How a Law Firm Can Take Advantage of Social Media Marketing

How a Law Firm Can Take Advantage of Social Media Marketing Regardless of industry, social media has become a de facto space for marketing. You only need to look at brands like Airbnb, Wendy’s, and MoonPie to see how much attention a company can get when using top social media marketing strategies. While some of these brands become viral sensations, it might seem like some industries, like the legal industry, aren’t getting attention on social media. However, that isn’t the case. Law firms consistently use social media as a way of marketing their services and skills. Both huge law firms and independent attorneys are increasingly looking toward social media, like Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook, as a way to get their name out into the world. Many of them find a huge deal of success in doing so.

Law Firms Are Using Social Media Today

The Attorney at Work survey shows that the overwhelming majority of lawyers are using social media as part of their marketing strategy. In fact, since 2018, at least 85% of attorneys have used social media for this purpose. The real issue is that even law firms and independent attorneys who use social media may not always do it the right way. This can result in lost opportunities when using social media as a law firm. Therefore, it’s important to understand the best way to build connections and attract potential clients on these platforms.

The Benefits of Social Media for Law Firms

We’ll be sharing some of the best ways to improve your social media presence, but first, we want to make sure you understand why social media is so essential for lawyers.

Engaging a Potential Audience

While many people use social media to connect with friends, it’s also useful to engage with brands and consume their content. This makes it an excellent option for engaging a potential audience and turning them into clients. Social media is a space to share engaging and informative content. It can also be used to resolve problems, answer questions, and more.

Creating Firm Awareness

More than ever, people are visiting social media platforms. Based on the Sprout Social 2019 Index, about 44% of consumers today use social media more than they did in the past. When your law firm has a robust presence on social media, it gets your message to the right audience. This can help you gain awareness for your firm and the services that you offer.

Attracting Potential Clients

Social media is a highly effective method of attracting new clients for law firms. The American Bar Association shows that 35% of the attorneys who use social media professionally have gained new clients. In addition, almost 50% of the respondents from the Attorney at Work survey have seen new clients come in based on the firm’s use of social media.

Improving Your SEO

What you do on social media doesn’t directly affect your ranking on search engines. However, there is a correlation between better social signals and improved ranking on search engines like Google. In addition, Google is consistently bringing in dynamic feeds from things like social media to the search results. Having an excellent presence can give you better space for your firm’s name when people search for attorneys. Developing your social media can also create increased traffic and improvements in online visibility.

Establishing Thought Leadership

A final way social media can benefit law firms is by showing you are a thought leader in your industry. Social media is the ideal space to show what you know. In addition, you can use it to share interesting information that enhances your credibility and creates trust among a larger audience.

Taking Advantage of Social Media as an Attorney

Since social media has huge benefits for law firms, you don’t want to miss out on using it as a channel to market the services you offer. Below are a few ways you can ensure you’re doing the best you can in terms of your social media presence.

Nail the Basics

As with any marketing channel, you have to get the basics right. There are a few steps to this when it comes to social media:
  • Choose the right platform – You may not want to have a presence on every social media platform. Instead, consider starting out slow by using one or two platforms most commonly used by your audience.
  • Set realistic goals – Think through what you want from your social media presence. For instance, maybe you want firm visibility. On the other hand, perhaps you want to bring in new clients or just want to engage your target audience. Once you know your goals, you can gauge what to post for who.
  • Create a calendar – You’ll also want to build a content strategy and make a calendar for it. Think about what kind of content you want to post and decide how often you wish to add new information to your profiles.

Share Your Story

Telling the story of your firm is a great way to get attention on social media. It helps humanize the firm and can help you create an emotional connection with the audience. This makes it easier to win their loyalty and trust. Share stories about the history of your firm, your achievements, and other items. Social media can also be used to place a spotlight on all your employees to add human faces to the firm.

Post Useful Graphics

In social media marketing, images are essential. People notice them more than just a post consisting of nothing but text. Therefore, your strategy for any social media platform should focus on building visuals that engage and attract new clients. This can be done in all sorts of ways. Post legal information, inspiration quotes, legal tips, or industry updates in graphic form to stand out. This will be especially helpful on social media platforms that focus on images, such as Instagram. Tools like Snappa and Canva are a great way to create graphics.

Respond to Questions and Comments

With social media, you can engage with an audience to build connections. For example, clients will reach out to ask questions about services, share information about bad experiences, and give you their suggestions and ideas. Since this is one of the simplest ways for people to get in touch with you, make the most of that opportunity. Answer questions that people send you, and make sure to respond to comments on your posts. You should always show that you are listening and wish to help.

Share News Updates and Blog Posts

Promotional content can be used on social media, but most people are looking for informative information. When you offer valuable, credible information, that shows you know what you are talking about. Potential clients are going to notice that. As a law firm, a promo isn’t enough for someone to decide to use your services. Instead, they want to see that you are credible and knowledgeable about the things that matter to them. This, combined with experience, could lead to a new client. Sharing informative blog posts and up-to-date industry information is the best thing you can do. It doesn’t have to be only information from your own blog, either. You can curate the content from reputable industry sources and other relevant blogs.

Make the Most of Social Media for Your Law Firm

Having a social media profile is a great start for any law firm, but it’s also important to run it in a way that brings in new clients. You can use the tips above to develop goals for your social media, create a strategy for using it, and then put it all into practice. The benefits are huge when you follow a few tips to optimize your social media presence.