The Executive Suite: Law Firm Marketing With Social Media

Monday, March 17, 2014

Law Firm Marketing With Social Media

Now that you've got a "handle" on Twitter and other social media platforms, take your social media prowess to the next level: Make 2014 the year of engagement. It's all about beefing up posting where it will reach your audience and dialing back where it's failed to resonate.

Here's a breakdown of five platforms to help jumpstart your Social Media Plan 2.0:

Twitter. Aim for three to five tweets per day, then increase or decrease posting depending on how your audience reacts. To boost engagement in the new year, focus on improving your hashtag usage. Focus on common words and phrases your clients, comrades, and competitors use, but be sure to connect them to a larger marketing strategy. For example, Sephora successfully uses the hashtag "#OneQuickQuestion" to open up engagement for a campaign beyond the reach of their current followers.
Facebook. About 71 percent of respondents to a Pew poll said they used Facebook, granting it the highest popularity ranking, reports Newsday. Sure, Facebook is old reliable, but your posting style need not be. Try to post once per day, but more importantly, experiment with new types of posts. Use #hashtags, graph search, and interactive tactics such as "Like vs. Share" votes to increase engagement.
Instagram. If your firm's target demographic skews younger (or even the "young at heart"), you should diversify your social networking efforts to other newer services such as SnapChat or Instagram. Posts with a simple image and a caption that proffer a thoughtful question or nugget of advice receive marked engagement.
LinkedIn. The adage that the early bird gets the worm rings true for LinkedIn marketing. Recent data from LinkedIn reveals that posting status updates in the morning is the best time for businesses to engage followers. So if you don't have the manpower to make three to four posts per day (per audience), focus on posting in the AM.
Pinterest. If your firm needs to tap into the female demographic, Pinterest is where it's at. Women are four times as likely as men to be Pinterest users, according to the Pew study. To optimize engagement, don't go on a psychotic pinning spree. Social Media Today suggests putting at least five to ten minutes between batches of pins.