Social Media Etiquette for Law Firms: 15 Simple Do’s and Don’ts

In the ever-evolving realm of social media, it can be difficult to keep up with best practices and major mistakes to avoid. As a law firm, most of the content shared on company social channels can be time sensitive and audience specific, making it even more crucial to get it right.

If you are a law firm that only occasionally logs in to post and engage with your audience, you are already making your first mistake. It takes time, practice, skill, and consistency to get the lay of the land with each social media channel. In order to maximize the potential of your social media platforms and effectively reach your audience, follow our tips below for the major do’s and don’ts when it comes to social media etiquette for law firms.

DO:

1. Keep your profiles up-to-date. Double check your contact information, address, practice area details, and make sure your photos are updated. This will be a potential client’s first impression of your firm.
2. Post regularly and be consistent. Share posts at least once or twice a week on each channel to stay in the newsfeed of followers and to keep your social audience interested and engaged.
3. Choose content wisely. Be thoughtful about the content you share. Follow this guide from Hootsuite for more direction on posting:
   
4. Prioritize social networks. Don’t feel the need to be on every social media platform out there. Think about your target audience and focus on the channels they will be on.
   
5. Incorporate visuals. Social posts with imagery, videos, and visuals always outperform posts without.
   
6. Respond ASAP. Whether it is a comment on a Facebook post, a mention by another Twitter user, or a Google review, respond promptly to any digital mentions your law firm receives.
7. Give credit where credit is due. A huge component of social media is sharing resources. Be sure to tag and/or otherwise credit the author of the third party content pieces you share. Also, be sure to credit the artist of any photos or imagery you post.
8. Interact with your community. Engage with your audience members and followers each week. Share and retweet posts from other legal industry information sources and local news stations, among other items of interest.
9. Keep it professional. While it’s okay to share a company post on your personal profile, for the most part, try to keep personal social accounts and business accounts separate. When the two are habitually intertwined, audiences get confused and content loses focus.
10. Stick to the 80/20 rule. Avoid becoming a self-serving social media channel by sharing 80% of your content from other channels and 20% of your own content. The goal is to inform and entertain your audience more than you sell to them.

Don’t

1. Share the same post to every channel. Be mindful of the nuances and best practices for each social platform and cater your posts accordingly. For example, Facebook and Instagram are more casual and great places to share visual posts. LinkedIn is more professional and you should avoid sharing personal or “fun” pieces. Twitter content should be kept short and to the point.
2. Forget to check for mistakes. Scheduling post after post can become daunting. Be sure to triple check your social content for spelling and/or grammar mistakes before you post.
3. Be a robot. Let the personality of your law firm shine through while keeping it professional. Share employee birthdays, work anniversaries, throwback photos, and more to give your audience insight into the personality of the firm.
4. Forget hashtags. Hashtags are crucial in helping your content be found in an online search and connecting your content to a certain topic. Don’t overdo it, and be mindful of which social networks actually utilize hashtags (Twitter, Instagram) and which networks tend to avoid hashtags (Facebook).
5. Over share. Find a post schedule and stick to it. If you are sharing posts several times a day every single day, your audience will get annoyed and unfollow your account without a second thought.

Social Media Help

It’s important to stay on top of these best practices to make sure your law firm’s social media marketing efforts are worth it. As the world of social media is constantly changing, so are the protocols and etiquette for each channel. If your law firm needs help creating a social strategy and/or managing its social networks, we have you covered. Contact the social media marketing experts at Stacey E. Burke P.C. for help today.