Socianetworks Proven to be for Lawyers Too

This week, a press release announced by Leader Networks addressed the question: Will serious professionals participate in social networks? The release highlighted a recent study regarding lawyers and social networks.

Here's the release:

Survey Reveals Growth in Online Professional Networking Among Legal Professionals, Appetite for Lawyer-Specific Networking Solutions Results reflect considerable shift among attorneys, according to the 2008 Networks for Counsel Survey

New York, NY – July 10, 2008 –A new survey reveals that almost 50 percent of attorneys are members of online social networks and over 40 percent of attorneys believe professional networking has the potential to change the business and practice of law over the next five years. However, less than ten percent say they can rely on their current network to help them work more efficiently and cost effectively.

The survey of 650 attorneys also reveals the high degree of interest – more than 40 percent – among lawyers in joining an online professional network designed specifically for their profession. The 2008 Networks for Counsel Survey, conducted by Leader Networks – a consultancy that helps businesses foster online social networks – and commissioned by LexisNexis Martindale-Hubbell – the industry leader in networking and law firm marketing – is the first survey of its scope to examine the social networking practices of legal professionals. “The legal profession is traditionally slow to adopt new technologies, so attorneys’ readiness to use online networking tools represents a significant shift in behavior. With our expertise in social networking for businesses, Leader Networks has seen that private online communities are one of the best ways to bring professionals together for business networking,” said Vanessa DiMauro, president of Leader Networks and author of The 2008 Networks for Counsel Survey. “We recognize a real need for a private, online network for attorneys given the results of this survey.” “Online professional networking is a growing area of importance in the legal industry,” said Ralph Calistri, CEO of Martindale-Hubbell and senior vice president of Global Client Development at LexisNexis. “As we develop a global network for the legal community through Martindale-Hubbell for launch later this year, objective research such as this survey by Leader Networks serves as an important way for us to listen to clients and guide our efforts.” Networking is essential for attorneys, but difficult.

The survey found that attorneys leverage collaboration tools and referrals to service the needs of the organizations they represent to find clients, and to identify specialized attorneys and other resources. However, traditional methods of networking are increasingly difficult:Private practice attorneys rated client referrals or recommendations first (59 percent) and peer referral or recommendation second (55 percent) as the most effective means of networking; Relationship-based methods surface next most frequently, including in-person networking events (28 percent) and alumni relationships (26 percent); 52 percent agreed or strongly agreed that it is harder to stay connected with colleagues and peers; Only 16 percent of respondents felt that they had the time or resources to leverage current opportunities to network with their peers; More than 60 percent of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that it is hard to connect at conferences; 61 percent reported networking internationally is difficult. Online networking becoming clear option for connecting, generation gaps exists.

According to the survey, legal professionals are starting to be “connected” through use of online social networking for personal and professional purposes; however, the majority of attorneys using social networking sites are between the ages of 25-35.54 percent of attorneys reported being a member of an online social network such as LinkedIn, Plaxo, Facebook or MySpace; 33 percent of attorneys that are connected use social networks for personal use; 18 percent use for professional use and 49 percent use social networks for a combination of the two; 67 percent of 25-35 year olds, 49 percent of 36-45 year olds, and 36 percent of 46-55+ year olds reported membership in an online social network. Demand for networks specifically for attorneys Beyond the mainstream networks that have recently come into common use, a large number of private practice and corporate counsel attorneys are now interested in an online professional network specifically for lawyers. 43 percent of corporate counsel and 53 percent of private practice attorneys report that current versions of professional networks and online communities do not help them work more efficiently and cost effectively; 54 percent of corporate counsel and 41 percent of private practice attorneys view linking to other attorneys or expanding ones’ network as the most important feature an online professional network could provide; More than 40 percent of all corporate counsel and private practice attorneys report an interest in joining an online professional network for lawyers. The top five attributes considered when corporate counsel are deciding to join a professional legal network, are:
Access to information not found anywhere else (46 percent); Ease of exchanging information/experiences (45 percent); Ability to identify, evaluate and select private practice attorneys quickly (29 percent); Finding the “right” attorney directly (26 percent); Speed of collaboration (21 percent).

The time is ripe for a network designed properly and specifically for professionals - one that is user-friendly, targeted, and obvious in the way it can be leveraged for productivity.

Results Lie in Nurture Not Numbers

In this IBM (ibm.com) commercial, the corporation spoofs all the hubub about numbers of friends being touted on Facebook, Linked In, Twitter, etc.

Watch it now:

YouTube - Broadcast Yourself.

The point? All the friends and connections are valueless unless the relationships are nurtured.

In the age of Web 2.0 many need guidance and coaching in how to nurture the relationships once the connections are made. There are hundreds of groups on Linked In. What are they doing in these groups? What benefits are being derived?

Facebook makes connecting fun and social. People can stay in touch and on top of friends activities. But on professional sites, results need to be generated for interest to be maintained.

If you want to achieve results from your surfing on Linked In or other business sites, you will need to make an effort to nurture the relationship, on the web, or on the ground.

Tapping The Power of The Network

Clearly, social networking is a hot topic. I hear people talking about these networks constantly - about YouTube and MySpace on the train, Linked In in restaurant conversations, Facebook at the office. And if the press is accurate, and Linked In does in fact have 23 million visitors, the question then becomes how many people are actually participating vs. visiting?

Knowledge@Wharton, http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article.cfm?articleid=2009&jsessionid=9a309ebf34e569213311

featured an article entitled: 'Not a Site, but a Concept': Tapping the Power of Social Networking'. This article discusses the various levels of participation by visitors to social networks.

"In order to help companies target their Internet strategies, researchers identify a "social technology ladder," which classifies consumers based on their participation in various types of social networking."

The lowest level of activity is made by "inactives" represented by 44% of all adults online in '07. Next are the joiners, 25% of visitors to social networking sites, then "collectors" represented by 15% of visitors, those who collect content. Only 18% of online Americans create content.

With so many sites emerging, and such a small percentage of active contribution, what is the magnet that keeps visitors coming back? The answer or answers to this question are crucial in leveraging the power of the network, both for content providers, as well as sponsors and advertisers.

Socianetworking Goes Mainstream by Martindale-Hubbell

Martindale-Hubbell (www.martindale.com), the premier resource for legal services, and a division of Lexis Nexis, has come on board the social networking wagon.

Fulbright & Jaworski's listing on Martindale Hubbell features the Linked In blue icon which, when clicked, sends the visitor to the F&J profile on Linked In and entices one to connect by telling the visitor how many connections he or she has within F&J. You can then invite these folks to connect and build your network.

The real issue is not how many companies and firms are on Linked In. The question is how many are using Linked In and other business networking sites to enhance their practices.

If professionals are grappling with how to turn business cards into business, it won't be easier to turn profiles into proposals.

However, it is clear the opportunity and potential grows each day.

In yesterday's New York Times (www.nytimes.com), a major article appeared discussing how the Obama campaign has leveraged the knowledge power of a former Facebook founder, and how utilizing the power of the Facebook network contributed to Obama's victory.

Niched In

VNUNET.com, an IT site devoted to all the latest news regarding technology, posted an article on socianetworking.

http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2220679/social-networking-sites-making

The headline read:
Social networking revenues disappoint
Niche is the way forward, say analysts
Written by Robert Jaques
vnunet.com, 03 Jul 2008

And Jill Meyers, of In-Stat says:

Development of niche social networking sites is an essential piece of the monetisation puzzle

Successful marketers have long understood that targeting one's marketing efforts to a distinct population or populations increase the marketing effort's ROI. Why would socianetworking be any different?

The primary reason so many socianetworking sites are cropping up hoping for big $ in ads is one based in greed not in rationale. Huge hordes of friends, visitors, and eyeballs encourages advertisers to plunk down dollars in the hopes of more customers. In fact, a targeted niche approach is what's missing. It's no wonder there is disappointment about ad revenue ROI on these sites.

We've heard it before, but site launchers seem to have forgotten: Quantity without quality is a poor strategy.

An App I Can Get Behind

I love being on Facebook and other networks, but I generally find all those cutsie apps on Facebook ridiculous. However, I landed on one of these apps by accident. On a whim, I searched out Keith Ferrazzi, famed author of Never Eat Alone (http://www.nevereatalone.com/) It is a wonderful book with great tips and ideas on networking, and mostly comes from the idea that who you are is who you hang around with (my words, not his) and that you need to be willing to get deeply connected to people if you want to build an effective network.

When I found Keith on Facebook, I noticed he had created an app called Goal Posts. These are cool ways to challenge yourself to accomplish SMART Goals in a variety of categories. The goal I set for myself is finishing my book within a year (or less) You can even invite selected friends to hold you accountable to making progress and accomplishing the goal.

Now goal setting and tracking is certainly not a new idea - Goal setting and SMART goals are common training tools. But what Keith did is take the idea and create an app on Facebook. Somehow, the technology to state the goal, and track it on your profile makes it a fun new way to accomplish.

And I have a huge WHY to accomplish writing this book. I too am a networking fiend, with a big vision of transforming the way we connect and network for business.

More about that in upcoming weeks....

In the meantime, check out the Goal Post app on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/)

Chat Anyone?

In April, Facebook added a "chat" feature so that you could not only send messages but chat in real time:

http://mashable.com/2008/04/23/facebook-chat-works/

Has anyone used this feature? How do you feel about it? Does it add convenience and value or is it just another add on to all the confusion?

Obviously other developers see chat as a valuable tool as hi5 Acquires PixVerse for Cross-Network Chat.

Is Chat the new Connect?