Going into 2019, Social media remains one of the most powerful marketing tools to promote your firm and its services. In recent years, Law Firms are starting to take notice of the benefits that effective social media engagement, advertising and management can bring. Many Law Firms are upping their marketing spend to stay ahead of the game, increasing their brand awareness and investing in highly focused targeted advertising – allowing them to penetrate local consumers on a more tailored and fine-tuned scale than traditional marketing tactics.
Social Media For Law Firm Brand Awareness
Social Media is but one part of what a Law Firm’s marketing strategy should entail, however, if your firm is aiming to increase brand awareness, Social Media is the most important and can be time-consuming, so unless your firm has a dedicated employee whose job is solely to manage your social media accounts and strategy, then consider outsourcing. Outsourcing social media management for your firm can actually be more cost-effective than hiring a full-time employee – something to bear in mind if you want to make the most out of your marketing budget. Outsourcing marketing can work great for smaller law firms that don’t have the budgets to match their competitors.
A good Social Media strategy will not be exclusive to sharing service focused posts with no personality or engagement with your audience, in fact, it’s rather the opposite.
“In a survey of over 101 law firms, more than half grew their number of clients due to increased social media engagement” [Source: Stellar SEO 2017] By engaging with your consumers, it’s possible to build trust and authority in your chosen field of Law. Engagement with your audience can come in all forms, whether it’s humanising your brand and sharing posts in regards to your company culture, or sharing success stories. “Social Media is the perfect way to share useful relevant information that can help and be of value to your clients” [Beyond Social Buzz]
The three main pillars of social media for business fall under;
- Exposure & Traffic
- Referrals
- Staying Connected
The platforms that your Law Firm utilises can also impact the success of your Social Strategy, consider these social media networks for your 2019 Social Media Strategy:
Twitter allows you to stay up to date in real-time, by following fellow Solicitors, Influencers and Industry Experts, you can invite them to join the conversation, share your own industry expertise and follow/retweet/like to raise your impressions.
LinkedIn is a powerful and useful tool when used effectively. “Over 73% of lawyers use LinkedIn” [mycase.com] Making LinkedIn a great platform to share news and stay up to date with your industry. Create and optimise a company page and ensure your employees’ pages are also optimised and engaging with the content your company shares. Show off expertise and highlight experience your firm has with articles, company posts (limit to 1-2 per week) and posting in relevant groups.
Facebook is the most light-hearted network of the bunch. Where you can share more humanised visuals of company culture, with video having the potential to boost your engagement levels more than ever, it’s important to share visuals on Facebook, share any events and start a conversation.
So, what are the 3 Ways to Utilise Social Media to Increase Your Law Firm’s Brand Awareness?
Content
Content comes in many forms. – Blogs, Video, Social Media Copy, Brochures, Website Content, just to name a few. By producing engaging, informative and relevant content, you can start or join in with community conversations and boost profile visits, leads and followers. As mentioned, great content allows you to promote your firm’s expertise whilst highlighting experience to gain trust and authority.
Advertising
Advertising on Social Media can drive a huge boost to your engagement efforts, allowing your firm to connect instantly with people who need your services. When comparing to Google Ads, the average Cost Per Click is much lower on Networks such as Facebook. Facebook Advertising also allows more highly segmented demographics and more specific target audiences than Adwords. You can drive traffic to your chosen landing page, therefore increasing relevant leads and sales.
Reviews/Referrals
Many Law Firms still rely heavily on referrals to drive sales and repeat custom. Social Media networks – like Facebook – allow customers to leave a review which then also pull through on your firm’s Google Business Card (if you don’t have one – we suggest you make one) – This helps potential customers make more informed decisions about your Brand and Services. When “81% of Shoppers Conduct Online Research Before Buying” [Adweek] it’s worth re-engaging with clients to ask for a review of the service they received, many firms would be surprised how many happy clients are willing to do so.
Overall, Social Media provides many benefits and can ensure your firm is not only found online but is engaging with potential and past clients to maximise sales. Start a conversation, provide original, though-provoking content, become a thought leader within your industry and involve your employees to really make the most out of social media and return the best results.
At FireTap, our Social Media gurus have years of Legal Marketing experience in getting firms found online. If you would like to talk to us about our Social Media Management services, you can make an online enquiry here or alternatively give us a call on 0203 911 9715.
