Everything About Facebook Ads Cost

It can seem like everybody's doing it—there are so many ads on Facebook today that average cost per click prices have gone up by 23 percent in just the last few months.  Can your law firm handle the cost of Facebook ads?  Do Facebook ads cost too much to be worthwhile for your firm's marketing strategy?  Keep reading this guide to find out the newest trends in how much Facebook ads cost, and how you can minimize the cost of Facebook ads while still targeting the customers who'll give you the best return.

Is the Cost of Facebook Ads Worth It?

The question of whether Facebook ads cost too much has been explored and answered in different ways by several big companies.  On the eve of Facebook's initial public offering, car manufacturing giant General Motors announced publicly that it would no longer continue advertising on Facebook due to the high costs and low return on investment.

When a high profile company like GM runs away from a potential advertising strategy because it's too expensive, it causes a lot of other companies to stop and consider whether the cost of Facebook ads has risen too much, too fast.

Your law firm isn't a car company—and when it comes to whether Facebook ads cost too much, that's important.  General Motors was targeting its ads at a huge, national base of customers in a recession where car sales have already been stagnant.  

Tracking What My Facebook Ads Cost

When you use Facebook advertising, you can track the cost of Facebook ads by viewing your performance report.  You'll be able to export your report into a .csv file in order to analyze it with another advertising analytics program, or you can use Facebook's software to analyze your campaigns at no extra cost.

It's a good idea to use split tests on your ads to determine what makes Facebook ads cost more per click.  If you're getting great results with a particular demographic, the cost of Facebook ads targeting that demographic may be worth paying, but another ad may be generating such poor results that you'll decide to cancel one campaign.

Reducing the Cost of Facebook Ads: Analytics for Beginners

Using analytics and split testing can also help you figure out what to do in your next campaign to reduce what Facebook ads cost.  Change just one thing at a time when you want to do true split testing, or you won't be able to see which changes really worked so that you can effectively minimize the cost of Facebook ads.

The goal of analytics isn't just to choose between two advertisements you're considering.  Instead, analytics can lower the overall cost of Facebook ads by telling you what works best.  If you want analytics to work for you, you'll have to do it over and over again, learning from every round of testing and developing your ad strategies based on what you learn.

Video Ads: Great for Websites, Not for Facebook

If your firm has been having good luck with video marketing on your website or blog, you may wonder how much video Facebook ads cost.  However, the cost of Facebook ads of this type is actually so high that the website currently offers video ads as an option only for companies with a monthly Facebook advertising budget of at least $30,000.

Since video Facebook ads cost too much for law firms to really be able to implement, you can do the next best thing with your advertising.  Keep the cost of Facebook ads down by getting more fans for your Facebook page and posting videos in your feed.  

You can also let videos be a main component of your landing pages—just a little bit of multimedia can make your website much more likely to convert visitors.  By using these strategies, you won't have to worry about the high cost of Facebook ads with video but can still get all the advantages of using Facebook video.

Reducing the Cost of Facebook Ads: Easy Bidding Strategies

Facebook ads cost more today than they did even six months ago on a per-click or per-fan basis.  The best bidding strategy for beginners is to start your bidding relatively high, then reduce your bids periodically as long as you're not seeing a precipitous drop-off in return on investment.

After your advertisement gets at least 50 clicks, Facebook's automatic bid suggester will be updated, allowing you to see what Facebook thinks you would be most successful bidding.  Typically, your bid should be around the lower end of Facebook's suggested range.  Try dropping your bid one or two cents below this range at a time until you reach a click to cost ratio that you're comfortable with.

Do Any Facebook Ads Cost Nothing?

It can be pretty tough to keep track of the cost of Facebook ads if you're not used to doing web analytics.  If you're not having great results and don't want to pay what Facebook ads cost usually, you can try to use social media without direct ads.  

This can be tricky, and you may want a social media professional to help give you advice about using social media effectively in order to get the most out of your free Facebook marketing possibilities.

Facebook gives you a wide range of tools for advertising that don't cost you anything at all.  You can vastly increase the traffic to your law blog by posting interesting articles and summaries of your posts in your Facebook feed. You can also run polls and ask questions of your Facebook fans—a great way to get marketing information without the necessity of expensive focuses group testing.

If you're able to leverage your social media in the right way, you may not even need the additional cost of Facebook ads on the sidebar.  Once you've had some practice with taking your blog posts viral, or getting a video to be shared with people several degrees of separation away from you, you'll start to see a widening reach even without paying what direct Facebook ads cost.

You've created a marketing plan and have been following through with the points of the plan perfectly.  Just the same, you're not sure whether it's actually successful or not.  The results that you're seeing are questionable, open to interpretation.  What signs actually mean that a marketing plan is doomed?  In this guide, we'll look at several signs that can tell you that your marketing plan is in need of serious revision. 

#1: The Phone Isn't Ringing

One of the most obvious signs that the marketing plan you're using is failing to achieve results is when the phone is dead.  If there isn't new business coming in, eventually your firm is going to have trouble keeping the lights on—and that means that no matter how innovative or groundbreaking your marketing campaign seemed when you started it, whatever led to the silence in your office is something that needs to be changed.

If you're not getting new business, keep in mind that this isn't necessarily because of any one cause.  While this is definitely an indication that you need to change something about how your firm is handling its marketing, it's not much of an indication about what needs changed.  It's important to check every step in the process: are people clicking on your website?  Are people able to find your site, and is it usable?  Do they click away quickly, or stay and look at a few pages, then simply don't call?  Later in this guide, we'll cover some of the specific issues you may be having, with more specific solutions.

#2: You Can't Get People to Leave Good Reviews

Today, reviews mean a lot to people looking for an attorney.  In fact, the majority of internet users seeking legal services now check attorney review and rating websites before making a phone call to schedule their first consultation.  If you can't get people to leave good reviews for your law firm, it may be because your conception of marketing ends when the client walks in your door for the first time.

While marketing to get new clients is one of the things you should be doing, it's not the be-all, end-all of marketing.  Once clients come in, you need to stay focused on not only the law, but also your branding and keeping the client's image of you positive.

To make it more likely for people to leave you good reviews, you should also follow up with former clients, especially the ones who have had the best experiences with your law firm.  Follow-up is an important part of marketing, and if you use it correctly, your old clients will be your best advertisements to help you get new ones.

#3: People Aren't Clicking On Your Site

Sometimes, the reason that your phone isn't ringing is that people just aren't finding your website in the vast wilderness of the web.  If you suspect that people aren't able to find your website, you should be checking the traffic numbers.  First, check them over the long term: is it that your website has never really been generating much traffic, or has there been a precipitous drop?

If your web traffic seems to have dropped all of a sudden, check where the traffic was coming from and where it's no longer coming from now.  It may be that you have been de-listed on one or more search engines.  Typically, this happens when a search engine believes that your website is low quality or spam.  If you believe that you have been de-listed in error, search engines give you the opportunity to appeal, or to show that you have revised your website so that it is now in accordance with the webmaster guidelines set forth by the search engine.

If you have a relatively new website or one that has simply never had many visitors, you should consider search engine optimization.  This doesn't mean turning your website into spam—see the paragraph above for what happens to websites that try that technique.  Instead, search engine optimization today mostly works by making sure you have some, but not too many, keywords in your text and that you're getting backlinks from people with a good reputation.  Look for backlinks articles on lawfirms.laws.com for more information about how you can generate quality backlinks.

#4: People Are Clicking—Then Not Converting

If people are coming to your website but aren't filling out an online form or calling your office for a consultation, you have a problem: a low conversion rate.  Low conversion rates usually mean that some part of your website's content simply isn't working well.  In some cases, this is very literal: it could be a problem as simple as one browser having a difficult time rendering your website. 

If you've made sure that your website is viewable in all browsers—including browsers used on major smartphones—then the problem may be that you're not answering the questions that your visitors want answered as quickly as they hoped.  Your website design may also be unattractive to viewers.  You can check how people move through your website using a tool like Google Analytics, which will help you see the way people click through your site and where they leave.  By using this information with a bit of common sense, you'll be able to pinpoint where you're losing clients and fix the problems.

#5: You're Finding The Wrong Kind of Clients

Maybe clients are calling your office, but they aren't the right kind of clients.  They're not bringing you the kinds of cases you normally take, or they are almost always seeking pro bono representation when you really need paying clients—these situations can be frustrating for any attorney.

When these situations happen, you should consider that your marketing may be incorrectly targeted.  Consider making targeting the focus of your next marketing initiative, and if you're using pay per click ad words, make sure you're also using so-called “negative keywords” as well—in other words, search terms that, if a user uses them, make it so your ad will not appear to them.  For instance, you may want people to find your website when they search for “criminal defense attorney Denver,” but not “criminal defense attorney Denver pro bono.”

Every time you turn on your mobile phone, you're plugging into a massive GPS system that tracks where you are and even knows where you're likely to be headed.  This means that local mobile advertising has more ways to track and target possible clients than ever.  Whether your firm is still asking “what is mobile advertising?” or you've already started using some local targeting in your mobile ads, this guide will help you understand current best practices and get a great mobile campaign started.

What is Mobile Advertising Like Today?

While lawyers were largely ahead of the phone technology curve and adopted Blackberry technology long before the average consumer had even heard of smart phones, they still used clunky advertising methods.  Instead of making the most of the web's capacity to deliver images and videos, mobile ads were almost always exclusively text, often in the form of a direct SMS advertisement.

Today, that old image of what is mobile advertising has changed for good.  Local mobile advertising no longer means sending out a direct ad to everyone in your phone list.  Instead, you can use your mobile ads to target customers in your city, in your neighborhood, or even on your block.

Local mobile advertising can now take several different forms.  Increasingly, an answer to “what is mobile advertising” is the in-app banner ad.  If your law firm works with an advertising network, you can put local mobile advertising into the apps local customers are using most frequently.

If you're still waiting to see what mobile advertising is capable of, you may want to try using Facebook's targeted mobile ads.  This form of local mobile advertising lets you put “sponsored stories” into the news feeds of your target audience, giving you incredible visibility and great click through rates.

What is Mobile Advertising Useful For?

It may surprise you to learn that soon, people will be spending more time on average browsing the web from their phones than from their computers.  Local mobile advertising lets you get in on the ground floor of this new market.

One of the best answers to the question “what is mobile advertising good for?” is also one of the most obvious.  When someone sees your traditional web advertising, they're usually on a desktop computer.  Desktops make it easy to do a lot of research at once.  After the research is done, your potential client may or may not get up from their office chair, pick up the phone, and give your office a call.

When someone sees your local mobile advertising, though, everything is different.  Comparison shopping isn't as easy on a smart phone as it is on a desktop, so your clients aren't likely to see your ad, but then go elsewhere for the same services.  What is mobile advertising useful for?  Making it incredibly easy to contact your firm, specifically, after someone sees your ad.

Designing Great Local Mobile Advertising

If you're new to mobile markets, you may still be asking “what is mobile advertising supposed to look like?”  The answer is: less like your standard website than you may think.  Mobile consumers want something different from web browsing clients.  Instead of peddling a huge amount of information, you're better off using your local mobile advertising to target very niche market segments and direct them to your landing pages.

Some of the best local mobile advertising today is actually video based.  The vast majority of clients will want to hire a lawyer who is local, and you can show people using a mobile ad that you're part of the community they work and live in.  Having great mobile tie-in videos that expand on videos you've already been successful marketing on the web can be a great way to get conversions fast from mobile customers.

Defining “Local” and Changes to What is Mobile Advertising

A few years ago, local targeting meant search engine optimization based around local keywords.  That's no longer the way great law firms are keeping their ad viewers local.  Depending on what mobile ad platform you're using, you can target people in whatever local area works best for you. 

Some mobile ad networks give you the ability to target based on a cell phone's GPS data.  If you wanted to, you could limit what was considered “local” to such a tight circle that any of your ad targets could hear you shout out your office window.  Now, most law firms don't need that kind of incredibly tight local targeting, but it's good to know that you have options.

Be a little bit careful when using that demographic data, though.  If you are broadcasting the signal “I know all about you already” with your ads, viewers can be turned off or even think that you would use their data unethically.  When you're targeting just one very tiny demographic with a local mobile advertising campaign, you want to sound like a lawyer, not a stalker.

What is Mobile Advertising Going to Look Like in the Future?

Five years ago, if you had asked a marketing professional the question “what is mobile advertising?” you'd have probably gotten an answer about text messages being used a lot like direct mail flyers.  Five years from now, there will probably be new ways to target local mobile advertising that make today's methods look primitive by contrast.

Already, some mobile marketing companies are using data mining technology to target consumers who appear to be going through specific life events.  Imagine the possibilities if you're a divorce attorney or work with probate cases!  Instead of just talking to random consumers in a particular demographic, soon you'll be able to show your ads to the exact people who need them most.

As local mobile advertising keeps changing, you'll want to keep an eye on changes to your ethical responsibilities.  Bar associations have been trying to figure out how to balance lawyers' need for efficient marketing with the ethical and professional responsibilities that come with being an attorney, and your state bar may end up prohibiting some new forms of marketing.

When you're creating blogs for your law firm, you have a huge number of choices to make.  Since some of those choices are so huge, like deciding what topic to use for your law blog, it can be hard to remember some of the other decisions you'll have to make.  One of the biggest in the long term can be whether to brand your law blog with your law firm, or whether to have attorneys maintain their own blogs that are only indirectly tied to your website.  Both of these approaches have significant advantages and disadvantages, and which one your law firm should use depends largely on what kind of marketing campaigns you're planning to run.

What Does it Mean to Brand Your Blog?

A blog that is branded with a law firm's name may be hosted on the website for the law firm, or may simply include the firm's name on its title page.  If you're branding your law blog, it means that the opinions being expressed in that blog will be considered by readers to be the opinions of your firm as a whole.

It's also possible for your attorneys to have their own blogs, which would usually have a link back to your blog in the sidebar, but only just as a reference for where the attorney works.  Depending on their blog's content, the attorney might also occasionally link back to your firm.  This kind of blog can be promoted in social media by your firm in many of the same ways that a branded blog can be, but the opinions expressed on it will be those of a particular attorney, and may not always represent the opinions of the firm as a whole.

Why Would Branded Blogs Be Problematic?

In some cases, social media experts actually recommend against having branded blogs if you want to have high quality blog writing.  Why?  The sad truth is that many branded law firm blogs have historically contained too much garbled SEO content and too little actual quality writing.  If you are planning to have a well written blog, it can sometimes be an uphill battle to be taken seriously when your blog is also being used expressly as a marketing tool.

Attorney blogs, because they can be more personal and don't have the “corporate” vibe that some branded law blogs can give off, can sometimes be a better choice for authenticity.  If individual voices and authenticity are major components of your marketing strategy, you may want to consider this kind of blog instead of having a firm-wide branded blog.

Can You Still Create a Good Branded Blog?

Just because branded blogs can carry some stigma doesn't mean that you should automatically cross them off your list of possibilities.  As long as you're committed to providing quality content and you link your blog from social media sources, you can still get great play from your branded blog.

There are several things that branded blogs actually do substantially better than non-branded ones.  The biggest one is probably search engine optimization.  SEO for your law firm will be easier with a branded blog because your firm's name will appear more times in the page and will be more likely to draw the attention of major search engines like Google and Bing.  The key is quality content that has goals and direction.  Don't make your blog entries seem like glorified advertisements.  Keep your advertising separate from your blogging and make sure that every blog entry you create is informative to the kinds of clients that your firm hopes to attract.

Non-Branded Attorney Blogs: Still a Great Tool

You may think that because a non-branded attorney blog wouldn't help as much with search engine optimization, that it might not be very useful for your firm.  However, SEO strategies are only the beginning of online legal marketing techniques today.  A non-branded attorney blog, especially if it's about a specific practice area, can actually still be a fantastic way to market your firm.

How?  Simply put, no matter what, when an attorney works for your firm, they're connected to you.  If they're writing an excellent blog entry that goes viral, getting traffic from major legal blogs or even mainstream blogs, the linking blogs will often include a link to your firm as well.  This kind of reputation enhancement can serve your firm very well and set you apart from the competition, especially if your attorneys get a reputation online for being helpful and informative.

Make sure that you're keeping an eye on attorney blogs.  Your attorneys need to be showing the best side of your firm, and you don't want for an entry made hastily to reflect poorly on your firm's other lawyers.

Your attorneys should also pay attention to their comments sections and make sure they are well moderated.  Spam comments will reflect poorly on their writing and the blog's overall placement in search engine results.

Getting the Most For Your Firm From Blogs

If you want to make sure that your law firm blog is getting the most traffic that it possibly can, you'll want to interact with other parts of the blogosphere as well.  For example, you should consider commenting on other law blogs, as well as the social media profiles of other attorneys and law firms.  You should also ask about the possibility of writing a guest post on a blog written by someone you professionally admire.

The more ways that you cross-promote your blog entries, the more successful you'll be.  However, this means that you shouldn't overload your audience.  Don't have a new blog post up every day—you're actually much more likely to have your posts read if you post only two or three times per week.  This is a much more manageable amount of writing for your readers to look at, and won't cause anyone to unsubscribe from you because of the amount you're posting.

When you give your phone number out to someone today, do you give your home landline number, or a mobile number?  For an increasing number of Americans, cell phones are an important part of life—in fact, over a third of Americans report that they no longer even have a landline phone.  As mobile phones get smarter and more common, law firms should start thinking about mobile marketing.  Having a mobile-friendly version of your website was once just a novelty.  In today's mobile-based world, it's a necessity.  Here are eight reasons that the legal marketing landscape is changing in a way that is favorable to lawyers who get on the mobile bandwagon.

#1: Smartphones Are Getting Cheaper And More Widespread

When smartphones came out, in the form of the Blackberry and other similar devices, they were regarded as gadgets best suited for high-powered businesspeople and tech geeks.  Today, the situation on the ground has changed dramatically: Over half of Americans now own a smartphone.

Smartphones, in addition to allowing basic telephony features, also let people connect to the internet, watch videos, use maps and global positioning satellite systems, and even play games or use apps.  The huge market share of smartphones has come as the result of steep price drops, including many which are now free with plan purchases.  The ubiquity of smartphone technology means that attorneys can no longer simply assume that their target market doesn't use smartphones—while younger demographics are certainly more likely to have a new iPhone or Android device than older people, all demographics are buying smartphones at an unprecedented rate.

#2: Better 3G and 4G Coverage

The first smartphones had data connections that were extremely slow compared to the speeds available for desktop web browsing at the time.  Typically, the first generation of data connections for smartphones only allowed a connection speed that was about the same as a dial-up modem.

Today, that's all changed.  Third and fourth generation data systems (abbreviated to 3G and 4G) allow for faster transmission and exchange of data than ever before through smartphones.  Today, 4G coverage, which is as fast or faster than many home broadband connections, is rolling out or already exists in hundreds of cities in the United States, while 3G connections can be found even in smaller towns and along major United States highways.  This better data coverage means that people are able to use their smartphones to get online more often and with less frustration—a great thing for marketers.

#3: Less Expensive Data

While some carriers have discontinued unlimited data plans, other cell phone service providers have stepped up to the plate to provide unlimited, flat rate data services.  When the data rate (the amount of internet downloading/uploading you're doing) is lower, people are more willing to do web searches on their cell phones.

#4: Conversion Ready Customers

It's hard to think of a type of client that's better to get than someone who's looking at their cell phone when they see your website.  After all, if they like what they see, it couldn't be easier: all they need to do is simply press the phone number on your website and the smartphone will dial it automatically.  Smartphones and mobile internet make it easier than ever for potential clients to get in touch with you right away, without the kinds of hesitations and second guessing that can make it significantly more difficult to convert new clients.

#5: More Tablet PCs

Smartphones aren't the only game in town when it comes to mobile computing.  With its introduction of the iPad, Apple began the rise of the tablet PC.  While tablet computing had been tried before, the iPad was the first device to become truly commercially successful using a touchscreen tablet interface.

Much like smartphones, tablet PCs often use mobile internet, including 3G and 4G.  These devices are considered mobile platforms for the purposes of marketing, because tablet viewers will see your mobile website, not your main site, first.  Mobile marketing to tablet users looks identical to mobile marketing to smartphone users, because the two types of devices actually use many of the same apps and graphics features.

#6: Social/Mobile Marketing Combinations

Sometimes, two great marketing tastes go great together.  If social media is peanut butter, then mobile marketing is definitely chocolate.  When you get your social media into your mobile marketing, you'll start seeing definite signs of success.  Why?  Because people like to use their social media accounts when on their smartphones.

Smartphone users are more likely to be users of various social websites, like Facebook and Twitter.  This means that whenever you do social media marketing, you should make sure that all your links are viewable by anyone who is using a mobile device.  Try checking on several devices with different operating systems (iOS, Android) before confirming that a web page is necessarily mobile friendly.

#7: The Rise of the Planet of the Apps

One of the other ways people interact with their mobile phones is through the use of “apps.”  Apps are a great way for attorneys to interact with potential clients.  Keep in mind that not everyone uses an internet browser and search functions any more.  Consider having an app that relates to your practice area.  For example, criminal defense attorneys may want to create apps that will help people understand how to interact during a routine traffic stop or a request to search a vehicle.

#8: Decrease in Desktop PC Market Share

It's been about 35 years since desktop PCs for the home market began to see initial sales.  However, the sales of desktop PCs have slowed.  Many specifications for desktop PCs haven't changed appreciably in several years, while significantly more innovation has occurred in the mobile realm.

It's unlikely that we'll see the desktop PC going away any time soon.  However, the ease with which clients can contact you after seeing your firm's mobile website means that you can't just rely on your desktop site forever.

It's the big daddy of search engines for a reason: Google's technology innovations changed the search world forever, and it currently dominates the market with a 66% share.  With over 1 billion unique visitors worldwide doing Google searches every month, you can't afford not to do website submission to Google.  Website submission for Google is an easy and necessary part of the process of increasing your website's traffic and search engine rankings.  Keep reading to find out how to do website submission to Google, and why Google website submission should be at the top of your to-do list if you haven't done it already.

What is Google Website Submission?

When you put your website online, you may make the mistake of thinking that search engines will just find it automatically.  While it's possible to have your website indexed without website submission to Google, Google website submission ensures that your website is part of the internet Google knows about right away.  As long as when you do your website submission for Google, your website meets quality guidelines, you can find it in search results relatively soon after it is submitted.

Another part of Google website submission is site index submission.  When you do a website submission for Google, you'll only be indexing that page and the pages it is linked to.  If instead of just doing a website submission to Google, you're also giving the search engine your site index, all of the pages will be indexed and it will be substantially easier to get traffic to all parts of your website.

When Should We Start Using Google Website Submission?

While you may want to do website submission for Google right away, it's usually a good idea to check your website out first and make sure that it looks exactly the way that you want it to when Google indexes it.  Doing your website submission to Google too soon could result in needing to re-submit after fixing some of the problems you find.

To avoid this situation, try your website out on several different operating systems (Windows, Mac, iOS, Android) and more than one browser (Safari, Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer).  By trying several different operating systems and browsers, you can be satisfied that all web users will be able to see your Google website submission, not just those using a particular piece of software.  

You should also make sure, before you do a website submission for Google, that your website is running fast.  Google, like several other search engines, takes speed into account.  If you do your website submission to Google when your hosting provider is providing slow, laggy hosting, you can expect your search engine rankings to start low and stay there.  You're much more likely to have a successful Google website submission with fast, reliable hosting.

Where Do We Do Website Submission For Google?

The URL you need to go to in order to do a Google website submission is pretty easy to remember: www.google.com/submityourcontent/.  By following the directions, you can not only start to do a website submission to Google, but also work on your site index and make sure that you're able to meet all of Google's web quality guidelines.  After you're done doing your Google website submission on this page, you may want to look around for some more Google tools to enhance your web traffic, like Google Analytics.  Unlike website submission for Google, Analytics will require you to insert a small piece of code from Google to your website so that you can verify your ownership of the site.  Website submission to Google requires no verification—after all, it's basically never a malicious thing to do to submit a website to search engines.

Why Should We Submit Our Website to Google?

Whether or not you do website submission to Google, your website will take some time to index and really start showing up in SERPs.  Every day that you aren't getting those search engine rankings is a day that you're having to spend more money on advertising to get the same number of site visitors, so it's critical to do a Google website submission in order to get it listed as quickly as possible.

Some online marketing gurus swear that doing a website submission for Google actually makes it take longer for a website to show up in search results.  Don't believe this: usually, people saying this about website submission to Google are trying to sell their own method of building search rankings and are biased against free solutions.  There's no reason to spend money you don't have to: Google website submission is fast, free, and effective.

Do We Need to Submit Our Website to Other Search Engines?

Website submission for Google is easy, and you may think that when your submission is done you don't need to keep submitting to search engines.  While it's true that Google's market share is very dominant, would you turn away 1/3 of clients who walked into your door just because they asked for directions from the wrong person?  Then why eliminate the 1/3 of web users who prefer other search engines to Google?

While website submission for Google is a great first step, it can't be the only step.  You'll also want to submit your website to Yahoo and Bing, as well as to several different directories.  This will make it much more likely that your website will be indexed fast.  Each of these search engines takes only a few minutes to submit to, much like creating a website submission to Google.

Using Auto-Submission Software

If you want to maximize your efficiency when doing website submission to Google, you can download some utility programs to help.  An auto-submission utility will do website submission for Google, Bing, Yahoo, and any other search engine you want in a matter of minutes.  The key advantage of using this kind of software is that you can get consistency—and it makes it possible to submit for several search engines in the same time that it would have taken you to just do website submission for Google in the past.

In today's United States, over 80 percent of internet users are now using some kind of social media.  With most prospective clients using the internet to find the right law firm, social media can be viewed as one of the most important aspects of your customer service policy.  It guides, to a large extent, how people will share the experience of your firm when they discuss it with friends, colleagues, or loved ones.  It's often your first point of contact with new potential clients.  And—much like with customer service—if you're not careful, it can cause problems for your firm.

Goals of Social Media for Forward-Thinking Lawyers

There's a tendency, when law firm marketers write about how law firms can use social media, to act like social media is completely revolutionary.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  While social media has certainly given people new ways to interact, in many ways, social media is simply a technological outgrowth of what used to be the public sphere.  Instead of gathering in public to share information and knowledge, people now gather online.

This means that you need to think of your social media campaigns as a way to communicate and get out your message to new audiences.  It's not just a game to be played for “likes,” friends, and comments.  Instead, social media is the best and easiest way to make your voice heard above the din of your competition.

Forward-thinking attorneys know that the success of their social media campaigns depends largely on authenticity.  Sounding inauthentic while writing social media content is one of the fastest ways to alienate connections and lose your online influence.  You should always strive for a voice that reflects, in some way, the real personality of your law firm.

Social Media is a Marathon, Not a Sprint

When some law firms start using social media, they think that tossing out a quick profile or two and updating their listings on Google Local will give them everything they need.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  While it's true that there are some things you should always do to give yourself a good start in social media, the majority of your results from these channels will come from using them consistently and thoughtfully over a long period of time.

This means that you don't need to try to build Rome in a day.  While you shouldn't make your Facebook page go live until it's ready, remember that you don't need to post all of your good ideas at once.  Pace yourself and space out your audience engagement opportunities—this will make it more easy for people to interact and less likely that your pages will be regarded as potential spam by readers.

You don't have to hover on your social media pages, either.  While it's good to monitor the conversations that are being had on your pages, sometimes it's a better idea to let those conversations evolve naturally, instead of trying to steer them or respond to every comment.  Over-responsiveness can sometimes seem almost oppressive to clients—you want to give the impression of good customer service, not a stalker.

Understanding Your Social Influence

One of the hardest things for some marketing gurus to understand about social media is that it's not always easy to compute whether you're getting worse or better at the social media game.  One way that you can tell, of course, involves asking people in client surveys how they heard about your firm.  However, this kind of survey won't detect if, for instance, people's attitudes about your firm were already more favorable because of an infographic that you posted through social media channels, or a case you won in which the news story went viral.

Integrating Social Media Platforms

You may think that when you start using social media for your law firm, you should pick one main social media platform and stick with it.  While it's usually a good idea to learn just one new social media website at a time, don't be afraid to use several different social media sites in order to help you build your web presence.  For example, you may want to post a link from your blog on Reddit or another social content aggregator.

Make sure that when you're integrating social media platforms for your law firm, you're not just parroting the exact same information on every medium.  Your medium should dictate the message to some extent.  For example, while some headlines are designed for the character limit allowed on Twitter, you wouldn't want to simply have a blog that copied all your tweets.  Let community norms dictate how you write for your audience on each of the social media websites your law firm chooses to use in your marketing efforts.

When you post to social media platforms, make sure you're not just posting what you want to see, but what your potential clients want to see.  Even if you think a topic is very basic, if it's a topic you hear a lot of questions about from new clients, it may be worth discussing in a long Facebook post or blog update.

Monitoring Social Media Trends and New Opportunities

One of the only constants in the social media landscape is that it's constantly changing.  The social media platforms that are biggest in 2013 could be completely dead by 2020, or going stronger than ever.  In order to keep from spending your marketing dollars on dying, off-trend websites, make sure that you're keeping an eye on legal marketing blogs and pages about social media.  Make your decisions based on up to date information, keeping in mind that even a year can be a long time when it comes to following internet trends.

When you do find a new trend, make sure you analyze it to make sure it has relevance to your firm specifically, not marketing or law firm marketing more generally.  Not every idea will be a good fit, and you can save time and money by directing your energy toward the platforms that work best for your firm's focus areas.