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Let’s face it: Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn squandered their potential. Instead of becoming knowledge or trade hubs, they’re essentially virtual singles bars. All 3 of these networks are so choked with ads, scams, and come-ons that companies trying to turn a legitimate buck have turned to so-called opinion or “thought” leaders (anyone from Ashton Kutcher to Robert Scoble) in order to cut through the chatter. Fair enough, but lawyers still aren’t going to buy a product because it’s being pushed by an actor (even if it’s a dream-boat like Ashton). And as the authors of this piece in Social Media Today point out, professionals get online for reasons not common to the average user, including:

• engaging with others in their discipline
• collaborating on their projects or cases
• learning about innovations in their field
• sharing and discussing their experiences
• reinforcing their referral relationships
• accessing and sharing hard to find info

So why is there such a yawning gap between what professionals want in social networks and what the networks deliver? And to make matters worse, most social media campaigns are basically re-packaged website or blog content grafted onto the flavor of the month; an approach which is transparent and ineffective.

Why don’t social networks and advertisers observe the same rules that we professionals observe among ourselves, i.e.

• trust is built by giving freely
• one good turn deserves another
• value speaks for itself – no BS
• be patient – teach don’t preach
• respect my time and intelligence

If social networks and marketers respect these principals will they gain traction with professionals? How should I know? But I’m sure that if they ignore these points I’ll be gone before they can sell me anything.

Hacker in Chief  lawyer blogger badass Read more from the Practicehacker