How Attorneys Can Use Social Media to Gain Exposure

With more than one trillion Google searches a year, digital marketing is becoming a necessary line item in every company’s marketing budget. Social media is at the head of the pack in digital marketing. So, how do you build your brand online?

Stand out and attract the attention of your audience online by being helpful, authentic, and creative.

The following are a few ideas to help increase your online exposure.

Maximize Your Social Media Pages

Social media may be one of the best resources in your marketing toolbox to leverage your online exposure. Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and YouTube are just a few of the top platforms to help market your experience and services and for sharing relevant information.

Don’t feel pressured to join every social media platform. Learning and updating every platform can be time intensive. Choose your top two or three and focus your time and energy on those.

  • Facebook offers business pages and options for building a community. Sponsor your posts to gain more views and clicks.
  • Twitter updates can offer announcements, links to blog posts, or invitations to webinars or events.
  • LinkedIn is a virtual resume of your experience and helps establish you and your firm as experts in your niche. Blogs or videos can be posted and shared with your connections.
  • YouTube videos are now ranking amongst the top digital marketing techniques. Use this platform to share short snippets of video on your company or industry related topics.

Be Authentic and Consistent

Post regularly on your Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn pages, and remember, social media is personal. Avoid selling in your updates or tweets. Keep it personal by responding to comments and interacting with your audience, but be mindful of ABA rules. There are limitations to what you can legally share as a law firm.

Offer Value with Quality Content

Maybe you’ve built a beautiful website that your friends and clients admired, but over time, your website views dropped. Why is that?

If you’re not consistently providing fresh content that’s useful to your audience, there may be no reason for clients to return.

Google loves “live” websites—meaning websites that consistently post new content. Fresh content can include company blogs, newsletters, infographics, videos, and more.

Company blogs are a great way to showcase your experience in a specific niche, answer client questions, or share industry updates.

Make a list of common questions clients ask and answer their questions in blog posts. Include industry specific keywords or phrases and optimize your website for SEO to improve your search rankings.

Post blogs to your social media accounts and share them in a monthly newsletter. Relevant posts get liked and shared leading to greater online exposure.

Gain Views and Shares with Video

Rather than just writing content for your audience, why not show them?

YouTube now ranks as the second largest search engine (behind Google) and the third most viewed website on the internet. Video is a great way to develop your brand and engage with your audience.

Answer questions in small vignettes or “How To” presentations and post them on your website. Use your content wisely by reusing topics for blogs and videos.

As with any promotional endeavor, law firms are held to a higher ethical standard than other businesses. Minimize the risk by following your state’s rules about advertising. For example, in Florida attorneys are permitted to advertise on social media sites, but any changes to content on those platforms may need to be filed with the ABA. The American Bar Association also has specific guidelines about using chat with potential clients. Attorneys can solicit clients through online chat, but must be careful to avoid forming attorney-client relationships with online users. For more information about how to stay within the guidelines, view the advertising handbook for the Florida Bar. This will help you create an effective digital content marketing strategy without stepping out of bounds.

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Published On: Mar 5, 2016