Social Media for Law Firms: 7 Essential Steps to Success

Why are more law firms using social media? This digital marketing channel provides numerous benefits and can help you grow your practice. In this guide, we’ll discuss the benefits of social media for law firms and how to run social media for a law firm.

Ready to get started with your custom social media marketing plan? Call us at 888-601-5359 or request a free quote today!

Benefits of social media for law firms

Why should your law firm use social media? Here are some of the top benefits of social media for law firms.

Large audiences

Nearly 4 billion people around the world now use social media, including seven out of 10 Americans. One benefit of using social media for law firms is the sheer number of people you can reach through the platforms. If you don’t use social media, you’re missing out on a huge potential audience that other firms are reaching.

Improved brand awareness

Social media is an excellent place to let people know who you are and establish your brand. You can set up your profiles however you want and post content that creates a strong brand identity. This strategy helps you build relationships with your audience and strengthens your firm’s reputation.

A key to using social media to improve brand awareness is coming up with a strong brand identity and posting consistently in a way that supports it. For example, your brand identity might be serious and business-like, caring and helpful, or any other combination of tones.

To improve brand awareness, post content, and write in a voice that supports your brand identity.

Opportunities for thought leadership

Using social media can help position your law firm as a thought leader in its field — an organization that people view as an authority on a subject. When someone views you as an authority in your field, they’re more likely to go to you for help, advice, and legal services.

To establish your firm as a thought leader, regularly post helpful advice and information and aim to earn mentions from well-known sources.

Enhanced engagement

Another benefit of social media for law firms is that it enables you to engage directly with your audience. This tactic helps you to build relationships, which is essential for gaining new clients and retaining existing ones.

When people see you responding to questions and comments on social sites, it leads people to see you as helpful, accessible, and professional.

New clients and a growing practice

One of the major benefits is that social media marketing can help you attract new clients and grow your practice. Even though some clients won’t reach out to you directly over social media, your social presence can play an important role in your overall marketing efforts. It can help you increase brand awareness, improve your reputation, and build relationships.

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How to run social media for a law firm

Success on social media for law firms requires conducting research, creating a plan, following through with your plan, and making adjustments as you learn more. Here are some of our top steps to success with social media marketing for law firms.

1. Conduct a social media audit

Before you can create a new social media plan, you need to take stock of your current social media presence through a social media audit. As part of your audit, look at elements such as:

• Your profiles on different social platforms
• How your profiles are set up and the branding they include
• Which types of posts perform best
• Who follows you and engages with you on social media

2. Research the competition

It’s also helpful to conduct some research into how others in your industry use social media. While you don’t want to copy someone’s strategy or content exactly, this research can provide valuable inspiration.

Take a look at which platforms other law firms use, the types of content they post, how often they post, and which posts get the most engagement.

3. Set goals

One of the most important steps in the social media marketing process is setting goals. For the greatest chances of success, set SMART goals, which are:

• Specific
• Measurable
• Attainable
• Relevant to your overall business objectives
• Time-bound

These goals will help guide your decisions when planning your social media marketing strategy, such as which platforms you use and what kinds of content you post.

For example, suppose your goal is to increase awareness of your firm in your local community. You could post reminders about upcoming local events, such as charity drives or town council meetings. You could also post photos of your employees attending these events.

If your goal is to increase leads generated, you could post content with links that take users to your website, where they can request free consultations.

4. Choose the right networks

To succeed in social media marketing for law firms, you need to choose the right platforms — the ones your target audience uses.

Here are some methods for determining which social media sites are popular with your target audience:

• Look at which of your profiles has the most followers and engagement
• Search for your law firm’s name on social media sites
• Search for terms related to your practice area on social media sites
• Ask clients which social media sites they might use to engage with law firms

5. Create a content plan and calendar

Next, plan what kinds of content you’ll post and create a calendar to keep you on schedule. Choose content types that align with your goals and post a variety of content types. Some ideas include:

• Sharing relevant news stories
• Creating original graphics with interesting facts
• Providing helpful, relevant tips
• Providing updates about your firm
• Posting promotional content
• Running ads on social media sites

As a general rule, only about 20% of your posts should be promotional, but the ideal percentage varies according to your brand, needs, and goals.

6. Check your pages and engage with followers

Don’t just post your updates and then forget about your social profiles! Be sure to check in regularly to respond to and engage with your audience.

Engagement is a key part of social media marketing, so devote some time to checking for and responding to messages, comments, mentions, reviews, and other types of interactions.

7. Test and adjust

There are no one-size-fits-all rules for social media marketing, so you need to regularly check your analytics, test new ideas, and adjust your tactics based on what you learn.

Many social media sites provide built-in analytics, but you can also use third-party tools to evaluate your social media performance or work with a professional social media marketing company. Decide ahead of time which metrics you want to track and check them regularly.

Want to speak with an expert? Call us at 888-601-5359

Social media services from WebFX

At WebFX, we provide a wide range of social media services to help you make the most of social media marketing. Our social media management and advertising services include:

• Custom strategy development
• Profile setup and optimization
• Creation of original social media posts
• Custom designs
• Social media audits
• Daily social media monitoring
• Regular reporting
• And more

When you work with us, you’ll get a dedicated account representative who will get to know you and create a custom strategy that fits your firm’s needs and goals. Then, our team of digital marketing experts will implement that strategy, and your account manager will provide you with regular reports on your progress and social media success.

As a full-service digital marketing agency, we also provide a full suite of other online marketing services to complement your social media strategy.

Ready to find out why we have a 91% client retention rate and get started with your custom social media marketing plan? Give us a call at 888-601-5359 or request a free quote today!

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