Another week has passed, and another group of people have started using new internet technology to connect with others and build business.  Hopefully, that group of people includes some lawyers.  Welcome to part 24 of our blog series on social media for attorneys.  This week we will talk about getting the word out on something you’ve done.

To start, I will use an example of something you may want to use social media to promote.  Let’s say you wrote a book that you self-published on a topic related to your practice.  In order for the book to mean anything, you have to get it in front of people.  The more people that see it, the more important the book will be to you and your career.  It can help you get speaking gigs, promote you as an expert in your field, and lead to new opportunities.

Social media is a great way to get the word out on your new book if you can do it in the right way.  The wrong way to do it is to simply blast messages like “Buy my book” to anyone and everyone who will read them.  This makes you sound annoying and desperate.  You have to be creative, be selective, and have a strategy involved.

The following are some things that can be done to help promote the book.  You can pick and choose what works for you from the list, but using multiple outlets with one succinct strategy is the best way to get more eyes on your prize.

1. Write an introduction to the book as a blog post.  Make it chapter 0.  It is the part of the book that is not part of the book.  Make it short and to the point, so those readers that see it will know that the topic is interesting and understandable.  Give a link to purchase the book from your site or from Amazon.com.

2. Release an E-book.  Create an E-book copy of the book that you can promote online.  There are two options here.  Either you can create an exact copy of the physical book and sell it online, or you can create a dumbed down version and give it away for free to entice people to buy the real thing.  If your goal is to make money directly from sales of the book you will probably want to charge for the e-book, though it may be a tough sell because most e-books are free today.

3. Run a contest to give away free copies of the book.  Leverage your blog readers and Twitter followers to announce a promotion for free copies of the book.  Make it creative; for example, you can ask trivia questions on the book’s topic via Twitter and give away copies to correct responders.

4. Contact bloggers who do book reviews.  Send them free copies of the book and tell them you would love them to review it.  In the package that you send them write a personalized letter thanking them.  The more people who review the book, the more people will hear about it.  All press is good press, so don’t worry about negative reviews too much.

5. Take some quick video of you at events with the book in hand.  Get people to give a quick review and post the videos to YouTube.  Then embed the videos back on your blog and ask for other people to send in their own video reviews.  This will make those people that do buy the book feel a part of a community of readers that you have created.

6. Finally, use your blog to announce that you are coming out with an extended version of the book in the near future, and ask for submissions.  Allow people that book the book to write a page or two that will be featured in the new book, at your discretion of course.  This type of collaborative effort will create new voices that will champion your work for you.  These evangelists can help spread the word and get others involved.

There are hundreds of things that you can do online to spread the word about something.  If you spend some time to think about how this news, or product, or service will benefit other people, then create a social media strategy based on that idea, the doors will fly open for you. 

Past Installments of this Series:
Part One – Intro to Social Media for Attorneys
Part Two – Signing up for the Networks
Part Three – Using Blogs as an Information Source
Part Four – Start Blogging Today
Part Five – Introduction to Twitter
Part Six – Introduction to LinkedIn
Part Seven – Networks as a Communication Tool
Part Eight – Submit Yourself to Blog Catalogs
Part Nine – Put Your PR Department to Work
Part Ten – Lend us your Comments
Part Eleven – Intro to Viral Marketing
Part Twelve – Answer Questions 2.0
Part Thirteen – The Big Picture
Part Fourteen – Interactions on Blogs
Part Fifteen – Interactions on Networks
Part Sixteen – Recruiting on the Networks
Part Seventeen – Promote Yourself to Get a Job
Part Eighteen – Video Resumes
Part Nineteen – Social Media on Social Media
Part Twenty – Blog Content is Vital
Part Twenty One – Law Students are Coming
Part Twenty Two – NYSBA Journal Headline
Part Twenty Three – Future Networks