As a modern business, having a presence on social media is no longer just an option or luxury; it’s a requirement. As lawyers and legal professionals, staying ahead of the competition means utilizing all available digital tools that can help you increase your visibility and grow your practice.
Here are 5 reasons why your law firm needs to be on social media.
1. Social Media Can Help Establish Brand Recognition
Brand recognition refers to the degree to which an individual or organization is known by its target audience. Brand recognition is essential for your law firm because it helps establish the firm’s reputation and credibility in the legal industry. When a law firm has strong brand recognition, potential clients are more likely to trust the firm and consider retaining its services.
Having strong brand recognition can also make it easier for a law firm to stand out in a crowded market and differentiate itself from competitors. This can be particularly important for law firms in highly competitive markets.
Simply being on social media is a good start, but what you do there will determine whether it will have any benefit for your law firm. Each profile, whether it be Facebook, LinkedIn or Instagram, should be fully optimized. It’s important to consistently use the same logo, color scheme, and messaging across all of your law firm’s social media profiles. This helps establish a strong visual brand identity that is easily recognizable to potential clients.
It’s important to note that brand recognition is also important to establish trust and authority among other attorneys who could potentially refer your law firm cases in the future.
2. Be Where Your Clients Are
If you want to find new clients, you have to be where those clients are. And in this digital age, almost everyone is on social media. In fact, in January 2022 more than 80% of Americans had at least one social media profile. Additionally, the 2022 ABA Legal Technology Resource Center’s Legal Technology Survey found that only 11% of law firms have no online presence. So your competitors are more than likely already on these platforms, reaching your potential clients.
By having a presence on the platforms your clients use most, you can reach them with targeted ads or organic content to introduce your firm and gain consideration. You can also use social media to stay up-to-date on industry trends, gain insights into your clients’ interests, and better understand the type of content they’d be interested in.
Being on social media is important, but being on the right social media platforms is just as important. The chart below breaks down the percentage of law firms that have a presence on the various platforms.
LinkedIn is currently the leading social media platform for attorneys. As the place to be for professionals, LinkedIn is an ideal platform for connecting with other lawyers. For attorneys whose practice areas are business-related — commercial litigation, for example — it is also a great place to connect with potential clients.
In addition to LinkedIn, we recommend Facebook as a necessary platform on which law firms should have a presence. For attorneys whose practice areas are more individual focused — criminal defense or personal injury, for example — it is a more likely place to reach your target audience.
3. Share Information and Resources
A law firm can use social media to share news, updates, and resources with its followers, which can help establish the firm as a trusted source of information in its field. Sharing helpful resources and expertise can also demonstrate the firm’s commitment to providing value to its clients.
For example, a law firm could share articles on legal topics as well as updates on new or upcoming legislation that may affect their clients. A law firm could also use its platforms to provide information about industry events, seminars, or webinars that the firm is hosting or attending. You can also share successes, such as recent case results, mentions in the press, or awards won.
4. Engage With Clients and Potential Clients
Social media allows law firms to directly interact with their clients and potential clients, which can help build trust and establish a personal connection. By responding to comments and engaging with followers on social media, you can establish your law firm as a friendly and approachable brand.
Having an active and engaging presence on social media can also encourage clients to reach out for help in the future, as well as provide a platform for them to easily ask questions and get answers.
5. Improve Search Engine Rankings
By using social media to promote its website and content, a law firm can improve its search engine rankings and make it easier for potential clients to find the firm online. Social media can help improve website rankings in several ways:
- Increasing website traffic: By sharing links to your website on social media, you can drive more traffic to your site. The more traffic your site receives, the more likely it is to be seen by Google as having high authority, which can help improve your website’s rankings in search engine results.
- Improved engagement: When users interact with your content on social media, it can signal to search engines that your content is valuable and relevant, which can help improve your rankings.
- Social profiles can rank in Google: Not only can social media help your website rank, but your social profiles can rank on their own in Google as well. For example, when someone searches for a law firm on Google, the law firm’s Facebook and LinkedIn profiles may come up in search results. If someone clicks on your Facebook profile from Google, you want them to see a robust page full of information relevant to their needs.
- Local citations: Social media profiles are also considered local citations. Local citations are mentions of your law firm name, address, and phone number (NAP) on other websites. When a law firm’s NAP is consistently listed on a variety of reputable websites, it signals to search engines that it is a legitimate and trustworthy entity. This, in turn, can help to improve the law firm’s search engine rankings and make it more likely to appear in local search results when potential clients are searching for an attorney in their area.
How Do I Improve My Law Firm’s Social Media Presence?
Growing a social media presence that works for your law firm is more than just knowing how to create a profile. At Thunderhead Marketing, we specialize in helping law firms craft strategic and targeted social media campaigns that can help them build a strong presence on their desired platforms.
From creating powerful content to understanding the algorithms of each platform, our team has the expertise to get your law firm noticed on social media.
