Top 5 Social Media Myths for Attorneys Explained by Foster Web Marketing
Everyday, more professionals are accepting and adopting social media as an effective marketing tool. In the past, assumptions from the unknowing served as barriers to acceptance and deterred adoption.
To help sort through some of these popular concerns, that still exist even among adopters, I want to address the top five social media myths and excuses I often hear from attorneys explaining why they are skeptical of using social media.
Myth: Only kids and tech savvy people use social media.
Truth: There are a ton of attorneys, moms, students, social media professionals, companies and others blogging and using social networking. The blogger and networking space is divided into niches and networks of people that share similar interests and the plethora of existing networks is astounding. This allows for a very targeted marketing approach- if you identify your targets, you can find and reach them in the space. Some social media efforts are better than others and it boils down to content and how you market and optimize the opportunities.
Myth: You cannot build strong relationships via social media.
Truth: Relationship building is one of the most important factors in recruiting and retaining new clients. Social media allows us to show our personal and professional selves allowing others to make connections based on our real personality. The ease of constant contact helps us to connect with more than one person at a time and initiate and build individual relationships. This is how people get to know you as a person, form an opinion based on more than just professional references, and trust you, which is the most important consideration when hiring an attorney.
Myth: Social media marketing is not as effective as traditional marketing.
Truth: Using a combination of social media marketing and traditional marketing is the best solution. Traditional marketing methods will still reach targeted audiences and social media allows us to tap into other channels for passing along our message. It is the mix that is proved to be most effective.
Myth: Social media tactics are too time consuming.
Truth: Social media tactics could take hours and days, but they do not have to take that much time to be effective. The simple solution is to allot a certain amount of time each day for social media efforts. Set aside an hour or so and blog on Monday, network using LinkedIn or Facebook on Tuesday, use twitter when you have some down time, etc. Remember to go your own pace and plan what works best according to your personal preferences and goals. If you decide you do not want to take on the responsibilities yourself, hire someone in-house to or outsource your social media campaign to a marketing company.
Myth: Social media is too open-ended and rules for censorship do not exist, which can create problems.
Truth: Although there are not any written rules, the unwritten rule is simply, use your head. When using social media outlets, produce mindful, interesting content and do not write or post anything you would not want your mom to know about. As the line between our personal and professional appearance becomes blurred, keep in mind that you are always (and always have been) representing someone and you want to give the best representation that would make you proud.
Posted Under: Social Media for Attorneys Tags: facebook, Internet Marketing, linkedin, myspace, Social Marketing, Social Media for Attorneys, Twitter
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