A Guide To Content Marketing for Law Firms
The digital world is a marketing hotspot for your law firm, so if you don't understand the value of content marketing yet, then it's time to get acquainted! More and more lawyers are starting to realize that implementing content marketing in their law firm's marketing strategy is vital. It doesn't just enable a law firm to increase brand awareness, build better relationships, and produce more leads — it dramatically boosts your revenue.
In today's consumer-driven market, people have seen enough of the same old advertising tactics. It's not as easy to convince consumers with the same approach that worked once upon a time. To grab people's attention in a sea of online advertisements, it's important that you give them something valuable that catches their eye. This is where the value of content marketing comes in.
Recent statistics show that content marketing generates triple the number of leads as traditional outbound marketing methods and cost over 60% less. In other words, you get better results for less money. Say what?
So, follow along for the Lawmatics guide on content marketing for law firms.
What is law firm content marketing?
Unlike traditional law firm marketing like billboards and newsletters, content marketing is all about creating valuable content that attracts and retains your target audience by offering them something useful. In other words, instead of pitching your services, you attract new business organically by sharing valuable content.
In today's world, people can smell slimy sales pitches a mile off. Content marketing is all about convincing people that you're the right lawyer for the job by pitching your business without actually pitching it.
Content marketing uses an authentic approach that proves you're the authority in your area of practice. By presenting yourself as an expert, you'll give yourself credibility and convince a prospective client that you're the right person for their case. If you declare yourself an expert, then you're the person they'll turn to when they need legal services.
Benefits of content marketing
Increased website traffic
After spending so much time and energy on building a high-quality website for your firm, it would be a real shame if it didn't get any attention! If you're serious about getting people to your legal website and taking your search engine optimization or law firm SEO marketing to the next level, then you have to start producing quality content. The very foundation of organic Google search results is relevant content that draws people in. By generating high-quality content peppered with plenty of SEO keywords, you can start generating an audience that yields leads.
The better content you manage to produce, the more that Google (or any search engine) will start to favor you. The higher your rankings are in Google search results, the more visible you will be to potential clients. In turn, every piece of content you create will add more and more keywords to your website, strengthening your Google presence. The end result is higher web traffic and more high-quality leads that become clients.
Establishes trust
One of the biggest perks of effectively executing your law firm's content marketing is establishing trust. If you can manage to create content that covers common pain points then you'll position yourself as the authority and expert for that particular query. As a law firm, one of the most important qualities you can have is someone your clients can trust. So, rather than mere self-promotion, create material that provides value for your readers. Educate them on what you're best at, and offer helpful insights with expert advice.
Become an authentic resource for important and helpful information, and your potential customers will trust you that much more. The idea is to create engaging content that will encourage potential and existing clients to rely on you as a trusted source for expert knowledge.
If you can manage to do that, then you'll appeal to a larger audience. A recent survey showed that a whopping 90% of consumers would choose a brand with greater authenticity when making their buying decisions. So, if you manage to make "keeping it real" a priority in your legal content marketing strategy, then you have an opportunity to strengthen your bond with readers and establish trust.
Increased brand awareness
The more that you appear on your potential client's radar, the higher the likelihood that your target audience remembers you when it comes time to hire a lawyer. So, get yourself visible on Google search results by familiarizing yourself with the most common search terms.
Establishing brand awareness can be one of the most powerful digital marketing strategies in your arsenal. The more that you can drive your leads to instinctively opt for you compared to other brands the more sales that you can generate.
If your law firm continues to pop up with answers to popular legal queries, the more you increase your brand awareness, and the more people will naturally gravitate towards you rather than a lawyer that they've never heard of before. People prefer what's familiar, and it's often really that simple. To help you achieve this, content marketing and marketing automation for lawyers is key.
Improved client relationships
If a potential client is looking for information online and you happen to offer the exact answer to their questions, you give them a reason to love you just a little bit more. If you can manage to provide valuable information at the exact moment they need it, you'll form a better relationship. Combine being informative with being entertaining, and interesting, and you encourage people to become more emotionally invested and form stronger bonds.
When you can interact with your potential and paying clients, you'll foster a connection that will delight, entertain, and engage. There's a much better chance that people will do business with you, and perhaps even lead to repeat business if you create great content developed around what they're hoping to solve.
Money saved
Compared to one-way advertising, attorney content marketing is significantly more cost-effective. Social media platforms like Facebook can be one of your greatest resources for reaching the maximum number of people-and it's totally free.
Although content creation does require some investment, the return on investment is substantial — whether you outsource to a writer or take time out of your schedule to do it yourself. Posting engaging content on websites, blogs, and social media is significantly inexpensive in contrast to traditional forms of outbound marketing.
Increased sales
Because effective content marketing for lawyers leads to increased web traffic and engagement, increased brand awareness, stronger relationships, and more leads, all these factors will consequently lead to increased sales. Law firms are starting to catch on to this fact, which is why over 60% of law firms spend most of their marketing budgets on their online legal marketing efforts. People are using the Internet to find lawyers more than ever, so if you can make yourself a go-to source on Google, then you'll see a jump in your sales in no time.
So lawyers, if you aren't already using legal content marketing as a part of your strategy, then it's time to get started.
Types of law firm content marketing
Blogging
According to recent statistics, blogs are one of the top result-producing forms of media in attorney content marketing strategies. In fact, the very thing you're reading right now is a blog post. Blog posts are a straightforward way to provide valuable information for your target audience that is engaging and informative.
Ebooks
Ebooks are an incredibly worthwhile tool for increasing your contacts. For example, offering a gated e-book on a particular legal issue in exchange for an email address is a fantastic way to grow your contact list in your law firm CRM. It's important to note that Ebooks are typically longer than blogs, and their primary goal is to attract web users to your law firm website. They also make a great call to action at the bottom of your newsletter, or on the landing page of your website.
Podcasts
Starting a podcast is a cool way to engage your listeners and let them get to know you on a more personal level. The great thing about podcasts is that they're candid and can be totally improvised. Statistically, one out of three people in the United States have listened to a podcast over the last 30 days. So, if you have an interesting legal idea to share and decent recording equipment, consider making a podcast!
Social media
There are over 4.2 billion active social media users, so it's safe to say that this is a great place to be seen. Although there are several different social media platforms, some appeal to the legal industry more than others. A great place to start is Facebook.
Create a page for your law firm, and engage, share, and comment. The idea of social media is a two-way conversation. The best part about sharing relevant content on social media is you can share third party content. Just make sure that your feed does more than just repost articles with no caption all the time. Share your opinion on it or provide some additional insight. You can share non-original content as long as you include your brand's voice in the caption. Have an opinion!
These are just a few content marketing campaign ideas for your law firm. Feel free to do some basic market research of your own to get to know what your target audience's ideal form of content is.
How to Optimize Your Practice with Marketing Automation
How to use content marketing for your law firm
Understand your target audience
So you're ready to get started creating content — now what? The great news is that even though you might not think of yourself as a writer, all it takes is a little bit of creativity. No one's asking you to write the next Moby Dick, all you have to do is write about what you already know — law.
Before you start a 5000-word essay on legal doctrines that will make readers snooze, back up, and simplify. The reality is that most people aren't looking for long-winded responses with complex legal jargon. Get to know your target audience and what it is that they want to read. One of the most effective ways to do this is to ask your past clients.
It's as simple as creating a custom survey and sending it to your contacts with questions like:
- Where do you go for your legal questions online?
- What kind of legal content would you like to see more of online?
- What have been your biggest legal issues?
Get to know what kind of content your potential clients are looking online for by getting to know your past clients better. That way, you can generate engaging and useful content based on what people actually want to see.
Strategize
The first place to start in reaching your long-term visions is by creating a strategy. Without a strategy, you risk wandering through the dark with no real end in sight. By creating a content marketing strategy, you'll significantly increase your chances of getting the kind of results that you want to see.
Your content marketing strategy is there to help you set intentions and reinforce why you're doing it in the first place. Here's what your strategy should include:
Who is reading?
The first step is identifying who you're writing for. Who is your target audience, and what type of customer are they? Do they have kids? Are they married? What kind of salary do they have? If you plan on appealing to many different kinds of customers, then segment your content into groups to deliver targeted material to each different type of reader. Define each audience so that you can fine-tune your content to appeal to them as much as possible. Audience segmentation software can be a great tool for getting the right content to the right people at the right time.
What kinds of content will you produce?
There are all different sorts of content that you can produce. Do you plan on writing blogs? How about a podcast? Perhaps you'll create weekly videos on social media providing a quick legal tip. Make a list of the different content formats that you plan on creating, so you'll know exactly what's ahead of you.
How are you different?
For every Google query out there there are about five bajillion (fictitious figure based on zero actual data) other legal blogs attempting to answer the same question. Your strategy should include why your content is unique and why it's worth reading more than the competition's. Have a clear definition of why you're the trusted source that people should turn to.
What issues are you solving for your readers?
After you've picked your past clients' brains for what kind of legal content they'd like to see more of online, make a list of the legal issues that you plan to shed more light on for your audience. A thorough content strategy identifies what your ideal reader's pain points are so that you can become their go-to resource for all things law.
How often do you plan on creating and publishing?
The key to successful content marketing is consistency. Your strategy should include a content schedule that outlines how often you plan on creating and publishing your material. There are all sorts of third-party applications that make it easier to create a content marketing schedule and keep you on top of your goals.
Where will you post your content?
Including a blog on your law firm website is a great way to make Google love you and get people to your page. However, that's not the only channel you can post content to. From LinkedIn to Twitter to YouTube, get to know all of the different channels and decide which ones you plan on focusing on.
Measure your results and stay persistent
Content marketing is an undeniably fantastic way to generate more leads for your law firm and establish yourself as an industry leader. However, to ensure that your marketing efforts are worth your time and resources, it's critical that you measure and evaluate your results. A data-driven approach to your content marketing efforts is the best way to perfect your strategy and yield the most results.
By using legal reporting software, you can track your results and make improvements where needed.
Are you ready to get an advantage over your competition and scale your law firm? Sign up for a free product demo today to see how Lawmatics can help!