How can a good digital marketing strategy make your law firm stand out?
By Charlie Britten
14 Aug 2019
Good service alone will not achieve this; when so many different law firms are out there, it is important to have an effective marketing strategy in place.
This is particularly true for those in the small and medium (SME) sector, lacking the reputation and brand awareness of the big players.
For SME law firms, traditional marketing methods, such as newspaper or billboard advertising, have proven to be very ineffective.
Why has traditional marketing flopped?
This was demonstrated in a research paper produced by First4lawyers in 2017. It found that firms had been spending very heavily on traditional marketing. However, they had seen very low returns on investment.
Some of this advertising had gone down the digital route, using paid-for advertising. However, low returns indicated the cost per click was high. The message clearly wasn’t getting through and the lack of a clear strategy was preventing firms from targeting people effectively.
Failure to target effectively will undermine the rest of the process. It means not engaging potential customers enough to turn them into actual clients or get good reviews on third-party websites.
Why is digital marketing better?
This lack of focus is in contrast with the kind of clear digital strategies that are possible for SME law firms, using a combination of content marketing, social media and email.
Central to this are two concepts. The first is that of the buyer persona, a representation of the characteristics of the target market.
- This takes account of many factors, such as age, gender, income, profession and so on, the most important being their problem that you could solve
- It means marketing can be targeted at the kind of media (including social media) this demographic tends to use
- It can be designed to appeal to their common needs and be relevant to the stage of life they are likely to be at.
Alongside that is the buyer journey. This notes that marketing really isn’t just a simple case of telling someone a product or service is great and expecting them to buy it. The ‘rule of seven’ acknowledges that the typical lead needs to see a message seven times before they commit to a purchase.
That means the process is a gradual one, consisting of multiple phases
- The first phase is awareness, when people learn about a product.
- Consideration is the second phase
- The third stage is the all-important buying decision
- In addition, there is the 'delight' stage, where a company can turn a first-time customer into a regular one with discounts, special offers and ongoing good service.
- The latter group of customers are also likely to provide the third-party recommendations, both online and offline.
What are the benefits of a clear strategy?
A clear digital strategy brings these themes together with a well-crafted campaign. Content marketing appeals to the interests of those who fit the persona. At this stage it is not about direct, hard-sell persuasion, but to simply get awareness and engagement. Ongoing good content will help take the potential customer through the consideration stage.
Central to this is having relevant, optimised content.
- Good SEO will help get your content high on the search rankings, so it will be easily found by those looking online for services.
- It also needs to be interesting and informative, so readers will come back for more.
When a strategy is well-designed, it creates opportunities to introduce new elements at various stages.
- For example, a call-to-action, such as a clickable link to sign up for emails or connect via social media, will increase engagement.
- This will create opportunities for two-way conversations, as well as opportunities for more direct contact via email.
Why should you tailor your approach?
All this means your firm will have a wonderful opportunity to get ahead of the rest, by truly engaging with your target market. It enables you not just to outline what your services are - important though this is - but also what inspires you, why you want to make a difference and why you feel this really matters. Ultimately, it is about what makes you different.
Finally, every firm should have a tailor-made approach, ensuring it fits your target market and requirements. What works well for one firm may not be the same as another, so every strategy should take account of your firm’s needs and be adjusted when situations change.
This focused and flexible approach is sure to be effective than the approach taken by rival firms that persist with old marketing methods.
How can BeUniqueness help you?
At BeUniqueness we offer options based on the priorities of our clients, to enable marketing and branding strategies to be calibrated to the needs of each firm. Using our expertise and providing great SEO for law firms, we also look to update and amend strategies whenever necessary to capture the opportunities that exist and adjust to changes in circumstances.
By being flexible, adaptable and monitoring what works, we can help your firm stand out.