Social media is a wonderful tool for making new connections and keeping up with old friends. But it also has its pitfalls. Social media can be used for bullying, harassment, and the spreading of baseless rumors. People have had their reputations and careers destroyed by a single careless comment they posted on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.
When you choose to start a social media account for your law firm or any type of SMB, it’s essential to realize that everything you post reflects you and your business to the entire world. If you ever hear yourself asking, “Should I really post this?” the answer is probably “NO!”
How Social Media Can Help Your Business
There are many benefits to having a social media presence. It’s a great way to tell people who you are and what you do. Social media can be used to attract new customers. And when potential clients are thinking about choosing you, they will often check out your Facebook profile to get a better impression about you.
Social media is free, and it can help level the playing field for firms that don’t have a large advertising budget. It’s also a great place to learn about your clients, find out who they are, and discover how they can benefit from your services.
Social media allows you to start a conversation with millions of people all over the world. It can be used to generate all sorts of positive outcomes, including:
- Client acquisition
- Sharing blog posts
- Checking out what your competitors are doing
- Sharing videos and client testimonials
- Commenting on important new legislation and court cases
- Collecting demographic information about your customers
- Establishing yourself as a thought leader
- Highlighting community activities and charitable contributions
- Building trust and developing brand presence
- Announcing special offers
- Repurposing content from other channels
- Sharing company news, awards, and announcements
- Providing case studies
Social Media Best Practices
Before you get active on social media, it’s important to have clear goals about what you wish to achieve, such as increasing brand awareness and attracting new clients.
You’ll want to thoroughly research a social media channel before you start using it. Every channel has its own conventions and expectations. For example, TikTok has a unique style and some pretty quirky customs.
It makes a poor impression if people come to your site and you haven’t posted anything in a while, so make sure to keep adding fresh content.
It’s essential to respond to negative comments right away! But always remain positive.
Encourage comments by responding to people right away. You’ll want to use open-ended replies that will keep the conversation going like, “That’s interesting. Can you tell us more about…”
Tips for maintaining a positive social media presence include:
- Be authentic
- Interact with commenters
- Create a social media calendar and post regular content
- Create holiday-related posts
- Use analytics to track engagement
- Provide evergreen information
- Use hashtags and keywords to increase engagement
- Include videos
Social Media Don’ts
If you’re new to social media, it can be pretty overwhelming at first. That’s why it’s a good idea to start slow, mastering one channel before moving on to another. LinkedIn and Facebook are the most popular social media channels for law firms, so you might want to start with one of those and then branch out as you get more comfortable.
One important rule to remember is: Don’t feed the trolls! If commenters are just trying to make trouble, don’t waste time engaging with them. Block them and delete their negative comments.
Before getting started, you’ll want to review ethical rules and legal guidelines that apply to social media so you can avoid doing anything that could get you into serious trouble. For example, referring to yourself as an expert or specialist may violate local laws.
Things to avoid on social media:
- Never reveal confidential information
- Don’t talk about pending cases
- Don’t reveal trade secrets
- Don’t post official documents
- Never make a negative comment about current or former clients
Full-Service Marketing from SLS Consulting
If you’ve got marketing questions, we’ve got answers. We’ll be happy to advise on how to set up your social media accounts. And we also have helpful folks who can run your social media accounts for you if that’s what you prefer.
Call SLS Consulting, Inc. at (323) 745-1806 for a FREE consultation today. We never stop finding new ways to help you grow your business,
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