GENERAL INTEREST These are all possible ideas for posts on social media. Did you read a great article? Post the article, tell others why you found it to be valuable, tag the author and start a conversation with them about it. Did you have a rowdy conversation with your fellow lawyers during a meeting or at court? Continue the conversation online. My friend Anna Ivey once published a great article that was a reflection based on her notes from a meeting. • Be aware of what is happening in your industry • Engage in conversations relevant to you, presenting additional content opportuni-ties • Learn more about what is resonating and what isn’t making you more effective in your communication • Discover new audiences • Build meaningful connections presenting new opportunities to expand. Another unexpected benefit I found to par-allel partners is that they helped me grow my audience and ensure my content continues to be seen. My parallel partners tend to comment on my posts, engage with me online, and have back-and-forth dialogues. That interaction then gets seen by their followers. Many of their followers become my followers after they see the value I bring to the table. I also find that my parallel partners ensure I show up to the platform regularly. Sometimes I don’t want to get on social media, but I do want to see what my parallel partners are up to or see what they tagged me in so I can respond. Social media, in these instances, is not a chore. I am excited to return to continue conversations and move the dialogue forward, which is valuable to my ideal client. Familiarize Yourself with Ethical Guidelines Recently, I have seen a lot of ads by marketing companies who want to market specifically to lawyers. Many of them agree to work on com-mission under the “We don’t get paid, unless you get paid” rule. In addition, they advise lawyers to record automated general messages that can be used for “any scenario.” When I ask, “Are you aware of the ethical guidelines for lawyers?” many respond with, “What ethical guidelines?” When I ask the same question to lawyers, I get the same response. Many lawyers are unaware there are ethical rules that exist to cover advertising. There are also ethical rules that cover fraud and misrep-resentations as well as fee-splitting for referral purposes. One of the best ways to learn about ethical rules covering the solicitation of clients is to go to the Virginia State Bar website and examine Rule 7.3. Solicitation of clients is not the only rule implicated when you start making public state-ments online. You may find the rules of confi-dentiality to be important as you discuss cases. Remember, depth not width is the goal. Working on an article or presentation? Do what my friend Akil Bello does: Publish some of the slides in advance to generate interest or get feedback. If you can’t fit a slide into a presentation, make that your next social media post. When creating a post, think to yourself, “How can I provide value while sharing my expertise?” You do not need fancy graphics or cool videos when you start or even after you become established. Keep it simple, be true to yourself, provide value and eventually people will find you. Find Parallel Partners Who are your “competitors?” Start networking with them. Think of them as parallel partners rather than competitors. Provide value to your parallel partners without thinking “What’s in it for me?” Share any content that you think your ideal client would find valuable. Recognize by doing this that you are building connections while providing value to your ideal client. This makes your ideal client interested in re-turning to your page/profile in the future. If you are unsure who potential parallel partners are, search using keywords or hashtags using any social media search function. See who keeps popping up, follow them. See who they follow and follow those who you think will provide you or your ideal clients value. Another great way to identify parallel partners: read books, read magazines such as this one, read articles, watch YouTube videos, listen to podcasts. See who keeps showing up, then find them online. Talk to them about their work and tell them what you found valuable. Finding parallel partners allows you to: 28 VIRGINIA LAWYER | DECEMBER 2020 | VOL. 69 | GENERAL INTEREST www.vsb.org