Posts Tagged ‘lawyer’

While it is most certainly true that you would like to build your law practice using social media, it is important to focus in more closely to identify your social media objectives.  Now it is time to teach you what social media marketing is NOT.

Social networks are NOT a place to sell.  Social networks are for building relationships.

Social media marketing is about getting into the mind of the consumer. Today’s consumer no longer responds to ‘push’ marketing.  They don’t want to be told what to buy.  They want to make their own decisions about the products they buy and the services they use.  The ‘selling’ aspect on social media is much more subtle than in traditional channels.  Smart Estate Planning attorneys realize that prospects want to be educated, inspired, or entertained.  Therefore, it is critical that your objectives be something like:

• Position yourself as a subject matter expert
• Be a conduit for your community’s questions about Estate Planning
• Build your brand and manage your reputation

These types of objectives go a long way towards giving you a strong ROI – Return on Influence, that is.  Return on Influence is measured using different benchmarks than the quantitative Return on Investment.  Returns on Investment benchmarks are specific, measurable, and quantitative.  Return on Influence has more to do with brand authority and your growing levels of engagement and influence in the social media channels.  Some examples of Return on Influence measures are:

• 200  new Twitter Followers over the past 3 months
• 50 participants in Facebook Group
• Growth in conversations about business on Twitter and Facebook
• 100 new subscribers to your blog

So while the Return on Influence measures can be quantitative, the direct impact on your Return on Investment is more subtle.  But, it definitely has an impact.  Having new Twitter followers doesn’t guarantee that all 200 will be calling your office, but maybe 20 will, having a positive effect on your bottom line!  The more you put your name out there, the higher that number can become.  And there are several good tools on the web that you can use to track your Return on Influence.

Bottom line: if you have a clear social media objective, mapping out your strategy becomes clear, tracking your results is clear, and the impact on both your Return on Influence AND Return on Investment becomes clear, as a result of the time and effort you’ve put into your social media strategy.

Historically, estate planning attorneys have done little marketing to garner new clients—aside from phone book advertisements, of course. In most cases, attorneys market themselves by building relationships with clients and other attorneys who then refer new clients. This type of marketing is inexpensive and avoids any ethical considerations. But is it enough?

With the advent of online social networking sites such as Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter, estate planning attorneys are now able to use both methods—listings and referrals—to increase a client list in a modern way. Estate planning attorneys can do any number of things with a social networking account, including:

•    Post contact information in order to be found through search engines
•    Connect with clients and maintain that captive audience over time
•    Connect with colleagues and share legal news and insights
•    Make announcements about the firm, upcoming events, and more
•    Advertise to clients in an inexpensive and non-invasive way, i.e., no spam, no junk mail
•    Position yourself as an expert by providing tips and helpful resources to those interested in estate planning
•    Be introduced to new clients

Examples of Estate Planning Attorneys on Social Media

1.    The firm of Ainer & Fraker, LLP in Saratoga, California has over 150 fans on Facebook, along with positive reviews from clients, self-written attorney bios, and regularly updated news feeds.

2.    A search for “estate planning” on LinkedIn will produce over 111,000 results. That’s 111,000 estate planning attorneys, groups, firms, and organizations all on one Web site connecting, learning, and referring.

3.    Christopher J. Berry of Bloomfield, Michigan’s firm Witzke Berry, PLLC has over 1,100 followers on Twitter whom he updates with legal news, professional insights, and personal anecdotes.

All of these examples prove that estate planning does have a place on social networking sites because of its essence: relationship building.

Estate Planning Practice and Online Social Networking are All About Relationships

In this area of law, estate planning attorneys thrive off of referral business and return business. This is accomplished by connecting with peers and clients on a personal level, not just a professional one.

I’ve worked with attorneys helping them with their marketing for a really long time now. I’ve worked in both online and offline media. With the coming of Web 2.0 I’ve watched a magical evolution.  Best practices in marketing have literally morphed before my eyes!

Back in the day (like 2000 and 2001), it was perfectly acceptable just to have a website. And, the website could be nothing more than a static (stagnant) site that espouses the greatness of the company or website owner.

Then something changed.

Somewhere along the way, consumers started challenging the status quo. They demanded more information before making a purchasing decision. They started becoming disillusioned with businesses pushing their products and services on them.  They wanted to make their own decisions.

Savvy business owners heard this message.  The only thing that got in the way was the “how.”  How were businesses supposed to get the educational material out to consumers in an affordable way?  Not everyone can afford Superbowl ads and very few of us get chosen for Oprah’s “Favorite Things.”

The answer was there though.  Right in front of them. Of course it was disguised as a system that only college kids used to waste time: Facebook. Business owners who had the wisdom and foresight to recognize this platform and other Web 2.0 portals for the awesome opportunities they were soared to the top of the heap.  They were the true leaders of the time.

You might be asking yourself…

What has this got to do with me?  I’m an attorney. I don’t sell widgets.  I sell sophisticated, high quality services and the thought of “tweeting” or “friending” just feels silly and can’t work.

I’m here to tell you that you are wrong. I know it works. I’ve seen it work. People are looking for information about estate planning.  They want to do their research before selecting an attorney that will be intimately involved in their family’s affairs.  You should be the one to give it to them.  Then, when the time comes to invest, they are going to turn to you — their trusted advisor.

It is my mission to teach estate planning attorneys the power of social media. I know your business, I know your clients, and I know this works.