10 Common Mistakes That May Be Affecting Your Law Firm SEO
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You work hard, you post on social media, you do right by your clients, yet your law firm SEO isn’t where you want it to be.
Many of the mistakes that we see tend to involve the law firm’s website.
A great website is essential to not just your law firm SEO, but your firm’s success at bringing in new clients. Fixing these mistakes (or keeping from making them in the first place) gives your firm that much better a chance to draw in new prospective clients and convert them into clients.
Improper Use of Space
When you open a website and see too much text, do you read it all?
Unlikely.
If you’re like most people, your eyes gloss over and you close the page.
Not having enough “white space” is a serious problem. Utilizing “negative space” (another phrase for white space) can draw the viewer’s attention, letting them know what’s important about your page.
Consequently, having too much “negative space” can make it seem as if your page has little to offer.
Use space properly to target the content you want people to notice.
Not Sure Where to Go and How to Get There
When someone opens your page, do they see the search bar, contact links, and menu? Or, do they have to hunt around for them?
You want to make it as easy as possible for a prospective client to contact you.
By that same token, can anyone open your page easily on essentially any kind of device?
More people than ever are searching for law firms on their tablets, phones, watches, and more. Should your page fail to load quickly and completely on their device, odds are the client will go to someone’s page that will.
Failing to Speak to the Client
With your website, you’re asking someone to entrust you with their case.
Are they going to see misspelled words or grammar mistakes on your site?
That could make them unlikely to trust you, to say the very least.
However, going in the opposite direction, and being verbose isn’t likely to help, either.
As a lawyer, you know how to talk to clients: simply and directly.
Keep your content short and to the point (while double-checking for spelling and grammar).
When in doubt: read it out loud before posting it.
Due Diligence on the Other Side
When you go to negotiation or into court, you have some knowledge of who you’ll be up against.
The same should go for your website.
Look at the sites of your direct competition.
Failing to do so could keep you from differentiating your firm, optimally offering your clients an alternative.
This can be beneficial from the moment you begin setting up your site.
Posting “Every Now and Then”
When people are researching law firms, they want to see fresh, new content.
A firm that hasn’t posted new content in some time is going to look far less relevant and capable than one that does frequently.
Posting high-quality content with value on a consistent basis not only helps SEO but can also build your firm’s credibility and authority as well.
Making Your Site Too “Busy”
Your law firm likely has awards that you’ve won as well as big wins for your clients.
Emphasizing those on your site is great.
However, having too many big graphics, slogans, enormous pictures, and the like can actually be distracting. It can come off as desperate, forced, and even a bit disorienting.
Design your site so that your awards and graphics catch the eye rather than dominate it.
Again, this is one more area where researching your competition can pay off.
Refusing to “Get to the Point”
Keep in mind: when someone comes to your site, they’re looking for a solution to their problem.
That’s all they’re looking for.
It’s natural to want to have videos and graphics that flash appear on your site as soon as it loads.
However, prospective clients could find those off-putting or annoying.
They can feel intrusive and even potentially slow your site’s download time.
Just as those “flashing graphics” can be off-putting, so too can an abundance of “legalese.”
Yes, you want to show prospective clients that you are knowledgeable of the law.
But, too much “legalese” can confuse prospective clients when all they’re looking for are simple, direct answers.
Too Many Ads and Other Formatting Issues
After you’ve posted quite a bit of content on your site, it can seem natural to generate extra money by associative marketing, promoting referral partners, and putting up their ads.
However, that takes a toll on your entire site.
It can distract or even confuse a prospective client, weakening your site’s design and even making folks question your value. In terms of ads, “less is (certainly) more.”
In fact, you don’t want anything that can confuse or distract folks on your site.
That’s just one of the reasons that it’s important to make sure that your kerning is on point. Proper spacing between the words, lines, and characters can make sure that your site is as easy to read as possible.
Failing to Protect Prospective Clients’ Data
Online privacy is more important than ever.
If you can’t protect folks’ data, it’s highly unlikely they’re going to trust you to take their case.
Too many attorneys believe that security protocols are “something you can put in eventually.”
They need to be there before you launch.
Your clients need to know that you’re protecting their data, too.
Professional Web Design & Law Firm SEO: You Get What You Pay For
I just typed “make your own website” into Google.
3,650,000,000 results.
Very few of those are actually going to help you to make your law firm’s website.
The truth is that spending as little money as possible will cost you more in the long run.
Working with professionals costs much less than losing a prospective client with a great case who got turned off by your unprofessional site.
Really, investing in your site is a way of protecting your investment and all the hard work you do.
We’re here to help with every aspect of your law firm SEO. You can schedule a free consultation at (888) 477-9540.
