Social media is a powerful marketing tool in the hands of skilled communicators. Despite this, many lawyers ignore it, considering it not worth the time and hassle. While it takes practice to use social media effectively, it is a vital part of any comprehensive marketing plan.
There’s no better time to start marketing your law firm’s services on social media than now. To get started on your journey, you need to know some best practices that will guide you as you take your first steps in utilizing this amazing marketing channel.
Which Networks to Use
There are tons of different social media networks, and it seems like everyday a new one crops up. Do you have to be on all of them? No, and no one could.
You should be on the major ones, including Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram. As for others, a good rule of thumb is that if you’ve heard of it, you should be posting on it. Start with a single platform, and steadily expand as you get your feet under you.
Keep in mind that you can re-use and cross-post your content to different channels, and there are many solutions available to help you streamline the process. You don’t necessarily want to use the exact same content on each channel, but slight variations of a single piece of content tailored to the needs of a specific channel are perfectly fine.
For example, you could make a long video explaining specific divorce laws in your state for YouTube, post it to Facebook, and push a shorter, edited version of the video over to Instagram.
There are a variety of tools and resources available to help you streamline your social media marketing by scheduling posts, automating tasks, and providing useful analytics.
Follow the Rules
Social media platforms have rules, but this should be no surprise to anyone and you’re unlikely to be posting content in violation of those rules. The ones you need to pay attention to are law society and bar rules for compliance regulations, and ethics regulations.
Social media is still a relatively new phenomenon, so be aware that rules could change or be added. Always ensure that whatever you post complies with all the rules.
Define Your Targets
The ultimate target of your social media presence is the kind of person who is likely to sign on as a client. Determine who this person is in as much detail as you can manage (this is known as creating a marketing “Persona“). As you accumulate clients, look for commonalities in their backgrounds and profiles. Use these facts to further refine your client profile.
When posting, do so with this audience in mind. The more you understand what motivates your client base, the more effectively you will create content that speaks to them.
Set Your Goals
Social media has many uses, and it’s a good idea to know exactly what you’re going for. Building your client base is the first and most obvious purpose. Your posts will reach out to them and you can position your social media accounts as part of your sales funnel.
You can also use social media to build your brand awareness by crafting memorable and thematic posts. It can also move people along to your website in increasing numbers, which will be optimized to capture leads. When focusing on your goals, be sure to set short- and long-term numbers that can guide your overall strategy.
Define what success looks like for your social media marketing and then figure out which marketing metrics contribute to that success.
What to Post?
Think about not only what you’re posting, but what your goal is in posting it. The best and most obvious choice is original content. Though difficult, this will have the best impact on your SEO. If you’re the only place to get relevant content, you’re much more likely to attract website visitors and generate search signals.
Fortunately for you, as a lawyer, you have knowledge and experience that the average person finds interesting. Lean into that. Walk viewers through an average case, show them what to expect, and answer frequently asked questions.
Set a Schedule and Stick to It
Schedules make it easy to keep the content flowing. If you know when you have to post, you have ample time to come up with what to post.
Active accounts tend to get promoted by internal algorithms, and just by virtue of numbers, the more you post, the more likely you are to attract engagement on something. Scheduling helps you slot your posting into your busy day and ensures that it won’t get forgotten.
Measure, Analyze, Adjust
One of the great strengths of digital marketing is the ability to crunch cold, hard numbers. Use social analytics to track the performance of individual posts. Cross-index with time and day, and you can get important numbers on not only when to post but how and about what.
The more you learn, the more you can adjust and refine your strategy, maximizing the potential of social media as a marketing channel.
Carefully track your marketing analytics and develop KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) to help guide you to social media marketing success.
Seamlessness is the Goal
Every post you make could be the start of the marketing funnel for someone in your audience. Each post should lead seamlessly to your site, which in turn guides visitors to submit a lead.
Every corner of your social media presence should maintain consistent branding, from logos to fonts to colors. Use your bio consistently to hammer home not only your specialty but your personality. A visitor should feel like any one of your social media pages are extensions of your website.
Respond to Your Audience
The power of social media lies in its ability to create trust. When someone comments on a post, they are reaching out, and you should respond. Oftentimes, a simple acknowledgement is just fine. If they’re asking a question or registering a complaint, a lengthier response might be required.
Remember to stay upbeat and positive. Pledge to address any issues and thank the commenter for bringing them to your attention. Nurture that trust, build your community, and it will pay off.
Every interaction with a potential client contributes to a step in your lead generation process, so make them count.
The most popular social media platform in the world, Facebook is a good place to start your social media journey. The challenge with Facebook is visibility. Since their algorithm prioritizes friends and family in feeds, your posts will face an uphill battle to be seen. Paid advertising is often the best choice here, but keep an eye on your numbers to ensure you’re getting a good ROI.
The most popular social media site for lawyers is optimized for business. A presence on LinkedIn will help with referrals and is a good spot for potential clients to do some light research. Maintaining a healthy social presence here can also work to your long-term advantage as well as providing legitimacy.
On LinkedIn, you must always put a professional face forward in your posts, images, and bio. Since it’s used as a business resource, be clear and concise with headlines and always provide compelling summaries of your posts. Lastly, keep your profile updated with your latest news.
X/Twitter
X, the social network formerly known as Twitter, is in a state of flux at the moment, and it’s unknown if it will maintain its status as one of the major platforms. Fortunately, best practices with X are fairly consistent among the other microblogging sites and easily port over.
Build your followers by following other attorneys both in your specialty and not. Engage with the posts of followers and people you follow, retweet anything relevant, and post frequently. The best posts are those that come with videos or images, meaning X (and other microblogging sites) work well in concert with YouTube and Instagram.
YouTube
Though not primarily thought of as a social media site, YouTube has quietly become one of the big ones. People love videos, and so your content will get some engagement as well as time to build an audience.
If you’re able to make high-quality videos, are good on camera, and have something interesting to say, this might be the stop for you. Check out LegalEagle’s channel for an example of an attorney producing high-value content with crossover appeal.
Retaining a lawyer is usually done during a stressful time, and a human face can make all the difference. Instagram is the best platform to provide that human face. You can offer a window into your practice and help put your potential clients at ease. As an image-based site, you’ll need to produce quality images to accompany every post, but it’s well worth the time.
TikTok
The new kid on the block is also the fastest growing one. With one of the most engaged audiences of any platform, TikTok has enormous potential, but it’s difficult to unlock. You’ll need a compelling idea that translates well to the short format. Keep to that schedule, and use hashtags and get involved in trends.
Ready for more digital marketing insights? Download our free guide packed with advanced digital marketing strategies designed to fuel the growth of your law firm.
Social Media and Your Firm
To properly engage with today’s market, you need to utilize social media. As with every other aspect of marketing, it’s a learning process that will get easier as time goes on.
At Lead Science, we’ve been harnessing the power of social media for two decades. Schedule your Lead Science Discovery Call today. You’ll love how we can expand your reach and craft a seamless marketing funnel from every platform right to your site.
