Facebook – The Virtual Networking Jackpot

We all know Facebook is a great social media platform to catch up with friends and family and to use for online marketing. However, when talking to law firms around the country, I’m often surprised at how few of them utilize it for networking. Compound that with many not having a business Facebook page that is managed and updated on a regular basis to attract followers, and you’re really missing out on some serious opportunities!

I happen to manage a couple of business pages and have found it to be a great way to find and connect with organizations and groups who may be interested in learning more about our businesses.

According to GeoMarketing, Facebook kicked off 2017 with 65 million local business pages! That’s a whole lotta businesses who may be interested in connecting with your business!
And the best thing about networking on Facebook is that it is SIMPLE and EASY. Here are a few quick tips to jumpstart your Facebook networking.

Follow Local Business and Group Pages.

While you are on your business page, use Facebook’s search box to look for other local businesses who have clients, Members, donors, employees, etc. who are similar to your clientele. These are the types of organizations you’ll want to network with and grow your reach. After you “Like” their page, you can verify that your business page (not your personal page) liked their page, by clicking on your “Pages Liked by the Page” and make sure it says “Liked as Your Page.” I promise, it’s not as complicated as it initially sounds.

Who Do They Follow?

Before you move on to search for other businesses, stop and scroll on down to their “Pages Liked by this Page” to check out the business and group pages they follow. Often, they are in line with who you want to follow as well and you’ll probably find groups you never thought to connect with. Look through their list to see who else you can “Like” to add to your follow list. Boom! You’ve instantly expanded your networking list in a matter of minutes!

Find Your Business Page News Feed.

Now that you’ve amassed a nice group of interesting businesses to follow, you need to see their posts. Your Business Page newsfeed is different than your personal newsfeed and it does not automatically show up when you log in to Facebook. Seeing your Business newsfeed takes a little bit of searching. They’ve moved this around over the years, but as of the posting of this blog, you’ll find the link by going to your Business Page and scrolling down the right side column, then clicking on “See Pages Feed – Posts from Pages You’ve Liked as your Page.”

Don’t Be Shy! Comment on that Post!

Engaging with these groups is the key to successful networking online. See a post that catches your eye? Throw out a comment. See a post that will inspire your followers? Share it. It is also important to not take shortcuts here. Don’t just click on the obligatory thumbs up or smiley face. Instead, get involved and offer up thoughtful comments to show support and interest. The more you comment and share, the more they’ll take notice. This is essentially your warm up act…

Lead With Your Why.

Once you’ve been engaged for a few weeks, reach out and introduce yourself. Before doing so, be sure to get clear on why you are reaching out and why you do what you do. Consider first what you can do for them and what solutions you can offer them or their followers, not just what they can do for you. Once you have that clear in your mind, share those thoughts with them and let them know what you do, why you do it and why you’re enjoying their page. Again, be authentic in what it is you want to help them with and what resources you can provide. If you’re effective in making this connection, you’ll build on your own followers.

Keep Your Own Page Interesting.

As you begin to build your own list of followers, don’t forget about your page’s newsfeed. Keep it interesting and entertaining. Just because you’re a law firm doesn’t mean you need to post about legal matters 24/7 – it’s too one dimensional. Talk about a snooze-fest. I blow past those firms who post only on legal topics. So think about how you check your Facebook newsfeed. What catches your eye, what makes you stop and read or have a good laugh? You want the same for your followers. Change it up, keep it interesting and throw in some humor. And keep those posts coming! Be consistent in your postings and post at least 3 times a week.
These are just a few of the things I do to interact with other businesses and there are a lot of other great tips out there too, so look around at what others are doing on their pages. If you have networking or posting tips you want to share – simply click on the comments section and share away!

Susan Russel
Director of Member Services
American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.
9444 Balboa Avenue, Suite 300
San Diego, California 92123
Phone: (858) 453-2128
www.aaepa.com