Marketing is easy to neglect in a busy law firm, especially when your attorneys are up to their ears in work. However, establishing a successful public relations strategy with outside help is often a key factor in developing long-term success. When considering hiring an outside public relations company, research will lead you to questions like:
How do I know if my public relations work is working?
Which method of marketing, traditional or digital, will give me the most bang for my buck?
Can I track how many people view my ads?
What is the difference between public relations, marketing, and advertising, anyway?
There is only one way to avoid criticism: do nothing, say nothing, and be nothing. – Aristotle
Client feedback is essential to the growth and sustainability of any business, including law firms. Today, there are more outlets than ever for clients to provide feedback about their experience with a law firm and its attorneys. Yelp, Google My Business, and Facebook are some of the most well-known platforms and are very accessible to clients to post reviews. But what happens when a client decides to share their negative experience about the firm or its lawyers on one or more of these public forums?
What’s the most important part of public relations? You might think that the answer is in the word “public”—in other words, how wide an audience you can reach with information about your organization. However, an equal amount of attention needs to be focused on the “relations” component of PR. PR is less a set of tried-and-true formulas for communicating with customers, and more a discipline of building trust. The relationships you cultivate with audiences will ultimately determine your company’s success or failure.
Where do you get your news? If this question were asked forty or even twenty years ago, the most common responses would have included radio, television and good old-fashioned newspapers. But the Pew Research Center and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation recently released a study on news and social media, and the findings reveal a significant demographic shift over the past few years.
Some other figures from this study are worth mentioning as well. The total percentage of American adults who get their news from any social media network (including Reddit, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, Instagram, Tumblr, and more) is 62%, and almost two-thirds of those usually get it from just one social media network. For journalists and marketers alike, this represents a paradigm shift. While news consumers of a previous generation might have read the day’s headlines in the morning paper, heard additional news on the radio during their commute to work and returned home to catch the six o’clock news on TV, today’s consumers are increasingly likely to get their updates from just one source—most often Facebook. Today, information and advertising are still delivered on a screen, but the screen can be found more and more on consumers’ desks or in their hands rather than in their living rooms.
Shifting Attitudes
Another important statistic: Among Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube users who get their news online, about 60% report that they merely see the headlines while they’re doing other things online; only 40% specifically search the web for it. The Internet has made it easier than ever before for information and advertising to reach consumers wherever they are, even if they don’t intentionally seek it out.
It is impossible to predict whether social platforms will ever completely crowd out the “traditional” media of newspapers, radio, and TV. But in regard to marketing and public relations, organizations can gain valuable information about consumers’ shifting news sources from last month’s report. A thoughtful, relationship-driven approach to advertising is essential to navigating the complex avenues of social media successfully.
If you have questions about how best to promote your organization across social media, PR4Lawyers is happy to help. Don’t hesitate to contact us at 1-866-PR4LAWYERS or at johnzaher@pr4lawyers.com.
Attorneys are increasingly turning to social media as a way to communicate with their prospective clients. But, as an attorney, growing your presence on social media can be tricky, especially if you are just starting your pages. Here are some tips on how you can make minimal changes to your social media platforms, and quickly receive an increased number of followers.
1. Be Consistent in Your Content
Your content is what your law firm will largely be known for on social media. Therefore, you want to maintain a clean and consistent image. Content should always be relevant to the type of legal services you provide. For example, you may feature new blog posts you have written, post relevant articles about cases in your area or briefly comment on largely publicized cases in your field of practice. Law firms may even choose to share news and events pertaining to the firm.
Once you find content that is appropriate for your firm, regularly post similar concepts on a rotating basis. This way, your followers know exactly what to expect on your social media pages, and others will begin to follow your pages as a reference for current events. You should also include a mix of updates on law and local news to keep your feed up-to-date with current information. Continue reading “5 Quick Tips to Grow Your Followers on Social Media”
The fourth financial quarter and the holiday season are approaching. How can your firm capitalize on the holiday rush? Start planning your holiday marketing efforts now! Use your firm’s social media sites, online marketing, and public relations efforts to build a comprehensive holiday marketing plan.
Social Media Marketing
As each holiday season comes and goes, we are becoming more engulfed in our social media accounts. Therefore, it is beneficial to use social media as a way to directly influence your client base. First, grab their attention by adding fun and festive elements to your usual marketing strategies.
The holiday season means that consumers want a good value for their dollar. By offering a promotion on social media sites (whether it is “Take 10% off your consultation” or “$50 off services provided”), you are giving existing and prospective clients alike a reason to visit your firm. Even visitors who were not previously considering your goods or services may be enticed to do so. Continue reading “Start Planning Your Holiday Marketing”
Nominations are currently being accepted for NY Metro Super Lawyers. Now is the perfect opportunity to recognize your colleagues.
Super Lawyers is a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. This multi-phased selection process consists of independent research, peer nominations and peer evaluations. Each candidate is evaluated on 12 indicators of peer recognition and professional achievement.
NY Metro Super Lawyers is an exclusive group. No more than 5% of attorneys from the New York metropolitan are selected. Super Lawyers is also published as a special section in leading city and regional magazines across the country.
The growth of the Internet has made it both tougher and easier to reach your potential clients. While it has increased competition by leveling the playing field, it has also provided a channel for marketing your services on a low-cost budget and reach many more people than was possible earlier. As these new marketing techniques proliferate, it is no longer enough for law firms to rely only on referrals or word-of-mouth publicity to earn new business. At PR4Lawyers, we recommend that our clients tap into a mix of both traditional and new marketing methods to promote themselves and their business.
This article outlines the PR4Lawyers Top 10 PR and Marketing techniques that will help law firms build their brand, demonstrate their expertise, and attract many more clients or a community of supporters.
For more information about our services or to find out how we can help you attain your marketing goals, click here to email us, or call: Toll Free: 866-PR4LAWYERS .: Phone: 631-207-1057
