Be Real, Stay Professional: Social Media in Your Practice Companies

Social media can feel like a choice between being visible and being credible. If you’re struggling with this in your practice, you’re not alone.

James M. Reid of Honigman LLP, who has 20+ years of experience and specializes in labor and employment law, recently sat down with us to share his social media insights—from maintaining professionalism to building simple, practical habits into your busy schedule so you can connect with clients and enhance your practice.

These excerpts have been edited for length and clarity.

ICLE: Tell us a little bit about how you make time for social media marketing. How do you fit it into your busy schedule? 

James: I reserve almost half of every day for emergency client calls on hot social media or other employment issues. If those are not filled, then I spend half a day on marketing and business development.

ICLE: What's the biggest misconception lawyers have about social media and their practice?

James: I think a lot of lawyers think that social media is only good for marketing. And that it’s not actually a resource to learn and actually connect with your client base. 

I've learned, in a positive way, being on social allows your clientele to see that you're more than a widget—you're a holistic person. And it creates instant credibility based on mutual connections.

Frankly, if you're not on at least LinkedIn, or some form of social media, it makes me wonder what you're hiding from.

ICLE: How do you balance being approachable while maintaining authority and professionalism?

James: You have to assume your page is going to be viewed by clients on both sides of politics. And various humans with various perspectives are all going to be potential clients. I would not post anything that you wouldn't want your grandmother to see, or all of your clients to see.

As far as authority, I think that by sharing resources, you want to typically write your own summaries of your specialty. Because sometimes when you share other people's resources, they have advertisements that may be political or something you didn't approve of, or something inappropriate. It's dangerous to share links.

If you really want to share an article with your audience you should use a PDF, so you avoid the bait-and-switch.

I also think we no longer have to act like know-it-alls. Sometimes being a bit vulnerable or curious, and showing that you're still learning and growing, creates more credibility and gives you more authority.

ICLE: What types of posts consistently perform best for you?

James: The best photos are what generate likes or comments. For example, I very rarely ever sport a mustache. But I did a speaking engagement recently where I had one, and someone commented, “Nice ‘stache.” And then that generated a lot of other people commenting and reading what they may have otherwise skimmed over. And then actually see some of the legal updates.

I also recently did a picture where I'm dancing a little bit as part of my “walk-up song,” to speak. If you're a little more real, and yourself, it makes you more approachable.

ICLE: Can you share an example of what a social media “win” for your practice looks like?

James: If I were to post a picture of me speaking somewhere, some clients may say something like, “I really loved learning XYZ. Thank you for educating me.”

And then either new clients or existing clients in other areas of law will then call me and say, “I saw you did a talk. What are the top 10 mistakes? Can you help me?” And they'll actually have clients and new clients come to you.

Someone asked me recently to draft an AI white paper, and there's no way they would have known I had that expertise if it wasn't for LinkedIn or word-of-mouth endorsements by others.

ICLE: What's one “easy win” for any lawyer regarding social media—something they can make time for on a weekly basis?

James: I’m a huge fan of short storytelling. The way to learn is for someone to remember a movie, or a joke, or a story.

If you just share a legal update without applying it to a fact pattern, whether hypothetical or real, it goes in one ear and out the other. You need to tie a story together and add your own spin to it. 

The main reason clients say they want to talk with me is that I don't regurgitate the elements of a law. I'll tell a story so they can understand in plain English. Real is better.

"Frankly, if you're not on at least LinkedIn, or some form of social media, it makes me wonder what you're hiding from."