Law firms often rely on social interactions, both between clients and between professional colleagues, to forge new network connections that support the health of their business. The development of these social relationships no longer just take place in the real world, however; today, social media can be used to build and support a firm’s growth. Here’s how law firms are using social media today to accomplish those goals.
Social Media Provides Excellent Networking Possibilities
The primary function of social media, in terms of a law firm that has a social media presence, is that it provides excellent possibilities for networking. With the advent of professional social media networking sites like LinkedIn, it’s easier than ever to build an ever-broadening network of professional connections between law firms and other legal service providers that can help a firm’s marketing reach when it comes to finding new clients. Additionally, posting content on social media can aid in building a law firm’s reputation as having expertise in a specific field of law, which can also drive new client activity.
Social Media Lets Firms Stay Ahead of New Trends
The benefits of social media aren’t just in posting content to build network connections and drive client figures. Law firms that don’t just produce content but consume the content of others can keep track of emerging trends in that content to stay ahead of new trends in specific instances. One strong example of this is in instances related to incipient class action lawsuits, as a sudden uptick in social media mentions regarding a specific product or service’s negative effects can act as a red flag for further investigation.
Social Media Can Have a Direct Impact on Cases
While most law firms will limit their social media exposure to professional networks like LinkedIn, attorneys and legal professionals can use more mainstream social media networks like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to gather data that could have a direct impact on a case the firm has taken on.
Publicly available information on these networks can often be used to influence cases at trial, as data can be used to reinforce or discredit witnesses, jurors, or plaintiffs or defendants themselves. An excellent example of this would be a set of vacation photos on an individual’s social media page depicting them waterskiing when they’re attempting to claim disability during the same period of time.
Social Media Can Help You Hire Your Next Attorney
A law firm on the hunt for a new attorney often has a plethora of prospects they need to sort through, and this makes intelligence gathering an important task to ensure that your next hire is going to reflect positively on the firm. Perusing the social media content created by new prospects on sites like LinkedIn can be elucidating to say the least, as this could provide a much more well-rounded look at the prospect’s professional reputation beyond that of a resume or CV.
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