As a lawyer, you may know everything there is to know about the law and how to develop a strategy to win a case. But do you have the marketing skills to develop your practice into a viable business? It is much trickier than you think. 

After all, there are 1.3 million registered lawyers in the US currently. This means competition is cutthroat. Even if you consider specific areas of expertise, like a corporate, contract, or personal injury law, clients still have far too many options. 

Traditionally, the most common way clients hired lawyers was through referrals. People asked acquaintances to recommend a good lawyer for their specific legal requirements. Few law firms and lawyers became popular enough to establish a reputation and gain clientele based on their brand name. These, however, were few and far between. 

In recent years, finding lawyers begins with a quick Google search. 64% of all people searching for a lawyer consult the Internet as the primary source. This means that if you are a lawyer or a partner in a law firm, understanding digital marketing and using it to grow your business is indispensable.  

Why Lawyers Need To Pay Attention To SEO

Realizing just how important SEO is necessary to develop a winning strategy in the digital space. Search engine optimization is the ultimate goal for individuals, professionals, and businesses seeking growth, increased brand awareness, and higher revenues.

In the digital space, everything is filtered through search engines. If you are looking for anything on the internet, be it a plane ticket to Hawaii, a pet Poodle, or the services of a divorce attorney, it all begins with a search engine. 

If potential clients searching for a lawyer are the jury, then search engines are the judges. The jury, your customers decide whether a website is good or bad. Once the ‘guilty’ or ‘not guilty verdict is in, the judge must determine what happens to the defendant. 

In this manner, the users pass judgment about a website, and the search engine will see that the judgment is reflected in how the website is ranked. 

So, does your website gets locked up in the prison of low-ranking websites or does it get the freedom of being on the first page? It is all about how you present your case to the jury and judge, which are your clients and the search engine algorithm.  

It is about how you fight the case. Much like a legal case, there are many moving parts. Several components work together and determine how good or poor a website is.

SEO Tips For Lawyers

Here are our top five SEO tips for lawyers and law firms:

Know The Market

It may sound boring and repetitive, but every good marketing strategy begins with marketing research. Digital and traditional media may differ in various ways, but one thing that stays the same is the need to understand the market. 

Marketing research does not just include customers’ needs and preferences, it also takes into account the overall industry conditions and the state of competition. It is a much broader term requiring much work, effort, and data gathering. 

Gathered data is analyzed so you can make sense of the numbers. It is difficult to interpret numbers in isolation, they need to be contextualized. 

For example, you may discover that personal injury cases have decreased dramatically over the past few years, it may be due to the adoption of better working conditions and improved management at workplaces across the board. 

Proper research also helps with developing a suitable course of action, a marketing plan to be more specific. 

Narrow Down The Keywords

The importance of keywords is well understood. Keywords form the basis of any online search. They enable you to connect with your target audience. 

Choosing and using keywords is a balancing act. Keywords need to be used in a manner that makes sense and adds to the content on your website. Keywords should not be cluttered randomly. 

Excessive use of keywords is also not a good strategy. It leads to keyword stuffing and search engines are smart enough to pick on these attempts to force relevance. 

Another issue is choosing the right keywords. Again, balance is the best policy. Do not be too broad with your keywords. Like ‘law’ or ‘lawyer’ is too broad. Narrow down the keywords so you can target the appropriate client base. 

Keywords like ‘personal injury lawyer in Miami’ sound much better. Focus on certain keywords and phrases so it is easy for clients and search engine algorithms to categorize your website. 

Post Original Content

Content is king when it comes to SEO. Content is what makes your customers visit and browse your website. Search engines can pick up on plagiarism well, so copy-pasting does not work. 

The best content must be original, relevant, current, and interesting. Now this may seem like asking too much; however, it is all about your writing skills. Research and write about a topic in an authoritative manner. Your content will reflect your expertise and ability to communicate effectively to others. 

Not only do search engines rate a d rank original, well-researched, and relevant content high, but having good content on your website also increases ranking since the users review your website more favorably.

Get Feedback

Clients’ reviews, comments, and feedback are very important. Even though most people search online for a lawyer, they always look for reviews. Feedback provides engagement and positive feedback is the best since it helps to spread the word about your services.  

It is one thing to get recommended by a search engine and another to hear about a past client’s personal experience. It may resonate with your potential client base. 

Hire An Expert 

Just like you are an expert in legal matters and can provide sound legal counsel to clients, so are digital media managers experts in their field. It is best to hire a professional for any job. 

Getting an expert on board will help you with digital media marketing, creating a great website, and earning a good ranking on JurisDigital. 

Digital media experts will optimize your online presence. Once you get to the top it is all a matter of maintaining the position, a task that requires consistent work but is easier than getting on top. 

Digitalizing Your Platform

Digital marketing and reaching customers using digital media is necessary for all professionals, including lawyers. Having a well-designed website, however, is just a start. You must understand and implement SEO to make an impact. 

It may seem difficult initially, but knowing how marketing works in the digital space is key to success. Paid promotion is a component of digital marketing, but organic marketing is the ultimate determinant of enduring relevance.