Is there anyone out there?

Memorial Day is here, summer is about to begin and life may slow down a little. So it’s probably time to review how your Internet marketing efforts are progressing. Let’s assume, for example, that your website has been up and running for some time and you’ve been reasonably faithful posting to your blog. Has the feedback on your site been restricted to casual comments from clients or colleagues?

There is a better way.

You need an analytics program. A program such as Google Analytics, which is free, can be incredibly useful. It can track the traffic to your site and help you answer all kinds of questions such as:

• How many people visit my website?
• How do they get there?
• What pages are most popular?
• How long do they stay?
• Where do the users live? or
• Are they using a mobile device and, if so, which one?

To install Google Analytics, you first need a Google Account—the same one you use for Gmail, Google Drive or Google+. Go to Google Analytics and click the sign in button in the top right-hand corner, sign in and follow the directions to set up Analytics on your webpage. (If that fails, find a techie type to do it for you. I did.)

To judge the effectiveness of your site, you’ll want to know how many visitors stop by and how long they stay. The overview report will tell you the number of visitors. The statistic, called bounce rate, tells you the percentage of people who leave your site after seeing one page.

If your bounce rate, for example, is 75%, it means that ¾th of your visitors left after one page. A bounce rate of 50% or less is considered good. If your rate is 50% to 70% your site could use some revising and, if higher, a complete overhaul may be needed. There is a statistic for “Average Session Duration” telling how long visitors stayed on the site. If there is a high bounce rate but visitors are staying for more than 10 seconds—then maybe a little updating of the site will do the job.

You also want to know how your readers got to your page. Again, Google has the answer. To find an overview of all your traffic sources click on Acquisition > All Traffic > Channels. This report tells you the number of people finding you through:

• Direct--people typing your site name in their browser,
• Social networks,
• Referral--links from other sites to get to you,
• Email, or
• People clicking through from search engines.

Want to know how your Tweets, posts on Facebook or LinkedIn are working?

Google has a report on social media found under Admin on the main page. Click on Acquisition > Social > Network referrals. At-a-glance, you can see which social network sends you the most visits to your website. The report is available in numbers—most to least—or as a pie chart.

The amount of information available from Google Analytics is extensive. If you want to narrow the results, you can set up goals for your traffic statistics. Using the goals template found on the main page under Admin, you decide which actions you value most whether it’s time on the page or how visitors found you or if they landed on a particular page on your website. For example, you could set up a thank you page for a contact form submission. Once established Google will track how many visitors completed the form and received a Thank-you, giving you the number of visitors who took action or the conversion rate.

Knowing what is working on your website is vital to your marketing campaign. Google Analytics can help you find some answers.

Twitter in 2016

Twitter, a social media platform, which began as a way for friends to stay in touch, has grown to be both a networking tool and news source. Adding Twitter to your marketing plans gives you a way to connect with your peers, state and local bar associations and potential clients. It is an easy to use, inexpensive way to promote your firm.

Twitter is social. To get the most out of Twitter, remember its social relationship aspect. It is a conversation, which means you should respond to your follower’s tweets with a comment, re-tweet (forward a tweet to your followers) or indicating a tweet as a favorite.

Twitter is a news source. Spend a little time to find and post interesting news items that relate to your clients. Rather than simply tweeting copies of your followers, find something humorous, unique or insightful to share. If another has posted a bit of breaking news, add a comment to help readers understand it.

Twitter can boost your reputation. Tweeting interesting content for the general public can bring visitors to your website and build relationships. Adopting a friendly tone can ease consumer’s angst at contacting an attorney. Consumers are more likely to call someone who seems approachable.

Twitter promotes your firm. When you write a new blog post of interest to your clients, tweet about it. If you are featured in your local paper or going to speak at an event, let your followers know with a tweet.

Twitter tips:

• Limit your tweets to interesting information relevant to your practice.
• Set up a realistic schedule for posting—one you can live with—once a day, once every two days---don’t be an absentee tweeter.
• Read before you post. Sending out tweets full of errors does nothing for your reputation. Read tweets carefully to be sure they say what you want them to say.
• Should “trolls” or critics appear, don’t reply. Let it go.

The experts recommend that of ten tweets, five should post links to news articles, blogs, newsletters, three are interactions with other twitter users, one for your promotional materials and one for personal interests. It’s very possible someone in Twitter land enjoys sailing or knitting or the opera and would like to set up a conversation.

Remember that everything you write is public and can’t be erased. And you know to never give legal advice or answer complicated legal questions--stick with news and posts in your area of practice. If in doubt about the content of your tweet, call your State Bar Association for information.

Twitter can be a great resource of information, a place for you to network with other lawyers in your area of expertise or your city, a way to keep in touch with clients and develop your personal brand. Use it wisely and, over time, you will add followers, build relationships with potential clients and your practice will grow.

How to Network Face to Face

Face to face networking should be a big part of your marketing plans.

Meeting people face to face, sharing experiences, ideas and interests is a valuable opportunity to keep your name and practice a step ahead. Meeting in person lets your online acquaintances put a face to the name they see on the blog or e-mail or website and helps build trust while creating a positive rapport for future discussions.

In person networking takes time and there is a slight risk you will be off your game that day. Be that as it may, face to face meetings are an opportunity to build stronger and mutually beneficial relationships. And, don’t forget, professional networking can take place at dinners, social events, your child’s football or dance recital and even in elevators.

Networking at a reception

Once the decision to network in-person is made, the next questions are: “Who is your ideal client? And, what trade, industry or civic groups would they join?”

For example, if you’re are an animal law attorney, you might attend animal law conferences, volunteer at the local zoo or animal shelter or offer a workshop on establishing a trust for your pet. You can’t be everywhere so research to find associations that permit meaningful involvement and have active committees you can join. Simply joining the group isn’t enough—think about where your interests lie and what skills you can offer. Come to be known as a person who can add value to the group.

Before you attend an event, think about how to make the most of your time:

• Pinpoint your networking goal,
• Discover who will be there, decide who you want to meet and ask yourself what you want to know about them,
• Have a 10 second introduction ready. People want to know both your name and area of practice, and
• Think about what you have to give to others. 

Now you’re at the event, it’s the cocktail hour, everyone is milling around. Some of you are naturals at these events—you can schmooze with the best of them. Most of us could use some opening lines, such as:

1. How long have you been a member of this organization?
2. What keeps you busy outside of your practice?
3. What got you interested in ________________?
4. I read your book, blog, article …,
5. I just saw on LinkedIn that we went to the same college.

Leave the conversation gracefully. You can do this by introducing the person to a new arrival if known or simply comment on how much you’ve enjoyed talking with them and excuse yourself. Then move on.

You aren’t done simply because the event is over. If you promised a follow-up, do it or you will lose credibility that you can never get back. Within a week of the event, follow through with your new or recharged contacts. If you provided them with promised information, or introduced them to a new contact check to see if things worked out.

A healthy network is made up of contacts from all parts of your life. Be sure your family, friends, acquaintances, vendors at the office, your staff and court staff all know what type of law you practice. Face to face networking added to your Internet campaign will help your practice grow.

Face to Face Networking