SEO for lawyers is very different from SEO for other businesses and even other professional services. This is mostly due to the way that people use the internet to get legal answers, research legal issues, and find lawyers that can assist them.
As most lawyers know, word or mouth referrals are one of the most effective ways to get new clients. Furthermore, most lawyers know that referrals come from relationships. These may be professional relationships with other lawyers, former clients, friends, and family.
Historically, a word of mouth referral went something like this:
Person In Need of Legal Services: I need a lawyer.
Person Making Referral: Go talk to Larry Lawyer, he handles those types of legal matters. In fact, he handled mine and did a great job. Here’s his number.
Person In Need of Legal Services: Thanks, I’ll give him a call.
Today, word of mouth referrals can look much different. Today, when someone receives a referral, they go online. They search for the attorney looking for things like:
- The lawyer’s website.
- Stuff the lawyer has published.
- The lawyer’s resume.
- What former clients have to say about the lawyer.
- Whether the lawyer is recognized as an expert in his field.
- Whether the lawyer has been quoted in the media.
- Whether the lawyer has received awards and recognition.
- What professional organizations the lawyer belongs to.
- What the lawyer looks like.
And the list goes on.
SEO for lawyers is different than SEO for other businesses because of the way that people use the internet to vet, credential, and research prospective lawyers.
I talk to lawyers almost every day about how their types of clients don’t use the internet to look for lawyers. But do they use the internet at all? Do they have a facebook account? Do they read news media online? Do they research legal issues? If the answer to these questions is yes, then they do use the internet to look for lawyers.
Just because they’re not searching for “city practice area lawyer,” doesn’t mean that they’re not using the internet in a way that can potentially lead to them interacting with you and becoming a client.
Furthermore, SEO for lawyers is different because of the unique ethical considerations of advertising and marketing a law practice. There are a variety of internet marketing strategies that simply aren’t permissible for lawyers. Further, of those strategies that may be ethically permissible, there are those that don’t cast lawyers in a professional light. Always remember that visibility is only as good as the potential clients that it puts you into contact with.
When you’re considering getting help from a search marketing professional, ask them what experience they have in working with law firms. The most experienced e-commerce SEO professional usually won’t hold a candle to someone with specific experience marketing a law firm online.
Handling an SEO campaign for a lawyer is very different from SEO campaigns in other fields. It all starts with understanding how your prospective clients use the internet. Who they are, what they are looking for online, and where they are looking online.
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