How Massingill Law achieved predictable growth with help from Juris Digital
Want to boost your law firm’s online presence? Avoid these 5 SEO pitfalls:
Why care about SEO?
Good SEO = more visitors, leads, and clients.
But it’s tricky. Here’s a quick comparison of what to do and what to avoid:
| SEO Aspect | Do This | Not This |
|---|---|---|
| Local SEO | Optimize Google Business Profile | Ignore local searches |
| Content | Create helpful, in-depth articles | Publish thin, keyword-stuffed content |
| Keywords | Research and use naturally | Stuff keywords everywhere |
| Mobile | Make site responsive | Ignore mobile users |
| Technical | Regular site audits | Neglect site structure and speed |
Fixing these issues can dramatically improve your law firm’s online visibility. Let’s dive in and learn how to avoid these SEO pitfalls.
Many law firms are missing out on a goldmine of potential clients by ignoring local SEO. Here’s why it matters and how to fix it:
Local SEO puts your law firm on the map – literally. When people in your area search for legal help, you want to be front and center. Consider this:
If you’re not on that first page for local searches, you’re invisible to most potential clients.
Here’s how to climb those local search rankings:
1. Optimize Your Google Business Profile (GBP)
This is your digital storefront. A complete profile makes people 70% more likely to check out your firm. Include:
Click here to read our short guide on optimizing your Google Business Profile.
2. Keep Your Info Consistent
Your Name, Address, and Phone number (NAP) should be identical everywhere online. It’s like giving Google a firm handshake – it builds trust.
3. Reviews, Reviews, Reviews
They’re SEO gold. Ask happy clients to leave them, and always respond – good or bad.
Pro Tip: Also Google your firm and attorneys names to see what other reviewers have to say about your firm.
Focus on these key areas:
Local Keywords: Sprinkle in terms like “Michigan DUI lawyers” or “Divorce attorneys near Dallas” throughout your site
Local Landing Pages: Create pages for each area you serve. Think “Texas Immigration Law Firm” for local searches.
Local Links: Get cozy with local businesses and organizations. Their links boost your local authority.
Community Involvement: Join local events. It’s not just good PR – it’s good for SEO too.
Bad content can tank your law firm’s SEO faster than a judge’s gavel.
Here’s why content quality matters and how to create SEO-friendly legal content that actually works.
Content quality is a big deal for your search rankings and user engagement. Why?
Here’s a fun fact: The top Google search result gets clicked 28.5% of the time, while the second only gets 15%. Quality content helps you grab that top spot.
What makes legal content strong:
Want content that Google and potential clients love? Try these:
Dig for keywords: What are people actually searching for?
Go deep: Aim for 2,000+ word articles that cover all the bases.
Break it up: Use headers and bullet points to make it skimmable.
Link it up: Connect related content on your site.
Think local: Include location terms if you serve a specific area.
Keep it fresh: Update regularly to stay accurate.
Humans first: Focus on value, not just keyword stuffing.
“Every piece of content is your chance to show what kind of lawyer you are.”
Keyword mistakes can wreck your law firm’s SEO. Let’s dive into why keyword research is crucial and how to dodge common traps.
Think of keyword research as your SEO compass. Without it, you’re lost in a sea of online content.
Did you know? Over 33% of clients start their lawyer search online, and the top Google result gets clicked 28.5% of the time.
Good keyword use helps you show up when potential clients are looking for you.
Do your homework: Use tools like Moz, Ahrefs, or SEMrush to find relevant keywords.
Mix it up: Target both high-volume and niche keywords.
| Keyword Type | Example | Monthly Searches |
|---|---|---|
| High-volume | “lawyer” | 201,000 |
| Niche | “Las Vegas criminal defense lawyer” | Lower, but more targeted |
Create location-based content: Serve multiple areas? Make unique pages for each.
Use keywords naturally: Put them in titles, headers, and content without forcing it.
Think like your clients: What would they type to find you?
Update regularly: Search trends change, so keep your keyword strategy fresh.
Mobile optimization isn’t optional for law firms anymore. It’s a must. Here’s why:
Over 60% of internet traffic comes from mobile devices. That means most people are looking for lawyers on their phones or tablets.
Google’s search results favor mobile-friendly sites. If your site isn’t optimized, you’re missing out on clients.
To make your site mobile-friendly:
Here’s how mobile-friendly and non-mobile-friendly sites compare:
| Feature | Mobile-Friendly | Non-Mobile-Friendly |
|---|---|---|
| Load Time | Under 3 seconds | Over 5 seconds |
| Design | Adjusts to screen size | Fixed layout |
| Navigation | Simple, tap-friendly | Complex, hard to use |
| Content | Short paragraphs, clear fonts | Long blocks of text |
| Contact | Click-to-call button | Manual number entry |
A mobile-friendly site isn’t just about looks. It’s about giving users a smooth experience that turns them into clients.
“Mobile optimization ensures that visitors accessing your law firm’s website on smartphones and tablets have a seamless experience.” – ApricotLaw
Don’t let a non-mobile-friendly site cost you clients. Optimize for mobile and watch your traffic grow.
Technical SEO is your law firm’s digital foundation. It’s not just about keywords – it’s about making your site work for users and search engines.
Technical SEO optimizes your site’s structure, speed, and code. For law firms, it’s crucial because it:
Many law firms struggle with:
1. Slow loading times
53% of mobile users bounce if a site takes over 3 seconds to load. Ouch.
2. Poor mobile optimization
Most internet traffic is mobile. If your site isn’t mobile-friendly, you’re losing clients.
3. Broken links and 404 errors
These hurt user experience and your site’s credibility.
4. Duplicate content
This confuses search engines and can tank your rankings.
5. No SSL certificate
Without HTTPS, your site looks unsecure. Clients won’t trust you.
Here’s how to tackle these problems:
1. Speed up your site
Compress images, minify CSS and JavaScript, and use browser caching.
2. Go mobile-friendly
Use responsive design and pass Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test.
3. Fix broken links
Use tools like Screaming Frog to find and fix broken links regularly.
4. Handle duplicate content
Use canonical tags to point search engines to the preferred page version.
5. Get SSL
Install an SSL certificate for HTTPS security.
| Technical SEO Element | Why It Matters | How to Do It |
|---|---|---|
| Site Speed | Better UX and rankings | Use PageSpeed Insights |
| Mobile Optimization | Most users are mobile | Use responsive design |
| Link Structure | Helps search engines crawl | Logical structure and internal linking |
| HTTPS | Security and rankings boost | Install SSL certificate |
| Schema Markup | Helps search engines understand | Use law firm structured data |
Technical SEO isn’t a set-it-and-forget-it deal. Keep monitoring with tools like Google Search Console and do regular audits.
SEO for law firms isn’t a one-and-done deal. It’s an ongoing process that needs your attention. Let’s recap the five common legal SEO mistakes:
1. Ignoring local SEO
With “near me” searches up 150%, local SEO is crucial. Don’t miss out on nearby clients.
2. Low-quality content
Bad content hurts your rankings and scares off potential clients. Quality matters.
3. Wrong keyword use
It’s not about stuffing keywords everywhere. Use them smartly or watch your SEO efforts tank.
4. Not optimizing for mobile
Most people browse on their phones. If your site isn’t mobile-friendly, you’re losing clients.
5. Ignoring technical SEO
This is your site’s backbone. Neglect it, and you’ll undo all your other SEO work.
Avoiding these mistakes is just the start. You need to keep up with SEO trends to stay competitive. Why? Because:
Your online presence directly impacts your client base. As competition heats up online, good SEO becomes even more crucial.
| SEO Aspect | Why It Matters | What to Do |
|---|---|---|
| Local SEO | Attracts nearby clients | Optimize Google Business Profile |
| Content Quality | Builds trust | Create helpful content |
| Keyword Strategy | Improves visibility | Do keyword research |
| Mobile Optimization | Caters to most users | Make site responsive |
| Technical SEO | Helps search engines | Regular site audits |
SEO for law firms is about making your website show up higher in Google when people search for legal help. It’s how you get more eyes on your firm online.
Here’s what law firm SEO involves:
Why bother with SEO? It helps law firms:
1. Get seen more online
The higher you rank, the more people spot your firm.
2. Bring in more potential clients
More visibility usually means more website visitors and inquiries.
3. Look more legit
People tend to trust the top search results more.
4. Keep up with the big dogs
Good SEO lets smaller firms duke it out with larger ones online.
Here’s the thing: SEO isn’t a one-and-done deal. It takes time, but it’s worth it. The Legal Trends Report says 17% of people find lawyers through online searches. That’s a chunk you don’t want to miss out on.
| SEO Element | What It Does | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Local SEO | Grabs nearby clients | Polish up your Google Business Profile |
| Content | Gives readers value | Write guides that actually help people |
| Keywords | Matches what people search | Use “divorce lawyer in [your city]” |
| Mobile-friendly | Works for phone users | Make sure your site looks good on small screens |
| Technical SEO | Helps Google understand your site | Fix broken links, speed things up |
Is your law firm ready to break through the growth plateau and attract better cases?
At Juris Digital, we specialize in website, SEO, and content strategies tailored to help firms like yours continue growing. Let us guide you to the next level with strategies grounded in proven marketing principles. Take the first step toward growth – get a free quote today and see how we can help your firm succeed.”
In this article we will cover how to optimize your firms Google Business Profile. This is a guide geared towards those new to GBP Profile. However, as with anything related to SEO there are a lot of nuances – so if you’re looking for the full guide that contains all of the nuances check out our guide on Local SEO For Lawyers.
Here’s how to boost your law firm’s visibility in Google’s local search results:
| Step | Effort | Impact |
|---|---|---|
| Claim/verify | Low | High |
| Complete profile | Medium | High |
| Add visuals | Low | Medium |
| Use features | Medium | Medium |
| Manage reviews | High | High |
| Authority Building | High | High |
| Use Insights | Low | Medium |
| Keep updated | Medium | Medium |
| Advanced tips | High | Medium |
Do you want to know the key to success to showing up in the local pack for law firms?
Did you know that a complete, accurate GBP profile makes your firm 2.7x more likely to be seen as reputable?
Plus we found that over 90% of people looking for a lawyer turn online at some point in their search for an attorney.
Here is how you can optimize your listing to increase your visibility.
Want to boost your law firm’s online presence? Start with Google Business Profile. Here’s how:
Not sure if you have a GBP profile? Search for your firm on Google or check your Google account. You can also check on https://www.google.com/maps
Verifying your listing isn’t just a box to tick. It’s a game-changer:
| Benefit | Impact |
|---|---|
| Trust | 2x more likely to be seen as trustworthy |
| Customer action | 24% more calls, 18% more direction requests |
| Search rankings | Better chance of Local 3-Pack appearance |
| Review management | You can respond to Google reviews |
Verification gives you the keys to your Google Search and Maps presence. Update info, add photos, and see how customers find you.
To verify, you’ll need:
Google offers several verification methods:
Don’t sit on it. Verification codes can expire, so act fast when you get one.
Let’s make your Google Business Profile for your law firm shine. Here’s how:
Your Name, Address, and Phone number (NAP) need to match everywhere online. Why? It helps Google trust you and boosts your local SEO.
| Where | What to Put |
|---|---|
| GBP | Legal name, full address, local number |
| Your site | Copy GBP exactly |
| Other websites like Yelp | Same as GBP and your site |
Quick Tip: Use a spreadsheet to track your NAP. For now we are just adding it to your listing but later we will add it on other important websites. Update your website first, then GBP, then everywhere else.
Pick categories that fit your law firm:
Example:
Don’t add categories that don’t fit. It could get your account suspended or decrease your visibility in search results.
Your description is your pitch. Keep it under 750 characters and include:
Here’s a sample of a generic description.
Smith & Associates: Chicago’s go-to personal injury lawyers for 20+ years. We handle car accidents, workplace injuries, and medical malpractice. Our mission? Getting you the compensation you deserve.
But let’s be fair. If you confuse, you lose. That’s why we recommend Storybrand messaging like:
When your wealth and future are on the line, we protect what matters most – ensuring a fair, secure resolution in your high-net-worth divorce.
Accurate hours build trust. Here’s the deal:
Check your hours often. Wrong info can turn clients away or get your listing suspended.
Make your law firm pop on Google My Business (GBP) with great visuals:
Skip the boring gavels. Instead:
Real background photos and candid shots are WAY more engaging than flat headshots. You can also edit these to include review stars or trust signals.
Google My Business (GMB) can supercharge your law firm’s online presence. Here’s how:
Use Google Posts to share updates on your GMB profile:
Tip: Use “What’s New” posts. You get 1,500 characters to answer common legal questions.
| Post Type | Use for |
|---|---|
| What’s New | Tips, wins |
| Event | Webinars |
| Offer | Free consults |
Add a clear CTA like “Book Free Consult” or “Learn Your Rights”.
Examples of Google Posts
The Q&A section is a goldmine. Here’s how to use it:
1. Add your own FAQs: Don’t wait for questions. Create a FAQ section yourself.
2. Be quick: Answer new questions within 24 hours.
3. Use keywords: Include legal terms in your answers for SEO.
Example:
Q: How much does a personal injury lawyer cost?
A: We work on contingency. No upfront cost. We only get paid if you win. Free case evaluations available.
Reviews can make or break your law firm online. Here’s how to manage them:
Want reviews? Just ask. But timing matters:
Always respond to reviews. It shows you care.
For good reviews:
For bad reviews:
Try this response template:
“Hi [Name], thanks for your feedback. We’re sorry about your experience. Please call us at [phone number] to discuss further.” – This type of response can take the conversation offline.
Bad reviews happen. Here’s what to do:
Fun fact: 90% of people might still pick your firm if you handle bad reviews well.
Remember: Reviews go both ways. Engage with them to build trust and boost your online presence.
Want more local clients? Local SEO is your secret weapon. Here’s how to dominate your area:
Sprinkle location-based keywords everywhere:
This tells Google exactly where you work.
Got multiple offices? Make a page for each one. Include:
Your name, address, and phone number (NAP) need to match EVERYWHERE:
Why? It helps Google trust your location info.
| Platform | Where to Check |
|---|---|
| Website | Contact page, footer |
| GBP | Business info section |
| Directories | Avvo, FindLaw, Justia |
| Social Media | About sections |
GMB Insights is your secret weapon. It shows how people find and interact with your law firm online.
Let’s look at the key numbers and how to use them.
Here’s what to track:
| Metric | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Profile Views | Your visibility |
| Search Queries | Traffic-driving keywords |
| Customer Actions | How people engage |
Check these monthly to spot trends.
Turn numbers into action:
1. Boost Visibility
If views are low:
2. Optimize for Search
Use popular queries to:
3. Encourage Action
If actions are lacking:
GMB Insights isn’t just numbers. It’s your roadmap to more clients.
“76% of customers visit a business within 24 hours of a smartphone search about it.”
This shows why GMB matters. Use your data to make your listing a client magnet.
Your Google Business Profile profile is your digital storefront. Keep it fresh and you’ll rank better in local searches and keep clients in the loop.
Make profile checks a habit:
| What | When |
|---|---|
| Contact Info | Weekly |
| Photos & Posts | Monthly |
| Full Profile | Quarterly |
Here’s why it matters: 97% of people look for local businesses online. An outdated profile? That’s lost clients.
Don’t let holidays catch you off guard:
1. Mark major holidays on your calendar
2. Update GMB hours a week before
3. Use Google Posts to spread the word
“Showing up to a closed law firm because of wrong online hours? That’s a client’s worst nightmare.”
After updating, search for your firm. Make sure those changes are live.
Local Service Ads (LSAs) can boost your visibility. They show up at the top of search results, above regular ads.
LSAs work on a pay-per-lead model. You only pay when someone contacts you through the ad. Plus, Google screens leads to match your services.
To set up LSAs:
| Pros of LSAs | Cons of LSAs |
|---|---|
| Top search placement | Costly in competitive areas |
| Pay only for leads | Limited ad content control |
| Google-verified badge | Not for all practice areas |
Make your GMB profile work with your other marketing efforts:
Tip: Update your GBP profile weekly. Fresh content can boost your local search ranking.
Optimizing your law firm’s GBP profile is a game-changer for your online presence. Let’s recap the key steps:
But here’s the thing. There is so much more! To learn about all of the signals and a complete walkthrough make sure to read our full Local SEO For Lawyers guide.
But don’t just set it and forget it. Use GMB Insights to track your progress and fine-tune your strategy.
Varun Shetty, OpenAI’s head of media partnerships recently announced that SearchGPT, OpenAI’s new search engine will be integrated into ChatGPT by the end of the year.
This is important because we are working with attorneys who are already signing cases for our clients that we can attribute to ChatGPT.
With OpenAI’s announcement of SearchGPT, a prototype for a new search engine integrated into ChatGPT, law firms need to start thinking about optimizing for a future where Google doesn’t hold the dominant share of the market.
While Google’s reign isn’t ending anytime soon, its overwhelming dominance in search may shift. And as a law firm SEO expert, I believe this presents both challenges and exciting opportunities for law firms.
So, how do you get your law firm ranked on SearchGPT and other AI-driven platforms? And more importantly, what should we call this new field of optimization?
Just like SEO (Search Engine Optimization) became synonymous with getting found on Google, AI Search Optimization (AISO) —is what I’m coining as the strategy to ensure your law firm shows up in AI-powered search results.
This includes results generated by large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, and more.
AISO is the future-proof approach to ensuring your firm has a presence in a growing number of search platforms that users are turning to for answers.
Much like traditional SEO, AISO is about ensuring your law firm shows up where people are searching. But instead of just optimizing for Google, you’ll be positioning yourself across multiple search platforms, including AI-driven models like SearchGPT, Claude and others.
Historically, Barnacle SEO has been the go-to strategy for ensuring law firms appeared across a variety of search sources like Yelp, Super Lawyers, Forbes, and Martindale.
It’s something we have been doing for over a decade for our clients.
The goal was simple: dominate search results by appearing on multiple platforms, even if it wasn’t your own website ranking.
This same principle applies to new ai powered search engines, except now, we need to think beyond Google.
And it’s already happening where we are seeing clients coming from ChatGPT
Picture a future five years from now where Google no longer holds 80% of the market.
Maybe it’s 50%—a significant shift, but not catastrophic.
Google is still going to be around, and there’s no reason to panic. However, law firms will need to expand their digital presence to include a growing number of AI-powered search engines.
With ChatGPT and other LLMs gaining traction, these platforms will deliver results directly from sources they trust, and your law firm needs to be one of those trusted sources.
The biggest question you probably have is, “How do I actually rank on SearchGPT or similar platforms?”
The reality is that these LLMs train on data from various sources across the internet—Google search results, YouTube videos, website crawls, and other popular content.
The key to AISO is understanding where these models pull their data from and ensuring your firm is visible in those places.
At Juris Digital, we’ve developed a proprietary beta solution that helps law firms get ranked on these emerging platforms.
We’re not just focused on the traditional SEO approach of ranking your firm’s website; we’re working to ensure your firm is visible across multiple trusted sources that these models are likely to pull from.
Whether it’s authoritative directories, high-traffic platforms, or frequently cited publications, we make sure your firm is listed and positioned in the top spots.
The truth is, optimizing for these platforms is not an overnight success story.
SearchGPT and similar LLM-based platforms regularly train their models. If your firm isn’t listed before their next model update, you miss out.
The key is to stay ahead of these updates by consistently showing up in trusted, relevant sources.
This is a long-term investment—a future-proofing strategy that will set you up not just for success today but for the search landscape five years from now. Just as SEO required law firms to invest time and resources for lasting results, AISO requires the same dedication to building and maintaining your online presence across multiple platforms.
And to be fair – AISO is going to be real marketing which involves testing. Just like we test Ad sets, title tags and headings to see which content converts the best, we need to test visibility and ensure the message the LLM’s tell about you is what you want your best clients to see.
Let’s take an example: If someone searches for “best divorce attorney in Houston” on Google today, they might see law firms ranked at the top, alongside directory listings from Yelp, Forbes (before their recent ranking issues), Super Lawyers, or Martindale.
But if they perform the same search on SearchGPT in the future, the results may look completely different.
SearchGPT might pull directly from individual law firm websites, trusted legal directories, or other authoritative sources that aren’t as heavily weighted by Google’s algorithm.
You can see an example of the ChatGPT search results for the same keyword below. Note that these results appear to have been populated from Bing data.
To dominate in this new environment, your law firm needs to:
If you have to pick one…
Don’t. Or maybe rely on SEO for now.
Why? As it stands in October 2024 ChatGPT is pulling a lot of live results from Bing. But when it provides results without a web search it will pull from its own knowledge.
So if you are focused on visibility on one platform that should have a positive impact in the short term.
But long term I think it’s safe to say its an area you should put some focus on today. Especially since we all know how hard it is to play “catch up” with internet marketing.
As we look ahead, it’s clear that the world of search is changing. The Department of Justice’s efforts to break up Google won’t make the tech giant disappear overnight, but the introduction of new AI-powered search platforms will certainly reduce Google’s dominance.
SearchGPT and other LLMs represent a new frontier for law firm visibility, and those who invest in AISO will be positioned to dominate.
When law firms hit a plateau in their growth, they realize what got them here won’t take them to the next level. At Juris Digital, we deliver elevated website, SEO, and content strategies – grounded in timeless marketing principles – to help firms attract better cases and continue growing.
If you’re looking to see how you can leverage AISO and other digital marketing strategies to uplevel your firm, schedule a free consult with me Casey Meraz below. Please note that times are limited.
The short answer is that if your budget allows for it, you should engage in all forms of search engine optimization (organic, local) as well as paid search in Google Ads, LSA’s, and Paid Social. If you want to prepare for the future you should also consider AISO or AI Search Engine Optimization to show up on tools like ChatGPT, SearchGPT, Perplexity, and Claude.
And even though Google has been GREAT at monetizing and adding more ad space, organic and local search results still have the strongest return on investment for law firms.
If you’re still set on picking just one… It will depend specifically on your goals and the timeframe in which you’re trying to reach them. This is why we are big believers in SMART goals at Juris Digital.
Now let’s look at the differences of each so you can make an educated decision.
With search engine optimization we focus on getting your firm ranked in both the local pack and organic search results.
These are the free clicks you get in Google.
The free clicks in Google happen in 3 pack, local pack, maps results, and organic search results.
If you rank here for keywords relevant to your practice areas or services you will get clicks for free which can then turn into new clients for your firm.
An example of the local pack results powered by a free Google Business Profile are shown below:
The free clicks vary greatly from Google’s paid products such as Google Ads or Local Services ads which are a pay for each click or pay by lead model.
With Google Ads you have the option to either pay per click (Google Ads) or pay per lead (Google Local Services Ads).
The biggest problem with this type of advertising for attorneys is that it’s typically cost prohibitive.
For example a click for “Car Accident Lawyer” could cost hundreds of dollars just for the click (not a new case, just a website visit).
For firms that need a lot of leads or a lot of cases you need to make sure you have the appropriate budget.
Also with Paid search its important to not Yo Yo and get in and out of it. The algorithms want you to spend more money 🙂 so although they do some things they shouldn’t their overall goal is to learn your business, your conversions, and help you get more of the cases you want.
The best strategy for your law firm will depend on your budget, time, and goals.
And it’s also important to note that your strategy really needs a smart mind behind it. Let me explain…
Really anyone can claim to be an “SEO” or “Google Ads” Specialist. But few have as much experience as us. The result?
You pay for the same clicks but you send these clients to pages not tailored for them.
Here’s an example I see all too often: A family law firm is looking to acquire more business owner or high net worth divorce clients, yet the ad they’re paying for sends them to a generfic contact page on a family law website.
Then the lawyer gets poor results. But should they be surprised?
As is the case with any marketing, if you confuse… you lose.
Now to make the best decision it’s important that you understand the pros and cons of each digital marketing strategy.
Let’s look at this below:
Search engine optimization is any action that you take to improve your organic listings within the major search engines, especially Google. Google controls over 60% of the total traffic on the Internet.
All three major search engines, Google, Yahoo and Bing, together with control around 70% of all traffic on the Internet for now although with Google likely to be broken up by the DOJ and the introduction of large language models like ChatGPT, things are slowly shifting. However, here is how it stands today.
Organic page 1 results on Google receive 70% of the clicks for all online pages competing for that keyword.
Below is quick video explaining the different type of search results in Google.
Organic search results appear in Google down the center of the page.
Organic search results have exponentially more value to the average viewer, especially in terms of the legal industry.
This is because organic listings are trusted far more than paid advertisements. And its also why we see significantly more clicks to organic listings vs. paid ones.
An example of organic search results are below:
You cannot pay for a placement in organic listings (Not even if your aunt works at Google).
Your position in organic search rankings is determined completely by the internal algorithms of the major search engines.
They choose your placement based on how relevant they think your content is to the keywords and topics that you have chosen.
Because we are talking specifically about the legal industry, your content must relate to your legal specialties. It may also help if you localize your content to your surrounding area.
There are many ways to improve your search engine ranking.
Although there is no set strategy, you should go over all of the techniques below to try to maximize your organic visibility within Google and the other major search engines. The same tactics work for niche-oriented search engines as well.
Fast loading, responsive mobile websites are visited much more often by the major search engines than slower websites. And don’t sleep on the mobile part. Not only is Google looking at your site on the mobile version, over 60% of your website visitors are likely to be using it. So make sure you have strong calls to action like Clicking to Call.
In most cases, law firms will start a blog or a syndicated newsfeed in order to keep their site updated with content your potential clients are most interested in.
In short, the more relevant your website is to your niche, the higher it will go in major search engine listings.
Keywords that are specialized and localized will give you a more highly qualified audience. For instance, if you are doing personal injury law, there is no reason for anyone looking for a criminal lawyer to view your pages.
All of your content, from the pictures on your homepage to the blogs you write each day, should focus on the topics that you specialize in.
Unless you are taking cases from different geographic regions, your audience will be comprised mostly of people who can visit your physical location.
The major search engines also reward law firms that have a foothold in their local jurisdiction. If you try to create a wide net marketing strategy to capture a general audience, not only will you have less qualified traffic, but you will also be punished in major search engine rankings.
Google still relies on links from other websites pointing to your own as a vote of confidence. By earning links from local news sources, local websites, and legal related websites you can help skyrocket the authority of your website in Google search rankings. Check out our link building guide for tips on how to earn more links.
You do not need to fill your website with an overload of information. If a website seems cluttered to the human eye, then it is likely confusing to the major search engines as well.
Make sure that you have white space in your display and that you stay specific in your content. Resist the temptation to add all kinds of third-party apps just because they are the latest thing in the market.
While Google uses hundreds of different ranking factors to determine where a website should rank, this is a starting place to make sure you’re doing the right things for your firm.
If you follow these tips and continue to build your presence and authority, then you should see your website begin to appear in the organic search listings for the keywords that you have chosen. You may have to hire a search engine optimization specialist for this to work because you will likely have competition even within your specialty.
Pay per click is another way to get your website on the major search engines. However, this is paid to advertise. These listings show up around the organic search listings.
Pay per click ads and organic search listings are never mixed together. An example of pay per click results with the “ad” box is below:
In certain cases, these listings have an advantageous place over organic listings. For instance, if you are willing to pay top dollar for a certain keyword, your paid advertisements can actually appear above organic search listings on Google, giving them above the fold priority when people search for a law firm in your area.
The term paper click refers to the fact that you do not have to pay for every impression.
An impression simply means that your ad showed up in front of a user as they conducted a search on one of the major search engines. However, you do not actually pay for that listing until that user performs what is known as a “clickthrough.” This simply means that they click on your ad and the link that you have connected to that ad takes them to your website.
Once the Internet user clicks through to your website, you will pay for the impression. The amount of money that you pay depends on the competition that is taking place for that keyword and location.
In order to have your ad appear at all, you will need to bid for certain keywords. If you have a great deal of competition in your area, then the bid price will likely be higher than if the competition was low. More popular keywords will usually get paid on by more law firms as well. In order to gain visibility in search listings here, you will need to outbid enough of the competitors to receive priority.
This, of course, means that you must be strategic in the keywords that you pick.
However, the landscape may change more quickly than it would for organic search listings.
Once people realize that you are getting traction for a particular keyword, they may enter the market for that keyword. Because all they have to do is outbid you, they can quickly supplant you when it comes to visibility. This is what makes pay per click advertising a more short-term strategy in most cases when compared to search engine optimization.
However, there are a few strategies that you can employ to maximize your use of paper click advertising. We will go over a few of them in the text below.
This can be a tricky practice, as you still want to compete for keywords that are relevant to your general areas of practice.
However, a bit of savvy research can help you here, and experience is always the best teacher. If you have a specialty that none of your local competitors is able to compete with, then you have a definite advantage when it comes to your pay per click keywords as well.
Monitor them daily to ensure you’re not wasting or burning through your marketing budget on the wrong keywords.
Paper click advertising is not all about how much money you can spend for a particular keyword.
If you have a more compelling headline than your competitors, then you will receive more attention from people who are looking for lawyers in your specialty.
Make sure that the introduction text that you have in your headline speaks directly to the issues that your potential clients are dealing with.
Paper click ads are generally perceived as less trustworthy, meaning that there is always a measure of personal trust that goes into each click that a user makes. ‘
If you have a better reputation in your area than your competitors, then you may be able to use that to generate more attention to your advertisements.
And with that in mind I have to say that SEO or Google Ads should be major parts of your marketing, but think of your marketing like a stool. You need 3 legs. Offline marketing, referrals, etc. should not be ignored.
No matter which strategy your law firm employees, it is very important to understand the importance of localization. Becoming known to a local audience is not only important for short-term sales, but it is also important for long-term trust as well, especially for law firms.
The major search engines have taken great pains to reward companies that focus their attention on the local market rather than trying to overstep their natural boundaries and market to a bigger audience than they should.
Any online marketer worth his or her salt will tell you this up front – if you want to go global, go local.
Search engine optimization and pay per click advertising are meant to be used in tandem. As mentioned before, search engine optimization is a more long-term strategy.
Pay per click advertising is more flexible, but it is a short-term strategy for most law firms. The two strategies can be used alongside each other to help each other out. Here are some of the techniques that you might want to employ.
If you are unsure of how a keyword will perform and you do not want to commit to it over the long term, you can test it by using a paper click advertisement based on the keyword you’re interested in.
You can then amass real data that will allow you to determine quantitatively how it would perform in a long stretch. If you find a keyword that does perform well, then you can base blogs and other content around it, raising your value in organic listings for that keyword in the major search engines.
In short, you are using the short-term strategy to bolster your long-term strategy. As long as you keep people coming to your webpage, the major search engines will assume that your customers deem that page trustworthy. Clicks that come from short-term advertisements will raise the visibility of that webpage in organic listings.
You can also use pay per click advertisements if you have a seasonal sale. The beauty of paper click is that you can scale it up or down depending on your needs at the time.
If you know that you are in a slow season, you can cut back and save that budget for other things around the office. If you know that your competition is about to ramp up for a busy season, you can then redirect those funds back into an advertising effort. You can also take funds that you would not be using for a paper click campaign and move them into a campaign for search engine optimization.
Is very important that you understand how you can actually use the money to bolster your organic listings. Many law firms will hire copywriters to build out a blog based on a certain keyword. Although the writers are only paid once, the attention those blogs receive (as long as they are well written) will keep a page in the major search engine listings for a long time.
You can also hire professional help to optimize the page so that the major search engines will trust it more. There are certain coding techniques that you can employ to increase site speed and the organization of the website backend. If the major search engines see that your website is more organized than the average website, it will be listed in a more advantageous position in organic listings.
It can be difficult to tell which strategy you should use in your own public-facing efforts, or if you should use both of these strategies at the same time.
There are many different aspects that you should consider. The most important of these will be listed below.
Although your budget is listed here first, it should actually be the third or fourth thing on your list. Search engine optimization and pay per click advertising are both proven methods that both bring back a high ROI if they are implemented appropriately. Under the circumstances, it is really not a question of how much to spend, but more how to spend the budget appropriately to create a positive net cash flow.
Law Firm SEO can take from six months to a year to generate results where as pay per click can happen right away.
Firms that are trying to make names for themselves may want to invest in more long-term advertising in order to build a reputation within the local community. It is very important at the beginning of any marketing campaign to be as ubiquitous as possible.
If a law firm does not have the budget for both a search engine optimization and paper click campaign, most firms go with the search engine optimization option first. Short-term sales are definitely tempting, but they do not build the reputation that most legal entities need to have in order to survive in a highly competitive marketplace.
A law firm should also consider the time that has to put into an online marketing effort. If it does not have a lot of time, then it may want to employ a paper click campaign in order to take advantage of the time it does have most advantageously. If there is no one in-house to manage a long-term campaign, then a short-term paper click advertising campaign may be the only thing that is viable.
It is also possible to hire professionals for both types of campaigns. Many third-party marketing specialists have the ability to create interwoven campaigns that combine the advantages of both SEO and PPC.
Incase you didn’t hear the news, On October 3, 2024, Thomson Reuters announced that it had entered into a definitive agreement to sell FindLaw to Internet Brands, pending regulatory approvals.
Internet Brands, known for its large portfolio of digital properties, also owns major legal marketing platforms such as Avvo, Nolo, and Martindale.
This move marks another consolidation in the legal marketing industry, creating ripples that law firms should take note of.
If you work with one of the Thomson Reuters brands such as Findlaw or Superlawyers, now may be a good time to revisit your digital marketing initiatives.
We have heard consistently over the years from disgruntled Findlaw & Internet brands customers that they are not getting a positive return on their investment.
Meaning they are spending money but not seeing more money back.
One problem could be that Internet Brands is a massive conglomerate with interests across multiple industries, including legal, healthcare, and automotive. And instead of caring about how an individual firm performs with their services, they care about raising the stock price (more subscriptions)
This acquisition raises concerns for law firms that are serious about signing more high-value cases and growing with a strong return on investment.
At Juris Digital, we have seen a growing number of clients coming to us after feeling frustrated with other platforms, seeking effective strategies that actually yield results.
Several years ago, I conducted a study, and I’m currently working on an updated version about how Avvo works in terms of a strong platform for law firms to advertise on.
The results were not good.
We heard consistently from attorneys that advertising with Avvo rarely produced a positive return on investment. In fact, many attorneys were locked into long-term contracts, spending large sums with no significant return on their spend.
This quote from a recent Reddit thread on the matter kind of sums up one attorney’s experience: “It’s crap. I had it for a year and got nothing from it” (Source: Reddit)
The lack of results and rigid contracts created frustration for many law firms, something we continue to hear today.
But the results were not just with Avvo. When we looked at their other brands like Nolo (a lead generation offering) we got feedback like: “Tried them twice and both times it was garbage.”.
Needless to say, I have concerns when small law firm owners are baited with the promise of great leads but left with a product that seems to deliver a poor ROI.
And it doesn’t stop there.
Another brand Thomson Reuters owns is Super Lawyers. As a rating system, we respected their credibility, but the fees were exorbitant for top spot sponsorships, often locking attorneys into long-term contracts.
A study I conducted in 2024 showed that these sponsored listings had limited value, particularly for personal injury clients.
In many cases, the listings were sold multiple times in the same market, meaning law firms had to rotate spots, further diminishing visibility.
Additionally, the pages ranking for Super Lawyers received relatively low traffic and ranked for few meaningful keywords.
If you advertise with them I encourage you to check your CRM and understand which leads came from there that turned into signed cases.
If you’re considering leaving FindLaw, there are some critical questions to ask.
One important factor is whether you can take your website with you.
In recent years, FindLaw migrated to WordPress, making it easier to transition if you’re on the newer platform. Which I do applaud them for.
However, if your site is still on an older version, you’re likely to face significant challenges in retaining your existing site.
Honestly, if the purpose of your website is just a business card and you don’t want website leads or to have an online reputation that stands out from other firms in your market, Findlaw may be a great choice.
But for firms who want to attract the best high value cases, great referrals, grow, tell their story, and truly stand out in their market you should consider another digital marketing agency.
Many law firms are frustrated by digital marketing that hasn’t delivered the results they need.
At Juris Digital, we break through where others have failed, using advanced search marketing and SEO strategies rooted in timeless marketing principles to help firms attract better cases and achieve measurable growth.
Unlike Martindale or other Internet Brands-owned platforms, where you might feel like just another cog in a large machine, Juris Digital takes a different approach.
We don’t believe in aggressive sales tactics or one-size-fits-all solutions.
We focus on tailored strategies that help attorneys sign more high-value cases.
Our mission is to work as an extension of your law firm, delivering true value and real ROI through a collaborative and customized strategy.
Switching from FindLaw or evaluating alternatives can feel like a big decision, but it’s an opportunity to position your firm for growth and success.
With the Internet Brands acquisition, there’s even more reason to evaluate what’s best for your firm.
At Juris Digital, we care about your growth and are committed to helping you sign more high-value cases and achieve long-term success.
Sources:
https://www.reddit.com/r/LawFirm/comments/own44b/is_avvo_worth_it/
As a personal injury attorney, you’re on a mission to help injured victims get the justice they deserve. But in a world where big law firms dominate search results and snatch up the best cases, you’re struggling to connect with the clients who need you most.
Every day, accident victims searching for legal help online pass by your website, choosing your competitors instead. You know you could win those cases and change those lives – if only potential clients could find you.
That’s where we come in. At Juris Digital, we understand the challenges personal injury lawyers face in the online world. We’ve helped countless attorneys like you transform their online presence and attract high-value cases.
Imagine a world where your phone rings with qualified leads, where accident victims find your website first, and where you’re known as the go-to personal injury expert in your area. That’s the power of effective SEO for personal injury lawyers.
In this article, we’ll show you how to harness that power. We’ll guide you through proven SEO strategies that will help you outrank your competitors and connect with the clients who need your expertise.
Don’t let another day go by watching potential clients slip through your fingers. It’s time to take control of your online presence and grow your practice. Read on to discover how SEO can transform your personal injury law firm, or better yet, call us now to start your journey towards more high-value cases and a thriving practi
Start ranking for the most lucrative keywords that will help your personal injury firm sign more high value accident cases.
When it comes to what we do, we strongly believe that the more you focus on the little things in your business, the more successful you will be.
Think about a warm greeting by a receptionist when you walk into an office as opposed to the time wasted as you are placed on hold before your call is answered.
Before we get into what we can offer you, it is important to understand that there is a big difference between simply having a website and having a website that will exponentially grow your firm.
If you aren’t getting what you need out of your firm’s web presence, we can help you to redesign your website, rank you highly in the search engines, and develop intelligent content to solidify your position at the top of the industry.
Read on to learn more about our proven Internet marketing strategy for personal injury lawyers.
As a personal injury lawyer, your success hinges on being easily found by potential clients. With more accident victims turning to search engines for legal help, SEO (Search Engine Optimization) has become essential for law firm growth.
Simply put: you need to be where your potential clients are looking and Good SEO is the billboard of the internet.
SEO improves your website’s visibility when people search for services you offer.
For instance, when someone types “car accident lawyer” or “slip and fall attorney” into Google, effective SEO can place your firm at the top of the results.
This online visibility is crucial because it connects you with potential clients at the exact moment they need your services.
It’s like having a billboard right where an accident occurred, but instead, you’re present when and where people are actively seeking legal help.
In the following sections, we’ll explore how SEO can help you attract more clients and establish your expertise in personal injury law, giving your firm a competitive edge in your local market.
SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, for lawyers is the process of improving your law firm’s website to rank higher in search engine results when potential clients look for legal services online.
SEO puts you where your potential clients are already looking for you like in the local pack below:
SEO is crucial for law firms because if you’re not showing up when your clients need you, that high value case you want will go to the other guy. The attorney who’s not as good as you, but the one who is doing a better job marketing.
By optimizing your website and online presence, you can increase visibility in search results when accident victims are seeking legal help.
This increased visibility translates into more potential clients finding your firm at the exact moment they need your services.
Personal injury lawyers can significantly improve their online visibility and attract more potential clients by implementing targeted SEO strategies.
Here’s how to get started if you don’t want to dive in right away and hire an agency.
Keyword research is the foundation of any successful SEO strategy. For personal injury lawyers, this means identifying the terms and phrases potential clients use when searching for legal help. Some examples include:
Use tools like Google Keyword Planner or SEMrush to find relevant keywords with good search volume and manageable competition.
On-page SEO involves optimizing individual web pages to rank higher in search results. For personal injury lawyers, this includes:
For example, you might create a page titled “What to Do After a Car Accident in [Your City]” and optimize it with relevant keywords and helpful information.
Local SEO is crucial for personal injury lawyers, as most clients seek attorneys in their area. To improve your local SEO:
Technical SEO ensures your website is easy for search engines to crawl and index. Key aspects include:
By addressing these technical aspects, you’ll improve your site’s overall performance in search results.
Implementing these SEO strategies can help your personal injury law firm attract more potential clients and establish a stronger online presence. Remember, SEO is an ongoing process, so regularly review and update your strategies to maintain and improve your search rankings.
We can elegantly customize your website by allowing you to choose one of five beautiful layouts and your preferred colored scheme. That’s it. Our team will handle the rest. We will then implement an SEO strategy tailored to showcase your experience within your market, and our content editors will create authoritative content to catch and inform potential clients. It is important that you provide valuable, relevant information to prove that you know what you are doing. In this industry, credibility is everything.
Specifically, in terms of SEO for personal injury lawyers, we do not attempt to fool search engines, but we are still the best in the business. How is this possible? The aim of our company is to use our knowledge and experience to connect the attorneys at your firm to the people who need your legal services, rather than simply give you a jump in your Google Analytics data. You want clients and we bring them to you.
When clients reach your website, it’s imperative to establish credibility. No matter how high your website ranks on the search engines, clicks will never turn into leads if the content fails to focus on your clients and their needs. We know the industry inside and out, and we are confident that converting clicks into business depends almost solely on establishing trust. We will provide you with 100% original content that is free of keyword-stuffing, comprehensive, readable, and accessible for your target market.
How often do you find that you spend time and energy developing a video, only to place it on YouTube and watch it just sit there, unwatched and unappreciated by the masses? YouTube attracts over 800 million unique visitors each month – thousands of potential clients are waiting for you. Videos greatly increase traffic to your firm’s website, and statistics show that videos have the remarkable capability to generate leads. In fact, the SEO personal injury lawyer Internet marketing method we use with videos is the same as the one we use on your website, so there won’t be any surprises there.
Do you believe your web presence has been successful in generating leads, and you are merely looking for a few extra ideas? We can help there, too. We provide website marketing audits for law firms that want to check the success of their current SEO campaigns and also for firms who want additional ideas for their online personal injury lawyer Internet marketing strategies.
In terms of online marketing, Google is the king, and you cannot afford not to take advantage of its offerings. Because of the increase of search-engine-driven traffic, monetization methods have improved and more firms are learning the value of an Internet presence. However, many have taken to using black hat SEO tactics – methods that attempt to boost low-quality websites higher on Google’s ranking simply for monetary gain. By penalizing excessive advertising, misleading domain keywords, duplicate content, and affiliate links, Google has effectively eliminated the false successes of these “quality” websites. However, even if you have a strong website, you may have been negatively affected as well, and we can work to change that by filtering out stuffed keywords, eliminating excessive affiliate or spam-filled outbound links, and diversifying your anchor text.
I will come right out and say it: Juris Digital is not the cheapest law firm SEO company. However, we can provide you with one of the highest rates of improvement in the industry. Anybody can build a website for you and act as if they are promoting it to Google. Will you see results though? Probably not. Very few companies understand the authority and trust that must be built to ultimately persuade a consumer to contact you. We are one of them.
[juris_cta heading=”Ready to distinguish your firm from the rest?” content=”We’re ready to help. Complete our short form. We’ll review your information and follow up with you soon after to start a conversation.” button-text=”Let’s GO”]
I probably don’t have to convince you that your law firm’s Google rank matters. We probably aren’t even the first attorney marketing team you’ve dealt with.
You already know the internet is where clients and cases from in 2017.
But you also know most web marketing agencies are, well, awful.
Clients are constantly telling me about the terrible agencies they fired before they hired us. They’re flaky. They use tactics from 2012. Their bills are big but their results don’t match. And they can’t answer your questions (or the phone, for that matter).
Perhaps you’re ready for a different experience?
My name is Gerrid Smith, and founded Black Fin Marketing which has since be acquired by Juris Digital.
The story of how we got there is a long one, and I’ll share a reader-friendly version of it below. But fundamentally, it’s the story of any service provider able to actually make a difference for its clients — the story of hard work, hard-earned knowledge, and a commitment to kicking ass.
I don’t want you to hire us because we promise to make a difference. I want you to hire us because you believe we will. And on this page, I’m going to make that case. I’ll explain how attorney SEO works, why you’ve had issues in the past, and how we can help.
More importantly, I hope you’ll walk away with an understanding of why I am, what my company does, and why we’re a choice you can trust.
There’s a lot of information on this page, but think of it this way: if your law firm’s SEO and digital marketing is the thing that drives clients your way, is there anything more important to your bottom line?
I started in this business about twelve years ago, but back then I was merely a student (and a geek). I knew I wanted to become an SEO expert, but the entry to that market wasn’t clear. All I really knew was what my father told me: you have to give your career 110% for it ever to succeed — even if that means nights and weekends.
I went to every SEO seminar and training summit on my side of the Mississippi, pouring myself into the art and science of organic search marketing. And eventually, I created an online attorney directory. It quickly became the largest personal injury lawyer directory in the world.
But here’s the thing — I hated selling simple directory listings. In fact, I hated having to sell anything over the phone. It felt slimy.
The call that changed my life, though, was one where I was the buyer. The man I dialed owned a domain name I desperately wanted for my directory.
“What do you want to do with your directory?” he asked. “And how much do you think my domain name is worth.”
Clearly, I hadn’t read The Art of the Deal, because I put all my cards on the table. In great detail, I laid out my vision for the future, and I admitted his domain was worth a lot more than $1,000… but I was 20 years old and that was all I had.
“Keep your money,” he told me. “My son’s an attorney. Give his firm $1k worth of SEO services instead, and you can have the name.”
I improved that firm’s ranking in 30 days and found my calling.
Juris Digital followed. And that man’s son’s firm is still among our clients. We help them capture hundreds of new cases — online alone — every year.
“If you’re not first, you’re last.”
I might have heard that quote in Talladega Nights, but that doesn’t make it any less powerful. In six words, it sums up the biggest challenge in law firm SEO.
Google now displays four Pay-Per-Click ads — followed by three map listings — all before anyone can see what we used to call the “top hit.”
So even if you’re ranking at #1, you’re really #8. That’s a new wrinkle in the SEO fabric, and it has totally changed the game — both for marketers like me and for lawyers like you.
Attorneys take the bar exam. Doctors complete a residency. Even hairstylists have to get a license.
But SEO experts can just create a website and call themselves SEO experts. How can you possibly tell the professionals from the phonies? Is the whole industry as spammy as it seems? Is every SEO “professional” really the basement-dwelling equivalent of a used car salesman?
Unfortunately, there are tens of thousands of bad SEO professionals out there, and hundreds of them claim to specialize in legal marketing. But here’s the truth about what they’re doing:
Every week at work, I hear a different “SEO expert” horror story from a client. And guess what? I understand why.
I’m not going to lie. SEO is hard. Every part of SEO is hard:
There is no playbook. No magic bullet. There’s only hard work and smart strategy. That’s what I’ve learned, and that’s what I offer our clients.
In the online services industry, there’s a tendency for us all to see each other as email addresses. But I’m a real person and you are too. So are the many bright professionals working in your firm — and at our agency. And so are the clients you fight to serve every day. They deserve the best and so do you.
My passion is to help personal injury lawyers succeed.
Every time I bring a new member aboard the Juris Digital team, I make that same mission clear to them. This is about you, the client. You only hire us for one reason: to get you results. So we’re going to get you results. And if we don’t, I don’t expect you to continue on with us.
That’s why we don’t ask for long-term contracts, and we’ll never send you a monthly report or a bill that doesn’t make sense.
That’s why we don’t ask for long-term contracts, and we’ll never send you a monthly report or a bill that doesn’t make sense.
At Juris Digital, we’re people helping people, and I want us to help you. I believe that when you see your clients as people — and when you really care about those people — excellence follows. Especially when that care is coupled with real experience and know-how.
At the end of the day the best way to track performance is by number of signed cases generated by your marketing efforts.
To track and analyze SEO performance, you can use a variety of tools, including Google Analytics (GA4 now), which can provide detailed information about the traffic to your website and how users are interacting with it.
You can also use keyword tracking tools, which can show you which keywords are driving traffic to your website and how well your website is ranking (your local and organic rankings) for those keywords.
But really many of these metrics are all vanity metrics unless you’re tracking MQL’s (Market qualified leads), CAC (customer acquisition cost), and understand your customers lifetime value.
Where would people look for information if they are interested in protecting a new invention or business name? They would do a Google search to find information and answers, and they would probably look for a patent attorney.
You want to make sure your law firm gets in front of clients’ eyes, and a law firm with a strong SEO strategy has a much higher chance of showing up on that first page of Google. Couple that with an optimized website, and you’re much closer to booking a new client.
That’s why search engine optimization for patent law firms is so important, even if it can be tricky. We’ll help break it all down, from how to land IP clients by effectively optimizing your SEO strategy to how to increase your visibility.
Digital has long been an essential part of any law firm’s marketing strategy, so if you haven’t already set up SEO for your website, this will be the perfect opportunity. There are three main components of successful SEO strategy for law firms: local SEO, technical SEO, and content SEO.
Local SEO is one of the most essential types for patent and copyright lawyer marketing. Optimizing your Google Business profile, a free tool for managing your business on Google Maps and search, will be essential in finding high-value, local clients. You can do this by verifying your Business with Google, using location-based keywords throughout the front and backend of your website, and encouraging clients to leave a review on Google.
Technical SEO ensures your website ranks, is properly indexed, and performs well for Google search crawlers. Google searches for and ranks websites for user experience, loading times, duplicate content, and optimization. To give your content the highest chance of ranking well on Google, you should
You might consider hiring a professional to help with technical SEO.
Much of search engine optimization for patent law firms depends on content-related SEO, such as blogs or videos. Content SEO has numerous benefits, including the opportunity to demonstrate your experience, create thought leadership content, and develop a library of evergreen content you can repurpose into other forms of marketing.
Content SEO can be done in many ways. However, it’s generally done as articles on a blog on a law firm’s website. This blog can focus on a variety of topics relevant to your practice area, such as:
Here’s an example of what that could look like in practice. Notice how the content is focused on answering a common question from people looking for an IP attorney. This is where content can help gain organic leads for IP firms.
Ranking high on Google requires your content to be original, relevant, and high-value, but with so many topics to cover, how do you know where to start? Let’s get into the next step in the process, which is keyword selection.
To determine the demand for intellectual property lawyers, you should conduct a keyword search to see what keywords are worth targeting. Keyword ranking is important and is the number one metric that SEO professionals used to measure success.
Dig into your niche by going where your clients are. That could mean attending in-person conferences, browsing social media like LinkedIn, participating in forums, or polling your email list. To help you get started, here are some potential keywords you can search for:
Find out what’s relevant to your clients so that you can better integrate your law firm into their buyer journey when they do a Google search.
There are many tools you can use to begin your keyword research. Some are free, like Google Trends, while others, like Ahrefs, require payment. A more advanced tool like Ahrefs will show you search engine results page (SERP) rankings, monthly search volume, and value. It can even rank how well your competitors’ keywords are doing.
Google Trends will show you the search volume of a specific keyword over different periods like 24 hours, 30 days, 5 years, or 12 years. You can even compare two keywords together.
Determine your needs before choosing a keyword research tool. After testing a few different keywords, you should better understand what content to write next. Perform keyword searches often to make sure your content stays relevant.
In just the last two years, there have been a lot of changes in the SEO space, from Google’s recent algorithm changes to AI’s impact on the market. In fact, generative AI and changes in how people use the internet are two of the biggest factors that may affect the usefulness of SEO for attorney marketing in the future.
While SEO can be an incredibly effective component of your patent attorney marketing, it’s important to diversify your marketing strategy.
Networking is necessary for patent attorney marketing, so getting creative is crucial. Think about the different places your clients may hang out, in person and digitally. Tech conventions can be a great way of meeting people who may need a patent in the future. TikTok or YouTube shorts are increasing in popularity and can help you reach people faster. Joining clubs, having hobbies, and connecting with people are always going to be the tried-and-true methods to network, so keep a robust social life to keep those clients and referrals flowing. All this is to say, keep your marketing strategy diversified, and you should receive leads from all angles.
Even though search engine optimization for patent law firms might have its challenges, it’s also one of the best ways to establish your digital presence. Don’t give up just yet, and learn as much as you can to enhance your law firm’s SEO.
As an intellectual property attorney, your main job is to handle the often complicated issues that arise in the IP sphere, whether it’s patenting an idea or invention or filing copyright and trademark applications for clients. Let Juris Digital handle the complicated process of creating and initiating a search engine optimization strategy. Reach out to us today, and we can assist you in creating your custom SEO strategy.
There are so many social media platforms out there nowadays that it’s easy to feel like you’ll never keep up with them all—not that you shouldn’t try! But if you only have the time and energy to master one social media platform for your career’s sake, make it LinkedIn.
The work-focused platform’s robust networking capabilities offer an unparalleled opportunity to build connections, showcase experience, and attract new clients. Whether you’re flying solo or as part of a law firm, a suite of LinkedIn marketing strategies is waiting to elevate your practice. Let’s discuss how to unlock the potential of LinkedIn for lawyers, why it’s an essential tool, and how you can optimize your presence for maximum impact!
LinkedIn is a professional networking platform designed to facilitate business connections, career development, and employment opportunities. It serves as a digital resume, showcasing users’ work history, education, skills, and professional achievements. Members use LinkedIn to connect with colleagues, industry peers, and companies in their field. It is also a hub for professional content, including articles, job postings, and company news. According to Hootsuite, 16.2% of U.S. LinkedIn users log in every day, and 48.5% of users in the U.S. use LinkedIn at least once a month.
Users engage with the platform by sharing insights, participating in discussions, and networking with potential employers or clients. LinkedIn’s robust job search features and ability to endorse or recommend skills further enhance its utility as a comprehensive professional development tool.
Lawyers use LinkedIn for a multitude of strategic reasons that enhance their professional lives significantly. As we’ve already discussed, LinkedIn serves primarily as a networking tool, offering access to a global community of legal professionals, potential clients, and industry leaders. It allows lawyers to forge meaningful connections, share insights, and remain engaged with the latest trends and developments within the legal field.
LinkedIn is also pivotal for reputation management and personal branding. Lawyers can showcase their experience, share their accomplishments, and highlight their areas of focus. This visibility engenders credibility and positions them as authorities in their respective domains, attracting clients and referral opportunities.
LinkedIn also facilitates knowledge sharing and continuing education. Lawyers can stay abreast of legal precedents, emerging laws, and best practices through articles, case studies, and discussions. This continuous learning contributes to their professional development and competence in handling clients’ cases more efficiently.
Lastly, LinkedIn offers career advancement opportunities. Job listings, connections to recruiters, and visibility to hiring managers make LinkedIn an essential tool for lawyers looking to explore new avenues in their career paths, whether it’s ascending in their current firm, transitioning into a new area of law, or seeking roles in academia or public service.
LinkedIn is an invaluable resource for professionals within the legal industry. Establishing a presence on LinkedIn for lawyers can markedly enhance visibility, credibility, and networking potential. But there’s an art to leveraging LinkedIn effectively that involves strategic profile creation and optimization. Here are some tips to get you started!
The cornerstone of LinkedIn for lawyers is a profile that captures attention and accurately reflects your knowledge, your accomplishments, and the unique value proposition one brings to the legal profession. Make sure you’re taking advantage of all these elements:
Every one of these profile elements is an opportunity to stand out, so don’t leave any off your list. You never know what a potential client or connection is looking for.
Networking is at the heart of LinkedIn’s utility for legal professionals, and engaging actively and strategically is fundamental to success on the platform. Take a two-pronged approach to becoming a trusted part of the community there:
Remember, the more effort you put into consistently engaging with the community on LinkedIn, the better results you’ll see. Make a point to spend some time every week tending your connections!
For young lawyers, LinkedIn presents a golden opportunity to establish a professional brand and network extensively. There are two important ways you can use the platform to help build your profile and reputation in your local service area:
Don’t be afraid to seem like a newbie or an inexperienced pro. Every lawyer starts out somewhere, and it’s best to be clear about your experience and ambitions with others.
Effective LinkedIn marketing for lawyers extends beyond profile optimization to strategic engagement and content marketing. There are two main ways to get noticed beyond typical social media posting:
These tools are leveraged most effectively as part of longer campaigns, so plan your content calendar ahead of time to ensure regular updates and analysis.
To round off our comprehensive guide, here are three general LinkedIn tips for lawyers aimed at maximizing the platform’s potential. Really, though, these tips apply to any social media platform:
By putting in the work, lawyers can craft a compelling LinkedIn presence that showcases their knowledge, nurtures professional relationships, and opens doors to myriad opportunities. Remember, consistency is key. Regular engagement and continuous profile refinement are crucial for lawyers to make the most of LinkedIn. Whether it’s for landing a dream job, attracting clients, or building a personal brand, a well-optimized LinkedIn profile and regular content posting are great tools in a lawyer’s digital arsenal.
Within the digital networking realm, LinkedIn for lawyers is non-negotiable. It represents an extension of one’s legal practice into the online world, where the potential for growth, connections, and career advancement is boundless. As legal professionals, adapting the best LinkedIn strategies for young lawyers and seasoned professionals alike into your career playbook is crucial.
Remember, LinkedIn is not just another social media platform; it’s a strategic networking arena where your legal prowess meets opportunity. There’s really only one drawback: It takes time and effort to use the platform and garner the most success. Fortunately, you don’t have to do it alone! If you’re struggling to make headway with your social media marketing, contact Juris Digital today. Our seasoned team specializes in helping legal professionals stand out and get noticed online!
When creating a marketing strategy for your estate planning law firm, emails, social channels, and your website are probably top of mind.
Still, estate planning marketing can leave out two of the most effective methods of connecting to your clients: seminars and webinars. They can be powerful law firm marketing strategies because they let you connect with clients and boost long-term growth.
One way to stand out in a competitive field like estate planning is to show your experience. Seminars and webinars can be one of the most efficient ways to turn a potential client into one who purchases your services.
Let’s discuss the benefits and drawbacks of adding seminars and webinars to your estate planning marketing strategy. This will help determine if it makes sense for your law firm.
One of the first things you’ll learn about marketing for estate planning attorneys is the importance of valuable content. Every attorney should include value in their estate planning marketing strategy. One way to do that is to build credibility in your practice area with seminars and webinars. You’ll be able to break down complex topics into easy-to-understand talks, displaying your thought leadership and expertise for your clients.
Given the competitive nature of estate planning, it’s important to differentiate yourself from your competitors through brand awareness. By creating buzz around a seminar or webinar, you can increase your reach for potential clients who may not have otherwise known about your law firm.
Having articles on your blog is one way to reach new clients, but to increase your reach, consider diversifying your content. You can create written content like blogs and emails, plus visual content like pre-recorded webinars or in-person seminars.
Related: 5 Best Website Designs for Estate Planning Lawyers
No matter what business you’re in, building a network is crucial. From other attorneys or marketing specialists to professionals in different fields, you’ll want to get to know them all. You never know where your next client will come from. Seminars and webinars are great ways to get to know people on a more personal level.
When planning your seminar or webinar, you will need to create a campaign that lets people know when and where they can attend. While it takes some effort, you can build a robust email marketing list this way. Then, you can periodically send prospective clients updates about your firm.
When brainstorming estate planning marketing ideas for your webinars and seminars, you can look to previously existing content to get a head start. Topics from your blog, for example, can be expanded and given a new life.
Ever since the pandemic, the popularity of virtual events has skyrocketed, and they’re projected to increase by 18% by 2030. However, in-person events have also not lost their importance, as people still crave in-person connections.
While seminars and webinars can be a great addition to your law firm marketing strategies, you should keep some of these common challenges in mind. Seminars and webinars may not be used as often because, let’s face it, they are time-consuming and can be costly. For webinars, scripting, filming, and live streaming can be time-consuming. There’s also a learning curve when it comes to creating video content, live streaming, and feeling natural talking on camera. In-person seminars can be expensive when you consider the cost of renting a venue, travel, and possible hotel accommodations. There’s also the additional work ahead of time to promote your upcoming seminars and webinars, but these campaigns are essential for estate planning marketing.
With that being said, seminars and webinars have many benefits that we believe outweigh many of the challenges you may face. So, what are some estate planning marketing ideas that successfully incorporate seminars and webinars?
Let’s examine the steps you should take to successfully plan, host, and market a seminar or webinar.
Whether you’re new to marketing or feel like you are incredibly familiar with your firm’s needs, coming up with estate planning marketing ideas is always a necessary step. Having areas of expertise and knowing your audience are two of the most important areas to consider when brainstorming. These are a few additional things to consider:
Some of these points require in-depth knowledge of your industry or audience, so if you still need to do market research, consider this an opportunity. Once you have your idea in place, it’s time to move on to the next step.
Now that you’ve come up with the idea, you can better figure out which channel is best to communicate with your clients. These are some of the questions you can ask yourself:
These questions should help you better understand how you want to approach your event, but remember to try to be as interactive and informative as possible, whichever method you decide to choose.
Promoting your seminar or webinar is vital to ensure people know about your event so that they can attend. Create promotional posts across social channels and a landing page where people can sign up with their email addresses. Once they’ve signed up, you will want to have an automated “Thank you” email with details about the event, and don’t forget to follow up with a couple of emails as reminders before the day of the seminar.
Be cautious about overdoing it. This could make some attendees put your emails in the spam folder before attending. Across all channels, keep in mind the marketing rule of 7, which suggests customers need to be exposed to your brand at least 7 times before they buy.
Related: LSAs for Estate Planning Lawyers
You’ve successfully done a seminar or webinar! Congratulations. After the event, make sure to send out a thank you email to all your attendees. For webinars, you can also allow clients to download the webinar if you recorded it. The event has likely added more emails to your list, so continue the attorney-client relationship through informative email marketing.
I have been following Juris Digital for years on social media and reading all blog materials to better understand the brand. Juris has an impeccable reputation for results and performance. Our firm needed a leader in the industry to showcase the firm and have a create/result mentality.
That was a lot, and we have still only covered the surface of seminars and webinars for estate planning. Our team specializes in developing tailored marketing campaigns for law firms across multiple practice areas. Let us handle the marketing while you focus on what really matters—offering the best services possible to your clients and maintaining those relationships.
Click here to get in touch with Juris Digital, and we will get to work on creating your custom seminar or webinar strategy today.
If you’re a Get Noticed Get Found (GNGF) client, you’ve likely heard the news: Get Noticed Get Found has been acquired by Scorpion.
This development has left many law firm owners wondering about their next steps and their options (we know because we have had several calls this week alone!)
As someone who’s helped hundreds of law firms optimize build digital marketing strategies that sign high value cases consistently, I want to break down what this means for you and explore your options moving forward.
But first, let’s address the elephant in the room.
Some GNGF clients have reported receiving notice that their options are limited to either signing up with Scorpion or leaving.
This kind of ultimatum can feel restrictive, especially when you’re trying to make the best decision for your firm’s future.
But before we dive into alternatives, let’s examine why some firms might be hesitant about transitioning to Scorpion.
Scorpion has built a reputation in the legal marketing space, primarily focusing on paid search.
However, several issues have consistently cropped up in our conversations with former Scorpion clients. Below is a list of the most common ones we hear on a monthly basis. All of these were taken from actual conversations with current Scorpion clients.
Now that we’ve outlined some concerns, let’s talk about your options:
At Juris Digital, we’ve helped many law firms navigate similar transitions.
Our approach focuses on transparency, customization, and a deep understanding of the legal industry.
We believe in providing our clients with detailed insights into their marketing performance, allowing them to make data-driven decisions about their growth strategies.
For a more comprehensive look at how Scorpion’s approach compares to other options in the legal marketing landscape, check out our detailed Scorpion Marketing Review for Law Firms.
If you’re considering switching from Scorpion, you’re not alone. Many law firms have found themselves tangled in a web of high costs, low ROI, and marketing promises that fall flat.
But here’s the truth: Your firm’s success shouldn’t be a guessing game.
Imagine a world where:
Sounds too good to be true? It’s not. It’s what we do every day at Juris Digital.
Here’s our offer to you: A free 40-minute strategy session with our experts. No strings attached. No cookie-cutter plans.
In this session, we’ll:
Don’t let another day go by wondering if your marketing is working. Don’t waste another dollar on strategies that don’t deliver.
Take control of your firm’s future today. Book your free strategy session now and let’s craft a plan that turns your growth goals into reality.
Click here to schedule your free 40-minute strategy session. Your best cases are out there – let’s go get them together.
P.S. Still on the fence? Remember, this strategy session is completely free and comes with no obligations.
Sources