This article is written by Zehra Jamal. The article deals with digital marketing strategies for lawyers. It discusses digital marketing and the importance of the same for lawyers. It further elaborates on the steps that are required to set up digital marketing, along with the mistakes that need to be avoided during the same. The article exhaustively tries to cover all the details regarding digital marketing for lawyers.

Table of Contents

Introduction

The world is moving at a very fast pace now-a-days. Everything is improving locally, as well as globally. If you just take a look around yourself, you will notice lots and lots of changes occurring to things around you. And if you actually put your mind to it, you will realise that the increase in digital marketing is one such phenomenon. You will notice that digital marketing has grown like crazy, everyone – here and there, now and then, is making use of digital marketing for some or other reasons. It has grown like it’s another basic yet undeniable aspect of life now. It has stretched its arm everywhere – from college to jobs, from freelancers to business professionals, etc. 

Since it is present everywhere, the need for the same has also been felt in the legal profession. The legal profession encompasses the phenomenon of digital marketing for various purposes. It is used by various law firms, lawyers, and other people engaged in the legal profession. This article talks about how to get started and go along with digital marketing with respect to lawyers and the legal profession. 

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The article is divided into five sub-parts. Firstly, it starts with discussion, what digital marketing is. It encompasses the broad features and important aspects of digital marketing. The second part of the article throws light on the need for digital marketing for lawyers. Moving forward, the third part of the article is the most important one. It provides the steps for setting up digital marketing, and it details the exhaustive steps needed to get started with digital marketing. The next part of the article details the mistakes that one needs to avoid while starting and continuing with digital marketing. Lastly, it is followed by the conclusion and frequently asked questions on the issue. 

What is digital marketing

The term ‘digital marketing’ means online advertisement or online marketing and promotion campaign. It is basically the advertising of brands to reach potential customers, through the use of the internet and other social media applications. It is also the promotion of brands just like traditional marketing, however, it is done through digital media, rather than traditional ways. There are several ways of digital marketing, which include web-based advertising, emails, social media, online videos, search engine marketing, etc., amongst others. Thus, digital marketing can essentially be defined as the advertisement or promotion of your brand or product by making use of digital media. 

Digital marketing is a vast space that covers a broad range of activities in multiple areas. It doesn’t limit itself to online marketing or online advertising. It, in fact, covers a vast number of activities, like from search engine optimisation to content writing. If seen from the customer’s point of view, this article might also be seen as an attempt to do digital marketing by the company. Therefore, we can conclude that digital marketing comes with a vast umbrella of activities, with the help of digital media. 

If we compare digital marketing with traditional marketing, we will find that both these kinds of marketing use almost similar kinds of principles, however, with one difference, i.e., digital marketing uses those principles in a digital space. There are various forms of digital marketing available nowadays, some of them includes: 

  • Sending emails,
  • Content writing, , 
  • Text messages on phones,
  • Search engine optimisation, 
  • Online videos, 
  • Social media platforms, etc.

While this is a small list of the forms of digital marketing, the actual methods go far on. There are numerous ways to advertise your product digitally, and this is, by far, the most important characteristic of digital marketing.

How is digital marketing different from digital advertising

Most people generally assume that digital marketing and digital advertising are the same thing, or they get confused between them. However, both of them are not the same. In fact, digital advertising is a subset of digital marketing. This part of the article will deal with the difference between digital marketing and digital advertising. It will further talk about advocate’s bar on advertising and the relevant statutes. 

Digital marketing usually refers to the use of digital media and the internet to market a product. On the other hand, digital advertising is a way of doing digital marketing. Digital advertising refers to a tactical application of digital marketing to reach potential clients. Digital advertising is also known as online advertising or online marketing. It is launching online advertisements through digital channels. Difference between digital marketing and digital advertising can be summed up as:

Digital marketing Digital advertising 
It refers to the use of digital media to promote brands. It is a type of digital marketing, which includes online advertisements. 
It has the feature to target audiences belonging to specific locations. It is not necessary that they target audiences belonging to specific locations. It depends on advertisement to advertisement basis. 
It has more control over its target audience.It has less control over its target audience. 
The strategy of digital marketing requires continuous guidance and adaptation. Not much attention is required to digital advertising once it is completed. 
It allows for real time interaction. It is more interactive in nature It is less interactive in nature. 
Examples – online advertising, SEO tools, websites, email marketing, etc. Examples – Google ads, Facebook ads, Instagram ads, etc. 

Advocates bar on advertising 

Since, we just learned how to go about digital marketing from the perspective of lawyers, we should also understand what all things can be advertised by lawyers or advocates. In order to understand the same, we first must understand that legal advertising is prohibited in India. The reason behind prohibition of legal advertising is that law is not a trade, and therefore, should not be treated like one. The ban on legal advertising in India was first introduced by British law, which later on found its origin in Indian law. While there can be several reasons for the same, the most prominent ones include:

  1. In order to protect the legal profession from being commercialised, there is a ban on legal advertising.
  2. Since law is a noble profession, therefore, in order to maintain its integrity, and to render quality services, legal advertising is prohibited in India.
  3. Legal advertising is prohibited to avoid unhealthy competition practices which might take the nature of misleading advertisements, which may result in distrust of the people in the legal profession. 

While the above reasons can be rendered for the prohibition of legal advertising in India, the main statute which prohibits legal advertising is Section 49(1)(c) of The Advocates Act, 1961 and Chapter II of Part VI of the Bar Council of India Rules. They are: 

Section 49(1)(c) of the Advocates Act, 1961

“49. General power of the Bar Council of India to make rules: [(1)] The Bar Council of India may make rules for discharging its functions under this Act, and, in particular, such rules may prescribe: 

(c) the standard of professional conduct and etiquette to be observed by advocates;”

A reading of the above section expresses that as per Section 49(1)(c) of the Advocates Act, 1961, the Bar Council of India (BCI) has the powers  to make rules and regulations regarding the standard of professional conduct and etiquette, which is required to be followed by an advocate. 

Chapter II of Part VI of the Bar Council of India Rules

As per Section 49(1)(c) of the Advocates Act, 1961, the Bar Council of India has laid down the ‘Standards of Professional Conduct and Etiquette’ under Chapter II of Part VI of BCI rules. While exercising the power given under Section 49(1)(c) of the Advocates Act, 1961, the Bar Council of India has provided for a bar against advertising and soliciting work under Rule 36 of Section IV (Chapter II, Part VI). It provides for the following things (not exclusive):

  1. No advocate should advertise or solicit their work, either through direct or indirect means. Such direct and indirect methods include circulars, personal communications, advertisements, or interviews, amongst others. 
  2. Advocates are also prohibited to produce photographs for publishing in relation to a case to which the advocate was connected. The rules also prohibit giving newspaper comments. 

Extent to which advertisement is allowed for advocates

Under Rule 36 of Section IV (Chapter II, Part VI) of the BCI Rules, advocates can advertise their brand, subject to the following conditions:

  1. The advocate can advertise his brand through the use of a reasonable size of sign board or name plate.
  2. Though, the said sign board or name plate of the advocate should not, in any condition, indicate any of the following: 
  • Specialisation of advocate in any type of work;
  • Previous record of advocate being an Advocate General or judge of any court;
  • Association of the Advocate with any organisation or any individual in any particular matter;
  • Post of the Advocate as the President or member of any bar council or association.

2008 amendment of the Bar Council of India Rules 

The above discussed Rule 36 of Section IV (Chapter II, Part VI) of the Bar Council of India Rules was amended in 2008. The object of the amendment was to provide some relaxations to advocates regarding advertisement. The said amendment allowed advocates to furnish their information on a website, subject to intimation and approval of the Bar Council of India. It provided that the following particulars of the advocates can be updated on the website:

  1. The name, telephone number, address, and email ID of the Advocate;
  2. The name of the Bar Council of the State where the advocate is originally enrolled;
  3. The enrollment number of the advocate, and the date of enrollment of the advocate;
  4. The areas in which advocate practices; 
  5. The name of the bar association of which the advocate is a member;
  6. The professional and academic qualifications of the advocate.

This amendment was made to the Bar Council of India Rules as a result of the case of V.B. Joshi vs. Union of India [WP(C) 532 of 2000], where the court allowed the advocates to advertise their service areas on the internet.

Punishment for violation of Rule 36 

Section 35 of the Advocates Act, 1961 provides for punishment in case of violation of Rule 36 of Section IV (Chapter II, Part VI) of the Bar Council of India Rules. It provides that if any advocate commits the breach of Rule 36, he shall be liable to be prosecuted for professional misconduct.

Section 35(1) of the Advocates Act 1961 further provides that the Bar Council of State has the power to punish an advocate for professional or other misconduct, and if the State Bar Council has either received a receipt of a complaint, or otherwise has reasons to believe that an advocate is guilty of professional or other misconduct, then the Bar Council of that state shall refer the case of the advocate for disposal to its disciplinary committee. 

Importance of  digital marketing for lawyers 

The legal profession is seen in the industry as a noble profession. It is believed to be the protector of the moral sanctity of the society. Lawyers are seen as the protectors and upholders of law and order in the society. Therefore, it is prominent that the details of the lawyer should be readily available to everyone. 

However, this is neither the only reason, nor the most important reason why digital marketing is needed for lawyers. The most important reason, why digital marketing is needed for lawyers, is in fact that the world is moving at a very fast pace, and the competition is increasing day by day. The effect of the same can also be seen in the legal field. Fine lawyers are produced by law colleges in the country every year. The same results in a very competitive market for lawyers as well. And therefore, in order to stand bright in the same, digital marketing is an important pillar. Those lawyers who opt for digital marketing, will remain in an advantageous position with respect to those who do not go for it because of the various benefits digital advertising provides you with. Some of the major reasons why digital marketing is important for lawyers and why do lawyers need it are discussed below.  

To attract potential clients and broaden their client list

One of the most important aspects of digital marketing is that it reaches the target audience, if done properly, and if the target audience is attracted towards the product or service offered by you, they can turn into a potential customer or client of yours. If we look at this advantage of digital marketing through a legal lens, it essentially implies that it will help a lawyer to broaden their client list by attracting the potential clients by way of practising digital marketing. Thus, those lawyers which are into digital marketing have an added advantage over those who are not into it, because it helps them to attract clients and increase their client list. 

To establish their personal brand and its credibility

Another important aspect of digital marketing is that it helps the companies and the people advertising their brand digitally, to build up their personal brand and the credibility of the brand. The digital world has made it easier for everyone to verify the credibility, reputation, resourcefulness, etc. of anything and anyone within seconds. Everything is just one click away in today’s digital world, and so is the verification of a piece of information. Digital world has made it easier for past users of the product and services to leave their reviews regarding the same and therefore when good products or services are actually provided, then positive reviews help in building the personal brand and also, its credibility. It is therefore imperative for lawyers as well. 

Not only this, digital media also helps the lawyers in building their personal brand and its credibility in other ways as well. If there has been a favourable order for the lawyer, the reporting of the same order on digital media also helps in setting up the reputation of the lawyer. Like this, there are various other methods through which the personal brand of a lawyer and its credibility is established by way of digital marketing. However, the same is a little more difficult in case of traditional marketing and therefore, this forms yet another factor why digital marketing is needed for lawyers. 

To increase their income 

We have understood just now that digital marketing helps to attract potential clients and thereby helps in broadening the client list of the lawyer. If we see this economically, the more the number of clients, the more the pay of the lawyer. Thus, digital marketing, if done in the right way, not only helps to attract the potential clients and broaden the client list, but it also helps the lawyers to increase their overall income. Thus, another reminiscing factor about digital marketing will be that it costs very little but it returns huge results to the user, as not much monetary assistance is required to set up the digital marketing, however, once set up properly, it will help to increase the income of the lawyer. 

Thus, the above reasons justify why lawyers need digital marketing in today’s world, and why it is imperative for the lawyers to have digital marketing. It is also to be considered by the readers that the above reasons are not exhaustive in nature, and there are various other reasons which make it necessary for a lawyer to set up digital marketing. Such reasons include, but not limits to the following:

  • Remaining competitive and not lagging behind in the market;
  • Reaching to a larger segment of people;
  • Becoming more popular as a go-to choice, etc. 

To make connections 

Having good connections is a vital aspect of the law field. In fact, making connections is amongst the first few things which a law school teaches its students. For one to survive and grow in the legal field, it is of utmost importance that such a person should have good connections. Connections now-a-days aren’t only made through physical meetings, but they are made through internet and digital marketing as well. This is thus, another major reason why digital marketing is important for which, i.e., to make connections. 

When you opt for digital marketing, you connect with various people because of the same. There will be various people consuming your content through your websites, or may be following you on social media, or may be through any other such ways, which if persists for a long time, will start converting into your connections. Other forms of digital advertising as well, such as conferences, seminars, and paper presentations also help you to make good connections within the legal fraternity, which will prove beneficial for you in the long run. 

Let us now understand the steps required to set up digital marketing. 

Steps to set up digital marketing

In order to set up digital marketing, several prerequisites are needed, and several important steps are needed after that. In this part of the article, we will try to make it easy for the readers to set up digital marketing. We will be trying to exhaustively cover all the major requisites to begin with digital marketing for lawyers. 

Exhaustive research on your target clients

First things first, so before even starting the digital marketing, the first thing you have to do is to identify for ‘whom’ you are actually doing the digital marketing. Putting it simply, at the very beginning, you have to identify your potential customers or the target audience that will form your client base. This is very important from so many perspectives, such as:

  1. Identifying the channels for digital marketing – Once you have identified your potential client or the target audience, it becomes easy for you to select the channels through which you’ll be doing digital marketing. Putting it another way, if you have an idea of what field your target audience belongs to, then it will be easy for you to advertise or market your service on such platforms where your target audience will be available. Let us understand the same through an example – 
  • If you are a corporate lawyer, then, your target audience will likely be spending a considerable amount of time on career oriented applications, such as LinkedIn.
  • If you are a family lawyer, you might find your target audience by answering on active family community support groups. 
  • If you are a civil lawyer, you might come across your target audience through organic searches that guide the searcher to the frequently updated questions on the issue. 

Thus, this is why the first and foremost step of digital marketing should be to identify your target client base. Once the same is identified, it helps you in making further decisions regarding your digital marketing campaign. 

  1. Shaping your further marketing strategies – After you have identified your target client, you should shape your further marketing strategies according to them only. For example – 
  • You should use such keywords in your marketing strategy, that will attract your target clients. The best way to do so is to put yourself in your target audience’s shoes, i.e., use those words for online searches which you yourself would be using if you were the target audience. 
  • You should start your digital marketing from such a social media platform on which your target audience is expected to visit. An important way to identify the platform for your digital marketing is to talk to your present clients. Just a simple question to your present client – ‘how did they find you at first’? This will go a long way in helping you to identify the social media platforms for digital marketing. 
  • Once you have identified your target client base, you may look for your competitors in the field and pay attention to their marketing strategies. This will also be beneficial for you, as both of you will be trying to gather the same target audience. 

Thus, the above reasons elaborate why it is important to identify your target client base first. Now, after you have identified your target client base, you should move to set up your marketing goals. 

Set up your marketing goals 

The very next step after identifying your potential client list is to set up your marketing goals. A little part of this was already discussed in the above part, however, if we further elaborate this, it essentially means that we should set up our marketing goals in accordance with the needs and situation of our target clients. The marketing goal which you  adopt should be based on the principle of SMART, which is:

S – Specific 

M – Measurable 

A – Achievable 

R – Relevant 

T – Time Bound

If you stick to this principle, you are more likely to succeed and get an earlier result in your digital marketing. The principle is explained in detail below:

  1. Specific – You should always keep in mind that your marketing gold should be very very specific to the  target client, it should never beat around the bush. For example, if your target audience are corporate clients, then there is no point in you answering queries on a family support community group or any immigration website. The specific goal of your digital marketing in this case should be to further enhance and shape down your resources to make them useful for corporate oriented websites and applications. 
  2. Measurable – Not only your marketing goals should be specific, but it should also be measurable in nature. It is very important that while doing a task, its progress should be measurable to evaluate the success of the same. Measurability of your digital marketing goals is also important because tracking your progress is as important as setting them. You should always design your marketing goals in such a manner that its performance should be tracked at timely intervals. The objective behind the same is that if at any point, some changes are required in the goals, they will become clear through measurement of the performance, and the changes can be introduced in the same, as per required.
  3. Achievable – All work and no result will put all the hard work of the team in vain, and therefore, at this juncture, the achievability of the marketing goals comes into picture. In simple words, it implies that the marketing goal that one should lay down must be achievable in nature. The goals should be realistic and not impossible to achieve. If a marketing goal is impossible to realise, then it may become a hindrance in the setup of the digital marketing. 
  4. Relevant – Apart from your marketing goals being specific, measurable, and achievable, they should also be relevant in nature. The goals you set for your digital marketing should go along with the end result of your digital marketing. They should align with what you actually desire or intend to achieve at the end of the process. For example, if one of your goals is to reach a certain number of followers on social media, then, it should be to reach a certain number of target audience as followers, and not anyone, as that would be irrelevant to the end result of your digital marketing process. 
  5. Time bound – Last but not the least, the marketing goal which you set for your digital marketing should be time bound. If you set up a time bound marketing goal for your digital marketing then, it will help in preventing the unnecessary wastage of your time.  

Some of the examples of SMART marketing goals can be: 

  • Reaching 1k target audience in 3 months. 
  • Obtaining at least 15 client reviews, digitally, every month.
  • Getting 10 cases asking for legal advice on certain issues each month. 
  • Posting 10 contents on relevant topics of your field every month. 

Sort out good marketing channels and tactics

Sorting out good marketing channels and good marketing practices for your brand is yet another undeniable aspect of digital marketing. A part of this was also discussed in the first step of digital marketing, i.e., how doing exhaustive research on your target client helps you further in deciding your marketing channels. Sorting out good channels for marketing is important because doing digital marketing on a platform where it does not benefit you is useless. However, on the same note, if you sort out good channels and do the digital marketing on the same, but your tactics of doing that digital marketing are not good, it’ll also not attract many potential clients. 

A way to sort out good digital marketing channels is to pay attention to the fact that from where most of your clients are coming. Generally, no one comes to you directly. Most of the people come across you either through some references or through advertisements, etc. You have to recognise the channels through which your clients came to know about you, and have to focus on those platforms more while doing the digital marketing for your brand. Thus, in order to find good digital marketing channels for your brand, you need to advertise it on those apps, websites, and search engines where your clients are likely to visit. 

A way of using good marketing tactics is to include ‘keywords’ in your content while you post it for the purpose of digital marketing. Keywords are usually those words which give the idea about your entire research or content. They are used by the clients to find suitable lawyers for them. It is essential to use relevant keywords in your content because they are also used by search engines to find out the relevant content and show them in the search result. Thus, if one wants to use good marketing tactics, the use of relevant keywords must be amongst those. Thus, the identification of relevant keywords and the use of the same in your content will help you to reach the target audience more easily. 

Create an up-to-date website

Next up in line to get started with the digital marketing of your brand is to set up a website for the same. It is important to set up a website for digital marketing because it is the first step of contact between you and the potential client. Reading anything on the internet about your brand and visiting the actual website of the brand are two totally different things. Your website will be the first hand experience for your potential clients, and it will help your client to make the right choice more effectively. 

Usually, all major digital marketing brands have a website on the internet to connect with their potential clients more effectively. Some have basic websites, while others have standard ones. It is of immense importance for readers to please take note that setting up your website isn’t something that should be taken lightly at any cost. It is not a work to be barely completed, but rather a work to be done with utmost sincerity and attention. Importance should be given to even minute details while making the website. The website which you should develop for your brand should just not be an ordinary or basic website, rather it should be a standard one. It should contain all updated features, and should be easy to navigate or operate by the potential clients. 

The reason why so much of importance is being given to the creation of a good website is that it is not only the first point of contact with your potential clients in digital marketing, rather, it also forms the point of contact for those potential clients who get to know about your brand through traditional marketing as well. Thus, your first point of contact for most of your potential clients will be through your website only. And since, it is a famous saying that “first impression is the last impression”, therefore, it is of utmost importance to build up a very good, clean and high performance website for your brand, that should load quickly. This will give a very good first impression to your potential clients. Some of the features to keep in mind while building a website are (they are not fully exhaustive): 

  1. The website should have a simple and easy to understand architecture – Not everyone who visits your website will be a techie or internet expert, and this is what should be kept in mind while you build up your website. Your website should be easy to navigate by anyone who visits it. It should not be complicated to run. Anyone visiting your website should find it easy to reach the required results.
  2. Benefits should be prioritised over features – Though it is important to showcase the features of your brand, i.e., the fields in which you are an expert, the services you offer, etc. However, what is more important to display is the benefits of such features that your website offers. The clients will be more interested in knowing how the services offered by your brand have actually benefited others, and that’s why the display of benefits should be prioritised over that of features. 
  3. Should ask for a call to action – Most of the websites usually have the option of talking to bots, but rarely do websites contain options to actually connect to the required professional immediately. This is exactly the place where you can stand out and turn your potential clients into your actual client. You can add the feature of directly talking to a lawyer, in case of an issue. This will surely catch the attention of the audience visiting your website. 
  4. Publish good content – Your website should also publish good and informative content dealing with the area of your practice. The language of the content should be easy and simple to understand and the use of keywords in your content should be prioritised. At the end of every content, the name and details to contact the concerned lawyer should also be mentioned. 
  5. Publish social proofs – In order to gain the public trust and remove any doubts in their mind regarding your brand, the ratings, reviews, and proofs of your earlier client should be published on your website. This will help potential clients to choose better and wisely. 

Focus on Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the process through which the search engine visibility of a website improves. It helps to drive more people to your website by increasing the ranking of your website. It increases the overall visibility of your website for organic searches by improving the quality and user experience of the website. 

Focusing on search engine optimisation is very important for setting up digital marketing, as search engine optimisation lies at the heart of digital marketing. We can understand this simply by a research data which suggests that most of the users click on the first result that appears when they search something on a search engine, and very few people get down to second results, and users further decrease per next result. In order to further understand how to focus on Search Engine Optimization (SEO), we need to understand the following:

Anatomy of Google’s first page

The anatomy of Google’s first page is such that when you search anything, the following three types of results appear on the page:

  1. Paid advertisements – They can be identified because they are mentioned as ‘paid or advertisement’ on the box present next to the URL. They occupy the top results when you search anything related to them. Brands pay a hefty amount to Google for presenting their brands at the top when a client searches something and it is done through Google ads auction system.
  2. Local results – They usually appear among the top results of a google search with local intent. Example – ‘top criminal lawyers in Lucknow’ or ‘top criminal lawyers near me’. Such kinds of search results are usually accompanied by at least 3 brands relevant to your search, along with a map option to visit them. Thus, it is essential that proper address, location, etc. of your brand should also be mentioned clearly on your web page to reach a broader spectrum of audience.
  3. Natural results – They are often referred to as ‘organic results’. They are the results most closely linked to the Google search. It comprises the keywords searched, or consists of the answers to users query. It shows the most relevant result to the searched questions.

Thus, we can see that these are the search results which rank higher on Google’s first page. Also, we know that the article which has the highest rank, will get more traffic on its website. Therefore, in order to focus on Search Engine Optimization (SEO), we should aim to provide such content that our website results in top searches on the Google page. Let us now understand how we can appear among the top searches on a Google page, by understanding how Google actually rates our website.

How does Google rank website

The algorithm of Google is set in such a way that to determine the rankings of the website for a particular query, it considers more than 100 factors. However, if we pay an attention to those factors, we’ll understand that the most important among them are following three factors:

  • Relevance of the content – The relevance of the content provided at the website is checked to provide direct answers to the results. Google considers whether proper keywords are used in the content along with proper addressing of the question that was searched. Therefore, it is important that while setting up a website for digital marketing, you should try to put up highly relevant keywords along with good quality information in your content.
  • Backlinks – Backlinks are the links of your website on another web page. They are the links created when one website links to another. It is the equivalent to a reference or a citation used by the said website. It shows the trust other web pages are having in your content, and thereby backlinks also help your content to rank higher in a google search. Therefore, one should always provide such content on its website which is trustworthy and beneficial to others. 
  • RankBrain – It is an Artificial Intelligence (AI) based search engine algorithm. It scans your website and relevant content to provide more clarity to Google regarding the Google search. Therefore, your content should always be informative with respect to the subject matter. 

Overall, these three factors play the most important role while determining the ranking of a website in a Google search. However, since we are talking about digital marketing from the perspective of lawyers, therefore, it is important to understand that legal content is processed differently from other content because the services provided in the legal field impacts an individual’s financial condition, their health, life, and wellbeing. Such kinds of Google searches or pages are referred to as YMYL pages (your money or your life pages). 

Apart from the above mentioned factors, Google pays more emphasis on your web page, based on its expertise, authority, and trustworthiness. For the same, Google also analyse the content present on your web page on the following grounds:

  • The use of major keywords,
  • The average amount of time a user spends on your webpage, 
  • The overall engagement of your web page. 

Thus, in order to rank better and focus on the search engine optimization, you should also keep the above factors in mind. 

Start an email marketing program

Email marketing refers to the process through which the brand sends a commercial message or advertisement to certain people or groups of people using electronic mail or email. If we look at email marketing in its broadest sense, then it shall include all such emails that are sent to a current client or any potential client. The content of the email in email marketing includes sending advertisements, sending sale information, sending donation information, or requesting business, etc. There are four kinds of email marketing – newsletters, transactional, retention, and promotional. Understanding the kinds of email marketing are not of much importance for lawyers while doing digital marketing, therefore we are not discussing the same in detail here. 

Email marketing is important because it makes your potential client or the actual client aware of your services, achievements, etc. It is very beneficial for lawyers, if sent at the correct time. Not only email marketing helps to reach potential clients, but it also helps you in reconnecting with the previous clients. Email marketing can be used by lawyers in various ways to gain clients. Some of the ways in which it can be used, includes the following, amongst others:

  • It can be used to nurture your leads through the sales funnel with drip campaigns;
  • It can also be used to make the new clients aware of your onboarding sequences;
  • Email newsletters – one of the kinds of email marketing, can be a very good source to share your news and updates with your target audience;
  • It can also be used to re engage your leads through win back sequences;
  • Email marketing is also helpful to gain positive reviews through feedback sequences from your client.

Now, the question that arises is how is this email marketing beneficial for lawyers doing digital marketing. In order to understand the importance of email marketing, we must be aware that email marketing is one of the strongest pillars of digital marketing which was founded back in the 1970’s. It is not a new technology, and therefore every generation currently understands how to use email and most of the people have their own email account. Further, if we look at the email statistics report, 2022-2026 by the Radicati Group, it reveals that there will be an estimated 4.7 billion email users by 2026, and this is where it becomes very important to include it in your digital marketing. It can reach billions of target audience by just a click, that too, in a very small span of time.

Apart from this, it is also beneficial for lawyers to use it because it gives you a personalised message sending platform. Unlike most other social media and digital marketing platforms, you can customise the message you send in the mail for different strata of clients. Further, email marketing is currently the channel with the highest conversion rate, therefore it is the ideal step to be included in digital marketing of your brand. Overall, the benefits of email marketing can be summed up as: 

  1. Drives clients – Through email marketing you can send personalised content to your regular clients, which can enhance your client drive. Further you can send your target audience an email marketing campaign launching an offer, which will also help in driving your client list. 
  2. Increasing your brand awareness – Email is a one to one form of communication, and can be used to reach someone directly. When you send an email, it appears in the receiver’s inbox and helps your brand to stay current in their minds. The option of personalised emails can also be used to stay longer in the minds of your target audience and increase your brand awareness. The longer your brand remains current in your potential clients mind, the better it is for you. Because, if they actually come across any situation where the assistance of a lawyer is required, your brand will first click in their mind. 
  3. Cost effective – This is one of the most important benefits of email marketing. It is very cost effective since it can be sent to a large number of target audiences while using a very small amount of economic resources. 
  4. Strengthening customer loyalty – Email marketing also helps your previous clients to stick to your brand by reminding them regularly of your services, giving them personalised offers, discounts, etc.

But it is pertinent to mention here that do not ever solicit work through email marketing.

Increase your presence on social media 

Social media is one of the newer additions to digital marketing. However, it is also useful for lawyers to increase their presence on social media to gain clients. Social media can be used by lawyers in different ways to attract potential clients, such ways includes:

  • Sharing information in the form of content;
  • Participating in public forums and public group chats;
  • Directly engaging with potential clients through post, share, comments, etc.

Lawyers can choose social media platforms according to their target client base. Currently, the most popular social media platform for lawyers is LinkedIn, followed by other social media platforms, such as Facebook, Instagram, etc. 

The presence of your brand on social media signifies the overall personality of your brand with the help of small messages and posts. Though, social media is a newer addition to the digital marketing strata, yet it is a phenomenal platform to give your brand recognition. The use of social media helps brands to make such content that resonates with the personality, interest, and values of their target audience and run the same in their feeds. It is imperative to note that the popular presence on social media is not by chance, but is planned strategically. Some of the keys to become a popular social media brand includes:

  • Remain consistent – Post about your brand consistently, and not on your whims and fancies. Create an editorial calendar that sets your posting goals and helps you to manage your posting schedule. Stay active on the social media platform on a regular basis. 
  • Seek relationships, not just social media followers – Try to connect with your followers in such a way that it seems like a family, and not as followers only. This will drastically affect the value of your brand positively.
  • Make use of automation technology in the right way – Set up the right time to post your content to reach the target audience at a time when they are engaged the most in social media. If your brand is having a multi locational presence, then you can also effectively use the automation technology to deliver your content at the most engaging time to different followers across different time zones. Further, automated messages and replies can also help in giving the right direction to your brand. 
  • Monitor your brands’ engagement – Make the most out of your brand’s engagement activity and make your improvised strategy accordingly to help you grow on social media. 
  • Create user friendly content – Make such content for your social media account which is user friendly for your target audience. Try to prefer visual content over others. Go along with the trend to connect with your followers. 

Facilitate client review 

Another important aspect of digital marketing is client review. It helps to make your brand reliable and trustworthy. In today’s time period, the internet has reached all corners of the World. This has resulted not only in increased facilities at hand for the people, but at the same time, has also resulted in increased scamming and frauds over the internet. Since the internet has grown, scammers have also grown over the internet. This is exactly where client reviews come at the rescue of your brand.

Client reviews facilitate trust over your brand. It helps to build the image of your brand in the market. People find it easier to trust those businesses which have provided client reviews. Moreover, nowadays people are accustomed to look for reviews of previous clients before actually opting for any service from a brand. The importance of client review can be understood through the following: suppose there is a client searching for a corporate lawyer and he comes close to sorting two lawyers of the said field. The work experience, fees, etc. of both of them came very close to each other, thereby confusing the client to choose any one of them. However, when the client further researched about them, he found several positive client reviews for one of the said lawyers, while no reviews were provided for the other lawyers. In such a scenario, the client will move forward to connect to the lawyer with client reviews. This is just one example, and in many cases, people tend to connect to a brand which has facilitated client review.

Thus, we have understood the importance of client review in digital marketing, and why it is important for your brand to have positive client reviews and good ratings. However, the next question that arises is how to get client reviews? The simple and straight answer to this is – you can get client reviews by simply requesting your previous clients for the same. After you have rendered your service to a client, you can humbly ask the client to leave a review or rating on your website if they like your work. This is how you start gathering client reviews and ratings on your website. Further, you can highlight those client reviews and ratings on your website at a place where it is easy for the target audience to find it. Also, in order to raise the boost or engagement of your website, you can further reply to the reviews of the clients that will show that you actually care for your brand and your client. 

Measure your progress 

This is usually among the final yet very important aspects of digital marketing. You need to measure your progress along the span of time to make necessary amendments to your strategy. To actually measure your progress, the following 5 key performance indicators (KPIs) can be used: 

  • What is the ranking and click volume of your keywords – The higher ranking and click volume of your keywords is, the better your digital marketing strategy is working. However if you are not receiving much click volume and neither are your keywords receiving high ranking, then you might need to reconsider your strategy and make necessary changes and amendments to help your digital marketing to grow. 
  • Has your local search engine optimisation (SEO) presence improved – The local search engine optimisation is yet another factor to measure the success of your digital marketing strategies. If there is an increase or improvement in your local search engine optimisation presence, then you are going the right way, otherwise you have to consider and change your strategies a bit to improve your overall local search engine optimisation presence.
  • Does your digital marketing witness an increase in website conversions from organic searches – While you make it to the top of the search result page through various strategies, yet there will be several hurdles to convert that high ranking on search result page to your website page. The more the traffic visits your website from organic pages, the better your digital marketing strategy is. If not much traffic appears on your website, despite your website appearing in top organic searches in a Google search, then also you have to re-evaluate and make changes to your current strategy in order to excel in digital marketing.
  • Number of backlinks of your website – Backlinks usually represent the trust someone holds in your website and in your content. The more the number of backlinks you get, the higher the people trust you, and vice versa. Therefore if you’re receiving a high number of backlinks, you’re on the right track. However, if you don’t receive a high number of backlinks, then there must be some discrepancy in your planning strategy for digital marketing and you need to work on it. 
  • Does the website of your brand gain more organic traffic or not – The total amount of organic traffic on your website denotes the success or failure of your digital marketing. If your website gains more and more organic web traffic, then your digital marketing strategy is excelling. However, if vice versa occurs, then you need to revamp and develop a new marketing strategy for the digital marketing of your brand. 

Tools that can be used to check the key performance indicators (KPIs) for your brand includes:

  1. Google analytics – It helps you check whether the digital marketing of your brand witnesses an increase in website conversions from organic searches. It is also used to track the organic web traffic of your website.
  2. Local Falcon & CallRail – They help you to keep a track record of your local rankings. 
  3. Google search console – It helps to keep a trap of the ranking of your keywords and your total click volume. They can be used to check the relevance of the keywords for the target audience of your brand. 

Thus, you can follow the above mentioned steps to get started with the digital marketing of your brand. However, there are various mistakes that we should avoid while getting started with digital marketing. Let us discuss the same in the next part of the article.

Activities to set up digital marketing

We have just now understood the steps to set up digital marketing for lawyers. But another vital question which remains is ‘what activities to do in order to set up digital marketing?’ In this part of the article, we will focus on some of the activities that can be done to set up digital marketing of your brand. However, the readers should keep in mind that the list of these activities are not exhaustive in nature. They include:

Webinars

Webinars are meetings, conferences, presentations, etc. which are conducted in an online mode, making the use of the internet. They can be on an informative topic as well. It can basically be on any topic and can be of any kind. It is similar to that of a seminar, but in an online mode. It helps the people participating in the webinars to participate in it from any corner of the world. It puts all the participants in a virtual classroom to share the required intent with the help of the internet. They are often done with the help of virtual classroom software. 

Webinars are a way to do digital marketing. You can do webinars on the topic which interests and drives your potential clients. You can showcase your talent and service to those people attending your webinar. You can further offer them your combo packs, offers, discounts, etc., amongst others things to further promote your brand through webinars. 

Blogging 

Blogging refers to the self publication of your writing, photography, and other forms of content over the internet. The word “blog” is a combination of the words – “web” and “log”. Important characteristics of blogging include regular updates, a laid-back atmosphere, important hacks and techniques, informal language, amongst other things. 

Blogging can be done for digital marketing. The most important reason regarding the same is that blogging attracts a high level of potential client engagement. The informal, and easy to understand language of the blogging, used along with the current trends helps in attracting more and more potential clients. Further, it helps you to showcase your brand and your skills to your potential clients. 

Strong LinkedIn presence 

The most important social media platform for a lawyer is LinkedIn. Therefore, the use of LinkedIn by lawyers can also be done for digital marketing. You can regularly post informative content regarding your practice area on LinkedIn. Further, you can also post about your brand and its success on the application. For example – if you get a favourable order, you can post the same, and the hard work to achieve it. This also attracts potential clients. Further you can also reach your potential client through LinkedIn, as some of them also post about their issues on the application, and if the said issue by an individual falls within the purview or interest of your area of practice, you can initiate a conversation from there as well. Therefore, a strong LinkedIn presence for doing digital marketing of your brand is a very good idea to continue for lawyers. 

Providing internships 

Another way of doing digital marketing for lawyers is by providing internships to students. Many great lawyers are known and are very popular amongst students because they provide batches and batches of internships. This also helps in digital marketing, as you can also ask your interns to post about you on their social media platforms. Also, the students can further help you to bring clients. 

Selling Courses

Another way of doing digital marketing is by selling online courses on your subject matter or area of practice. You can make informative lectures and study materials with respect to your area, for a vast audience – students, researchers, academicians, practitioners, etc. This will also give a boost to your brand as it will reach various people. What you can also do is to add a little bit of promotional content regarding your brand in each such courses and content. Further you can add your contact details. This will also help in digital marketing of your brand and attracting potential clients. 

Setting up a YouTube channel

Another important method of carrying digital marketing is by starting a YouTube channel of your own. You can start your own YouTube channel based on your area of practice, or based on your brand. You can regularly post informative videos on areas of your interest or practice. You can also post content on how to go about in a legal conflict or issue. You can also post there about your court proceedings, current cases, your approaches to legal issues, etc. This will help in attracting target clients. It will also give a boost to your brand. Further, it can also become a source of income for you if you gain the prescribed limit of subscribers and views. 

Presence on other social media presence 

Apart from the presence on LinkedIn and YouTube, another successful way of doing digital marketing of your brand is to set up your presence on other famous social media platforms as well. They include Instagram, Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), etc. You can post about your brand and other informative content on these social media platforms to attract your target clients. Further, you can make use of the current trends, meme templates, etc. to post on these social media platforms. If done correctly, it helps you gain popularity within a very short span of time. 

Mistakes to avoid in digital marketing

Digital marketing has become a very important aspect of every brands’ life. It is used by various brands. There are digital marketing guides for various professions to help the professionals get started with digital marketing. However, at the same time, there are various mistakes that one should avoid while doing digital marketing. Some of the said mistakes include: 

  1. Remaining inconsistent with the digital marketing strategies; 
  2. Focusing more attention on methods of traditional marketing;
  3. Feeling to understand the demand of potential client;
  4. Undermining the power of online client reviews.

While these are some of the major mistakes that an individual should avoid in digital marketing, still the list of such mistakes is not exhaustive. There are other important mistakes that shall be avoided in digital marketing as well. However, at this juncture, we will discuss in detail these mistakes which have to be avoided in digital marketing. The next part of the article discusses the same only. 

Remaining inconsistent with the digital marketing strategies

This is among one of the major problems that brands face when they start digital marketing. They do not remain consistent with their approach in digital marketing. Sometimes they stop midway when their performance is stagnant for some time. But this is where they need to keep the most patience, because just like other times, this shall pass too. Brands need to understand that highs and ups come in business, but they shouldn’t stop their hard work. They should always remain consistent with their digital marketing strategies.

Another important reason why brands should remain consistent with their digital marketing strategy is that trends change in the blink of an eye, and therefore, brands also need to remain updated with the current trends so as to connect with the target audience in an engaging way. Further, if brands need to remain updated with the current trends, then they have to remain consistent with their approach in digital marketing. 

Also, remaining consistent helps the brands to gain more followers, target clients, business, etc. People tend to choose someone who is readily available for them, rather than someone who is inconsistent in its approach. Also, the mechanism of this fast-paced world is such that if you do not remain consistent in your approach, you will fall behind. If you will not remain consistent with the digital marketing of your brand, another competitor of yours will, and they will derive benefit from the same. Thus, we can understand that in order to make your digital marketing successful, you should never lag on anything, and you should also remain very consistent with your marketing strategies.

Focussing more attention on methods of traditional marketing 

Another mistake which brand owners make while setting up digital marketing for their brand is that they focus their attention more on the methods of traditional marketing. This is a very incorrect approach. For example – some of the ways to promote traditional marketing is to print your advertisement in the newspaper, distribute your handouts, or advertise yourself on billboards present on major roads. If we use any of these methods for traditional marketing, supposedly through distribution of paper handouts, then there are chances that it would help your brand. But, what is certain, is that it won’t help in the digital marketing of your brand. It’s because digital marketing isn’t the same as traditional marketing. Through the paper handout, one might get to know about your brand, but it won’t be spreading digitally to your target audience to make the digital advertising of your brand a success. Thus, focussing more attention on methods of traditional marketing will not help your brand to grow digitally. 

Thus, we can understand that trying to do digital marketing the way traditional marketing is done is not a good approach because both of these types of marketing are different and they use different kinds of methods to reach the customer. For the business of digital marketing to grow, a brand needs to set up the same while keeping in mind the conditions beneficial for digital marketing. The brands need to take cognisance of the fact that what is helpful in traditional marketing, does not necessarily support digital marketing as well. Both these kinds of marketing are different and they need different approaches. 

Traditional marketing does not make use of internet or digital media as much as digital marketing does. Things which are beneficial for traditional marketing might turn up to be very harmful for digital marketing. Therefore, while setting up digital marketing for your brand, you should pay attention to strategies which have been proven to be beneficial for digital marketing, and not to those strategies that were helpful in traditional marketing.

Failing to understand the demand of potential client 

One of the most important factors relevant to digital marketing is to understand the demand of your potential client. Posting and advertising any product or service which is not reaching the right audience is as useless as not advertising it. Or maybe posting the right product or service, but not having the target audience is also as useless as doing nothing. In both of the scenarios, only manpower and other resources of the brands are getting used, without giving any result. Therefore, it is important for digital marketing to first understand the demand of your potential client. Once you understand the demand of your potential client, it becomes easy for you to make your digital marketing successful. 

Underestimating the power of online client reviews

Underestimating the power of online reviews given by your client is another mistake which is made by many brands opting for digital marketing. Brands today need to understand that client review has become the need of the time. People trust your brand by reading reviews of the client. If there are no online reviews of your client, people might not trust you, no matter how good you are at your job. Since most of the things these days have been operating digitally, client review is a way to understand the truthfulness and reliability of your brand or service. People tend to look for client reviews and ratings to avoid being scammed digitally. 

Before opting for a brand or any service online, customers tend to check their online reviews by their previous clients to get an exact grasp of the business. Client reviews help an individual to differentiate between scam business and original business. Therefore, client reviews are very important for your digital marketing, and the power of the same should never be underestimated. 

Conclusion

Law is a noble profession and everyone has the right to information as well as the right to freedom of expression. The Hon’ble Supreme Court has also recognised that advertising comes under the right to freedom of speech, in the case of Tata Press Limited vs. Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited & Ors. [1995 AIR 2438], Thus, lawyers have the right to digitally advertise themselves on the internet. However, the said rights of the lawyer is subject to several statutes under the Bar Council of India Rules and Advocates Act, 1961. 

In India, lawyers and advocates also engage in advertising through indirect mechanisms such as conferences, paper publishing, seminars, etc. Apart from these, lawyers are also free to advertise their information on the internet (subject to the 2008 Amendment Act). However, the rules are still stringent for lawyers to advertise their brand.

Still, lawyers have found several ways through which they advertise their brand such as legal awareness videos and social media platforms, content writing on contemporary issues, etc. LinkedIn plays a very important role for advertising the brand of lawyers. However, all these forms of advertising have their loopholes through which they are allowed. But if we look at it through a legal lens, we will find it discriminating for lawyers with respect to modes and manners of advertising. Further, it also affects our right to livelihood amongst other things. 

Thus, effective statutes and guidelines should be built with a view to remove the ban on legal advertising and it should be permitted through all the mediums on all the platforms. However, at the same time, rules and regulations should be made to prevent misleading legal advertising. 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Is legal advertising completely banned in India?

No, legal advertising is not completely banned in India. Though the Bar Council of India Rules prohibit legal advertising, the 2008 amendment allowed advocates to furnish their information on a website, subject to the rules of the Bar Council of India.

What is the best social media platform for lawyers to advertise their brand?

There is no particular social media platform which has been tagged as the best platform for lawyers to advertise their brand, however, there are various social media platforms on which lawyers can advertise themselves. The top social media platform includes LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube etc. 

Is client review important for digital marketing of your brand?

Yes, facilitating client review for digital marketing of your brand is very important. It makes your brand more trustworthy and reliable and attracts more customers towards your brand.

Is digital marketing beneficial for lawyers?

Yes, digital marketing is beneficial for lawyers. It gives them an edge over their competitors. 

Is digital marketing very costly?

No, digital marketing is very economical in nature. It incurs a very small amount of establishing cost, and in return, pays back a lot. 

Can an advocate publish that he was or he is a member of any Bar Association? Will this be a violation of Rule 36 of the Bar Council of India Rules?

As per the 2008 amendment to the Bar Council of India Rules, the advocate can advertise the name of the bar association of which the advocate is a member. This will not be a violation of Rule 36 of the Bar Council of India Rules.

What is the difference between digital marketing and traditional marketing? 

Just like traditional marketing, digital marketing is also promotion of brands. The main difference between digital marketing and traditional marketing is that traditional marketing is done in traditional ways, while digital marketing is done through the use of digital media for the promotion and advertisement of brands to reach a potential client base. 

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