How Attorneys Can Leverage Video Marketing

Video marketing is a long-standing form of legal marketing that continues to evolve to suit its time. While, in the past, television advertising had been the go-to form of video marketing – especially for law firms — today, video marketing tends to revolve around online content on social media platforms.

There is no prescriptive way for how this content should be created, and, as a result, legal practitioners have explored different avenues, finding different forms of success in each. However, if law firms choose to pursue video marketing, they should bear in mind that their content needs to be reflective of their firm and its values. Additionally, infusing some flair into the videos goes a long way toward increasing engagement.

The History of Legal Video Marketing

The late 1970s brought on a major shift in the legal community as it relates to advertising. The Bates v. State Bar of Arizona ruling in 1977 was a landmark Supreme Court case that significantly impacted the scope of legal advertising in the United States. Before this case, many states prohibited attorneys from advertising their services, based on ethics rules that the legal profession should be seen as a public service rather than a commercial enterprise.

In the early 1970s, John Bates and Van O’Steen, two attorneys in Phoenix, Arizona, opened a legal clinic focused on providing affordable legal services to people of moderate income. To attract clients, they placed an advertisement in a local newspaper that listed their services and fees. This action violated the Arizona State Bar’s rules against attorney advertising, leading to disciplinary action against them.

The Court found that legal advertising, as a form of commercial speech, deserved protection under the First Amendment.

The majority opinion recognized that truthful and non-deceptive advertising could provide valuable information to consumers, particularly those who might otherwise be unaware of the availability of affordable legal services. The Court rejected the argument that lawyer advertising would undermine the professionalism of the legal field, emphasizing that states could still regulate advertising to prevent false or misleading claims.

The history of TV marketing for lawyers in the U.S. is closely tied to the broader evolution of legal advertising, particularly following the landmark Bates v. State Bar of Arizona decision. Following the Bates decision, the late 1970s and 1980s saw the emergence of TV ads for legal services. Initially, these ads were simple and straightforward, often featuring the lawyer or firm discussing their services and providing contact information. The ads targeted a broad audience and were often seen during daytime television slots, which were more affordable and reached potential clients who were at home. During this period, personal injury lawyers were among the first to fully embrace TV advertising. They saw television as a powerful way to reach large numbers of people who might need legal help but were unaware of their options.

However, the early 2000s saw more and more lawyers advertising on TV, and the market became increasingly saturated. This led to concerns about the potential for misleading or overly aggressive advertising. In response, state bar associations and the American Bar Association (ABA) introduced stricter guidelines to ensure that TV ads were ethical, truthful, and not misleading. These guidelines often required disclaimers and prohibited certain types of claims, such as guarantees of specific outcomes.

While TV advertising remains important, the 2010s saw a shift toward integrated marketing strategies that combine TV with digital advertising, social media, and online search engine marketing.

Law firms began using TV ads to drive traffic to their websites and social media profiles, where potential clients could learn more about their services. As such, video marketing has made a marked turn toward digital platforms, where attorneys can not only be more authentic in their presentation but reach a more engaged and active audience.

Video Marketing Best Practices

Unlike some other more subtle forms of digital marketing, video marketing for law firms can require the attorneys representing a law firm to be centerstage. As a result, many attorneys find the prospect of sitting down to film a YouTube or TikTok video quite daunting – but it need not be. Having an overarching video marketing strategy goes a long way in not only calming nerves, but working toward a place where a certain level of performance can be expected.

Outlining a Video Marketing Strategy

The following are some helpful tips to start thinking about your video marketing strategy:

1. Start by defining specific objectives for your video marketing campaign. Are you aiming to boost brand awareness or increase client intake? Align these goals with your broader marketing strategy and attach measurable targets. For a law firm just starting out in the online video marketing arena, it might be wise to choose smaller objectives in terms of targets – like reaching 1,000 views on a TikTok video or having a good view-to-like ratio – and then work your way up.
2. Budgeting is a critical step in your strategy. Video production costs can range widely depending on the complexity of the video. However, not all firms need impressive sets or production values. Many attorneys can attract viewers and, therefore, prospective clients, by simply using their voice, their phone, and their insight.
3. Video content comes in many forms, from animated explainers to sit-down talks. Decide on the type of videos that align with your goals and budget. This will help you determine whether to produce content in-house, outsource it, or use a combination of both. It is also important to remember that the type of video you choose to make needs to resonate and fit with the platform you publish it on.
4. Identify the channels where your videos will be most effective in reaching your target audience. Common platforms for attorneys include your firm’s website, YouTube, LinkedIn, and other social media networks. You can also repurpose TV commercials into online ads for broader distribution.

By taking the time to develop a strategic video marketing plan, you’ll ensure that your efforts are focused, efficient, and aligned with your overall marketing goals.

Incorporate SEO Strategies

To truly capitalize on the potential of video, it’s essential to implement effective SEO strategies that ensure your content is visible to your target audience. Below are some best practices for incorporating SEO into your video marketing strategy:

Optimize Video Titles and Descriptions: The title and description of your video are critical for both user engagement and search engine optimization. Crafting a compelling, keyword-rich title can significantly impact your video’s ranking on search engines and platforms like YouTube. Similarly, the description should provide a clear summary of the video, including relevant keywords and links to your website or social media profiles.

Tips:

• Use primary keywords at the beginning of the title.
• Keep the title concise and to the point.
• Include a call-to-action (CTA) in the description.
• Use 150-200 words in the description for optimal keyword inclusion.

Leverage Video Transcriptions: Transcribing your video content offers multiple SEO benefits. Search engines can’t watch videos, but they can crawl text. By providing a transcription, you make your content more accessible to both users and search engines, improving the chances of your video’s ranking higher in search results.

Tips:

• Embed the transcript directly on the video page.
• Include long-tail keywords naturally in the transcription.
• Offer downloadable transcripts for increased user engagement.

Use Appropriate Video Tags and Categories: Tags and categories play an essential role in how search engines and video platforms categorize your content. They help your video appear in relevant searches and recommended video sections.

Tips:

• Use a mix of broad and specific tags.
• Include your main keyword as a tag.
• Select categories that best match your video’s content.

Optimize Video Thumbnails: Thumbnails are often the first thing users notice about your video. A well-designed, relevant thumbnail can significantly increase click-through rates (CTR), which is a crucial factor in video SEO.

Tips:

• Use high-quality images with a 16:9 aspect ratio.
• Include text overlays that summarize the video content.
• Ensure the thumbnail is visually consistent with your brand.

Enhance Video Metadata: Metadata, including file names and tags, is crucial for SEO. Ensure your video file names are descriptive and include target keywords. This small step can help search engines better understand the content of your video.

Tips:

• Rename the video file to include primary keywords.
• Add relevant metadata when uploading the video.
• Use structured data (schema markup) to improve search engine understanding.

Embed Videos on Relevant Pages: Embedding videos on relevant web pages can boost the SEO of both the video and the page. Videos keep users on your page longer, reducing bounce rates and signalling to search engines that your content is valuable.

Tips:

• Embed videos on pages with related content.
• Place videos above the fold to maximize visibility.
• Use video sitemaps to help search engines discover your video content.

By optimizing your video titles, descriptions, thumbnails, and metadata, and by promoting and analyzing your content, you can significantly enhance your video’s visibility and engagement.

Storytelling

Storytelling is at the heart of effective video marketing, particularly for law firms where trust, empathy, and understanding are paramount. Legal issues are often deeply personal and emotionally charged. By incorporating storytelling into your video marketing, you can tap into these emotions, creating a connection with your audience that goes beyond mere facts and figures. Stories have the power to humanize your firm, making potential clients feel understood and cared for.

The law is intricate and can be overwhelming for those not well-versed in legal jargon. Storytelling allows you to break down these complexities into relatable, easy-to-understand narratives. By framing legal concepts within a story, you can make them more accessible and less intimidating for your audience.

Storytelling is not just a marketing tactic; it is an essential tool for law firms looking to connect with their audience on a deeper level. By incorporating stories into your video marketing, you can build emotional connections, simplify complex concepts, differentiate your firm, build trust, enhance engagement, and encourage action. In an industry where trust and understanding are key, storytelling sets your law firm apart and positions you as a trusted partner in your clients’ legal journeys.

Video Marketing Formats: The Pros and Cons

Longform

Longer content has the innate advantage of allowing lawyers to provide the necessary depth to their explanations. However, it also bears the disadvantage of having to compete for more of a viewer’s time in an increasingly saturated space. As such, the value of entertaining content that is enriched with personality cannot be understated. This is not to say that entertainment and theatrics become the primary objective, nor that entertainment is more valuable than education. Rather, this is to point out the difficulties of sustaining a viewer’s interest and to offer a solution.

Longform video marketing for legal practitioners will typically take an informational form with an entertaining edge. These videos can explain the legal context and ramifications of certain events — typically, current and newsworthy ones. While it is important to deliver factually correct and educational material, the content ultimately serves as a marketing device. To this end, viewers are more likely to watch an entire video if they are informed and entertained.

TikTok has also been making a surprising upswing in the realm of long-form video content. The platform now allows users to upload videos that are 60 minutes in length. This opens the way for increasingly more in-depth content on the platform. Given the brutal nature of the attention economy on TikTok, it is recommended that videos be concise. Users are accustomed to shorter content and a YouTube-esque video essay may not be appropriate. It is best to create shorter long-form videos that can be consumed more readily.

Longform Content Pros:

• Long-form content allows you to dive deep into complex topics, providing detailed explanations, case studies, or step-by-step guides. This can be particularly valuable in the legal field, where topics often require thorough discussion.
• By offering comprehensive insights, long-form videos help position you as an expert in your field. This can build trust with your audience, making them more likely to choose your services.
• For viewers who are genuinely interested in the topic, long-form content can lead to higher engagement rates. These viewers are more likely to watch the entire video, engage with it, and share it with others.
• Longer videos tend to keep viewers on your page for a more extended period, which can positively impact your website’s SEO. Additionally, long-form content often generates more keywords, increasing its chances of ranking higher in search engine results.
• Long-form videos can be repurposed into shorter clips, blog posts, or social media content, maximizing the value of your investment in content creation.

Longform Content Cons:

• Creating long-form content requires significant time and, sometimes, resources. Planning, scripting, filming, and editing can be much more labor-intensive compared to shorter videos.
• Attention spans are shorter than ever, and not all viewers will commit to watching a lengthy video. If the content isn’t engaging enough, viewers may drop off early, reducing the video’s overall effectiveness.
• Some platforms favor shorter content, making it challenging to share long-form videos effectively. For example, social media platforms like Instagram and Twitter are more geared toward brief, attention-grabbing clips.
• If the content is too long or not well-targeted, viewers may lose interest before reaching your call to action, potentially resulting in lower conversion rates.

Short-form

Short-form content is quick, flavorful, and engaging. This can be used to promote you or your firm in a number of different contexts and platforms. The versatility of short-form content is balanced by its challenging environment for the attention of viewers. Short-form video content, when hosted on your law firm’s website, often exists alongside a myriad of other videos, images, and paragraphs. Environmental factors can make it more difficult to stand out from the crowd in the short-form environment.

Several factors can help lawyers short-form video content grab eyeballs. These include production quality, intrigue, educational value, and personality. Each of these factors, and others, contributes to the overall impression that a viewer has the instant they see the content.

Short-form Content Pros:

• Short-form videos are easy to consume and share, making them highly engaging. Their brevity encourages viewers to watch them in full, increasing the likelihood of social shares and virality.
• With attention spans decreasing, short-form content aligns with how people consume information today. Viewers are more likely to watch a complete short video than commit to a longer one.
• Producing short videos is generally less expensive and time-consuming than long-form content. This allows for quicker turnaround times and the ability to produce content more frequently.
• Short videos are ideal for various platforms, including Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, and Facebook. They can be easily adapted to different formats and shared across multiple channels to maximize reach.
• Short-form content forces you to distill your message into its most essential points. This can make your content more impactful and easier for your audience to remember.
• The quick and digestible nature of short videos makes them perfect for brand awareness campaigns, allowing you to reach a broader audience with a clear and concise message.

Short-form Content Cons:

• The biggest drawback of short-form content is the lack of depth. Complex topics may not be adequately covered, which can be a disadvantage in fields like law where detailed explanations are often necessary.
• Short videos may not provide enough time to fully showcase your expertise. This can make it harder to establish authority and build trust with potential clients.
• The popularity of short-form content means there’s a lot of competition. Standing out in a crowded space requires creativity and a strong, distinctive brand voice.
• To maintain audience interest, you need to consistently produce and publish short-form content. This can be challenging and requires ongoing creativity and planning.
• The need to keep content brief can sometimes lead to oversimplification of important topics. This might result in miscommunication or a lack of clarity, especially when dealing with complex legal matters.
• While short-form content can quickly capture attention, it may not be as effective in driving conversions compared to more in-depth content. The quick pace may not leave enough time to persuade viewers to take action.

It’s Time to Start Filming

Video marketing offers law firms a powerful tool to connect with potential clients in a dynamic and engaging way. Whether through long-form or short-form content, the key to success lies in aligning your videos with your firm’s values, goals, and target audience. By leveraging a well-crafted video marketing strategy, optimizing your content for search engines, and incorporating compelling storytelling, your law firm can not only stand out in a crowded market but also build lasting relationships with clients.