As a successful law firm, you should be putting out around 2% of your revenue to generate new business through marketing for lawyers. One of the problems many law firms have is that they aren’t sure where to put that money.
Are they supposed to focus on digital marketing, or is it better to focus on what is already working for them? Many choose to double down on offline marketing methods that are already working.
If you’re confused about law firm marketing and how to get from where you are now to where you want to be, we’re going to help you. Continue reading this article to learn important strategies for successful legal marketing.
1. Search Engine Optimization
Search engine optimization (SEO) is one of the best ways to get the word out about your law firm. When people are searching for a lawyer online, you want to be the one that shows up in the search engines.
The search engines aren’t magic, so there is a way for you to get to the top of the search rankings if you’re willing to put in the work to get there.
Part of SEO is what you put on your website. You need to ensure you have keywords on your website that are relevant to what people are going to search for. If search engines don’t know the terms they should rank you for, they won’t be able to rank you.
Don’t stuff too many keywords into your pages that it provides a bad user experience. If you stuff keywords on your website, it won’t help your rankings, but it could hurt them.
Another important part of SEO is building backlinks. You can build backlinks through putting your website on directories, sending out press releases, doing guest posting, and other similar things.
The more optimized content you have and the more links you have—the better.
2. Calling Leads
Calling leads is an important part of keeping a steady stream of new clients coming into your law firm. You should make sure the leads you purchase are high-quality and will convert.
Look for the best exclusive legal leads, so you aren’t fighting with a bunch of other lawyers for the same client. When you’re calling leads, the last thing you want them to be is distracted by other firms trying to call them.
When you’re calling leads, make sure you are direct, and to the point, so they know that you called them because they were requesting information. When you know how to talk to leads and convert them, it can be a very good way to grow your law firm.
3. Content Marketing
You’ve likely heard the term content marketing a few times in conversations about marketing your law firm. When you’re trying to deal with clients and speak to potential clients, it might seem overwhelming to think about creating content.
If you don’t feel like you can do your own content creation, you should look into having someone help you with it. The benefits of content marketing far outweigh any cost associated with it.
When your law firm puts out consistent, trustworthy content, you’ll be able to create a relationship of trust with your clients and potential clients. If your website doesn’t have sufficient content, you’re likely to lose trust, and that would-be client might go speak to someone else for their legal needs.
When you do start creating content, make sure it is easy to read and understand. You also want people to be able to make it around your website without confusion.
People are going to be looking at your website for specific legal help, so make it simple by putting your areas of practice on each page.
4. Business Directories
Business directories are another important thing you need to take care of when you want to get leads. There are plenty of free directories and some that have a minimal fee for using their services.
Business directories are the perfect place to showcase your business and get people that are looking for your services to contact you. You might be familiar with business listings like the yellow pages, but there are other directories that are specifically for lawyers that can be a good place for you to list your business.
5. Referrals
Nothing replaces word of mouth advertising. People are much more likely to do business with you when they know someone that you’ve already work with.
One of the ways you can get people to send referrals is by giving them an incentive to send people to you. You might offer people money to send referrals or offer credits for their next legal service or even give them gift cards as a thank you.
A simple way to ask for referrals is by putting a blank or lined form where people can write names and contact information down for people that might need your help.
6. Paid Search
Many people don’t have the patience to wait for rankings in the search engines. If you don’t want to work on SEO and wait for results, paid search is a great way to get attention.
Google’s pay-per-click program is one of the most popular and can help you get in front of many potential clients. Keep in mind that many of the legal terms for search can be rather pricey, but if you get a lead and they convert, it can be worth it.
One of the best ways you can reduce the price you pay on your ads is by making your keyword list very targeted to your landing page. For instance, it’s better to send personal injury leads to a personal injury landing page vs. simply sending them to a lawyer lead form without any specific area of practice listed.
Google wants people to know exactly what they’re getting when they click on an ad, and that’s why there’s a quality score in the ads account. The more relevant your ad is to your landing page, the better your quality score is, and the less money you have to pay.
7. Social Media Marketing
Social media is one of the most effective ways to get the word out about your law firm. You can connect with endless numbers of people that might be looking for an attorney.
Platforms like Twitter allow you to have conversations with people you don’t even know. You can hop in and comment on virtually anything that isn’t set to private. If you see someone is having a legal problem, you can even hop on and offer some free guidance.
If they want more help, they are likely to contact you through direct messaging, so make sure your settings are open for messaging.
It’s easy to get overwhelmed when you’re beginning social media marketing. If you try to take over too many platforms at once, you might not be able to keep up. It’s better to start with one and add others as you are able to.
8. Email Marketing
Email marketing allows you to stay top of mind with your potential clients. If anyone entered their information on your site and opted in for emails, you need to continue to nurture these people.
These leads are likely to convert at some point, but if they don’t remember you, they won’t have any way to. If you aren’t comfortable writing marketing emails, you can hire someone to take care of it for you. There are many people that their sole job is just to write marketing emails.
9. Generate More Reviews
When people don’t have a referral from someone they know, the next best place they look is on reviews on different sites.
Encourage your past clients to leave reviews for you. Many times they may plan on leaving a review, but they simply forget. Follow up with an email and make sure they have easy access to the link where they need to place the review.
Use Marketing for Lawyers to Boost Your Business
Now you have some solid ideas and strategies for how to boost your business. Understanding marketing for lawyers will help you as you’re taking your business to the next level. As you can see, it is important that you don’t rest on your laurels and hope things keep going well.
Continuing to add to your strategies will allow you to maintain and grow your business. Implement the above tips and start seeing the success you want.
Do you feel like you need more help with marketing and other topics related to your business? Keep going through our blog to get the help you need to create a successful practice.
