The legal field is a competitive market, with over 1.3 million lawyers doing business across the United States. This is one big reason why it is crucial to make a favorable first impression on potential clients who come browsing online. Since the majority of lawyer searches begin with a search engine, one of the key ways to introduce your law firm effectively is to design a stellar website. Unfortunately, some law firms do not give this task to an experienced professional and without knowing it, make mistakes when it comes to creating their law firm website. Here are eleven mistakes that some law firms make when designing their websites, along with tips to avoid these errors.
Too Much Clutter
Potential clients do not want to navigate through thick forests of text to find what they need, but some websites put the most essential information out of the way, or in an area that looks cluttered and disorganized. This practice will hinder the most motivated visitors and they may be tempted to exit quickly. Make sure your website has a clean, organized look and that it is easy to navigate. Elements that are designed to “trap” consumers into contacting a law firm, like excessive pop-ups and sliders, often repel people and send them elsewhere.
Difficult Navigation
Your website needs to offer easy navigation and every page should have the option to return to the home page. Some consumers say that drop-down menus do not make things easier, they are simply annoying. Perhaps this is because our eyes move faster than a mouse can click. Another obstacle that inhibits navigation is an excess of items attracting attention. When there are too many possible places to click a link, visitors can get overwhelmed. If you remove clutter, then the most important items will take center stage, and navigation will become more straightforward.
ADA Inaccessible
Your law firm’s office is compliant with ADA requirements, but is your website? Most companies do not take into consideration that their website is an extension of their business, and should follow ADA guidelines. A disability should not limit anyone’s opportunity to find the information they need, and this includes searching for answers to legal questions and finding a qualified attorney. Besides being the right thing to do, designing a website that is ADA compliant speak compassion and fairness to your audience as well.
Some of your website visitors may be visually or hearing impaired, so it is essential to design a website that includes components such as:
- Ability to navigate by keyboard-only option
- The website should be fully functional when scaled up to 200%
- The text should have a minimum contrast ratio against the background
- Audio and video should be played only when a user clicks
- All relevant website images should include alt text
Unresponsive
A website must be responsive if a law firm is going to rely on it as a tool to gather new leads and clients. Law firms of any size need to make sure that their website loads quickly and works well with both desktop and mobile devices. This means that the website should ditch any slow-loading, large images. Another no-no is employing sites that use pre-fabricated, bulky themes and stock images.
Constructed with a Free Website Builder
Avoid skimping on costs by using a free website builder. Even though these may seem more budget-friendly, they often hold hidden costs and lack the support you need for the future. Besides this, they may not offer blog assistance, editing advice or SEO help. In the end, you might pay just as much or more with a free website builder as you would have by hiring an experienced, qualified website company in the first place.
No Call to Action
Even with a well-designed website and top-notch content, you may not meet your marketing goals without a compelling call to action. Include a call to action on every page of your website, because this is the end goal of any advertising plan. A call to action should:
- Be placed in a highly accessible and visible location on your website.
- Show up as a clickable button for mobile users.
- Include an action verb that motivates visitors to take the next step.
Lacking an Experienced SEO Consultant
SEO is a critical component of your website design process. This is why it is highly important to hire a company that has expertise in search engine optimization. When you search for an SEO company, evaluate it for the following criteria:
- Are they experienced in designing content for lawyers?
- Do they have knowledge of top keywords used by potential clients in your local area?
- Do they have the ability to install and manage Google Analytics?
Not Mobile-Friendly
Effective soon, Google will be rewarding websites that are inherently mobile-responsive with better rankings, and demoting websites that are not mobile-responsive. If you are thinking about revamping your website, now is the perfect time to confirm that your website is 100% mobile responsive. Since 53% of mobile users abandon a website if it takes longer than three seconds to load, it is time to rethink website design. Most websites currently take around 22 seconds to load, losing visitors before you can say “marketing disaster.” Any modern website should be designed specifically with mobile users in mind.
Outdated Design or Content
A stale or outdated website is unreliable and unprofessional, and it could be one of the worst flaws of all in the eyes of consumers. If your website has not been audited in a while (or ever) strongly consider a website content audit. This practice can replace broken links, refresh stale content, clear out expired material, and can also update content and design to be more consistent with your brand.
Multi-Fonts and Colors
A great-looking website only needs two or three colors, and too many colors subconsciously tax the brain and eyes. Color should be used sparingly on website pages, and text should be easy to read. Light backgrounds are more preferable to dark backgrounds, and pages should not be switching off between the two. In addition, choose a minimum of fonts, because a wide variety of fonts can be a distraction. Pick a few key fonts that gel with your brand and leave it at that.
Not Enough Whitespace
After deciding on your colors and fonts, do not forget that all that text and color should be alternated with ample doses of white space. Using white space generously makes your content more legible and makes the intake more pleasant. Large blocks of text are intimidating and consumers often feel too busy to read huge chunks of copy. You can also break up text with quality images and video.
Conclusion
Your website is an important business tool, and the first introduction between your law firm and potential clients. This is why it is vitally important to scrutinize your website for distractions and unnecessary visitor roadblocks. Consider using top-quality, paid professional help to design your website, and do not be tempted to cut corners. Make sure you can call upon an experienced SEO consultant to promote your law firm in the most efficient and effective way possible. Avoid the traps of too much activity, clutter, color, and fonts, and offer users readable, relevant content. Designing a website that is accessible and attractive for all users will make it more likely that this important tool will help you grow your business.
This Week’s Digital Marketing Action Step:
- Consider conducting a website content audit.
Annette Choti graduated from law school 20 years ago, and is now the CEO & Owner of Law Quill, a legal digital marketing agency focused on small and solo law firms. Law Quill is the only legal digital marketing agency that provides unique, SEO-optimized content, pre-packaged content, and courses for lawyers to learn SEO themselves through Law Quill Academy. Annette used to do theatre and professional comedy, which is not so different from the legal field if we are all being honest. Annette can be found on LinkedIn or at annette@lawquill.com
