Social Media Marketing for Lawyers

Social Media Marketing for Law Firms Presented by: Michael Rabinovici, LL.B. VP, Strategic Initiatives, AR Communications Inc. Contact Information Michael Rabinovici, LL.B. [email_address] www.ar-com.com 416-720-5485 Skype: mrvoip9 9 March 19 th , 2009 Banff, Alberta www.ar-com.com

Say Goodbye to the Information Age
Over the last 5 years the Internet and information delivery have fundamentally changed
Information is being produced faster than we can absorb
Google reached 1 trillion indexed pages excluding duplicate content locations (source: Softpedia, July 23, 2008)
In 2006, the number was 600 billion pages
Growth of knowledge is being matched by the growth of ignorance
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Say Hello to the Attention Age The Attention Age Doctrine – Rich Schefren

This is Not your Daddy’s Internet
Exponential data growth dramatically affects traditional marketing channels on the Internet
The sense of information overload has created a shift in client behavior
They are all reaching for and craving one thing:
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The Easy Button www.ar-com.com

How to Become the Easy Button
You can become the easy button by:
Positioning yourself and your firm as a thought leader or a leading expert in the field of your practice
Social media tools are ideal for positioning yourself in this way
You can use them to deliver bite-sized nuggets of relevant, timely information – information custom tailored to the Attention Age

Social Media Landscape The Short Version www.ar-com.com

The Longer Version www.ar-com.com

Social Media Tools
What are they: blogs , social networks , podcasts , videos
SM tools makes the production of relevant, easy-to-consume content simple and cost effective
Become a prolific producer of content
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Blogs
A blog (a contraction of the term weblog ) is a website , usually maintained by an individual or company with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in reverse-chronological order. "Blog" can also be used as a verb, meaning to maintain or add content to a blog .
source - Wikipedia
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Social Media Best Practices for Blogs
Relevant, timely content
Updated regularly
Once or twice a week unless a special event is taking place
This type of content does not come naturally so you have to practice saying more with less words
Repurpose existing content from commentaries, white papers or other content you’ve developed
Consider outsourcing
Expert positioning and SEO benefits
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Podcasts
A podcast is a series of audio or video digital media files which are distributed over the Internet by syndicated download , through Web feeds , to portable media players and personal computers . Though the same content may also be made available by direct download or streaming , a podcast is distinguished from most other digital media formats by its ability to be syndicated, subscribed to, and downloaded automatically when new content is added
s ource: Wikipedia
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The Power of Podcasting
Device shifting:
Listen on any device
Time shifting:
Listen anywhere at any time
Fireside chats
A 15 -20 minute conversation
Focus on a relevant timely topic
Upload to iTunes
Approx. 100-200 million podcast listeners
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Social Media Best Practices for Podcasts
Content should focus on educating, not selling
The podcast should sound like a “fireside chat”, not an infomercial
Interview formats work well
Podcasts can be divided into three categories:
Educating about the service or field of expertise with a lawyer being the interviewee
Interviewing a client – the social proof aspect
Interview with a third party expert – a combination of education and social proof
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Recommendations for Law Firms
Develop a social media road map
Decide what precisely you want to be known as the thought leader or expert for
Focus on Blogs and Podcasts to begin with
Blogs – update a minimum of 1-2 times per week
Podcasts – aim for one per month
Make sure you leverage existing content
Encourage clients and business partners (other professionals) to become part of your community
Offer ethical bribes - an iPod or a gift certificate to the person with the most posts each quarter
KNOW THY METRICS
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The Fundamentals Still Apply
Forget about the technology
Focus on the trend
Leverage the tools technology is making available
Use it to:
Position yourself or your firm as the thought leader or expert in your field
Strengthen relationships
and build trust
Stay front of mind

Recommended Net Resources
Google Web Trends - http://www.google.com/trends
Legal Blogs - http://www.blawg.com/
WordPress - http://wordpress.org/
Google Analytics - http://www.google.com/analytics/
Google Web Optimizer – Google Web Optimizer Home Page
Marketing Experiments - http://www.marketingexperiments.com/
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Recommended Reading
Blue Ocean Strategy: How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make Competition Irrelevant
by W. Chan Kim (Author), Renée Mauborgne (Author )
Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion (Collins Business Essentials) by Robert B. Cialdini
Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions by Dan Ariely
Join the Conversation: How to Engage Marketing-Weary Consumers with the Power of Community, Dialogue, and Partnership by Joseph Jaffe
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Blog Samples
www.lawfirmtransformation.com
http://blog.jackvinson.com/
http://www.negotiationlawblog.com/
http://www.njlawblog.com/
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Podcast Samples
http://www.brandprotect.com/podcasts/Interview_with_Susan_Orr_July_3_2008.mp3
http://www.brandprotect.com/resources/podcasts/Interview_with_Kevin_Joy_March_28_2008.mp3
http://www.internetcases.com/mp3/IC-2007-02-16.mp3
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AR Communications Inc. Contact Information
Michael Rabinovici, LL.B.
VP, Strategic Initiatives, AR Communications Inc.
[email_address]
www.ar-com.com
416-720-5485
Skype: mrvoip99

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Social Media Marketing for Lawyers

by Michael Rabinovici on Mar 30, 2009

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Social Media Marketing for Lawyers — Webinar Transcript