The Rainmaker Blog : Law Firm Marketing and Business Development : The Rainmaker Institute : Stephen Fairley : Professional Legal Marketing

If gaining new clients is important to your business, then making sure your site is optimized is vitally important. If your site doesn’t come up on top when people are searching for keywords related to your services, you are missing out on getting new clients – and your competitors are likely picking them up.


Here is some important information that explains why Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is important to attorneys:

Validation: Potential clients may have already decided that they are likely to hire your firm or possibly a specific lawyer at your firm due to your existing reputation or based on a referral. However statistics and Internet studies show that now, more than ever, people are searching online to help establish trust and comfort before engaging someone’s services. They want to see pictures, read credentials and they also try to get a glimpse of your vibe and style from your website. They may search by an attorney’s name or the firm name, but they are also likely to search by keyword phrases like “family law attorney in Los Angeles”.

Searching is a habit: It has been noted that a lot of people (probably more than you think) use Google instead of typing in a URL. They often have Google set as their home page and find it easier to just search for a keyword phrase or your name or firm name, rather than type in a URL. Even though it is usually pretty easy to get ranked on your name or firm name, that isn’t always the case and they may not find you unless you have good search engine presence.

Hitting the Web before the pavement: Before going to physical office locations, consumers are using search engines to find service providers and doing research before calling or going for a consultation.

Local Search and Geo-targeting: An increasingly popular vertical of the search industry is local search, especially with the advent of smart phones and mobile Internet access. People are more often searching for region-specific products and services. We see more and more searches like “Los Angeles criminal attorney” and with geo-targeting, people no longer even need to type in the regional parameter. The engines can pinpoint your location to within 7 miles of where you are from your IP address (the exception to that is AOL, where it appears that everyone is in Virginia).  So a search for “criminal attorney” by someone in Los Angeles would turn up different results than the same search done by someone in San Francisco. Making sure you are optimized is important so your site comes up on top – especially if someone is searching on their Blackberry and looking specifically for a local office.

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Free CD: Insider Small Law Firm Marketing Practices

Get your free CD on Insider Small Law Firm Marketing Practices by #1 Best-Selling Author And Nationally Recognized Law Firm Marketing Expert Stephen Fairley, and listen as he reveals A Proven System To Generate More and Better Referrals, Find New Clients Fast, and Fill Your Law Practice! Discover:

• How 1 piece of simple technology in your practice will drastically increase your communication with prospects, clients and referral sources – resulting in a major revenue boost
• 5 ways to market and position yourself as a recognized expert
• How 2 Attorneys promoted their law firms to over 100,000 people for less than $100 in 2 hours
• The 1 item you must absolutely have to create a Million Dollar Law Practice (hint: Not having this will almost guarantee your failure!)
• 6 BIGGEST secrets to generating more and better referrals
• How to create a proven network of 30 new Strategic Referral Partners in the next 90 days

To obtain your free CD, click here now.

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An excellent post today at SearchEngineWatch.com provides the eight basic SEO elements that should remain consistent on your law firm marketing websites to achieve a high Google rank, no matter how many times Google tweaks its search algorithms – which it does at least once a day!

Summarized, here are the rules of the road to higher rankings:

Basic keyword SEO rules – including your target keywords in your URLs, meta tags, titles and descriptions as well as in your page content.

High quality inbound links – creating high quality, unique content that others will want to link to and reference can have a huge impact on your website ranking.

Authority – build authority for your site through participation in social media, providing commentary and links to other authoritative sources in your space and quality inbound link building.

Quality user experience – Google rewards sites that are well designed, easy to navigate, load quickly and keep visitors engaged (low bounce rates).

Fresh content – creating new content and updating old content regularly boosts authority and news ranking.

Content diversity – Google prefers diversity in format and content, so include photos, videos and presentations wherever possible.

Feedback – syndicate, promote and provide people with an easy way to share feedback via a blog hosted or linked to your website.

Browser compatibility – your site needs to be compatible with the latest browser versions, including mobile.

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Sept. 28 Webinar: How to Answer the Question, "Why Should I Hire You?"

One of the toughest questions attorneys get from a potential client is, “Why should I hire you?”

When faced with this question, most attorneys fall back on talking about the quality of their services, their experience and the size of their law firm.

Prepare to have your eyes opened to the truth when you attend our one-hour How to Answer the Question, “Why Should I Hire You?”: Creating a Unique Competitive Advantage webinar on Wednesday, Sept. 28 at 11 a.m. PT/2 p.m. ET:

• Why quality does NOT matter! (Yes, you read that correctly, quality does not matter when it comes to closing a prospect)
• The #1 reason why prospects “shop you on price”
• How most attorneys completely miss the point when talking about their experience
• The 4 biggest reasons to emphasize when talking with prospects
• Overcoming common objections attorneys encounter
• Winning over skeptics by focusing on the numbers of your practice
• Case studies of how top attorneys respond when asked the ultimate question
• How to overcome price objections even before you meet with a prospect
• How to respond if someone says, “Your price is too high” or “That’s too much money!”
• How to get potential clients to stop making price an objection once and for all
• And 8 more effective ways to answer the question, “Why should I hire you?”

To register online for the Sept. 28 webinar on Creating a Unique Competitive Advantage, click here. 

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The old saying, “He who hesitates is lost” is more applicable now than ever when it comes to search engine optimization.

Search engine optimization (SEO) is the art and science of artificially boosting your website or blog to the organic results (versus paid advertising) for specific search terms.  Optimizing your website makes it easier for prospective clients to find you, and for your site to rise above all the others that are clamoring for their attention.

Here are three key reasons why you need to optimize your website now:

More and smarter competitors.  More and more law firms are getting web savvy as they wake up to the fact that people use search engines today more than ever to find just about everything.  SEO is becoming a higher priority for law firm marketers who realize the intrinsic value of not just being found, but of being found first.

It’s a digital world.  Most of the communication taking place today occurs digitally via email or online via web chat.  Not only is digital a greener technology, it lets us communicate and gather information in the way we want: faster.  Our communication lives have changed forever and there’s no going back, only forward.

Growth of mobile technology.  Mobile marketing is growing at an explosive rate, so those who have already optimized online can make an easier transition as communication migrates to new mobile platforms.

Because of these three reasons, SEO is more essential than ever to the success of your law firm marketing program. 

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FREE "Top 10 Mistakes Attorneys Make and How to Avoid Them" E-book

In a newly revised e-book, legal marketing expert Stephen Fairley outlines 10 of the most common marketing mistakes attorneys make that can lead to the failure of their business, and provides specific strategies and proven principles for avoiding these deadly errors.

Get your complimentary copy online here.

Regardless of your specific situation, this free e-book will help you examine how you are currently finding new clients and recommend specific steps you can immediately start using to grow your practice.

We have helped thousands of attorneys achieve their goals of creating a financially successful and personally satisfying legal practice. In this e-book you will discover specific principles and tools you can use to grow your practice, too. 

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Ever wonder why your competitor’s website consistently ranks on the front page of Google for specific searches and yours does not? Are you frustrated that you can't seem to find your website online unless you either (1) type the domain name directly into Google, or (2) search for your personal name, or (3) search for your law firm’s name (and even then your competition often shows up)?
 
Search engine optimization (SEO) is the art and science of artificially boosting your website or blog to the organic results (versus paid advertising) for specific search terms. Google considers over 60 different variables when determining who gets on the first page. One of the most important ones is the number and quality of inbound links your website has. As many of you have personally experienced, when it comes to SEO, it doesn't get any more competitive than the legal industry! When you search for a major key term like “Phoenix bankruptcy lawyer” or “Phoenix divorce attorney” I can guarantee you the people you see in the first 10 results did not get there by accident! They have worked hard at it and most likely they have hired some high-powered SEO experts to help them.

One of the reasons why blogging has become so popular in the legal industry is because of how powerful it is in Google’s eyes. One of the ways that Google determines if your website is an authority is by how often you post new, relevant, unique content on your blog. For example, Joseph McDaniel is a Phoenix bankruptcy attorney who blogs multiple times every day at www.ArizonaBankruptcyBlog.info. As he puts more and more content on his blog, Google rewards him by improving his rankings. We will discuss specifics about blogging in future posts, but there's another strategy that most attorneys overlook when it comes to improving their rankings and that’s building inbound links.

Google loves inbound links!

An inbound link is where one website links to another website. You see this all the time on news websites where they link to a video, a blog post, a resource, or a story on another website. Google measures and weighs inbound links as a sign of your website’s relevance and credibility. In general, the more inbound links your website has -- and the better they are -- the more your website will rank above your competitors.

Good ways to harvest inbound links for your website include social media, writing and posting articles online, sending out press releases online, hiring a professional link building service and joining and participating on online legal directories like HG.org. 

Founded in 1995, HG.org was one of the very first online law sites, and developed the first self-listing directories for attorneys and law firms. Today, search engine results show the HG Law Firm Directory at the top for most states or countries when someone is searching for a law firm. HG.org is one of the most trafficked legal sites, with more than 850,000 unique visitors coming to its sites – HG.org sites and HGExperts.com -- each month.

For most attorneys, learning the nuances of power link building is not the best use of their time. You need to know the fundamentals so you don’t get taken advantage of, but if you are serious about generating more leads from the Internet, then you need to be on the home page of Google for the key terms your prospects search for online. The best way to do that is by working with a top-notch link building expert who knows the legal industry and has proven results.

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Becoming a Rainmaker Seminar in New Jersey on March 9

The Rainmaker Institute in coordination with the New Jersey State Bar Association and the Hunterdon County Bar Association present Becoming a Rainmaker: Practice Development Strategies for Small and Solo Law Firms on Wednesday, March 9 from 4-6 p.m. at the Historic Court House in Flemington, NJ.

More than 7,000 attorneys from law firms all over the country have experienced powerful results from attending the Becoming A Rainmaker seminar, which has been sponsored by more than 24 of the largest state and local bar associations.

The Becoming a Rainmaker seminar teaches simple techniques attorneys can take back to their offices and implement immediately.  Some of the tools and techniques that I will cover during this highly informative two-hour session include:

• The 7 Ways to Find More Clients and How to Pick the Best Ones for Your Firm
• How to Build a Network of over 30 new Referral Sources in the next 6 months 
• Change Your Website from just an Online Brochure to a Money-making Machine 
• Passive Versus Active Marketing and why you need both
• Creating Client-generating Surveys: When to Use them and How to Leverage them 
• Automating Your Marketing System
• How to Ethically Position Yourself as a Specialist in Your Area 
• How to Promote Your Firm to 150,000 people for $140
• Avoid the Most Deadly Marketing Mistakes Attorneys make
• Why Advertising Doesn't Work and what to do instead
• Where to Find and How to Create Positive Media Coverage for your firm and your clients
• The #1 Reason why Attorneys Don’t Receive More Referrals and how to overcome it
• Using Visibility Events to Attract Highly Qualified Prospects to Your Firm

The cost for the two-hour Becoming a Rainmaker law firm marketing seminar is minimal: $77 for NJSBA or HCBA members and $97 for non-members.

Please call 888-816-8935 or click here for registration information.

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If gaining new clients is important to your business, then making sure your site is optimized is vitally important. If your site doesn’t come up on top when people are searching for keywords related to your services, you are missing out on getting new clients – and your competitors are likely picking them up.


Here is some important information that explains why Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is important to attorneys:

Validation: Potential clients may have already decided that they are likely to hire your firm or possibly a specific lawyer at your firm due to your existing reputation or based on a referral. However statistics and Internet studies show that now, more than ever, people are searching online to help establish trust and comfort before engaging someone’s services. They want to see pictures, read credentials and they also try to get a glimpse of your vibe and style from your website. They may search by an attorney’s name or the firm name, but they are also likely to search by keyword phrases like “family law attorney in Los Angeles”.

Searching is a habit: It has been noted that a lot of people (probably more than you think) use Google instead of typing in a URL. They often have Google set as their home page and find it easier to just search for a keyword phrase or your name or firm name, rather than type in a URL. Even though it is usually pretty easy to get ranked on your name or firm name, that isn’t always the case and they may not find you unless you have good search engine presence.

Hitting the net before the pavement: Before going to physical office locations, consumers are using search engines to find service providers and doing research before calling or going for a consultation.

Local Search and Geo-targeting: An increasingly popular vertical of the search industry is local search, especially with the advent of smart phones and mobile Internet access. People are more often searching for region-specific products and services. We see more and more searches like “Los Angeles criminal attorney” and with geo-targeting people no longer even need to type in the regional parameter. The engines can pinpoint your location to within 7 miles of where you are from your IP address (the exception to that is AOL, where it appears that everyone is in Virginia).  So a search for “criminal attorney” by someone in Los Angeles would turn up different results than the same search done by someone in San Francisco. Making sure you are optimized is important so your site comes up on top – especially if someone is searching on their Blackberry and looking specifically for a local office.

Phone books are big, heavy and not as convenient as Google: A majority of consumers now use Google instead of the phone book if they want to find a service provider. A survey earlier this month by Harris Interactive showed that nearly 7 out of 10 American adults rarely or never use the white pages phone book for looking up phone numbers and addresses for people or businesses, 87 percent support opt-in initiatives where they would receive the phone book only if requested, and 60 percent of online adults find the contact information they need through online channels (online directories -- 29 percent, search engines -- 28 percent or social networks -- 3 percent).

Our January e-newsletter talks about SEO for Attorneys: What It Is and How to Leverage It.  To access the newsletter, click here.

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Now is the time to create your Lifestyle Law Firm!

The Rainmaker Retreat is where we teach lawyers how they can have it all; increase the number of clients they have, double their income, and yet work less.  Build and create a 'lifestyle' law firm that is professionally satisfying, but allows you the time to do what is important to you.

Here are the dates for upcoming Rainmaker Retreats:

• February 25-26, 2011 - Orlando, Florida
• March 11-12, 2011 - New Brunswick, New Jersey
• April 8-9, 2011 - San Diego, CA

If you take advantage of the Early Bird Special (only available when you register at least 2 weeks in advance of the event), you receive $300 worth of extra benefits!

Discount Pricing is available for multiple attendees from the same firm.

For more information please call: 888-588-5891 or visit www.RainmakerRetreat.com.
 



 

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When you hear the words law firm Internet marketing, you are almost certain to hear the term “search engine optimization”. But what does it mean? 

More importantly, how does it affect your law firm Internet marketing efforts?

Put simply search engine optimization is the most basic tool used by law firm Internet marketers and web masters to increase the amount of traffic to your web site.

The first thing you should know about SEO is that your Web site must appeal to both people and search engines. If you remember to keep these two in balance, not only will potential clients come to your site, they are more likely to spend time there learning about why your firm is the best choice to meet their legal needs.

Below you will find the basic, working information you need in order to choose a law firm Internet marketing provider who can really help you.

Search Engine Spiders: A well-designed web site will appeal to search engine “spiders”. Search engine spiders (also known as web crawlers, web robots, and more) are the part of the search engine (such as Google or Yahoo!) that crawls the Internet in search of Web sites that match the “search words and phrases” that someone has typed into the search box.

If your site is a good match for the viewers search terms, your site will appear in that person’s search results.

What Search Engines Look for: Different search engines look for different things. Some things they all have in common is that they like popular, well-organized sites that make it easy to find the search words and phrases. Search engines like:

• To find several instances of the exact keyword phrase it is looking for – optimally, the exact keyword phrase should appear 2 to 5 times per 100 words.
• Bulleted lists
• Bolded headings
• Links from outside source into your site
• Links from your site to outside sources
• Very often, they like “metatags” and “alt tags” (key words in the “code” of your site)

Those are the basics regarding how search engine optimization works with your law firm Internet marketing approach.

To learn more about optimization and law firm Internet marketing where I will share the top three questions you should ask a law firm Internet marketing provider before making your selection.

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