Video content is hugely compelling for lawyers as well as any other business and can help attract clients and targeted visitors to your website. Now Facebook has made the whole video-production issue a brain-dead simple way to help generate increased business for your firm.
Video is regarded by many as something beyond their capability and a challenge that is insurmountable. But Facebook have helped make the process simple and its a great entree to generating increased exposure for your firm.
Many small firms in particular will lack the resources to devote towards smartly produced video for YouTube or Facebook inclusion. They will lack the support of those who can produce video to generate clients who are focused on what your law firm does.
Why, though?
Well Facebook is advertising over 3 million businesses right now.
It’s ability to reach and interact with many of your clients – or potential clients – is massive.
Consider the stats (as provided by Facebook to Social Times) :
- More than 50 million small and midsized businesses are currently using Facebookpages, and more than 80 percent of the social network’s users in the U.S. are connected to SMBs. More than 2.5 billion comments are posted on those pages each month.
- There are more than 43 billion connections between people and businesses on the social network.
- The top three verticals building Facebook pages are services, local commerce and e-commerce.
- More than 1 million advertisers on Facebook are creating ads via mobile devices.
- More than 20 million active pages are using the social network’s Pages application.
- More than 70 percent of Facebook’s 3 million-plus advertisers are outside of the U.S.
- Southeast Asia is the fastest-growing region, and the top five countries in terms of year-over-year growth were the U.S., Brazil, the U.K., Italy and Australia.
Introducing . . “Your Business Story”
Facebook have started their “Your Business Story” which produce simple but effective videos that can help generate traffic for your firm and also push out an effective sales or branding message.
You can get your firm video out and performing on your site effectively – often much more so than other content you may have, as well as building your targeted traffic.
So here are the six, simple steps towards building your firm video.
STEP 1: Go to Facebook.com/Business
Facebook will firstly prompt you to log on if you’re not logged on to your page already. You will need to be an authorized Administrator for a Facebook page in order to proceed further to produce your video. If you’re an Administrator for more than one page, choose the page you want to create this business video for.
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STEP 2: Select the Images You Want to Display in your Video
Facebook “Business Story” videos are simple photographic sequences that dissolve between the different images you upload to the site. The tool will easily permit you to select the pictures you want to display on your video and the order in which they should appear. If you have photos on your page you can select them or the tool will prompt you to upload the relevant photos you want to appear in the video.
You need to confirm your images and then proceed to the next step.
STEP 3: Tell Your Story
Next up is the story telling part of the process where you have 90 characters to explain your firm and your brand. You need to think carefully and ensure you’re using the right keywords and hitting the right buttons to convey your expertise in DUI law, bankruptcy law, property or divorce law . . whatever.
Provide an outline of your track record, reputation, success and also – importantly – try and impart some personality. Remember you’re wanting to attract clients and you need to be able to provide to potential clients something of who and what you are in a short, concise manner.
Facebook will help the process with its canned text such as “We’re in the business of” and similar.
You’ll then need to confirm your story.
STEP 4: Select Your Music
Now its soundtrack time. You won’t get a particularly wide choice here and you can’t upload your own soudntrack, so you have a limited choice of ‘rock’, ‘electronica’, ‘sythn’ and ‘percussion’. They’re adequate for the job. Make your choice.
STEP 5: Sign The FB TOS
You’re a lawyer so this won’t surprise you – agree to Facebook’s terms. This is the standard, boilerplate TOS including global and non-exclusive rights to display your masterpiece video around the world.
Click “agree” and you’re done.
Step 6: Wait about 10 minutes
Your video will be up shortly – like within 10 minutes. It will be formatted in a square (1:1) aspect ratio which is now the more common standard for social media video. It also has added a “zoom out” effect for your images to create a little more pizzaz.
You’re Away . .
Facebook’s Business video tool is not for everyone and many firms will be looking at something far more sophisticated, but for those seeking to establish themselves on the world’s biggest social media platform, this is a great way to start.
It will also help you think carefully about your all important message and brand and what you want to convey to your clients and potential clients. It should also get you thinking about creating other videos that can be used on your site, social media pages and perhaps a YouTube channel.
The ability to use dead-simple but effective tools like the Facebook tool is something that removes the objection many might otherwise have towards something as previously complex and expensive asd video production.
You can still go for a low-tech video that creates something authentic and honest but here is something that costs nothing but a little thought and a few minutes of your time.
