How Law Firms Can Use SEO to Leverage Lead Generation
While a lot of lawyers may be used to generating leads through referrals, print ads, and speaking engagements, it is becoming increasingly difficult to engage potential clients using these traditional methods. In fact, around 96% of people simply use a search engine to find legal advice these days, indicating that digital marketing methods, particularly SEO (Search Engine Optimization) strategies, are becoming crucial for effective lead generation.
If you’re looking to increase your law firm’s lead generation, keep reading for some of the top SEO methods.
Do Keyword Research to Optimize Your Website
A crucial part of SEO is creating content based on keywords that may be of interest to your target audience. Potential clients may not be able to find you if your firm isn’t showing up when they type relevant keywords into a search engine. For example, if they’re looking for a firm that specifies in personal injuries, and yours doesn’t show up when they type in “personal injury lawyer”, you’re likely missing out on leads.
To generate more leads using keyword research, figure out the main keywords for your business and any associated words and phrases, and then make they’re all prominently featured in the content of your website.
Local SEO
Since people are generally looking for a nearby expert when they’re in need of legal advice, it’s particularly important that your law firm shows up in local searches. For example, when someone types in “lawyer near me” or “lawyer near (your local area)”, you want to make sure you are occupying one of the top spots in the search engine results pages. This increases the odds that potential clients are going to look at your website and contact you before your competitors.
There are a couple of things you can do to improve your local rankings.
Generate Online Reviews
In 2020, a whopping 87% of customers read online reviews when looking into local businesses, making them an important marketing tool for law firms. Generally, the more positive reviews you have on popular sites such as Google and Yelp, the higher you rank on search engine results pages.
Therefore, if you’re looking to improve your local SEO, make sure your firm is generating positive client reviews on these popular third-party sites. For example, make a point of asking happy clients to leave reviews after you’ve provided your services (and try to avoid mentioning it to the potentially unhappy ones!).
Create a Google My Business Page
A Google My Business page is basically an online listing for your business that will increase the odds of Google sending more local traffic to your website. If you’ve searched for a local business before, you may recognize the map and business details that show up at the top of their search engine results pages that give you an idea of the business’ locations and other important information, such as their contact details, opening hours, and website. It’s important that businesses keep this information complete and up to date if they want to improve their search visibility.
Keep in mind that the top-ranking Google My Business listings aren’t there by default – the prominence of a business is a key determining factor in the rankings. Make sure you’re using effective SEO strategies, such as generating lots of positive online reviews, if you’re looking to increase your rankings.