Professional services firms are largely adept at using LinkedIn and Twitter to generate leads and boost their brand, but how many have embraced Instagram.? Could Instagram be a useful social media platform for your law firm or accountancy practice?
Recently, some big players such as Goldman Sachs, Bloomberg and even MI5 have started posting on Instagram so, should your firm follow suit?
Is it the right place for us to be?
I must admit that it has only been in recent months that I’ve come to appreciate the benefits of Instagram for b2b businesses having mistakenly believed that the platform was more a home for consumer brands and photogenic individuals! A quick search revealed that the Big Four accountancy firms and four of the five the Magic Circle law firms all have Instagram accounts so there can be no doubt that the photo and video sharing platform is becoming more influential as a professional services marketing and recruitment tool.
The platform has evolved enormously since its early days and its premium feel is particularly attractive to millennials – more than half of all millennials are active users on Instagram. In 10 years’ time it’s estimated that approximately 70% of the workforce will be millennials so engaging with them now might be considered a very good investment in the future (and present) services buying population.
Instagram is also more business focused than you might think with an estimated 25 million business profiles on the platform already and 8 out of 10 people following a business account.
Other plus points are Instagram’s nifty features which law and accountancy firms could utilise well – for example, Instagram Live enables users to broadcast a video in real time. For example, I’ve seen wealth managers interview family lawyers on the live feature. Like LinkedIn, the platform also enables users to target their audience in highly sophisticated ways.
Instagram needs a different approach
But, beware, as a highly visual marketing channel, Instagram demands a different approach. Trying to recycle content from other platforms is unlikely to work well so some innovative thinking is required. Followers on Instagram want to be visually inspired, to have their eye caught – it’s all about the stand out, interesting graphics.
Even if your service is a bit technical or dry, having vibrant, creative and engaging content is the key to success.
By way of example, Nisha Katona, a former barrister and founder of Mowgli Street Food (a national restaurant chain which had sales of £15 million in 2020) recently wrote in The Times how the personal touch on social media helped Mowgli gain 80,000 followers during the pandemic. Nisha posted about interests that she felt she might share with her customers – cooking videos, her vegetable patch and dog w“Discerning customers need to understand the person behind the brand” wrote Nisha. There are lessons here for ambitious professionals and their firms. People like to know who they are dealing with and in an age where values have never been so important, they like to feel aligned with the firm they choose.
Where to start
Given that Instagram is highly visual, a good place for professional services to start would be to focus on teams and team members.
As a general rule of thumb, more human and less corporate is the best approach. Businesses need to “keep it real” in order to reach real clients and potential recruits. Posts will feel more human if they focus on the staff and their achievements or on how they have supported a local community or boosted their ESG credentials in some way.
A firm keen to dabble in Instagram could perhaps start by setting up an account which focuses on careers at their firm. Check out Linklaters’ graduate handle (@linklatersgraduatesuk) which has over 8,000 followers for ideas. Alternatively, a firm may wish to boost the profile of a rising star by setting up individual business handle.
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