Build an Effective Law Firm Marketing Strategy in 11 Steps
If your law firm marketing isn’t generating regular leads or inbound calls, it may be a sign that you are missing some essential elements of a law firm marketing strategy.
Even if you are running ads or promoting your brand, you may be missing foundational elements that empower your tactics to produce the best results. If you aren’t sure if you have laid a strong foundation for your law firm marketing strategy, consider if you have taken these 11 steps.
11 Steps to Build an Effective Law Firm Marketing Strategy
Follow these 11 steps to build a strong foundation for your law firm marketing strategy.
#1) Launch a high-quality website.
An effective law firm marketing strategy starts with a high-quality website. A website is the base of a good marketing plan. It is the digital welcome mat for your business and where all of your other marketing efforts will lead back to. Before you begin any other marketing tactics, start by building a professional, high-quality website for your law firm that includes:
- More than five pages
- Responsive website design
- Fast loading speed
- Modern, clean design
- Intuitive navigation
- Clear call-to-actions
Related: Are You Getting the Most Out of Your Business Website? Probably Not.
#2) Create landing pages for each practice area.
Your website should have a homepage, about page, contact page, and a series of landing pages designated for each of your practice areas. Landing pages that highlight your areas of practice serve both prospects and search engines. Prospects can learn more about what you do, and search engines can categorize your site with particular practice areas (and be more likely to show your website in searches for those legal terms).
#3) Add trust signals to your website.
Building trust is a big part of law firm marketing. To guide interested prospects toward working with you, you need to be seen as an experienced authority in your field. Use your website to build trust with prospects by adding:
- Testimonials from past clients
- Case studies that walk readers through a case and its outcome
- Awards that show off your expertise
- Credentials that present your experience and education
#4) Add a free consultation request form to your website.
The goal of your website is to move interested prospects one step closer toward working with you. For law firm marketing, the final step in your funnel is getting people to sign up for a free consultation. Add a free consultation form to your website and set up funnels on your site that lead website visitors toward requesting their free meeting.
#5) Create profiles on social media platforms and business directories.
A new website doesn’t automatically begin showing up in search. You must optimize your website for SEO which includes creating profiles on social media platforms and business directories. Even if you don’t plan on having a strong social media strategy for your law firm, you will benefit by creating profiles. Each profile with a link back to your site tells search engines that your law firm is trustworthy, legitimate, and more worthy of showing up in search results. Create profiles on:
- GoogleMyBusiness
- MyArea Network Local Area Sites
Related: Your Brand MUST Be on Business Directory Websites -- This Is Why
#6) Create profiles on legal directory sites.
In addition to creating profiles for your law firm on social sites and general business directories, also create pages on legal directories. Create profiles on general legal sites and on directories that are specific to the type of law you practice, such as findapersonalinjuryattorney.com if you practice personal injury. A few legal directory sites include:
#7) Attract local press.
A successful law firm marketing strategy should position your legal practice as a leader in your area. One way to do that is through the local press. Local PR helps build brand awareness in your area and keep your practice top-of-mind with nearby prospects. When people know and remember your brand, they will turn to you when they need legal assistance. Build local PR by:
- Getting featured on local cable news and programming
- Sharing content and tips in local publications
- Sponsoring local media and events.
Related: How to Get Local Press Coverage for Your Business
#8) Build content for organic SEO.
The steps you have already taken will start to build a solid foundation for organic SEO for your website. To boost SEO even more, design a content plan for your website. Develop an editorial calendar and begin publishing weekly or monthly content that answers frequently asked questions about your practice areas. This process not only serves prospects looking for information, but it also sends positive signals to search engines which can boost your search rankings and visibility.
Related: The SEO Strategies and Best Practices Every Business Needs to Know
#9) Leverage paid search ads.
Organic SEO is a powerful way to attract new prospects and clients, but it takes time. While you are building an organic SEO plan, put your practice at the top of search rankings using paid search ads. Paid search ads target keywords related to your business (such as “personal injury attorney” or “defense attorney”) and display ads for your firm when searches look for those terms.
Related: Pay Per Click for Your Local Business: How Use Adwords to Attract Customers
#10) Create a referral program.
For lawyers, one of your best ways to generate new clients is through referrals. If someone has a great experience working with you, they will send people they know to you. Make it easy (and beneficial) for people to send referrals your way. Set up a referral program that rewards past clients when they refer a friend or family member who becomes a client.
#11) Run campaigns
Once you have taken the ten steps listed above, you will have a strong law firm marketing foundation and be ready to start running campaigns to boost the effectiveness of everything else you have set up. Begin to test marketing campaigns such as:
- Targeted display ads. Launch display ads on local media sites (like MyArea Network Local Area Sites) where your target audience spends time.
- Geofencing. Run geofencing advertising campaigns to target prospects when they are in places likely to lead them to need your business, such as targeting people at an accident center with personal injury ads.
- Remarketing campaigns. Bring back interested prospects by running ad campaigns that reach people who have already engaged with your brand or visited your website.
Build a Better Law Firm Marketing Strategy
An effective law firm marketing strategy constantly attracts new prospects and converts them into leads. If you're marketing your legal business but not seeing a lift in the number of calls and consultations, you may be missing essential elements in your strategy.
MyArea Network is here to help. We specialize in helping local brands build awareness in their community so they can generate more leads and revenue. If you are looking to improve your marketing strategy -- or start one from scratch -- we are here to help.
Request your free consultation to learn more about our powerful local marketing solutions for lawyers.
