To make lasting improvements to your law firm’s website, you need to understand on-page SEO. Search engine optimization involves digital marketing tactics to improve your website traffic, visibility, and rankings. While specific SEO strategies are best developed based on a law firm’s individual needs and goals, there are certain best practices that all firms can benefit from. This post will review what on-page SEO for law firm websites looks like and how you can incorporate those practices into your digital marketing strategy.
What Is On-Page SEO for Law Firm Websites?
The majority of law firm clients seek legal guidance online. Search engines like Google attempt to provide the best results for user queries. You need to have an optimization strategy for your website to rank and be seen by a potential client.
Whether you are just starting your website or looking to revamp your existing site, there are steps you can take to improve your website’s overall online presence and credibility.
With a comprehensive on-page SEO strategy, you could see an increase in your website’s search engine visibility and traffic. As a result, you could see your rankings improve amongst your competitors, and your law firm’s online reputation could also improve. Determining where to start can be challenging, so we will look at the most critical elements to consider when improving your law firm website’s SEO, including optimization strategies, website design and optimization, keyword best practices, and branding efforts.
The Elements of an SEO-Friendly Law Firm Website
While SEO best practices tend to shift over time as Google seeks to meet users’ needs better, there are steps you can take that are likely to improve your website’s performance. How you tackle the elements we will discuss below will depend on factors like your goals and budget. If you try something that does not work, that is okay. It may take time to find the strategies that work best for your business.
A Content Marketing Strategy
In terms of managing the marketing of your law firm website, you need to do more than keep your website’s information updated. While ensuring your contact and practice area information is correct is crucial, you want to ensure you regularly add valuable content to your website and use outside sources, like social media, to encourage new site visitors to interact with your content. Oftentimes, it is beneficial to implement multiple content marketing strategies at one time.
A Balanced Website Design
Your website’s design is significant in how potential clients interact with it and whether they stick around long enough to contact you. It is vital that your website is simple to navigate, so visitors can find the information they need as efficiently as possible. If they have to hunt for answers, they will likely leave and look for help elsewhere. Ensuring your website is easily navigable will also help Google crawl and index your pages faster.
A Digital Optimization Plan
In terms of digital optimization, there are three strategies you need to consider when building out your plan. You may want to consider starting with the on-page elements, but it is important to branch out to examining and improving on-page optimization and conversation optimization. Doing so will ensure that all digital aspects of your website are in the best position possible to reach clients.
On-Page Optimization
In terms of on-page optimization, a lot goes into ensuring the elements on your website and your content complement each other and function together. Make sure that you avoid broken links and redirect pages as needed to prevent timeouts or errors. Depending on where your website lives, you might consider implementing certain widgets to check for issues and alert you when needed.
The content you produce also needs to be optimized to Google’s liking. This means using keywords properly, structuring pages in a user-friendly manner, and keeping the information you provide relevant to your target audience.
Off-Page Optimization
On-page optimization and off-page optimization work together when implemented with best practices in mind. While on-page looks at the elements of your website, off-page optimization considers the elements off of your site, like linking building, reviews, and local SEO.
Link building can improve your website’s domain authority. This involves earning links to your web pages from other domains that Google recognizes as reputable. Regarding reviews, it is crucial to establish a review base for your website. This is typically most efficient on your Google Business Profile. Encourage clients to provide feedback on your services. Finally, local SEO involves reaching your audience in your actual geographic location. A common local SEO improvement strategy is to use targeted ads.
Conversion Optimization
The last type of optimization is conversion optimization. This refers to what it takes for you to turn a site visitor into a paying client. Consider the type of experience a potential client might need to reach out to you. You can adjust your content, ads, and social media strategies to encourage conversions.
A Strong Keyword Strategy
The keyword strategy you choose will significantly impact your on-page SEO results. Tools like Google Keyword Planner and Moz help find the phrases and words you want to target. Your goal is to anticipate the queries that potential clients will type into Google and create content that ranks for them.
Clear and Intentional Branding
On-page optimization also involves a clear and intentional brand. It is no secret that the legal industry is competitive. In order to shine in niche practice areas and rank above your competition, you need to have an easily recognizable brand. Brand development involves logos, website appearance, color schemes, photography, videography, and more. When it comes to branding, consistency is key.
Digital Marketing: Next Steps
It is easy to feel overwhelmed when thinking about improving the on-page SEO for law firm websites. However, the process can seem more manageable if you break it down into steps. Depending on your firm’s bandwidth and budget, you also have the option of outsourcing to digital marketing professionals. No matter how you decide to optimize your on-page SEO, the results should prove fruitful for your business.
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.
