Home » A Guide to Law Firm SEO Services
We put together our Guide to Law Firm SEO Services to help attorneys looking for legal marketing.
Our guide covers:
- What is law firm SEO?
- The importance of law firm SEO,
- The benefits of hiring a law firm SEO expert,
- How to select the best law firm SEO agency, and
- What types of services are available to law firms.
For more information, call LawRank at 833-LAWRANK or fill out our contact form.
Table of Contents
What is Law Firm SEO?
Law firm search engine optimization involves enhancing your firm’s website so that it becomes more authoritative in the eyes of Google and therefore ranks higher in the search engine results pages (SERPs).
When Google’s algorithm determines that your website is reliable, useful, and relevant, it will appear higher in the organic search results when a potential client searches for certain keywords related to your practice area (e.g., “NYC personal injury lawyer.”)
Organic search results are the natural, unpaid results that appear when you search Google.
High organic rankings are vital to your law firm’s growth. The higher your firm’s website appears in the SERPs, the more likely a prospective client will visit your page.
So how do you “impress” Google so that your website appears at the top of the search results?
And how do you ensure that your site actually engages your target audience?
That’s the crux of law firm SEO.
Multiple SEO strategies can be used to meet your digital marketing goals, including on-site and off-site SEO.
On-site legal SEO refers to ways you can optimize your law firm’s website, including:
- a user-friendly design,
- developing engaging and trustworthy content, and
- maintaining fast-loading pages.
Off-site SEO refers to tactics you can implement outside of your website, such as link-building. We’ll specify and explain the various SEO services available to attorneys below.
The takeaway is that law firm SEO involves creating and maintaining a robust online presence by producing high-quality content and delivering it in a captivating way.
Why are SEO Services for Law Firms Important?
SEO for lawyers is vital because it significantly increases the likelihood that a potential client will find and retain you.
You’ll Reach Your Target Audience.
If you’ve been practicing law for a long time, you’re likely used to gaining clients through referrals and word of mouth.
Alternatively, you may have even advertised your services using radio advertisements, billboards, or newspaper ads.
Unfortunately, if you rely on these strategies alone, you may be missing out on scores of client leads. These strategies may bring in some business, but a person listening to the radio or reading a newspaper isn’t necessarily looking for legal services.
Having a strong online presence allows you to tailor your services to your target audience: those who need an attorney or legal advice right now!
You’ll Grow Your Business.
Simply having a website doesn’t cut it in today’s online market. As we’ve mentioned, it’s vital for your law firm’s website to rank highly in Google’s search results if you want to generate more traffic – and, therefore, more business.
Studies show that only about 9% of Google users get to the bottom of the first SERP, and a mere 0.44% of users visit the second SERP – meaning that if your website isn’t highly ranked, most people won’t see it.
In addition to a high-ranking, engaging website, you need an up-to-date profile on various legal directories with favorable client reviews.
Why? Because many legal directories rank highly in Google’s organic search results.
For example, if you search Google for a “Fort Worth personal injury lawyer,” legal directories appear in the first SERP’s second, fourth, and fifth-place rankings.
This is significant because many people will visit legal directories to find an attorney.
If you don’t have an updated profile or reviews, most people will keep scrolling.
In summary, legal SEO is crucial for lawyers because it drives more traffic to your website and increases your firm’s brand awareness, resulting in more business.
What Are the Benefits of Hiring a Law Firm SEO Expert?
There are many amazing benefits of law firm SEO services. We mentioned a few above, including reaching your target audience and growing your business.
But the main benefits of legal SEO boil down to three things:
- Expertise,
- Rules, and
- Time
You’ll Benefit from Your SEO Agency’s Expertise.
SEO agencies are experts at Search Engine Optimization.
SEO is a highly technical process that involves many moving parts:
your website, your content, backlinks, and more.
It takes a team of experienced experts to build and maintain your website with SEO in mind. SEO agencies have sophisticated training in SEO strategies and can leverage their expertise to help your website rank on the first pages of search engines.
You’ll Play By the Rules.
Google has a comprehensive set of rules and best practices for optimizing a website for SERPs.
If your website violates these rules or ignores the best practices, your site will likely not rank.
Google might not even index it, meaning users won’t be able to find it through the search engine. SEO consultants will ensure your website follows the rules and incorporates SEO best practices so it can appear on Google — right in front of users searching for legal assistance.
You’ll Save Time.
Search engine marketing takes a considerable amount of time and effort – time and effort you likely can’t afford if you have a full caseload and want to focus on your clients.
That’s the beauty of SEO for law firms.
An SEO agency can manage all aspects of your legal marketing, from SEO and PPC to social media and legal directories, so you can focus on what matters most: your clients.
What SEO Services Are Available to Lawyers?
SEO campaigns are not one-size-fits-all. Your SEO campaign will differ depending on the law firm’s goals and the competitiveness of their legal market.
Full-service SEO agencies typically offer the following marketing services:
- Website and domain assessments – to determine the quality of your website, the amount of traffic it generates, and what areas need improvement.
- Web design – to create a cutting-edge, visually-appealing website that helps you rank.
- Competitor research and analysis – to see what keywords and content your top competition is ranking for.
- Extensive keyword research – to determine key opportunities for ranking your website.
- Content marketing and development – to populate your site with high-quality articles and pages (written by attorneys/JDs).
- Link building strategies – to help Google recognize you as an authority in your area of law.
- On-Site SEO – to provide your website with a structure that Google (and your readers) can understand.
- Internal linking – to maximize user experience and get users to go deeper into your website.
- Social media management – to improve off-site SEO and expand your digital presence.
- Local SEO – to make you appear in local searches and map packs for critical keywords.
- Pay-per-click (PPC) – to supplement your efforts to rank organically.
The more experienced law firm SEO companies won’t use just one marketing strategy but rather a combination of methods to help you rank on Google’s first page and increase the number (and quality) of leads coming through your door.
How to Choose the Best Law Firm SEO Agency
Choosing the best law firm SEO agency is essential if you want to dominate the first pages of Google and gain an edge over your competitors. But how do you know which agency is right for you?
Here are some questions you should ask of the agencies you are considering:
- Can they show you proof?
- Get a list of projects they’ve ranked for your practice area and in similar-sized markets
- What do their clients say about them?
- Ask the agency to provide a list of clients that you can speak with about their experience with the agency
- How do they track results?
- Ask to see how they report results
- At a minimum, the reporting should include Organic rankings, Local Rankings, and call volume
- Will you have a dedicated project manager and/or account manager?
- When you have a problem, you want to know that you can go to the same person every time to assist you
You should also have an idea of your basic marketing and goals before you search for an SEO agency.
Once you know your goals, a reputable SEO company for lawyers should address the following questions when you sit down for a consultation:
- Do you need a law firm website?
- What geographic market are you trying to rank in?
- What practice areas are you trying to rank for? (example: personal injury, criminal defense, etc.)
- What keywords are you trying to rank for? (e.g. car accident, slip and fall, DUI, divorce, etc.)
- Are you interested in local SEO?
- Would you rather prioritize:
- (a) organic search engine rankings that can offer long-term rewards,
- (b) paid campaigns that prioritize short-term benefits, or
- (c) a hybrid approach?
Your answers to these questions will determine whether an SEO expert is right for you. Not all SEO companies will be able to achieve all your goals.
Only SEO agencies with sufficient expertise, resources, and tools can get you where you want to be on search engines.
LawRank has a demonstrated ability of helping law firms rank on the first pages of search engines — for the keywords that matter; in the most competitive markets.
How? By using our proven lawyer SEO strategies, which include:
- Having our in-house team develop and design a dynamic, state-of-the-art website just for you.
- Filling your website with great content – written by attorneys and/or JDs with your readers in mind.
- Maximizing backlink opportunities to your firm’s site.
- Supplementing your organic campaign with compelling paid ads.
Contact us today to learn more about how we can help you reach the top spots on Google.
Working with an SEO Company for Law Firms
If you’re considering hiring an SEO company to help your law firm, you might be wondering how to maximize that relationship in order to best benefit your business. Here are some important factors and strategies to consider:
Communication is Key
It’s important to maintain regular communication with an SEO company for your law practice– both before and after hiring them.
Keep in touch with your SEO company to track your website’s progress and the success of your legal marketing efforts.
The SEO company should be responsive to your questions and keep you informed of their work on your website.
Be Clear About Your Budget
If the company knows your budget upfront, they can tailor their efforts to help grow your business while being sensitive to your budgetary restraints. A good understanding of your budget will help both sides manage expectations — and results.
Look at the Company’s Past Successes
When deciding on which SEO company to hire, it is wise to look at the company’s track record. Check out existing clients’ websites and relevant search results to see how well those clients are performing in their respective practice areas and geographic market.
You should also check out the website of the SEO company.
The SEO company should have:
- case studies,
- favorable reviews, and
- examples of past successes on their own website.
Verify these to the best of your ability.
Track Your Performance
After hiring an SEO company for your law firm, you can and should track your law firm’s SEO performance.
The SEO company should provide you with data on key performance indicators (KPIs), like:
- Improved website traffic,
- Increases in the click volume of keywords for which you rank
- Increases in website conversions from organic searches
- More referrals from offsite SEO efforts
- Improved local SEO presence
Analyzing these KPIs will help you track your return on investment (ROI) and the effectiveness of your SEO company for lawyers.
What Practice Areas Can Benefit from SEO Services for Law Firms?
Just about every single one. However, some practice areas can benefit more than others. Law firms with practice areas in personal injury, family law, employment law, and criminal defense are frequently the major beneficiaries of SEO services.
But the main reason that almost every practice area can benefit from SEO services is that just about everyone uses search engines like Google when searching for legal representation.
To be sure, some consumers are more likely to use Google for their search than others.
For example, an individual who recently suffered a personal injury is more likely to use Google to find a lawyer than a corporation looking for a mergers & acquisitions attorney.
Contact LawRank today if you’re wondering whether your law firm and practice area could benefit from SEO services. Chances are good that it can!
LawRank Offers World-Class Law Firm SEO Services
SEO is both an art and a science – and either way, it’s complicated. Hiring the best law firm SEO agency for your law firm is critical. You should only consider hiring an SEO company for your firm that has a proven track record of success.
You should also be sure to hire a company that is upfront with you about its strategies and costs for growing your online presence.
If you’re looking for law firm SEO services, LawRank is the agency for you. We help lawyers get in front of consumers that need legal help most. And we do it right when and where these prospective clients are looking for an attorney: Google. In fact, LawRank has helped countless law firms reach the top spots of SERPs like Google’s.
We’re ready to do the same for you. Contact us today for a free consultation with our SEO consultants. We’ll evaluate your legal marketing needs and tell you what we can do to meet them.
Call us today to learn more about our services and SEO for lawyers can help your law firm get the leads it deserves.
