#1nwebinar: battle linkedin
DESCRIPTION
During this session, One North Strategist Alex Ziegler takes an in-depth look at LinkedIn and how top consulting and law firms are using this increasingly powerful social platform. She analyzes just how these firms utilize their company pages, updates, groups and individual employee profiles and examines the correlation between presence, follower activity and engagement. Which of these dimensions makes the biggest difference? To watch this presentation, visit http://bit.ly/11V9b9W.TRANSCRIPT
December 3 2014
Battle LinkedIn: Law Firms vs. Consulting Firms
Webinar
Introduction
Alex Ziegler Strategist at One North
3 Fun Facts • Used to be a consultant (but I
promise I am not picking sides)
• I have 622 connections on LinkedIn (still way behind my father-in-law)
• Found my way to One North through LinkedIn
Why LinkedIn matters
LinkedIn has been dubbed the “social network preferred by executives” by:
with 88% of executives using LinkedIn “often”
and 73% saying that LinkedIn is their “preferred social network”
0.081 1.6 4 8 15 33 40
65
100
187 200
2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
LinkedIn is growing in importance
LinkedIn now has users 332 million and is growing at 38% annually
…and it’s not just in the US
In Q3 of 2014
of new members came
outside of the US
75%
LinkedIn applies to every stage of your client relationships
Someone unaware of your firm may become interested when they see a relevant post.
Generate Awareness
They can build a stronger relationships through personal connections.
Establish Trust & Advocacy
Seeing others share and recommend content can influence their perception.
Loyalty & Influence
Our curiosity
What are the top law firms and consulting firms doing on LinkedIn to build relationships?
Who we assessed
Vault Top 10 Consulting Firms
AmLaw Top 10 Law Firms
What we wanted to learn
Company Profile
Leadership Profiles
Company Posts
Followers
How are companies using LinkedIn?
How does it impact audience engagement?
? Groups
Which of these dimensions makes the BIGGEST impact?
2 1
3
How we approached it
Score 0 1 2 3 4 5
Least Robust Most Robust
We created a scoring rubric to assess and compare LinkedIn Presence across multiple dimensions.
Company Profile - Scoring
Main Company Page • Company Information • Recent Updates Section • Affiliated Pages • Featured Groups
0 5
No company page Utilize all features included in assessment
0 5
No careers page Utilize all featured included in assessment
Does each company use the features that are available?
Careers Page • Visual Elements • Featured Employees • Recent Updates
LEAST ROBUST MOST ROBUST
LEAST ROBUST MOST ROBUST
Company Page – Example (Main Company Page)
Company Page – Example (Auxiliary Page)
Careers Page – Example (Careers Page)
Company Profile – Results
Main Company Page • Company Information • Recent Updates Section • Affiliated Pages • Featured Groups
Law Firms Consulting Firms
Not too far behind WINNER
Law Firms Consulting Firms
Much farther behind WINNER
Who wins this battle?
Careers Page • Visual Elements • Featured Employees • Recent Updates
Company Profile – Law
Company Main Company Page Careers Page Total Score
DLA Piper 5 4 9
White & Case 4 5 9
Hogan Lovells 5 3 8
Latham 3 5 8
Kirkland Ellis 3 4 7
Baker McKenzie 4 1 5
Skadden 3 1 4
Jones Day 3 1 4
Sidley 3 1 4
Gibson Dunn 3 0 3
Average 3.6 2.5
Most Robust
Least Robust
On average, law firms tend to have a partially complete company page and tend to not leverage a careers page.
In contrast, consulting firms tend to have more robust company pages and are more likely to have a robust careers page.
Company Profile – Consulting
Company Main Company Page Careers Page Total Score
PwC 5 4 9 Accenture 5 4 9 Oliver Wyman 4 5 9 Deloitte 4 5 9 McKinsey 4 4 8 BCG 4 4 8 A.T. Kearney 4 4 8 Booz Allen Hamilton 3 5 8
Bain 3 1 4 The Parthenon Group 3 0 3
Average 3.9 3.7
Most Robust
Least Robust
Company Profile – Visual Comparison
Legal Consulting
vs
Most Robust
Least Robust
Company Profile – Observations & Questions
• Many law firms have the bare minimum when it comes to their careers page – why is this?
• LinkedIn charges for use of various features
• Benefit to careers page beyond just recruits
Posts – Scoring
How frequently do they post? 0 5
No posts Post at least once a day
Firm News External News Thought Leadership
Does each company post updates?
What type of posts are they making?
LEAST ROBUST MOST ROBUST
Firm News Example
• Links to a press release on the DLA Piper site • Helps to “credentialize” the firm, but doesn’t provide information that audiences can use • Mixing in other types of posts of important
External News Example
• Links to an external news source (The Recorder) • Showcases firm’s perspective on something that is happening in the news • Both “credentializes” DLA Piper and offers useful information
Thought Leadership Post Example
• Links to a publication on the DLA Piper site
• Includes an interesting info-graphic
• Demonstrates knowledge of the retail industry
• Guides users to explore more information on the website
Posts – Results
Law Firms Consulting Firms
TIE
Law Firms Consulting Firms
Much more posting of firm news WINNER
Who wins this battle?
How frequently do they post?
What type of posts are they making?
On average, law firms tend to post items relatively regularly.
Posts – Law
Company Post Frequency
Baker McKenzie 5
DLA Piper 4
Skadden 4
Sidley 4
White & Case 4
Gibson Dunn 4
Latham 4
Jones Day 4
Hogan Lovells 3
Kirkland Ellis 0
Average 3.6
Most Robust
Least Robust
In contrast, consulting firms post more frequently.
Posts – Consulting
Company Post Frequency
BCG 5
Booz Allen Hamilton 5
PwC 5
Bain 4
McKinsey 4
Oliver Wyman 4
A.T. Kearney 4
Accenture 4
The Parthenon Group 4
Deloitte 3
Average 4.2
Most Robust
Least Robust
Posts – Visual Comparison
Legal Consulting
vs
Most Robust
Least Robust
Law firms tend to post primarily internal items with some amount of thought leadership posting.
Types of Posts – Law
Company Firm News Thought Leadership External News
DLA Piper ✔ ✔ ✔
Hogan Lovells ✔ ✔
Latham ✔ ✔
Skadden ✔ ✔
White & Case ✔ ✔
Jones Day ✔ ✔
Gibson Dunn ✔ ✔
Baker McKenzie ✔
Sidley ✔
Kirkland Ellis
Consulting firms tend to post more thought leadership than law firms and are less internally focused.
Types of Posts – Consulting
Company Firm News Thought Leadership External News
Bain ✔ ✔ ✔
Oliver Wyman ✔ ✔ ✔
Deloitte ✔ ✔ ✔
Booz Allen Hamilton ✔ ✔
PwC ✔ ✔
The Parthenon Group ✔ ✔
A.T. Kearney ✔
Accenture ✔
McKinsey ✔
BCG ✔
Posts – Observations & Questions
• Law firms are not posting as much thought leadership content – why is this?
• Often times it’s easier to post firm news
• Law firms have the content, but may not be leveraging it the way they could be (e.g., curating select blog posts, developing info-graphics to draw interest to publications)
Groups – Scoring
How many groups do they have?
0 5
No groups 16 or more
Does each company have groups?
LEAST ROBUST MOST ROBUST
Groups – Example (Location Based)
Groups – Example (Alumni / Expertise Focused)
Groups – Example (Program Focused)
Groups – Results
Law Firms Consulting Firms
Far fewer groups WINNER
Who wins this battle?
How many groups do they have?
On average, law firms do not create a lot of groups.
Groups – Law
Company Number of Groups
Baker McKenzie 1
DLA Piper 1
Skadden 1
Sidley 1
White & Case 1
Hogan Lovells 1
Gibson Dunn 1
Latham 0
Jones Day 0
Kirkland Ellis 0
Average 0.7
Most Robust
Least Robust
In contrast, consulting firms create many more groups.
Groups – Consulting
Company Number of Groups
Bain 5
BCG 4
Booz Allen Hamilton 4
PwC 4
McKinsey 4
Oliver Wyman 2
A.T. Kearney 2
Accenture 2
The Parthenon Group 1
Deloitte 0
Average 2.8
Most Robust
Least Robust
Groups – Visual Comparison
Legal Consulting
vs
Most Robust
Least Robust
Groups – Observations & Questions
• Law firms don’t utilize groups as much – why is this?
• There may be regulatory reasons why law firms are more hesitant to use groups
• Opportunity to have alumni groups (past
employees can become future clients, and they refer people as well)
Leadership Profiles – Scoring
Number of Connections 0 5
No connections 500 +
Does each leader have a robust profile?
0 5
No features Using all features listed
Profile Features
Publications 0 5
No publications More than 10 publications
LEAST ROBUST MOST ROBUST
LEAST ROBUST MOST ROBUST
LEAST ROBUST MOST ROBUST
• Groups • Skills / expertise • Following
• Picture • Summary • Experience /
education
Leadership Profiles – Number of Connections
Leadership Profiles – Profile Features
Leadership Profiles – Publications
Assessment Challenges
Legal Firms # of Leaders Identified
Latham 12
Baker McKenzie 8
DLA Piper 4
Jones Day 4
White & Case 6
Kirkland Ellis 5
Hogan Lovells 3
Sidley 5
Gibson Dunn 5
Skadden 4
Consulting Firms # of Leaders Identified
PwC 27
BCG 17
Booz Allen Hamilton 8
McKinsey 5
Bain 5
The Parthenon Group 3
Accenture 3
Deloitte 2
A.T. Kearney 1
Oliver Wyman 1
We couldn’t consistently identify leaders for all firms.
Leadership Profiles – Results
Leadership Team Overall
Who wins this battle?
Top Profile By Firm
Law Firms Consulting Firms
TIE (both are weak)
Law Firms Consulting Firms
Top profile not as strong WINNER
On average, the leadership of the top legal firms have relatively low scores in terms of the robustness of their presence on LinkedIn.
Company Leaders Identified Connections Profile
Features Publications Total Score
Latham 12 2.08 2.67 0.17 4.92
Baker McKenzie 8 2.13 2.63 0 4.75
DLA Piper 4 2.25 2.25 0 4.5
Jones Day 4 1.5 1.25 0 2.75
White & Case 6 1 1.5 0 2.67
Kirkland Ellis 5 1.2 1.4 0 2.6
Hogan Lovells 3 1.33 1 0 2.3
Sidley 5 1 0.8 0 1.8
Gibson Dunn 5 0.8 0.8 0 1.6
Skadden 4 0 0 0 0
Average 1.33 1.43 0.02
Most Robust
Least Robust
Leadership Team Overall – Legal
Leadership Team Overall – Consulting
Overall, consulting firms tend to have more robust leadership profiles than the legal firms we assessed, however findings are likely skewed by number of leaders identified.
Company Leaders Identified Connections Profile
Features Publications Total Score
A.T. Kearney 1 5 5 2 12
Oliver Wyman 1 5 4 0 9
McKinsey 5 3 3.2 2 8.2
PwC 27 2.48 2.33 0.22 5.03
Bain 5 2.2 2.6 0.2 5
The Parthenon Group 3 2.33 1.67 0 4
BCG 17 1.41 1.76 0.24 3.41
Accenture 3 1.67 1.67 0 3.33
Booz Allen Hamilton 8 1.88 1.38 0 3.25
Accenture 3 1.67 1.67 0 3.33
Deloitte 2 0 1 0 1
Average 2.42 2.39 0.42
Most Robust
Least Robust
Leadership Profiles – Visual Comparison
Most Robust
Least Robust
Law Firms Consulting Firms
Top
Indi
vidu
al
Prof
ile
Lead
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ip T
eam
O
vera
ll
Leadership Profiles – Observations & Questions
• Lowest utilized feature was “publications” – missed opportunity to share interesting content
• We looked at just leadership - what would we find if we assessed all employees?
• Firms are doing poorly in this area - does this dimension even matter?
How does all of this impact audience engagement?
Company Profile
Leadership Profiles
Company Posts
Followers
How are companies using LinkedIn?
How does it impact audience engagement?
? Groups
Which of these dimensions makes the BIGGEST impact?
2 1
3
Ideal ways to measure engagement
Company Analytics View
Follower to Employee Ratio
Followers
Engagement: “following” a company means you choose to subscribe to updates from them in your feed.
Normalization: larger companies have a larger network, so we normalized this number by looking at the ratio of followers to employees.
Follower to Employee Ratio – Comparison
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
Follo
wer
to E
mpl
oyee
Rat
io
Company
Consulting firms have much higher follower to employee ratios than law firms. They also have a larger spread of follower to employee ratios.
Legend
Consulting Firms
Law Firms
Does follower ranking align to LinkedIn ranking?
We found that the LinkedIn rankings were somewhat indicative of the follower rankings, but they did not always match up for a number of different reasons.
Company Type A. Follower Ranking B. LinkedIn Ranking
McKinsey Consulting 1 2
BCG Consulting 2 5
Bain Consulting 3 9
Oliver Wyman Consulting 4 3
The Parthenon Group Consulting 5 15
A.T. Kearney Consulting 6 1
Booz Allen Hamilton Consulting 7 6
Accenture Consulting 8 8
Deloitte Consulting 9 14
Hogan Lovells Legal 10 13
A. Follower Ranking- Ranking of companies by their Follower to Employee Ratio B. LinkedIn Ranking- Ranking of companies by their total LinkedIn score from this assessment
Does follower ranking align to LinkedIn ranking? (continued)
Company Type A. Follower Ranking B. LinkedIn Ranking
Baker McKenzie Legal 11 12
DLA Piper Legal 12 7
PwC Consulting 13 4
Skadden Legal 14 20
White & Case Legal 15 11
Latham Legal 16 10
Sidley Legal 17 16
Kirkland Ellis Legal 18 18
Jones Day Legal 19 17
Gibson Dunn Legal 20 19
A. Follower Ranking- Ranking of companies by their Follower to Employee Ratio B. LinkedIn Ranking- Ranking of companies by their total LinkedIn score from this assessment
Which dimension has the biggest impact?
Company Profile
Leadership Profiles
Company Posts
Followers
How are companies using LinkedIn?
How does it impact audience engagement?
? Groups
Which of these dimensions makes the BIGGEST impact?
2 1
3
LinkedIn features with the most Impact
We identified two statistically significant correlations suggesting that company profile robustness and leadership profiles may impact how many followers were achieved.
Follower to Employee
Ratio
Follower to Employee
Ratio
Company Profile
Robustness
Leadership Profile
Robustness
p < 0.05
p < 0.05
Legal
Consulting
Less than 5% chance that the correlation is a fluke.
Impact – Observations & Questions
• Frequency of content posting did not surface as a big differentiator
• Currently company profile pages make the biggest impact for law firms – in a few years, once their presence on LinkedIn is more mature, will leadership profiles be more impactful?
• Makes sense that leadership profiles are so impactful for consulting firms:
• we are curious about other people • we like to network • we are far more interested in content that comes
recommended by an individual
What We Learned
• Overall, consulting firms win the battle. But it isn’t really a battle. The consulting and legal industries are different, so we expect differences in their LinkedIn behavior. This doesn’t mean that law firms can’t learn from consulting firms are doing.
• What your people do matters. The most impactful LinkedIn
features for consulting firms is leadership profiles. If law firms were to boost their profiles, they may see similar results.
• LinkedIn presence is no longer a “nice to have.” There are big disparities between firms that have a robust LinkedIn presence and those that don’t across various dimensions. There is a lot of opportunity to not just be on LinkedIn but to do more on LinkedIn.
What You Should Do
Stay updated LinkedIn is always changing. Find out what new features are out there to take advantage of.
Company profile
Create a strong company page. Careers pages are important!
Profiles Urge employees to complete their profiles, form connections, and engage audiences with interesting posts and publications.
Posts Ensure that your company is not just firm-centric content, but also content that audiences can really use.
Groups Explore utilizing groups, particularly for alumni, because they can become future clients and refer others.
Analytics Track your engagement on LinkedIn through the robust analytics that are available to you.
Checklist (In Order of Priority)