LinkedIn is really a must for attorneys who market B2B; here are the latest stats:

• The most widely used business networking site in the world

• 225 million active users --- 83 million in U.S. -- as of May 2013

• Another 2 people join every second

• 40% of LinkedIn members are senior managers

• All Fortune 500 companies are represented

• 53% of B2B marketers have found a customer through LinkedIn

I think that every attorney needs to be on LinkedIn; it’s a fantastic way to connect with referral sources as well as potential clients and build your platform as an expert and leader in your field of practice.  LinkedIn is also a very credible source in the eyes of Google.

Judging from my informal polling, however, many attorneys are still lagging behind when it comes to using LinkedIn for law firm marketing. Here are 8 steps to get you started:

1. Create a comprehensive profile – take your resume and use it all to create your profile. Be sure to use keywords (Google will use your LinkedIn page in search results) and be specific, just as I have done in my profile:

2. Start by connecting with people you know – if you use Outlook or Gmail, LinkedIn will import all your contacts from your email database and compare it with theirs, serving you up a list of your contacts who are already on LinkedIn. Start sending invitations to your contacts to connect with you. Your goal is to surpass the 500 connections mark, which will distinguish you as a “power user” so more people will want to connect with you.

3. Recommend others first, then ask to be recommended – go ahead and provide recommendations for your contacts, then follow up with an email to request they do the same for you.

4. Join groups for attorneys, referral sources & prospects – not only join, but participate! Contribute insights that will help build your reputation.

5. Start a group for your target market – by starting your own group, you get the right to market directly to the members, since LinkedIn allows group administrators to send emails directly to members.

6. Answer questions – another great way to be recognized as an expert.

7. Update your status at least 3x per week – you can use LinkedIn WordPress and Twitter tools to funnel your blog posts and tweets directly to your LinkedIn profile page.

8. List all your events on LinkedIn – someone may want to connect with you offline.