… be more human in your work twitter account

Twitter can be a great networking and conversation tool, with the potential to make clients, prospects, suppliers and thought leaders feel “closer” to your organisation.

But many lawyers I meet struggle with the idea of bringing their human-side into their work twitter account. They think it is risky and worry about being seen as less “professional”.

These are some simple ideas for the risk-averse to get a little more conversational in their work twitter feed, without feeling uncomfortable

1. Retweet someone else’s interesting (non-libellous and non-controversial) content with a short, one or two word, comment about why it is worth reading. Follow reputable news sources relevant to your target followers and retweet news articles which would be of interest to them.
2. Always send a personal thank you if someone retweets your material. If you want to engage with them, you can always add a relevant comment or ask how their day is going.
3. If you are preparing for an event, such as an open seminar, can you offer a behind-the-scenes glimpse of preparations, or share  your (non-proprietary, non-confidential) research as you prepare your talk?
4. If your firm sponsors charity bike-rides, local arts events or similar, include the human stories behind that and retweet the relevant tweets of other people involved.
5. If anything interesting is happening locally, which is relevant to your local clients, retweet details of that even if you aren’t involved in sponsoring it.

Concentrate on quality content that is of value to your target followers.

For personal advice and help, visit TheKnowledgeBusiness, or if you prefer to DIY, get your own copy of “Knowledge Management Handbook” from Law Society Publishing here.