In an industry where personal connections and trust are so important, leveraging the collective voice of your people through employee advocacy can greatly transform the impact of your firm’s social media efforts. Employee advocacy is when employees share and promote their firm’s work on their own social media channels. It’s important because:

1. More Reach: When employees share content, it reaches more people than just the firm’s official accounts – and oftentimes more of the right people.
2. Trust Factor: People trust recommendations from individuals they know more than corporate advertising.
3. Engagement Boost: Personal shares often get more likes, comments and shares, making the firm’s content more visible.
4. Team Unity: It gets the whole team involved and invested in the firm’s success.
5. New Opportunities: A wider audience can lead to new clients and matters coming from unexpected places.

Simply put, employee advocacy expands a firm’s presence online in a more personal and effective way, helping attract more clients and build a stronger brand. Here’s why it’s so important:

• Competitive Landscape: The battle for attention on social media is fierce among law firms. With an overflow of content, standing out requires firms to employ unique strategies.
• Human Touch Advantage: People resonate more with individual voices than corporate brands. Personal posts from thought leaders are seen as more authentic and engaging.
• The Power of Participation: Law firms now recognize the importance of involving everyone in their team in social media activities, not just the marketing department. This collective effort is key to maximizing engagement.
• Corporate Analog: Leading corporations have demonstrated the effectiveness of involving all employees in social media advocacy, investing in training and tools to facilitate this.
• Employee Advocacy Explained: Encouraging all employees to share the firm’s content and achievements on their personal networks amplifies reach and engagement, acting as a powerful marketing tool.
• Amplifying Social Media Reach: An example highlights how employee advocacy significantly increases the potential audience for content shared on platforms like LinkedIn.
• Awareness and Alignment: Sharing firm content helps employees stay informed about firm activities and aligns their understanding of the firm’s key messages and goals.
• Training for Empowerment: Essential to advocacy is providing employees with the knowledge and skills to effectively use social media, emphasizing the business value of their participation.
• Building Networks and Sharing Wisely: Social media training programs should guide employees on expanding their networks and selecting appropriate content to share, fostering a culture of knowledgeable sharing.
• The Benefits of Being an Advocate: Employees talking about their firm’s achievements can significantly enhance the firm’s image, attracting new clients and strengthening their professional brand.
• Law Firms Catching Up: Despite its proven success elsewhere, many law firms are still in the early stages of adopting employee advocacy programs.
• Leveraging Technology: Tools like LinkedIn Elevate, Clearview Social and Hootsuite Amplify simplify the advocacy process, allowing employees to easily share content and engage with their networks.
• Best Practices for Engagement: Employ an advocacy platform, setting clear guidelines and best practices (through trainings) for sharing and educating employees on the impact of their social media activity.

Best Practices to Encourage Employee Advocacy on Social Media

Here are best practices to motivate and get your employees to become enthusiastic brand ambassadors on social media:

1. Educate and Train Your Team: Start by educating your employees about the importance of social media in today’s business landscape and the significant role they can play in it. Provide training sessions on how to use social media effectively and ethically, focusing on dos and don’ts, privacy settings and the impact of their online activity on both their personal and professional lives.
2. Create Engaging and Shareable Content: For employees to share content, it must be relevant, engaging and valuable to their networks. Create a variety of content that appeals to different segments of your audience, including informative blog posts, industry news, achievements, and behind-the-scenes insights into your firm’s culture and values.
3. Make Sharing Easy: The simpler it is to share content, the more likely your employees will do it. Provide pre-written social media posts or tweets, links and easy-to-share graphics. Utilize social media management tools that allow for easy distribution of content to your employees, enabling them to share it on their profiles with just a couple of clicks.
4. Incentivize Participation: Recognize and reward employees who actively participate in sharing content. Incentives can range from public recognition in meetings or company newsletters to tangible rewards such as gift cards, bonuses or extra vacation days. Making advocacy rewarding and fun encourages ongoing participation.
5. Foster a Culture of Advocacy: Embed social media advocacy into your company culture by regularly communicating its importance and celebrating successes. Share examples of how employee advocacy has positively impacted the business, such as increased website traffic, lead generation or even new clients acquired through social media channels.
6. Provide a Content Library: Maintain a centralized content library where employees can easily find and access content to share. This repository should be regularly updated with fresh and relevant content, making it a go-to resource for employees looking for something interesting to share with their networks.
7. Encourage Authenticity: Encourage employees to personalize their shares with their commentary or insights. Authentic posts resonate more with audiences and can lead to higher engagement rates. Personal touches make the shared content feel less like a corporate message and more like a recommendation from a trusted friend.
8. Highlight Success Stories: Regularly highlight and share success stories of how employee advocacy has led to positive outcomes. This not only recognizes the contributing employees but also demonstrates the tangible benefits of advocacy to the rest of your team.
9. Ensure Clarity on Social Media Policies: Clear guidelines on what is appropriate to share and what is not are crucial to prevent potential missteps. Ensure that all employees are familiar with your firm’s social media policy, including confidentiality issues and the professional manner in which they should present themselves online.

The Strategic Advantage of Employee Advocacy

Investing in an employee advocacy program not only broadens your firm’s social media reach but also strengthens your brand through genuine engagement. By equipping employees with the right tools and knowledge, law firms can unlock the full potential of their social media efforts, resulting in increased visibility, engagement and tangible business outcomes.