Before we dive into social media for lawyers, we want to clarify the mindset required for success. Social media has many applications, but the soapbox method is ineffective for all but the largest brands. Too often, we see only self-promotion on social media channels. It is known as the “soapbox” method. This isn’t social; you’re just making regular announcements. For some companies, this is all they want to use their channels for, and that’s fine; however, this approach is unlikely to increase followers or engagement on your posts.
Being social with your topics is the mentality you must adopt to establish a successful social presence across all channels. Rather than focusing solely on your own promotion, you should contribute to other discussions/posts. What we mean by “being social” is selecting topics in which you have a unique perspective or can spark a conversation with your followers. This is the most effective way for a company to find its place in the social landscape, and its success will guide your social strategy in accordance with what your followers want to see.
Balancing Social Posts with Promotions
Now that you have a social mindset let’s discuss how to balance your social media posts with targeted firm promotion. Typically, we recommend that the majority of businesses devote 70% of their social media posts to informative and entertaining content intended to spark conversation and the remaining 30% (or less) to promotional content.
We usually recommend tact when it comes to self-promotion, especially for lawyers. Their services are frequently used out of pure necessity, and discussing topics such as bankruptcy, car accidents, and civil litigation are not always the best social posts.
Most individuals dislike promoting their personal issues on social channels, so self-promotions receive significantly less engagement than case discussions and legal matters. After posting consistently for a period, you will find a more natural balance between talking directly about the company and maintaining social topics in order to attract followers and maintain regular engagement on your social channels.
Unfortunately, not all social media for lawyers are created equal. What you post on Facebook may not engage as many users on Twitter, so master one channel with your followers and tailor your discussions to each channel’s followers. This may sound like a lot of work, and it is, but to be most effective with your marketing, especially on social media, you must first consider the needs of your audience.
How Often Should Lawyers Post on social media?
This is a difficult question to answer because it depends on a more significant issue: how many high-quality social media posts can you create? Concern yourself not with your posting frequency. It is essential that your posts are compelling and that you devote sufficient time to their creation.
Some businesses can be content machines, publishing numerous quality articles weekly or even daily. However, we also do not wish to discourage you from posting, so if you have something to say to your followers or a topic that others may find interesting, please do so; these are frequently the best posts. Ultimately, if you find the topic/post engaging and intriguing, it is likely that your followers/peers will too.
What Should Lawyers Post on social media?
We cannot tell you exactly what you should be posting, but after discussing how your posts shouldn’t be solely about promoting your law firm, you may be wondering what you should be posting 70% of on your social media channels. Here are some guidelines for your law firm’s social media postings:
- Post/share legal topics or cases to which you can contribute or that you find interesting. If you can identify trending topics in the news, you may be able to increase your exposure to potential clients, as they will require less background information to contribute to the discussion or agree with your contribution.
- You can publish local community events and activities. This helps to target followers of your law firm who may need your services in the future while demonstrating your community involvement.
- Posts with holiday or date themes were limited to humorous content, such as “lawyers in costumes” or “bad lawyer costumes” for Halloween.
- If the content is good, don’t be afraid to share it even if it is not yours. Both memes and infographics that are entertaining and relevant to your niche should be shared with all your followers. After all, everyone could use a good laugh, which is an excellent method for making your brand memorable.
- Share topics that interest your peers and highlight your expertise, dissect cases or share legal information that is more relevant to your peers. This can lead to offline relationships and even the possibility of referrals.
As stated previously, being genuinely social can be time-consuming, but it is essential to build a community and followers who interact with your law firm’s posts; otherwise, you may be wasting time on your social channels. At Simulas, we build social media strategies for your law firm to generate more qualified leads. Contact us at (408) 715-3635 today to find out more.
