Are you a lawyer interested in leveraging the immense potential of social media for advertising? Before you dive in, it’s crucial to understand the rules and regulations that govern lawyer advertising. In this comprehensive guide, we’ll explore 7 essential things you need to know about lawyer advertising on social media to help you navigate the landscape effectively and ethically. Let’s delve into the world of lawyer advertising and unlock the opportunities it holds!
Social media marketing for lawyers is an excellent way to reach clients faster and stay on top of their minds. Like other businesses, law firms can also advertise their services on social media platforms. No matter what type of advertisement you choose, a strong presence on social media sites can improve your reputation and build a memorable brand among your audience.
However, you need to know that there are certain rules that law firms must abide by to get fruitful outcomes. Simply put, lawyers must follow the American Bar Association Rule 7.2 and the Canadian Bar Association rules for marketing their services on social media platforms. Even if lawyers or law firms want to share information regarding their service offerings on social media platforms, they are bound to follow these rules.
In addition to this, here are a few more lawyer advertising basics that you should practice as a legal attorney.
- Don’t Claim To Be An Expert
Claiming to be an expert in the niche or superior to others is a way to grab shot-lived attention on social media platforms. But in the long run, it is experience and expertise that matters. So, be careful when doing online marketing for lawyers.
Also, calling yourself a specialist is simply a bad idea in terms of lawyer marketing. An attorney should never describe oneself as a specialist in law practice. They cannot do so unless certified by the accredited organization in their district, state, or Canada.
However, focusing on specific niches such as criminal law, appellate law and others is perfectly fine, but you cannot showcase yourself as a criminal law specialist unless you’re certified.
- Do Not Make Misleading Statements
Making outright statements or sharing unsolicited information while doing legal marketing is a big NO. These misleading statements are like barefaced lies, which could be alleged as unlawful lawyer marketing. In addition to this, making misleading statements about your services, cases, client information, and charges is considered as breaking the legal advertisement rules.
Using glorious words like “the most,” “the best,” and “the topmost” when advertising lawyer firms can be concluded as unfaithful. For instance, posting about being the cheapest law firm across the geography is misleading and against lawyer advertising rules. However, if you talk about how your law firm provides flexible payment methods such as credit cards and other payment plans is considered to be a good marketing practice.
The rules of lawyer marketing are apparent, “Do not mislead your client and make untrue statements.” So be careful when making random bold statements on social media platforms. If possible, omit content that can still mislead clients and cause your law firm’s reputation at stake.
- Do Not Criticize Your Competitors
Undervaluing or criticizing competitors, their performance, and their services is strictly prohibited in the legal industry. Similarly, criticizing competitors is considered to be unethical in law firm marketing. When marketing your law firm, you need to make sure to treat your competitors with respect.
Do not compare your law firm services with others. Try to maintain healthy competition. Comparing your services to other law firms could spark a potentially hurtful statement and also be considered as criticizing your competitors. The simple rule here is to promote your firm through lawyer advertising but not undervalue others in any way.
- Follow ABA Rules When Posting Client Testimonies
Undoubtedly, posting genuine testimonies of previous clients helps to build trust and credibility. Almost all businesses post testimonials to promote their services and fetch more clients. When it comes to lawyer marketing, make sure you check all the instructions and rules before posting any form of testimony.
The Canadian Bar Association rule states, “Lawyers are not allowed to offer deals to clients to promote their law firm services.” You can post positive reviews and testimonies but do not create unrealistic expectations in your audience’s minds. Chances are, the reader may wish to have the same results. This doesn’t stand true always. So, make sure you steer clear of unethical practices.
While ethical rules apply to awards, publications, and other bar association memberships, legal industry publications, law-related posts, accolades, and other professional memberships are eligible to be used for lawyer advertising.
- Do Not Share Sensitive Information
When it comes to law firm advertising on social media platforms, it is vital to understand the lawyer marketing rules of your area. Attorneys cannot share the client’s case-sensitive information on social media.
Sharing pending case information on social media also leads to violation of lawyer advertising rules, and can be used against your case. Moreover, lawyers are prohibited from sharing fictitious details in their advertising. Sharing faux information and documents is also against the rules of legal marketing.
- Don’t Press Your Services
There’s a thin line between marketing your services and pleading for your services. Soliciting law firm services is strictly prohibited. But generally, petition and advertising are both terms used to attract clients.
However, there is a slight difference in how you can target them. Let’s understand it this way-
- Attorney advertising is a way of interaction made by lawyers about available services.
- An attorney petition is a lawyer marketing that directly targets a specific group or an individual. This kind of practice is typically unethical.
- Lawyer advertising is permitted on social media, as long as firms obey advertising rules.
- You cannot solicit services to target clients’ legal requirements through advertisements.
This means law firms can advertise their services in front of an online community without targeting a specific person. Moreover, responding to requests for legal information from visitors is not allowed.
- Know If You Can Use Trade Name
Jurisdictions and law firms have strict rules for recognizing information. The identifying information should be added in lawyer advertisements to avoid misleading the audience. Hence, it is vital to know if you can include a trading name in the advertisement.
Wrapping Up!!
In a nutshell, law firms have many limitations of lawyer advertising on social media platforms. Currently, several attorney firms are going digital to communicate with clients, find new opportunities to boost their visibility and build a strong brand name in the market. However, before proceeding with lawyer advertising, you need to update yourself about law firm marketing rules and implement them to avoid any legal violation.
Hope the above rules help you create better marketing strategies and attract new clients for your law firm. If you need any assistance, reach out to us. We’d be happy to help.
To know more, check out our blog on the 7 marketing strategies for lawyers that drive results.