Top firms losing out to upstarts in social media sphere
Many of the UK’s leading law firms are failing to make full use of marketing and networking opportunities available through social media, setting them apart from more recent entrants to the legal market.
The so-called ’Klout score’ of UK firms, calculated by social media site Klout, identifies QualitySolicitors, which recently opened sales desks in WHSmith stores nationwide, as having the most influential online presence.
National firm Cobbetts, comes in at number two while magic circle firm Clifford Chance, which currently has 1,223 followers on Twitter, is ranked at number 33 in terms of Klout. Bird & Bird weighs in at number 77.
Devised by Flagship Consulting, Klout measures a firm’s social media influence across a host of popular networking platforms such as Twitter and Facebook. ’Klout’ is measure using metrics such as audience, reach, influence and engagement.
QualitySolictiors’ founder and chief executive Craig Holt commented: “QualitySolicitors aims to be the dominant brand for legal services in the UK. The future of the legal market lies with brands and those law firms who ignore or pay lip service to the importance of online engagement will pay a heavy price.
“Social media’s all about interaction, not just bland marketing or sales, and we’ve focused our energies on that, building up a significant presence which, in turn, develops our brand loyalty. It’s not easy as consumers have little interest in law firms or lawyers but QS has successfully captured the public’s imagination in an exciting and engaging manner.”
A spokesperson for Hogan Lovells, which ranked at number 23, said: “”Social media needs to be used appropriately and in the context of the people you’re aiming it at. It sits alongside and can supplement other ways of communicating with the market and adds to what we do.”
Top 10 by social media ‘klout’:
Quality Solicitors
Cobbetts
Allen & Overy
Eversheds
Olswang
Taylor Wessing
Burness
Pannone
CMS Cameron McKenna
Blake Lapthorn
Bottom ten by social media ‘klout’:
Morgan Cole
Brodies
Keoghs
Browne Jacobson
Bircham Dyson Bell
Hugh James
Capsticks
Bristows
Forsters
Penningtons
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Readers' comments (24)
Anonymous | 8-Aug-2011 1:15 pm
I'm bored of hearing from lazy consultants claiming that social media will revolutionise the profession.
Old fuzzy senior partners might be impressed, but I'm an in-house lawyer who buys legal services - I care not a jot that a firm sends out tweets.
I judge a firm based upon its expertise (normally via Legal 500) and on cost.
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Jas | 8-Aug-2011 1:55 pm
This is a joke. Read this for more evidence: http://thetimeblawg.com/2011/08/03/uk-law-firms-with-klout-%E2%80%93-a-clearer-picture/ (No, it's not spam - it's a real article!)
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Sanjay Morzaria | 10-Aug-2011 4:41 pm
Very poorly done. No credible scientific base for this article. Yes social media is important; more important to use the correct channel for your target audience and let this be part of the mix of communication.
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Simon Ellison-Bunce | 11-Aug-2011 9:38 am
Inspired by Brian Inkster’s analysis of these figures on thetimeblawg.com, I’ve created a new web site to publish comprehensive and unspun social networking metrics from Twitter, Klout, PeerIndex and LinkedIn. Read more about it at http://blog.fellsoft.com.
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