1. Natalie Alesi
@legalerswelcome
Social Media for Law Firms
Samantha Collier Rocket Matter Webinar
@samtaracollier March 22, 2012 – 12:00 pm ET
2. Law firms and lawyers are using social media for client
acquisition, knowledge management and business
development. This webinar is designed to show you how to
get started. Today we’ll cover:
• A brief history on social media
• Statistics in favor of social media
• Scenario based work flows
• How to set up an effective Strategy, Facebook Page,
LinkedIn Profile, blog content and, of course, Twitter
6. Which online lawyer
AVVO profiles do in-house
ACC 6% legal professional look
Value Martindale-
Index Hubbell at most?
8% 19%
Legal 500
8%
Chambers &
Partners LinkedIn
9% 18%
Super Lawyers
Best Lawywers/US
16%
News and World
Report
16%
Source: 2011 ABA Technology survey report
7. Individual Attorneys using social media for
professional purposes in 2011
70
62
60
50
40 37
30
22
19
20
10 6 7
0
LinkedIn Facebook Twitter
Lawyers Law Firms
Source: 2011 ABA Technology survey report
8. In-house attorneys exhibit widespread
trust (84%) in blogs
They read attorney-authored blogs
more than those of actual journalists
More than half think a prominent
blog will influence clients to hire one
firm over another
Decision makers are relying on blogs
for critical business info and in
deciding which firms to hire.
Recent analysis found that 68 of the
top 100 firms are publishing 272
blogs. That is up from 156 blogs in
2010 – a 74% increase.
9. Law Firms and Social Media
FACT: Washington Post
20 percent of law firms have a full-time social media specialist on staff, and about 40
percent said blogging and social networking initiatives have helped the firm land new
work.
Nixon Peabody is in the final stages of hiring it’s first social media manager who is
expected to start in late April.
Latham & Watkins hired Dimitra Kessenides in late August 2011, a former journalist
at The American Lawyer.
Dechert hired public relations specialist Peggy Heffner in the late summer of 2011 in a
newly created position that focuses on growing the firm’s presence across various
networks.
McKenna Long & Aldridge hired Sabrina McGown in 2011. She works with attorneys
to tweak LinkedIn profiles and blogs to increase search engine results.
11. It’s really very simple…
Scenario 1: Bob decides to join LinkedIn and obtains a new matter through a
LinkedIn Group where he regularly joins discussions and answers questions. Bob
practices in IP and after answering a question in a related group, he was hired.
12. It’s really very simple…
Scenario 2: Jeff enjoys writing and would like to write a blog. He gets approval (if
needed), determines his platform and creates an editorial calendar. Jeff sticks to
his schedule and writes consistently. He shares his posts on Facebook, Twitter
and LinkedIn, and engages with his readers. He is then hired by a large corporation
due to his expert reputation.
13. It’s really very simple…
Scenario 3: Kim has heard a lot about Facebook and finally decides to jump on the
bus and start using it for business development. She sets her privacy settings
appropriately and creates lists so she can share information with relevant groups
(family, friends, co-workers, etc.). She posts about work every so often and when the
need arises for her services, one of her colleagues recommends her to a friend and she
is hired. Go Facebook!
14. It’s really very simple…
Scenario 4: Julie finally joins Twitter. She creates an effective biography and links to
her website profile. She tweets consistently, finds her target clients and joins
conversations when relevant. She posts valuable content and takes the conversation
offline when appropriate. She is hired for a smaller matter at first. She then lands her
firm a large litigation file through the same client.
16. Before you get involved with social
media, you must:
Get approval from upper management
Get buy in from lawyers in the firm
Define your top ten dream clients and be very specific.
Look for them online. You’ll be surprised!
17. Define your goal(s):
Increase number of sales and/or leads
Improve customer engagement
Network with peers and colleagues
Keep up-to-date
Monitor the competition
21. LinkedIn Applications for Lawyers
JD Supra’s Legal Updates
Events
SlideShare
Publications
Wordpress
Answers
TripIt
Reading List by Amazon
Polls
22. LinkedIn Groups
Join relevant groups relating to your practice area
or university alumni groups
Monitor the discussions and get a feel for the
group’s conversation style
Join discussions when appropriate and add
something of value. Ask and answer questions
Mention your practice area when relevant
Add connections you interact with in groups and
take the conversation offline when appropriate.
Did you know?
9 out of 10 in-house legal professionals turn to online lawyer profiles or
legal directories at least once a year!
29. Determine the type of work and clients you want.
Choose your platform and blogging system.
Identify your target audience. Consider influencers and amplifiers to get
to have your name and message brought in front of a larger audience.
Get an RSS reader for inspiration on what to blog about. Consider writing
about practice updates, rule changes, anything in the news you can relate
to your business, how you solved a clients problem (without naming
names of course), checklists, top 5 posts, etc.
Comment on other blogs only when you can leave valuable information
(not – “good post”.)
Consider using tools such as Google Analytics to monitor what’s popular.
33. Did you know there is Tweetchat for legal?
#legalchat Fridays 11 am ET
legalchatinfo.wordpress.com
34. Checklist
Define WHY?
Define Your Audience
Start with ONE Channel (LinkedIn)
Understand privacy settings
Listen, listen, listen & watch others
Start a blog or expand the one you have, create engagement
Understand your state ethics rules with regard to advertising
Understand firms social media policy, be on the committee
Manage your content and create a content schedule
Get mobile, download social apps
Engage others, RT them, thank them, talk to them, build a
relationship, network, have conversations
35. DON’T
Be spammy
Be salesy
Critique others for their opinions
Not be consistent with content
Confuse channel audiences
Be scared
Post the same content across all networks
at the same time.
Jump on the next thing every time a new
social network comes out.
