Law firm digital marketing – top tip’s
I wanted to share some marketing insights for law firms based on the behaviours we see from the 1.7m consumers and SMEs using LegalBeagles to look for impartial help searching for a lawyer.
According to research conducted by the SRA in 2017, 8 out of 10 consumers needing legal advice do not seek legal help. Consumers and SMEs spend £12billion a year on law, creating a significant potential untapped market worth £48 billion!
It is clear that consumer behaviours and the power of technology are changing the way people buy legal services. New technologies and digital marketing presents a unique opportunity to reach those underserved consumers, grow a law firm’s business, build a trusted brand and be part of the solution of making the legal market fairer for everyone to access impartial, good quality legal help when they really need it.
So, based on the consumer trends we have seen and our own experience as a digital marketplace what are the tips we have learnt for law firms to prepare for digital marketing changes?
BUILD A STRONG, CREDIBLE AND TRUSTED DIGITAL REPUTATION
Consumers want additional information about you! There are 10,400 law firms competing for £12billion of retail business each year across England and Wales. Today, 71 % of consumers spend over an hour researching legal options and 66% consider between more than one provider, according to the most recent consultation from the SRA.
Consumers want to know what other clients thought about you.
As you read this, ratings and reviews are being generated about your firm. Reviews are an opportunity to take control of your narrative. Five simple stars are all a consumer comparing multiple firms needs to make that choice.
RETHINK THE WAY YOU COMMODITISE YOUR LEGAL PRODUCTS
Fixed fee pricing, it’s not a race to the bottom, it’s a race to the middle and a new market opportunity. The recently released SRA consultation on price transparency demonstrates a clear desire and demand for greater availability of pricing. Over the last decade we know that increasingly consumers, and remember we are all consumers at some point, want to see ratings in conjunction with price.
Our own regulator the SRA in their recent consultation says that 42% of consumers are guided by reputation and 32% by price. We believe that consumers will view the displayed prices as a barometer of overall affordability and pricing.
As we see it, fixed fee products become the window dressing and the main consideration for law firms should be a fair, transparent up-sell to the services required.
CREATE MEANINGFUL AND DISTINCTIVE CONTENT AND SHARE IT
Content is king. Your own website is the first and foremost location for content, but how do you amplify it to reach consumers at exactly the right moment - when they really need a lawyer. Every law firm in Wolverhampton, Southampton or Cardiff trying to attract local clients will have identical keywords and tags to optimise SEO and yet you will still have very heavy competition if you focus too heavily on short tail search parameters.
Competing with your peers and the budgets of larger law firms can only be achieved by creating emotional engagement and digital interaction that creates a positive perception of your brand even prior to direct communication and in time loyalty.
Blogging, participating in free advice surgeries and volunteering knowledge freely creates unique branded content and can help to engage digital communities across multiple communications channels. Building an authentic and rounded online presence amplifies your website, builds your brand and ultimately leads to more instructions!
These are straightforward strategies to directly connect your firm to consumers searching for good quality legal help when they really need it. If you think “we can only do one or two of them right now,” that’s a good place for your marketing team to make a start. This will accelerate the process of your law firm becoming part of the solution to increasing access to justice for that untapped market while increasing the bottom line for your practice.