Social media use has spiked in the past two years. Has your small law firm fallen further behind? (Part 2)

Part two: Social Media Content Strategy and Tips & Tricks

In part one of this article, we addressed the importance of social media for small firms and outlined the key platforms to consider when your firm does not have a dedicated marketing person and internal resources are limited.

Here in part two, we will discuss the importance of a content strategy and share some best practices and tips & tricks to keep the process as simple as possible.

Content strategy

To reach your social media marketing goals, some basic planning will help your firm stay on track and focused. Start by creating a “buyer persona” to define your target audience. A buyer persona is a fictional representation of your ideal client that will help you understand their needs and how best to talk to them. Firms with diverse practice areas may need to create more than one buyer persona but try to stick to as few as possible – don’t overthink this!

Next, create an editorial calendar so that you are not left scrounging for content at the last minute. Consider setting a day aside each month to set up the next month’s posts (aka “batching”). There are a variety of social media management tools (think Hootsuite) that allow you to schedule your posts in advance so that you can “set it and forget it” when it comes to weekly posting.

While larger law firms often post daily, smaller firms don’t need to do so. Too many “fluff” posts can be detrimental to your engagement and it is better to focus on one or two quality posts per week. Try to follow the 80/20 rule. Around 80% of your content should focus on content that’s most relevant to your audience and addresses their issues and pain points. The remaining 20% can focus on firm news. And don’t forget to encourage your firm members to engage with your content.

Quality content can include:

• Legislative changes or decisions that impact your clients

• Client industry or sector news with firm commentary

• Case studies with firm commentary

• Reminders, tips, and lists that will be of use to clients – think checklists or cheat-sheets

• Lawyer publications, presentations, or awards

• Firm milestones, accomplishments, or celebrations

• Lawyer or senior management hires

• Job postings

• Client wins and accolades (with permission)

• Client testimonials

• Lawyer profiles i.e., “Meet our team!”

• “A day in the life” posts (Good for Instagram stories)

• Retirements and alumni accomplishments

It can be useful to check out other law firms’ social channels for ideas – see what you like and don’t like to help guide your strategy. Also, check out other professional services and business accounts. The legal industry is traditional by nature so exploring other industry accounts can help you identify upcoming trends.

Take time each quarter to check your social media analytics to see which content your audience responds to most so you can refine your strategy. Google Analytics can tell you what social media accounts are driving traffic to your website, demonstrating how they work in concert to boost your SEO.

It is important to engage with your audience by replying to comments on your posts. While positive feedback is easy to respond to, you may occasionally receive negative feedback. There are many effective ways to approach this problem, which you can read more about here.

Tips and tricks

Following are some handy tips and tricks you can use to save time and money while keeping your social accounts active.

• Not a designer? No problem! Jazz up your posts with Canva, a free and easy-to-learn design tool with tons of great templates you can modify to align with your brand.

• Use one piece of content (blogs/articles/white papers) for multiple posts – simply pull out a quote or theme from different sections each time. Or take a long article and turn it into two shorter ones.

• Repurpose content you already have such as turning presentation materials into blog posts, or PowerPoints into videos. Revise and update an old post.

• Take some time to follow your clients, relevant industry organizations and associations, and the members of your firm, on their social accounts. Many will follow you back and this is how you can start to grow your audience.

• Familiarize yourself with your law society or state bar rules for marketing and professional conduct so you don’t make any accidental missteps.

• For a more efficient content-approval process, consider creating a small partner-led marketing committee. Choose a leader who you can rely on to be responsive, who is somewhat social media savvy, and trusted amongst the other partners.

• Have your articling students help source post ideas and write content. Now is the best time for them to start creating a digital footprint for themselves too.

• Remind your lawyers and staff to follow, like, and share your firm posts – especially on LinkedIn.

• Remember, just because you don’t see a lot of engagement, this does NOT mean that people aren’t seeing your posts. Trust the process!

Posting regularly on social media does not have to be overly complex. Even one post per week of relevant content is better than letting your accounts lie dormant.

To learn more, or if your firm needs help with its social media accounts, contact Johanna at Johanna@vandyke.ca.