Vizibility and LexisNexis Study Reveals Difference in Reliance on Social Media Tools among Legal Firms

Vizibility Inc. and LexisNexis (News - Alert), stated that their new survey revealed that there is a significant difference in the reliance on social media tools between small and large legal firms, and some techniques are inconsistent with how legal buyers utilize social media. The survey was conducted in order to study usage of social media in legal services marketing.

The research suggests a high degree of reliance on broadly defined social media marketing programs, with 81 percent of survey participants reporting they already use social media marketing tools, and another 10 percent saying they plan to deploy social media marketing elements within six months.

Amongst the survey participants, 48.5 percent of them considered social media to somewhat important and 31 percent believe that social media tools are extremely important to their marketing efforts. But 5 percent reported that they do not use social media. Actual social media use among lawyers, however, could be overstated. This survey, as well the 2011 American Bar Association (ABA) Technology Survey Report, both recorded that 63.5 percent and 62 percent (respectively) of individual attorneys say they have LinkedIn (News - Alert) profiles.

Officials with Lawyers.com asserted that one has to measure the results from social media to justify it. Their new data reveals a split between small and large firms in social media marketing objectives. For example, among small firms, almost 71 percent of participants in practices with five or fewer attorneys said that they rely on social media marketing to generate new business. In contrast, among respondents from big firms with 100 or more attorneys, only 37 percent measure social media success this way. Large firms better get smart about social media if they expect it to produce new work.

Vizibility added that among the respondents of the survey who reported that their attorneys had LinkedIn profiles, less than 20 percent said they were completely up-to-date. In the face of a recent BTI Consulting Group survey, which found that one in two legal decision makers are less likely to hire an attorney if their credentials could not be verified online, this discrepancy exposes an immediate action item for lawyers and legal marketers.