Facebook has revolutionized marketing, with its ability to break people down into niche groups based on virtually every distinction you can imagine. The challenge comes in using that wealth of demographic information in a way that’s cost efficient.
The standard Facebook ad campaign is a good start and certainly one to be recommended. But there are other ways that lawyers can market themselves on this platform. A good example is using Facebook Groups.
Here are some tips on how lawyers can use the Groups feature to find prospects on Facebook.
Start with the basics
While we don’t recommend using your personal profile as an active marketing tool, you still have to clean it up appropriately. It doesn’t have to mimic your business page; photos with family, friends and other fun activities are still good to have. However, you need to review the profile for anything you don’t want potential clients to see.
If there are photos of you back in your college days having a “good time,” you might want to rethink sharing those. If you’ve shared your political opinions in a way you wouldn’t with potential clients, then it’s time to tone it down.
In that regard, it’s important to even double-check the pages you like and follow. Those in your network can see this information. If a prospect scrolls through your likes and follows to learn more about you, make sure you’re okay with what they’ll find.
Branch out
Now that your personal space is cleaned up, start doing outreach. The best way to start is to join groups. You can run a search to find the Facebook groups that will work best for you. An example of a group that’s good for lawyers is one where people come to get basic legal questions answered.
The example cited is a group whose interests run globally. You may prefer to find one aimed at people in your local area or at least your state. But whichever group(s) you choose to join, keep in mind that activity, focus and exclusivity are all more important than raw volume of members.
By that we mean:
- Activity. A group that has someone posting content 1-2 times a week won’t be of much value. Good groups get at least 1 new post every day, if not more.
- Focus. Whether it’s geographic or topic-based, your marketing needs will be better served if a group has chosen to narrow in on 1 specific area. A group with a million people that has 20 new posts each day has plenty of activity, but it won’t be nearly focused enough to meet your marketing needs.
- Exclusivity. By this, we mean the group doesn’t let people enter willy-nilly—there are usually at least 1-2 qualifying questions asked about their rationale for joining and entrance is subject to a moderator’s approval.
Be helpful
Once you’ve found the groups that are in your sweet spot on the Activity-Focus-Exclusivity continuum, then just get down to the business of being helpful. Answer people’s questions or comment on their topics without any expectation of what the outcome will be. Post helpful content of your own—even if it’s just a news story in the legal field that you find interesting. It goes a long way to building goodwill with the members.
As you interact with members, you may then find it strategically appropriate to send them a friend request. We assume that by now you’ve been upfront and told them you’re a lawyer. Ask if they would be interested in getting on your firm’s newsletter list (assumin, of course, that your firm has a newsletter that gets sent out—if not, that’s a subject for another time).
Any marketing on Facebook faces the typical sales cycle where a prospect is said to need to see a message 7-9 times before acting. In the legal profession it’s even longer, since you don’t know when they’ll need your services.
By participating in good Facebook groups and being helpful, you’ll have positioned yourself to be the lawyer they call when one is needed.
