Bob Ambrogi’s ‘Tweet 16’ on Why Lawyers Should Use Twitter

Even though he describes himself as a new technology "evangelist," law blogger Robert Ambrogi was a little skeptical of Twitter, the microblogging platform that limits users to 140-character bits of text.

But Ambrogi dove into the Twitterverse and surfaced with 16 reasons lawyers should embrace the tweet.

Here are a few from his list:

Mold your image: Those who post regularly to Twitter provide others a glimpse of their daily lives. That glimpse can help shape your public image. Do your posts paint you as a high-powered professional — now writing an appellate brief, now preparing for a deposition — or as a trivia-obsessed slacker, now breaking for lunch, now off for drinks? By thinking before you post, you can shape how others see you.

Distribute your news: Lawyers and law firms already use Twitter as a vehicle to distribute news and press releases. Even though Twitter limits posts to 140 characters, posts can include web links. Thus, post the headline or a brief description together with the link to the full item.

Simulate the water cooler: For solo lawyers and self-employed consultants, Twitter is a virtual office water cooler. Throughout the day, lawyers on Twitter comment on the news, throw out questions, and share articles and items of interest. You can reply directly to others, either publicly or privately.

Monitor the buzz: What are hot topics among lawyers in your practice area? What are people saying about your client or its product? On Twitter, you can select the people whose posts you wish to follow. You can also search all Twitter posts, save the search, and get updates via RSS.

Find clients: When a California blogger was threatened with a lawsuit over comments he made online, he turned to Twitter to search for a lawyer. Through Twitter, you may find new clients and they may find you.

The rest of his column is in the latest issue of Law Technology News (reg. req.).