder. There are plenty of lawyers out there thinking exactly like that lawyer. But those who take the time to share their knowledge in a generous way end up demonstrating their expertise and building their authority instead of hiding from the world.

I’ve never met a lawyer who has successfully marketed his or her practice on social media without demonstrating generosity. Those who generously share their expertise in a valuable way with their audience. Those are the ones who really reap the benefit that’s from social media and their marketing efforts.

The post Social Media Marketing for Lawyers: The Ultimate Guide appeared first on By Aries.