The legal world is constantly changing. Today’s lawyers are stretched thin between helping their current clients, keeping up with new laws, and running between the office and the courtroom. Online marketing for law firms is essential if lawyers want to pick up new clients; however, learning the tools of marketing isn’t easy.
Consider this article your crash course in online marketing for law firms. As Tampa’s marketing agency for lawyers, we use these strategies with all of our legal marketing clients – and you should, too.
6 marketing strategies for law firms:
- Know your clients
- Craft a social media presence
- Engage in content marketing
- Educate your clients
- Run webinars
- Use email marketing
Lawyers: Know Your Clients!
This might not sound like a marketing strategy, but it’s actually the most important aspect of online marketing for law firms. Chances are, you specialize in a specific kind of law, which means you target specific demographics. Without demographic marketing, none of your other marketing projects will be successful.
What is demographic marketing? In short, it’s understanding the needs of your target demographic, how your company fulfills those needs, and how you need to talk to this demographic in order to win them over.
Let’s take our awesome client DiAngelo Law, for example. DiAngelo Law specializes in business and trademark law, so their clients are primarily start-up companies in both the Tampa Bay area and worldwide.
Demographic marketing helps us know how to market towards DiAngelo’s potential clients. Many of those clients are high-achieving entrepreneurs; many of them are also Millennials, work in the tech industry, and their companies are just getting to the point where they need legal protections. This tells us to craft a marketing strategy that sounds professional, goal-oriented, and to the point, while also acknowledging that many entrepreneurs don’t know how to navigate the legal system.
This knowledge helps us recruit far more clients for DiAngelo Law, allowing them to work their magic and secure intellectual property protections for their clientele.
Social Media Marketing for Lawyers
Demographic marketing tells us that law firms need to be in touch with their clients. There’s no better place to keep in touch than social media. Social media marketing for lawyers is essential!
However, the trick is for law firms to run a social media account that feels authentic and engaged with the interests of their clients.
Your social media strategy should take 3 things into account:
- Which platforms you should use
- How frequently you want to post
- How you should drive engagement
The answers to these considerations vary based on your target demographics, your time for social media, and the type of content you want to post. Generally, a more diverse content strategy is better: using various platforms, posting audio/visual content, and conversing directly with clients will all benefit your online presence.
Content Marketing for Law Firms
On top of a social media presence, your law firm also needs a content marketing strategy. We highly recommend all our clients keep a blog because it accomplishes several marketing goals. Good content marketing achieves the following:
- Higher rankings in search engines and local searches
- Greater brand awareness through effective content writing
- Better brand identity through valuable content
- Regular opportunities for calls-to-action and client conversions
Your website has a blog space, so use it! Talk about local events, provide insights on your legal expertise, or respond to client questions in an article. When it comes to online marketing for law firms, content is king, so devote time to this part of your strategy.
Educate Your Clients
Having a digital presence means improving the knowledge and well-being of your clients—both current and future. Your marketing materials should enrich the lives of its viewers, because if they can learn something from your digital presence, then they will definitely benefit from your legal services.
Educational content can take the form of articles, YouTube videos, LinkedIn posts, e-books, or graphics. However you educate your clients, try to create content that’s multimedia and uses different channels, that way you can engage a wider variety of clients.
Run Webinars
Webinars are another type of educational content. A webinar isn’t essential, but the webinars we’ve done with our clients have greatly benefited their digital marketing reach.
For example, we co-hosted a webinar with DiAngelo Law on how to start, grow, and protect an online business. It combined our expertise in entrepreneurship and digital marketing with Erica’s knowledge on legal entrepreneurship! Events like these provide unique and informative content that encourage potential clients to choose our brands and services.
Email Marketing
Lastly, an online marketing strategy for law firms must include email marketing.
Don’t underestimate the power of email as a marketing tool. 7 in 10 Americans check their inbox and send emails, the majority of whom do so daily.
Some marketers protest at the idea of sending emails, especially because certain email providers, like Gmail, now sort promotional mail in a separate tab. However, this is where the power of great content comes in. If your emails provide knowledge, legal insights, and personal value to the reader, they are much more likely to keep those newsletters in their main inbox.
Email marketing also helps you increase your conversion rates. Email follow-ups from potential client meetings will certainly increase their chances of working with your law firm.
However you market yourself through email, make sure your mail is value-first content. This way, your content strategy provides value to whomever it touches.
Online Marketing for Law Firms: Closing Thoughts
Law firms have it tough these days. Between an oversaturated industry and constantly changing laws, legal professionals barely have time for drama in the courtroom. How can they expect to keep on top of their digital marketing?
Luckily, companies like ours can handle online marketing for law firms. If you’re looking to boost your web presence and client intake, don’t let these projects clog your to-do list. Reach out to Summit Collaborations today, and we’ll come up with a strategy for your content and social media marketing.