It is clear by now that social media marketing goes far beyond posting great content. While many are familiar with the process that goes on before posting to social media channels – editorial calendars, content creation, and optimal scheduling – the after process isn’t as well known. One particularly crucial component of social media marketing that can set you apart from other law firm business pages is streamlined and consistent community management.
Community management is the process of cultivating, monitoring, and maintaining relationships with your online audiences. You can think of it as the human component behind your social media efforts. It sets the tone of your law firm; and, is not only a means to foster connections with followers but it can be a great way to build your firm’s online reputation across all social networks. So where do you begin in developing a strong community management protocol for your law firm? Read our top three tips below to find out.
Community Management Best Practices
1. Monitor
No matter how active you are on your social platforms, it’s important to regularly monitor audience behavior. Community managers should keep an eye on the attention and interactions transpiring on each channel on a daily basis. Check for mentions of your law firm by other users, take note of new conversations sparking from your posts, and closely monitor comments and reviews being left on each platform.
2. Engage
You might’ve noticed that brands and businesses are becoming seemingly more human on social media. That’s because – especially in times like these with more people stuck at home and on social media – followers are craving increased connection with the businesses they follow. This means it is more important now than ever to treat your audience members as more than just a metric count you’re trying to increase. Be sure to respond to client reviews (both positive and negative), cultivate conversations with other users, answer questions asked or respond to other comments made on your posts in a timely manner, and do it in a way that is honest and transparent. Unanswered questions or complaints and robotic replies can quickly harm your law firm’s reputation and cost you your audience.
3. Listen
Once you have established an online community, one of the most important steps to take is actually listening to its members. With the overwhelming amount of content being posted on social feeds, competition can be fierce, interest can be lost, and loyalty can be dropped in a matter of seconds. Listening is how you will nurture and improve your community.
As you watch others engage with your social media content, be sure to observe:
- Which topics spark conversations
- What feedback you get in client reviews
- What types of posts generate the most interaction
- What questions are being frequently asked
- What hashtags are being used when your content is shared
Once you can ascertain what your audience wants, this knowledge should remain at the center of your social media strategy in order to ensure your community feels valued and to keep your digital content relevant.
Community Management Help
This three-step plan of action might seem simple enough, but it is no easy feat to stay on top of audience behavior on every social network on which your law firm participates. Monitoring, engaging, and listening to those you follow and/or interact with can be a full time job in itself; and, at this point you might be wondering where your law firm should even begin with the process. If your firm lacks the resources to handle this crucial piece of the digital marketing puzzle, contact the social media community management experts at Stacey E. Burke to learn how we can help.
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