Lawyer SEO Is Critical to Your Legal Services Business
Lawyer SEO is difficult for four reasons. First, Google always changes its search algorithms continually. Second, Google always changes the manner in which it displays various search results to various individuals in various locations around the world. Third, law firm SEO is intensely competitive. Fourth, and probably the most important, it can be a complete waste of money if done incorrectly.
One of the primary goals of law SEO is to increase the rankings of websites that contain keywords that are relevant to the services that a lawyer provides. The process of increasing ranking is referred to as “organic search engine optimization” or “SEO.” Many lawyers choose to incorporate some form of organic search results into their website content. However, it should be understood that organic search results are not an accurate representation of a lawyer’s ranking in the search engine result pages, or SERPs.
Lawyers should become aware of changes to the algorithms used by Google in order to better manage their internet marketing campaigns. Currently, Google is working on a new update that will allow lawyers to use certain categories in order to better improve their rankings. In the future, the company plans to feature more categories in which to present search results, and will no doubt change the amount of rankings in each category receives.
There are a number of ways that lawyers can utilize search engine optimization to improve the rankings of their websites. First, many lawyers utilize social media marketing to gain exposure. Lawyers may wish to begin “tweeting” and Facebooking about their legal services, as well as sharing links to blogs discussing cases in their area of practice. It is important to remember that this form of online marketing is considered spam and is strictly prohibited.
Lawyers can also use Google Analytics to analyze their website’s performance. Google Analytics allows a lawyer to see which keywords were used to promote their legal services, as well as which pages on their site are popular. A lawyer may also want to begin submitting keyword rich domain names to better position their site in search engine optimization. When possible, lawyers should consider purchasing domain names that incorporate keywords from their niche area. This will help them draw visitors from these areas and increase their rank within the search engine optimization hierarchy.
Another way to draw attention to a lawyer’s website is to submit enough articles to the article directories. Article marketing is one of the most effective methods of attracting relevant keywords, as well as generating plenty of free backlinks. Article directories are an invaluable resource for law firms. The first page of search engine results includes links to articles posted by other law firms, allowing potential clients to find the information they need. If a lawyer does not have enough articles published, they may not appear on the first page, which could hurt their business.
Law offices should also invest in pay-per-click (PPC) advertising. Pay-per-click enables lawyers to market themselves to potential clients without having to spend thousands of dollars on advertising. PPC ads should be placed within search engine optimization specific areas. For example, if a lawyer has a website that promotes general civil litigation, they should place PPC ads within a search engine optimization (SEO) targeted area. If the SEO targeted area is “attorney services” the PPC ad should be placed within a section of a website specifically devoted to this type of law.
In addition to making their website more accessible through search engine optimization, lawyers should take steps to make their website user-friendly. They should allow clients to create their own profiles on the site. When creating profiles, a lawyer should include contact information, a blog address and a physical mailing address. In addition to profiles, a lawyer should engage in ongoing social media marketing to reach out to potential clients. By engaging in these various strategies, law firms can ensure that they reach out to a wide variety of individuals, many of whom will be potential clients.