Building a robust website and a presence on social media takes time and effort. But is it worth it? Establishing a personal brand, showcasing expertise and creating an online network will be discussed during this presentation.

1. Generating Business Through
Social Media and Your Website
Geri L. Dreiling
Beth Lewandowski
Presentation materials may be found at:
http://www.slideshare.net/GeriDreiling/generating-business-through-social-media-
and-your-website

2. What is the one single communication channel
that can reach 87 percent of all Americans?
The Internet
(Source: http://www.internetworldstats.com/stats.htm)

5. What is the single biggest advertising
expenditure for Missouri lawyers?
Law firm websites.
Where does social media use rank among
Missouri lawyers?
Social media is the eighth most popular form
of advertising, ranking ahead of
print media, lawyer referral services,
direct mail, newsletters, radio and television.
(Source: Missouri Bar’s Economic Survey, 2013)

6. In a way, the Web is like your Hollywood agent:
It speaks for you whenever
you’re not around to comment.”
-- Chris Brogan and Julien Smith
During this session, we’ll tackle the following questions:
•What should you do before you launch or update your website?
•What should your website contain?
•Should your website be responsive?
•Who uses social media?
•What is your social media strategy?

7. What should you do before you launch or
update your website?
Your law firm’s website and social media strategy
should promote your firm’s brand.
And this requires strategic thinking
that should from the firm’s partners.

9. What should you do before you launch or
update your website?
To get a clearer understanding your firm’s brand, ask and answer these questions:
•Who are your ideal clients?
•What are your firm's strengths?
•What are the needs of your clients?
•Do you want to build a community, serve as a resource,
provide information relevant to the lives of your clients outside of just the law,
boost your city?
•What tone will your materials take? Will they be positive, educational,
scholarly, compassionate, combative?

11. Your law firm’s branding and the personal branding of
Individual lawyers goes hand-in-hand.
Some law firms encourage lawyers to have their own
websites, blogs or social media feeds
that complement the firm’s efforts.
Media companies have recognized the importance of
the personal brand of the journalists they employ.
Many now require reporters to have
their own official social media presence
to help promote their own stories and the
stories of their colleagues.

12. What should your website contain?
Because the expectation of multimedia use
is high among users, website should blend
different kinds of information –
Images, infographics, sounds and words.
Users tend to lose patience with only one kind
of communication. A wall of text can send
visitors away. And while more favor video
over text, there are those who will skip a
video if there is no text.
(Source: Thinking Through Communication, Trenholm, 7th Edition)

14. What should your website contain?
Think of your home page like a building lobby
through which people pass to get somewhere else.
--Jacob Nielsen and Marie Takir
(Source: Thinking Through Communication, Trenholm, 7th edition)

24. What should your website contain?
Start with a one-paragraph summary:
this brief description is your presentation, your virtual “elevator pitch”
use it at the top of your website, in your social media profiles, etc.
Then, and only then, the rest of your detailed information should follow

25. What should your website contain?
More specific recommendations:
• Your logo. That's how you build brand image, so you are remembered,
and you look as professional. Use your name with some unique text depiction
(to be unique and easy to remember) and pair it with a unique symbol - avoid clip-art
or stock imagery than anyone can reuse, and go with a unique depiction of
some law-related symbol, something that reminds of your company initials
(so it helps you being remembered, in a very compact space) or both.
• Your tagline. Just a single text line below your logo, summarizing what
you do, in plain English - so people will know that they have arrived to the right place,
and they won't "bounce." "Personal injury lawyer," or "Family lawyer" are good examples.
• Your contact details. People who want to become your clients
should have no problem reaching you, so including your contact details in an
easy-to-find position is something that makes sense. So make sure to include a visible
"contact" link in your main navigation menu (it's usually the last link of the list, which also
gets more additional attention.) And including your phone number in a visible top spot
in all your pages is something that can pay off.

26. What should your website contain?
More specific recommendations:
• Make your title count. The title of every page should be big and very visible,
as people (and search engines) would appreciate that. Put in here the main subject of
the page, immediately followed by the kind of content you don't want your readers to miss.
The right tagline prevents new visitors from bouncing, while the right title and first
paragraph engages their attention and keeps them reading.
• Use relevant images. Images are more than mere decoration, and they
should be used to illustrate your point, introduce yourself, or present your offices.
Also, make sure that your images direct attention towards your content.
• Keep text natural. Keyword stuffing won't help you with search engines
anymore. Moreover, it will hurt your rankings. So write naturally, avoiding excessive
keyword repetition. Keep things straight to the point, and easy-to-read, as your
potential clients are your main priority.

27. What should your website contain?
More specific recommendations:
• Include a call to action. After reading your texts, a user may wonder about
what the next step is. So this is a good point to include a call to action, as a direct
instruction of what to do, like a clickable "contact us now" button. Including a unique
advantage - as "get immediate help" or "first free consultation" - can help you too.
• Use a relevant footer. Your footer is a good place for disclaimers, but also
to repeat those very visual trust-building seals. It is a good idea to include your address
in the footer, but use your real address, and don't spam with areas where you aren't
present, as that can get you punished in local search results
(Source: Enrique Serrano Valle, Web Developer and User Experience Consultant)

28. What should your website contain?
What do consumers rate as important?
Up-to-date information
Personalization
The right level of detail to find information they need
(Source: Digital Experience: Are Brands Meeting Consumer Expectations?)

29. What about responsiveness?
Sixty four percent of American adults now
own a smartphone of some kind,
up from 35 percent in the spring of 2011.
Smartphone ownership is especially high among younger Americans,
as well as those with relatively high income and education levels.
(Source: Smartphone Use in 2015, Pew Research Center)

30. What about responsiveness?
Because more people are using their smartphones to search
the Internet, websites should be responsive, meaning they
change size depending on whether the site
is being viewed on a phone, tablet, laptop or desktop.
Just how important is responsiveness?
On April 21, Google announced that it was adding a website’s mobile friendliness as
a search engine ranking signal.
(Source: Google Webmaster Central Blog)

31. Who uses social media?
(Source: Pew Research Center Social Networking Fact Sheet)

32. Who uses social media?
(Source Quoted: Pew Research Center Social Networking Fact Sheet)

33. Who uses social media?

34. Who uses social media?
Source: http://www.pewinternet.org/fact-sheets/social-networking-fact-sheet/

35. 58 percent used Facebook
23 percent used LinkedIn
22 percent used Pinterest
21 percent used Instagram
19 percent used Twitter
According to the Pew Research Center, the percentage of social media users among all
American adults 18 and older was as follows:
Source: Pew Research Center

36. Who uses social media?
Source: Pew Research Center

37. Who uses social media?
Source: Pew Research Center

38. Who uses social media?
Source: Pew Research Center

39. Who uses social media?
Source: Pew Research Center

40. Who uses social media?
Source: Pew Research Center

41. Who uses social media?
Research in 2011 from the Center of Marketing Research at the
University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth found use of social
media among the following:
•58 percent of Fortune 500 companies
•71 percent of Inc 500 companies
•97 percent of charities
•98 percent of higher education institutions
(Source: Newsom, Public Relations Writing)

42. Who uses social media?
"Blogs and social media platforms can be excellent tools for
consuming content, creating awareness about an industry or client,
establishing expertise in a practice area or industry, or for
Creating or nurturing relationships with clients, referral sources,
colleagues and others.“
--ABA Tech Report 2014
(Source: Blogging and Social Media, ABA Tech Report, 2014)

43. What is your social media strategy?
Begin with a strategy of building your law firm's brand
and decide how your website
and social media will promote that brand.

44. What is your social media strategy?
First, you must choose the appropriate medium.
•Facebook: for photos, news and text updates
•Beth Lewandowski LLC
•Kelly & Visotcky
•Instagram: Photos
•Urban Lawyers
•Callagy Law
•Pinterest: Photos and infographics.
•Copyright Infographic
•Navigating the Criminal Court System
•Taylor & Taylor Law Firm

45. What is your social media strategy?
First, you must choose the appropriate medium.
•Twitter: Short text updates.
•Kramer Law Firm
•Beverly A. Michaelis
•Lee Rosen
•LinkedIn: Status updates and posts
•Gyi Tsakalakis
•Tumblr: Blogging and micro-blogging platform
•Stowe Family Law
•Above The Law

46. What is your social media strategy?
The writing style should always be clear and concise.
Poorly written or hard-to-understand writing won't be read.
Make a decision about tone which can range from very formal
to light hearted. What is appropriate depends on the context.

47. What is your social media strategy?
•Set up Google Alerts for content ideas
Paperli may help with content ideas
•Use # hashtags. (hashtags.org)
•Minimize broadcasts. 80/20 rule
•Determine the best days and times of days to post. (Infographic)

48. What is your social media strategy?
And don't forget the power of review sites.
According to a 2014 survey from Software Advice of
3,465 respondents, Yelp was deemed the most trusted
website for legal reviews -- above Martindale Hubbell, Avvo
and Superlawyers.
(Source: Software Advice)

49. Additional Resources
A Lawyer’s Guide to Social Media
Social Media For Lawyers
Business of Law Blog
Law Practice Tips Blog
Legal Solutions Blog
Divorce Discourse
Search Engine Land

50. Generating Business Through
Social Media and Your Website
Geri L. Dreiling
Beth Lewandowski
: