How social media can enhance business.

By Chris Breikss

People are smarter and more conscious than ever when it comes to choosing which companies they turn to for services such as legal counsel. With the Internet at everyone’s finger tips, law firms and lawyers are examining new ways to reach audiences and communicate with clients. As a result, law firms are utilizing new communication tools used by today’s pool of potential clients – social media.

It is a hot topic in almost every industry, and an increasing number of firms are joining networks such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn to connect with current clients and reach out to new ones. This is not a trend that will fade any time soon, so a keen understanding of social media and a strong strategy are key to effectively accomplishing the goals set for using this new platform.

The benefits of implementing a social media strategy:

• IMPROVE BRANDING – Social media is a highly useful tool for enhancing both brand awareness and brand image, and it allows a lawyer or firm to communicate its message directly to its audience.
• LOWER COST WITH HIGH RETURNS – The cost-per-thousand impressions of a social media marketing campaign, as well as Internet marketing campaigns in general, are lower than almost any other traditional marketing or advertising campaign a firm will undertake.
• BOOST IMPACT OF OTHER MARKETING INITIATIVES – Social media has proven its ability to significantly complement Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and other marketing initiatives. With the ability for an audience to share information easily and instantly with “friends” and “followers,” a firm’s visibility online can increase considerably and result in additional traffic to its website.
• REAL TIME DELIVERY – Social media enables more rapid sharing of information.
• BETTER SEARCH ENGINE RANKINGS – The increase in natural and permanent links achieved by a social media marketing campaign is recognized by Google and other search engines, which increases website rankings for targeted key phrases and leads to more website traffic from the search engines.

When implementing social media strategies, lawyers and law firms need to set goals, select which media will best accomplish those goals and determine what they will communicate to their audience. This will allow the firm to measure the success of social media, which can be done in a number of ways.

On sites like Facebook and Twitter, a firm can measure the number of “friends” or “followers,” the number of “likes” and “retweets” whether people are engaging through comments and replies to information shared by the firm. As a firm continues to interact with an audience, the following on such sites will grow organically.

Tracking the traffic to a firm’s website, and using tools such as Google Analytics to determine where the traffic has come from, is a great way to discover which platforms are generating the most traffic and identifying whether it has translated into business opportunities and leads for the firm.

Social media provide businesses with the ability to connect with a wider audience, unlike traditional methods. The tools available have changed the way people communicate and provide the opportunity for firms and lawyers to increase awareness of the expertise and services they offer.

Chris Breikss is the Co-founder of 6S Marketing, a social media strategy consulting firm. www.6smarketing.com

This article was published in the December 2010 issue of BarTalk. © 2010 The Canadian Bar Association. All rights reserved.