You might expect that analysing the communications expertise of the world’s highest performing law firms would yield positive results, but this was not necessarily the overwhelming outcome of Living Group’s most recent Living Ratings report of America’s top 100 law firms.

The report measured the online presence of these prestigious companies through detailed analysis of social media and company websites and compiled results tables indicating which law firms use these tools most effectively.

The table, ranked by total criteria, is topped by Reed Smith, Faegre Baker Daniels, Goodwin Proctor, Nixon Peabody, and Baker and McKenzie. However, even these higher ranking firms scored below the 70% mark. The primary weakness found was the majority of firms failing to differentiate themselves.

Nick Smith, copywriter at Living Group, says, “I find it surprising that quite a lot of this activity is not up to scratch, is suboptimal. It does not reflect the performance, the stature, the gravitas, and the business performance of these firms.”

With the fast-paced nature of communications, particularly in relation to digital content and social media communication, it seems that many businesses are out-of-date. It is important to remember that personal relationships, which are usually acknowledged to be a number one priority among law firms, now take place across digital space as well as in face-to-face scenarios. 

Smith continues, “What is your communications department doing if they’re not keeping [your website] fresh, vital and innovative”.

Half of the firms reviewed scored performance of 35% or less. The relatively low scores may reflect intrinsic challenges with corporate social media. “It has to appeal to so many different audiences, corporate social media ends up appealing to nobody”, says Smith.

There’s no doubt that social media can be a very powerful tool and digital communications should be incorporated into all that a communications team does. There may still be a wariness or uncertainty surrounding this relatively new channel, particularly in traditional corporations but evidence shows that user experience is tantamount to attracting and keeping clients. 

While previous Living Ratings reports show that some professional services companies are making the most of social media, it appears that there is still work to be done in this field.

To read the full findings of the report click here.