Social media is one of the most significant technological innovations of the modern age. Leveraging the connectivity of the internet, social media allows people to connect like never before. Facebook alone has 3.07 billion monthly active users, which is why social media marketing has become such a powerful tool for any business or professional, including lawyers. With the importance of social media marketing in the modern age. We decided to take a look at what it is and how it can benefit your practice. We will also discuss how to get started, how it is done, and some of the best methods for social media marketing so that you can leverage this powerful tool to help you succeed.
What is social media marketing, and what are its benefits?
Social media marketing is essentially promoting your business on social media platforms through a business account/profile. This gives your business an online presence, which is becoming vital in the digital age, as more often than not people look for companies and services online. Social media marketing done well has a number of benefits for your business, including:
- Building your brand: Social media allows you to build a brand reputation and recognition. This is especially useful for lawyers and legal practices, as potential clients can easily see what fields of law you specialise in. It can also show people that you are a knowledgeable professional in your field.
- Attract clients: Social media marketing allows you to attract clients. Potential clients can see your posts and ads or find your content while conducting online searches, thereby allowing you to build your client base.
- Low-cost marketing: Social media marketing can be one of the cheapest marketing methods available. This is because signing up on these platforms is free and allows you to reach a broad audience.
Getting started with social media marketing
Now that we have an understanding of what social media marketing is and its benefits, we can take a look at where to start. Knowing where to start is often the hardest part for lawyers. This is why we advise that you take it slow, start small and do extensive research before diving in. With this in mind, the first thing to do is develop a social media marketing strategy for your law firm. A strategy helps you determine how you will approach social media marketing and what you want to achieve. Developing a social media marketing strategy may seem daunting, which is why we have provided some helpful steps to follow below.
1. Establish and check the rules
The first step is to set rules for yourself and your firm regarding your social media. These can include who has access to the accounts, how you will deal with negative posts, what tone your posts will use, and more. Establishing these rules for your strategy is important so you present a uniform and consistent brand presence.
The other aspect when it comes to the rules is to check the local legislation regarding what may and may not be shared on social media. This is especially important for lawyers, as there are ethical and legal concerns regarding what can be shared. That is why it is important that you know your local regulations.
2. Set goals
Decide what you want your social media marketing campaign will accomplish for your law firm. Goals should be realistically achievable and trackable so you can determine how successful your campaign is. Goals can be to gain clients, improve brand recognition/reputation, or increase engagement. Having long and short-term goals helps to focus your marketing and make it more effective.
3. Research
Do your research. Look at what other legal practitioners with an established social media presence do on their profiles. It is important to approach these profiles with the mindset of a potential client to better access their content. This can inform your social media marketing as it allows you to see what works and what doesn't. Allowing you to improve your own marketing campaign.
4. Budget
Many people believe social media marketing is completely free, but this is not true. This is why it is important to create a social media marketing budget. Social media budgets can include content creation, day-to-day social media management, advertising, and more. As each of these elements requires payments, a budget allows you to avoid overspending and keep track of what your money is achieving in the campaign.
5. Decide on content
Deciding on what content you will share on your platform is also important. This will often be influenced by your social media marketing goals. No matter what your goals though, you want to make sure your content is engaging to your target audience and unique. Types of content include articles with relevant information, photos of the team, video presentations, infographics and more. It is important to choose content that is relevant to your field and clients and that you can consistently produce.
6. Choose a platform
There are many social media platforms out there today. This is why part of developing your strategy is deciding what platform is best for you. While many large brands have profiles on most platforms, it is advised to start small with just one or two platforms. The best platform for you will depend on the type of content you want to share and where most of your target market is. A good place to start is Facebook, as it allows many content formats and has the most users. However, if your services cater for businesses, it will be better to be on LinkedIn and Google.
Best practices for social media marketing
Once you have your social media marketing strategy, you are ready to begin promoting your firm online. That being said, there are a number of tips that will help ensure your social media marketing is done the best way. We will take a look at these practices below.
Content split
Regardless of the type of content you post on your social media, it is best practice to follow the 80/20 rule. This states that 80% of your content should provide value to your client or audience, and sales or promotional content should not be more than 20%. This rule improves your social media presence and engages your audience better. Too much sales content will make users lose interest as they feel talked to and not with.
Build a quality following
If your social media has a poor-quality following, you either won't get engagement on your posts or the engagement won't translate to increased revenue. That is why it is important to build a quality following. This can be done by clearly defining your target audience and tailoring your content to these people. Make content that feels custom-made to their pain points and experiences. This is vital to successful social media marketing.
Analytics
With social media marketing, it is important to use analytical tools. These useful metrics can show you everything you need about how your content is performing. It shows you views, shares, demographics, clicks, and more. Keeping track of these statistics allows you to adjust your strategy to find what works best for your platform and audience.
Consistency
It is important in social media marketing, as accounts that go dormant or don't post for extended periods will send a bad message. That is why you must consistently post content. Additionally, the more consistent you are with branding, posting times, and quality, the better the results of your social media marketing. It will help to have a schedule for posting content to remain consistent.
Automation
There are a few aspects of the social media marketing process that can be automated, which saves you time and can make your content more efficient. This is done through the use of automation tools. These tools can schedule posts that are already made to be released at the best time, or they can post to multiple platforms at the same time. There are more advanced tools that can automate even more, though they can be expensive. However, even basic automation will save you time and money.
Responsive
When it comes to social media marketing, it is important to remember that engagement is a two-way street. You must interact with your audience, especially when they engage with your content. This means responding to queries and reviews. This is important as it shows people you are listening and there to help, which improves your brand image.
Paid promotion
One of the best ways to improve the reach and impact of your social media content is through paid promotion. Paid promotion will make your content more visible, which helps to build your following, increase engagement, and generate leads. Paid promotion improves the overall efficiency of your marketing campaign, which is why it is often used and needs to be budgeted for.
Conclusion
As you can see, social media has changed the marketing landscape, making effective marketing more accessible than ever before. It does take some work, and you must always remain professional as you represent your brand. If you want to learn more about managing your brand online, read this blog by legal podcaster and Gawie le Roux Institute of Law alum, Macdonald Sesinyi.
This blog was last updated on 14/08/2025