Marketing for Law Firms - SEO, Social Media, PR

Since the referral fee ban back in April 2013, the legal sector (namely personal injury solicitors) have had to be more creative and rethink how they generate leads and new business.

Law firms that once used to pay for leads/referrals can’t anymore.

So, firms of solicitors that didn’t change their marketing strategy significantly were either already pretty much getting it right or have now gone bust.

It’s been a tough 7 months for most law firms.

Here’s just a few options to consider for 2014:

Online marketing

• Search Engine Optimisation - hire an seo agency with a proven track record and make sure you budget for seo in 2014.
• Social Media - essential to help build brand awareness and a must if you want to rank highly in Google.
• Online PR - goes hand in hand with brand, seo and social media.
• Google AdWords - an ideal way to generate initial traffic and test how your website converts.

Offline marketing

• Offline PR - builds credibility and brand awareness.
• TV Advertising - gets your brand in front of potential claimants.
• Radio Advertising - offers efficient targeting, radio ads aren't as easy to ignore as they are on TV.
• Outdoor Advertising - Includes billboard / vehicle advertising. Has a lower cost per thousand than other forms of advertising.
• Other Marketing (printed media, beermats, leaflets etc) - Be creative, think outside of the box. Think: where, why and how.

What about brand?

Of course, you can spend all the money in the world on marketing and advertising but without considering brand first you could well be throwing money away. Choosing a firm of solicitors following an accident isn’t as simple as choosing a new pair of shoes or deciding where to buy insurance from… it’s a big thing to make a claim for compensation so people will, more often than not, choose a brand they know and feel they can trust. A brand that will do them justice.

They’ll choose a brand they can relate to, a brand who’ve been referred to them by friends and family (word of mouth), a brand they’ve ‘seen around’ (TV advertising, Social Media, SEO, PR, Billboards, Taxi's, Buses) and read or heard about (Radio, Social Media).

So it’s hugely important to know what your brand is and what it stands for. Getting this right will give your marketing efforts a better chance to be successful.

We think the following law firms are getting it right:

 

Brand

TRUE Solicitors
First4Lawyers

Social Media

Irwin Mitchell

SEO

Irwin Mitchell
Slater & Gordon Lawyers
Thompsons Solicitors 

 

TV Advertising

InjuryLawyers4U
First4Lawyers

The above list is only a small percentage of solicitors who are obviously doing something right as they’re at the forefront of our minds. 

Are there any other law firms that you think are getting it right and any who are getting it wrong? Let us know your thoughts… leave a comment further down.

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