Does Popular Social Media Work for Law Firms?

As a lawyer, your communication skills are excellent, but does that translate to the ever-changing world of social media? If you’re wondering if marketing on social media will work for your law firm, keep reading. We’ll discuss the benefits of social media for law firms and how to start using social media for business.

Marketing is a touchpoint game. It’s about how many times you can successfully get in front of your potential clients. Social media gives you several opportunities to add to your multi-touchpoint plan. In fact, sometimes, social media is the last touchpoint you need to convert someone. The American Bar Association reported that 35% of attorneys who use popular social media have gained new clients. Additionally, another survey, Attorney at Work, reported that 49% of survey participants stated they have gained new clients from their social media presence. Here are a few ways these additional marketing channels might help you convert or influence your potential clients:

1. Direct Messaging Capabilities – This is a direct line from your customers to you. Most social media platforms have this capability, including Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram and Twitter.

2. Online Reviews – Just as your potential clients search Google and legal directories like AVVO for your past client reviews, they also search channels like Facebook.

3. Call-to-Action Links – Social media is a good way to link to your site, contact forms or other avenues someone can use to connect with you. Channels like Facebook and LinkedIn allow you to add “call-to-action” buttons that link to your website, phone number or email address. 

Social media is free, too. You can sign up for the popular channels (Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter, etc) at no cost to reap all of the benefits stated above and provide another channel for your potential clients to find you.

Facebook has 2.8 billion users. LinkedIn has 740 million users. Instagram has 1.1 billion users. As you can see, the popular social media sites have big audiences, and by default, those audiences are having conversations. These conversations may be related to you, your community or your clients. You may be thinking, WOW– that’s a lot of people. How will I ever find the conversations that relate to me? I’m glad you asked. There are a few ways to narrow down the chatter and have a more focused world on social media. Here are a few things you can do:

1. Be Present – Once your channels are optimized (have the correct details about what you offer, who you are, etc.) and you’ve started posting relevant content, the algorithm will do its job, meaning your data will bring your people to you. Then, they’ll begin to engage and reach out to you. This means you’ll need a consistent, targeted content strategy.

2. Join the Right Groups – Facebook and LinkedIn both have groups or communities dedicated to specific interests. This is where you’ll find the topics most relevant to you, and the people most likely to be in your audience. 

3. Monitor the Conversation – Social Media Listening tools allow you to monitor social media channels for mentions of your brand, services, competitors and other relevant keywords and phrases. An experienced digital marketing agency in West Palm Beach can help you set up the right listening strategy for you.

3. It Establishes Thought Leadership & Credibility 

Your social media channels also give you an additional channel to promote yourself. You can control what you post completely, so you tell the narrative you want to share, shaping your prospects thoughts about you. There are several ways to position yourself as the (insert practice area here) expert:

1. Share your content – If you’re publishing a blog (   if you’re not, you should be  ), you can share it on social media. 

2. Live videos – Have great advice to share with potential clients dealing with the aftermath of a DUI or a wrongful termination? Draft a script outline, and “go live” on social media to let everyone know you’re the gal or the guy with the answers.

3. Update your audience – Keeping your clients informed is a huge piece of establishing credibility and gaining their trust. If you’re going to be closed for a holiday, let social media know. If you’re offering a free consultation, post it. If it’s your legal secretary’s birthday, wish her well online. Be human, be informative– you get it. 

4. Sell yourself – The great thing about your own social media channels is you get to sell yourself the way you want. Err on the side of caution when it comes to too much promotion of yourself, as people will stray away from content they find irrelevant or uninteresting. However, definitely take the time to share case study results (how much money have you secured in total client rewards this year?), client testimonials and other success stories.

How to Use Social Media to Your Benefit

Now that you know how social media can help you, here’s how to start using it the right way. In order to produce a good ROI with your social media effort, you need a plan. Sporadic posting is not the answer– it’s all about strategic purpose when it comes to marketing on social media. Here’s a step-by-step plan to get you started:

1. Research the Rules – Attorneys have rules and responsibilities on social media that they must follow, so make sure you know the dos and don’ts before you post. Check with your bar association. For example, many states don’t allow lawyers to use words like “specialist” or “expert.”

2. Identify your Goals – What do you want to accomplish with your social media presence? Is it more clients? More website traffic? More online reviews? Know your top goals, then work from there.

3. Spy on Your Competitors – Social media is public for the most part, so take a look at what your competitors are posting and which topics get the most engagement from the community. Follow other attorneys and legal influencers to keep up with the industry and keep your social presence fresh.

4. Map out Your Content/Topics – From your research, create a list of topics you want to hit on, then start compiling your content.   This doesn’t have to be difficult  –  If you’ve been doing marketing already, you may have blog posts already written to share. You can also curate content and give an expert opinion on it. For example, share a federal court case article and highlight a piece of it you think is interesting and relevant to your audience. 

5. Schedule Your Content – Consistency is key to mastering the social media algorithms. If you only post three times a year, your social reach isn’t going to be great, meaning your audience probably won’t see your posts anyway. A marketing hack to keep up the flow of things is to schedule it out your social media weekly or monthly on a platform like Hootsuite or Buffer. 

6. Measure your results – Now that you have a plan, don’t forget to track what’s working and not working. This lets you hone in on the topics that your audience really cares about and increases your ROI. 

 Convinced that social media will be the game-changer of your marketing efforts this year? Let us help you create the right social media marketing plan for your law firm. Oamii has helped many law firms establish great social media plans, helping them to gain more clients, website traffic, reviews, etc. With our marketing tools and experienced team, we’ll help you get the most out of your marketing dollars. Give us a call today at 561-228-4111 or   fill out our contact form  to get started on your law firm social media marketing.