While many rules are clearly laid out for lawyer advertising in Texas, social media continues to be uncharted territory. Understanding how social media affects your law firm on multiple levels is important. This presentation addresses the ethics surrounding posting on social media, including discussions on what content the firm can share in relation to case results and client testimonials. As well, Lisa it provides insight on how your law firm can craft a social media policy for your firm as well as your employees that will help avoid any brand disasters.

1. +
Developing a Social Media Policy For Your Law Firm
Lisa Hopkins

2. +
Introduction

3. + Social Media: By The Numbers
Number of active social media users: 3.4 Billion
Number of Internet users: 4.2 Billion
Total worldwide population: 7.7 Billion
Average time spent on social media: 116 minutes per day
Average number of social media accounts per person:
5.54
Social media users grew by 320 million between
September 2017 and October 2018
That equates to one new social media user every 10
seconds

4. +
Number of Users by
Social Media Channel
2.271 billion users
1.5 billion users
1 billion users
900 million users
562 million users
326 million users
186 million users

5. + Clients & employees use social media, so you can’t avoid
it.
Your clients expect you to be active online and available to answer any
questions they have and your employees are already visiting social
channels on a daily basis. 47% of employees now use social networks
to connect with potential or current customers.

6. +
The Risks of Social Media

7. +
Protecting Your Brand
 Unfortunately, in a world where everyone is
connected, one poorly timed, or poorly worded
message could destroy your brand reputation.
 Failing to provide proper guidance to your staff
concerning their social media presence puts your
entire company at risk.

8. +
For Instance…
And if you attempt to correct the
mistake, maybe check the spelling on
that tweet, too.
If you’re the United States Department of Education,
make sure you’re spelling the author’s name correctly….it
should be W.E.B. Du Bois.

9. + The Wild West
While Pew Research Center suggests that 74% of
adults are on social media, it also indicates that 73% of
companies lack a social media policy.

10. +
Keep in Mind:
 Disclosing confidential or proprietary information
 Failure to credit sources of text and imagery / copyright issues
 State Bar Advertising rules (particularly about monetary
awards)
 Security protocols (who has access to the firm’s social
channels, and what measures are in place if an employee with
access leaves)
Legal Risks / Security Risks
When crafting your company’s social media policy,
keep in mind any potential risks.

11. +
Our Duty to Stay Up-to-Date
 Lawyers have a duty to keep themselves informed of
changes in the law, including the benefits and risks
associated with relevant technology.
 In today’s world of social media, relevant
technology includes Facebook, Twitter, Instagram,
LinkedIn, SnapChat, and more.

12. +
What Is A Company Social
Media Policy?

13. + Definition:
A social media policy is your business code of conduct, letting people
in your law firm know how to act on social media. It is a compilation of
rules, regulations, and roles that will streamline how your law firm and
its employees use these platforms.

14. +
Basic Ethics Commonsense
If you can’t do it offline, you can’t do it online.

15. +
However…..
 While we wish this worked/was enough, different
people have different barometers and you want
one solid barometer for what is ok in your law firm.
 You do that by having a
formalized policy employees
are required to sign as part
of their employment
agreement.

16. + A well-crafted social media policy:
 Enumerates what your law firm defines as social media.
 Is not just a list of DON’T’S – also includes DO’S.
 Defends against security risks and legal issues, including
privacy issues.
 Protects your brand by ensuring that whenever someone
interacts with your law firm online, either via a company
channel or an employee’s individual channel, they get the
same consistent experience. This develops a reliable,
trustworthy digital identity for your company that matches
who you are offline IRL.

17. + It also….
 Empowers your staff via employee advocacy without
putting your brand credibility at risk. A plan is a critical
advocacy tool, giving your people the guidance they
need to accurately represent your organization online.
 Leads generated through an employee convert up to 7
times more, meaning it’s profitable to have your company
on social media.
 LinkedIn research shows that employees get twice the
click-through rate for branded content that a company
page would get for the same post.

18. +
For Instance…

19. +
A well-crafted social media policy
answers these questions:
 Who can speak on behalf of the law firm on social
media?
 What can those speakers say and
what can they not say?
 What voice do I use? (etiquette)
 What are the consequences if I
do something wrong?
 How do I respond to negativity?
 When can I tag/mention company accounts and other
companies’ accounts?

20. + Examples of Large Corporate
Social Media Policy Language
That Work

21. +
What You Should Do:
 Disclose Your Affiliation: If you talk about work related
matters that are within your area of job responsibility you must
disclose your affiliation with the law firm.
 State That It’s YOUR Opinion: When commenting on the law
firm. Unless authorized to speak on behalf of the company, you
must state that the views expressed are your own. Hourly
employees should not speak on behalf of the company when
they are off the clock.
 Understand: that no material posted on
social media is entirely private, and
should be considered public and
permanent.
 Understand: and accept any legal or
professional liability that accrues from
posting on any social media platforms.

22. +
Do: Humanize Your Law Firm

23. +
Do: Encourage Employees to Share
the Firm’s Content

24. +
Do: Share Testimonials or Reviews

25. +
What You Should Never Disclose:
 The Numbers: Non-public financial or operational information,
including jury verdict or settlement amounts. SBOT has clear
rules about how this information is disclosed and/or the
amounts may be confidential.
 Personal Information: Never share personal information
about our customers, clients, or other employees.
 Anything that belongs to someone
else: Stick to posting your own
creations. Don’t post illegally shared
music, copyrighted publications, and
logos or other images that are
trademarked.

26. +
NEVER EVER EVER Post About:
Politics
Religion
X
X

27. + But What About Employees’
Personal Accounts?
 Regardless of whether your
staff members are actively
speaking for you, the world will
always see them as a reflection
of your brand.
 If your employees are acting
questionably online, this raises
suspicion about your law firm
too.
 Get fired (and it’s embarrassing
to lose your job for something
that’s so easily avoided)
 Get the company in legal
trouble with clients or the State
Bar of Texas
 Cost the law firm the ability to
get and keep clients and/or
employees
 Cause a public relations
incident
Reflection on Company Consequences for Employees

28. +
Examples of Rules for Employees’
Personal Channels
 No use of hate speech, threats of violence, harassment, or
racial epithets on social media
 If you share content or media about a current lawsuit, you must
disclose that you work for the law firm involved in the lawsuit
 Keep confidential information confidential
 Do not attempt to provide legal advice online or pass yourself
off as a legal expert…. especially if you are not a lawyer

29. + REMEMBER!!
Protect the brand, protect yourself.

30. +
Why Checking Everything is
Important

31. +
Follow These Rules for Successful
Social Media Management
 Keep imagery in line with company brand
standards.
 Remember to check the source of any imagery
you use, and attribute as needed.
 Be careful using trending hashtags to increase
engagement because you may not understand
what they really mean.
 Sharing or retweeting is great for engagement,
but verify the original source before doing so.

32. + Check Your Photos
American Apparel shared a photo for July 4th meaning to show smoke in
the sky after fireworks. Instead, someone uploaded a photo of the smoke
after the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded.

33. + Check the Hashtag First:
#WhyIStayed was trending on Twitter for conversations about domestic
violence and why people stayed in abusive relationships. DiGiorno Pizza
did not do their research first and spent hours apologizing.

34. + Check Sources Before Sharing on
Your Channels
Often your competitors will have content that is relevant to your law firm.
Make sure you check the source of content before sharing it, though… no
need to advertise for a direct competitor!

35. + Just Because It Relates to Your
Industry Doesn’t Mean It’s Smart
KLM posted about the likelihood of fatality
based on where passengers were seated on
a plane. While technically this information
relates to the company’s industry, it’s in very
poor taste.
Making sure your content is both RELEVANT
and APPROPRIATE is crucial.

36. + And Remember….
This tweet cost Elon Musk $20M in fines and his role as CEO for 3 years:

37. +
Final Thoughts and Tips
 Utilize social listening to get ahead of potential issues
 Have a crisis response plan and be ready to respond
within one hour
 Employee opinions carry weight, which can work both
ways
 Always proofread your content before sharing it on social
media for business. It’s also good to have a second pair
of eyes check over your posts for accidental errors.
 Automation can help as much as it can hurt
 If possible, run your words past others outside your law
firm before sharing on social so you can make sure it
comes off as intended.

38. +
Connect with Lisa:
 Facebook: @MarketingLawyers
 Twitter: @lisaslexicon
 Instagram: @MarketingLawyers
 LinkedIn: /lisahopkinstx/
 Website: www.staceyeburke.com
 E-newsletter: http://bit.ly/StaceyMail