Legal Search Marketing – Video is an effective marketing resource for attorneys

April 20, 2010 By BardorfMarketing

Lets face it, hiring an attorney can be an intimidating task and when coupled with an often-stressful legal issue at hand, many prospects settle for the “friend of a friend” route, then find the best attorney for their needs and budget.

Video helps erase the intimidation factor that surrounds the process of contacting and hiring an attorney. Video allows prospects to see and hear from you. It makes a connection with your potential clients 24×7 from the comfort and safety of their own home – with no obligations, commitment, or passed judgment. It is an opportunity for prospects to meet you before they ever walk in your office or pick up the phone. It’s warm, personal and more “human” than written words and static images, and done right it can have the same powerful impact as a face to face meeting.

Considering the fact that Google has rapidly expanded their search results beyond just words and text, it becomes obvious why the use of online video as a meaningful marketing tool for attorneys has exploded over just the past few years. Instead of uploading your video to the standard video sites like YouTube, other sites dedicated to the legal profession, like LegalTube.com have emerged as effective marketing resources. In addition, legal directories like Avvo.com and Justia.com have made room to accommodate videos in their attorney profiles. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Attorney Marketing, Internet Marketing, Lawyer Marketing, Legal Marketing, Massachusetts Legal Marketing, Newsletter - Legal Search Marketing

Legal Search Marketing – The value of your search rankings

March 10, 2010 By BardorfMarketing

Generally speaking, people who are in business are not inclined to give their company’s strategic assets away to the competition. However, many attorneys and law firms do exactly this and they don’t even realize it!

When it comes to online marketing, what many attorneys fail to realize is the actual value of their online presence.

All too often, “beach front property” in the form of a top website ranking on any search engine, is simply given away to a competitor because of what may be good, yet ill-conceived intentions. A typical scenario is when someone at the firm takes the initiative to update or re-write some content on the firm’s website. Without realizing it, their modifications have dropped the website from the search engines rankings, leaving the vacancy for Google to fill with a competitors website instead.

An even worse case scenario that happens quite a bit, is when a firm decides a sleek new website is in order and proceeds to simply replace the old site without consideration of how established that site has become with the search engines, losing every ranking they’ve ever achieved. Ouch! [Read more...]

Filed Under: Attorney Marketing, Internet Marketing, Lawyer Marketing, Legal Marketing, Massachusetts Legal Marketing, Newsletter - Legal Search Marketing

Legal Search Marketing – Claims of 1st Page Google Rank

February 15, 2010 By BardorfMarketing

Many attorneys are looking for effective ways to market their legal services on the Internet. Done properly, Internet marketing is undoubtedly one of the most cost effective and productive ways of growing your firm. However, attorneys suffer from the relentless bombardment of inbound solicitations that claim will change their business, and drive highly qualified clients to the doorstep.

Claims like “Guaranteed 1st page Google ranking” and “We’ll put you on the top of Google“, and “Your firm will have an exclusive listing” will certainly lead one to believe that dominating the web in any particular practice and geographic area is only a credit card charge away. The reality of many of these offers is often only realized when the only noticeable increase are those appearing on your monthly credit card statement.

Determining which offers are worthwhile and which offers are scams may be nearly impossible to decipher unless you dig in and do your homework. Unfortunately for attorneys, there simply isn’t enough time in the day to practice law AND effectively manage a marketing strategy that produces results.

Thus, I am sharing my Golden Rule of Internet Marketing. Keeping this rule in mind will undoubtedly save you time, money and a boat-load of frustration: [Read more...]

Filed Under: Attorney Marketing, Internet Marketing, Lawyer Marketing, Legal Marketing, Massachusetts Legal Marketing, Newsletter - Legal Search Marketing, Search Marketing

Question: Why doesn’t my ad show first when I increase my budget?

February 3, 2010 By BardorfMarketing

The days of simply spending more money to buy a top placement in Google’s sponsored ads section (not the natural listings) is long gone. Yet, there still remains a misconception among many that if you simply increase the amount you’re willing to spend on a keyword, you can buy top placement. Not true.

Google changed its criteria for serving ads several years ago as it became abundantly clear to Google that they could make more money. So the smart folks at Google asked themselves, “what will it take to make more people click on more ads?” Thus, the Adwords ‘Quality Score’ was implemented and Google did make a lot more money.

Here’s the scoop: the Google system calculates a ‘Quality Score’ for each of your keywords. It looks at a variety of factors to measure how relevant your keyword is to your ad text, to the landing page text and to a user’s search query. A keyword’s Quality Score updates frequently and is closely related to its performance. In general, a high Quality Score means that your keyword will trigger ads in a higher position and at a lower cost-per-click (CPC). [Read more...]

Filed Under: Attorney Marketing, Internet Marketing, Lawyer Marketing, Legal Marketing, Massachusetts Legal Marketing, Questions

Legal Search Marketing – 2010 Best Practices for Lawyers and Law Firms

January 15, 2010 By BardorfMarketing

Competition among lawyers, especially in today’s business environment, is as fierce as ever. As a sole practitioner or small law firm, every little advantage that you can create against competitors is going to benefit you. Many attorneys put themselves at a distinct disadvantage without even realizing it. For those attorneys who are not Internet savvy, here are three simple online marketing suggestions that address common mistakes, are easily implemented, and will give you an advantage over the competition.

1. What’s with that email address?

Even something as small and as simple as an e-mail address can have a large impact on your business when it comes to determining whether or not you are going to earn a new client’s business over the competition.

When the internet was first taking off a few years ago, nearly everyone was signing up to utilize free web based email services such as AOL.com, Verizon.com, Gmail.com, Yahoo.com, etc. These free, or generic, web-based email services were very convenient and were primarily created for individuals that wanted email accounts. Even if the account was created for small business purposes, it was acceptable then, but this has changed significantly in recent years. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Attorney Marketing, Internet Marketing, Lawyer Marketing, Legal Marketing, Massachusetts Legal Marketing, Newsletter - Legal Search Marketing, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Search Marketing

Question: How do I get the best rankings on Google?

December 29, 2009 By BardorfMarketing

Well, you’ve got to love the enthusiasm surrounding this question.

I’ll assume your asking about getting great rankings in the organic search listings as opposed to the Sponsored Listings or the local business listings which comes at the top of the search engine page when someone search with a geographic reference, like “Boston, MA divorce lawyer“.

This is referred to as SEO – Search Engine Optimization. Although there are many components to a well optimized web site, it basically comes down to this (according to Google):

  • In your site design, use text rather than images and Flash for important content
  • Have relevant and descriptive content on the specific topics you focus on.
  • Make your site work with JavaScript, Java and CSS disabled
  • Organize your site such that you have pages that focus on a particular topic
  • Avoid HTML frames and iframes
  • Use normal URLs, avoiding links that look like form queries (http://www.example.com/engine?id)
  • Market your site by having other relevant sites link to yours
  • Don’t try to cheat the system (by stuffing your pages of keywords, or attempting to target specific content at search engines, or using link farms)

Bardorf Legal Marketing is a Massachusetts Internet marketing and advertising firm working with lawyers and law firms on enhancing their online effectiveness in the areas of SEO, paid search, social media, affiliate marketing, blog and website development, and targeted local search marketing campaigns.

Filed Under: Attorney Marketing, Internet Marketing, Lawyer Marketing, Legal Marketing, Massachusetts Legal Marketing, Questions, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Search Marketing

Search Marketing Tip – Building links for law firms

December 15, 2009 By BardorfMarketing

If your law firm sponsors an event make sure you ask the host to add a link to your website from the online description of the event.  Here’s why.

Many times an event coordinator will ask an attorney to speak at an upcoming event on an area of their specialty or focus. In their own marketing efforts the coordinator will publish the details of the events highlighting the speakers invited.

The value of publishing your website (and getting an active hyper-link to your site) in their online listing is significant. It’s significant not because people attending the event will see your site and click through to visit your website, but because a link from their site to your website serves as “a vote” in Google’s eyes. Even better, if the event is about Massachusetts real estate law, and the listing details topics about Massachusetts real estate law, then links to your website which also discuses Massachusetts real estate law, then you’ve potentially established a highly effective link. The more effective links you create, the more “authority” your site will earn in the eyes of the search engines. More authority equals more visibility. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Attorney Marketing, Internet Marketing, Lawyer Marketing, Legal Marketing, Massachusetts Legal Marketing, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Search Marketing, Search Tips

Question: Isn’t SEO just adding keywords

November 10, 2009 By BardorfMarketing

Isn’t “optimizing” a website just the task of adding lots of targeted keywords?

Although adding appropriate keywords to any web page is a critical step in properly optimizing a site, it is just one task from various interdependent actions and processes required to effectively optimize any site.

Perhaps the most important factor regarding the “process” of adding appropriate keywords to your website is specifically ‘how its done’.

The most severe ramification for improperly optimizing your site is becoming “blacklisted” by the search engines. That means, your website will never be served in the search engine results. One would really have to be totally negligent or willing to take a tremendous chance for potential short term value to become blacklisted for improper implementation of keywords, but it does happen.

For a more complete answer regarding the optimization of your website, I would invite you to read my article title SEO 101.  Let me know what you think.

Bardorf Legal Marketing is a Massachusetts Internet marketing and advertising firm working with lawyers and law firms on enhancing their online effectiveness in the areas of SEO, paid search, social media, affiliate marketing, blog and website development, and targeted local search marketing campaigns.

Filed Under: Attorney Marketing, Internet Marketing, Lawyer Marketing, Legal Marketing, Massachusetts Legal Marketing, Questions, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Search Marketing

Legal Search Marketing – Internet Marketing for Attorneys

November 6, 2009 By BardorfMarketing

The practice of search marketing has significantly progressed over the past few years and businesses from Fortune 100s to the two attorney law firm in South Boston, are reaping the benefits. However, still most businesses fail to embrace what is arguably the most cost effective means of marketing and advertising their services by continuing to believe that effective marketing on the Internet is simply having a website.

Search marketing is a continual process of integrating and optimizing various online components. The fact is, there is only so much real estate on the search engine result page (SERP) and we all know that Google is not going to present your website ten times as the only choice. The search engines look for variety. They select websites, blogs, directory listings, social profiles, videos, press releases, PDF files, and just about anything digital that they can index.

Effective search marketing converts searchers into clients by ensuring your brand appears within the SERPs in the right place, at the right time and with the right message. Your chances of obtaining optimal SERP real estate for highly appropriate and targeted search terms significantly diminishes if you simply rely on your website alone. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Attorney Marketing, Internet Marketing, Lawyer Marketing, Legal Marketing, Massachusetts Legal Marketing, Newsletter - Legal Search Marketing, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Search Marketing

What Is Search Engine Optimization (SEO) ?

February 15, 2008 By BardorfMarketing

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) leverages search engines like Google, Yahoo! and MSN’s Bing to obtain visibility and highly qualified traffic in the most cost-effective manner.

While most web sites reside passively on the Internet, a growing number of businesses (large and small) have been extremely successful at dynamically leveraging their sites to produce meaningful results and achieve specific business and marketing objectives.

What makes these individuals so successful at attracting customers online? What is it about their sites and their strategy that separate them from their competition? What are they doing right?

The most successful SEO strategies target two entirely different audiences: (1) The Customer and (2) The Search Engines!

Most websites neglect to consider the search engines and thus, their website obtains minimal visibility. That means potential customers will not find you. To optimize your website properly from a search engine’s perspective your site needs to excel in three critical areas.

Code refers to the search engines’ ability to access and index your web pages. The indexability of your site has a direct impact on your website’s overall search engine rankings. If the search engines can not read your code or index your site, then for all intents and purposes, your website simply does not exist.

Content is all about the search engines’ evaluation of the topic or subject of your web page. The importance of a targeted “keyphrase strategy” based on the most appropriate terminology used by your target audience is paramount. The proper integration of keyphrases into your website is critical and can be the difference between success or falling short.

Connections means keeping good company and is the search engines’ determination of your site’s credibility based on the number, type and quality of other sites pointing to it. In a competitive marketplace, without “authority” your website has little chance of obtaining significant visibility and attracting the quality and volume of potential clients you seek.

It is the continual management of these three key areas along with meaningful measurement and analysis that make for an effective SEO strategy. Optimizing a website properly requires a comprehensive knowledge of how search engines work and the ability to act quickly in an ever-changing landscape.

Bardorf Legal Marketing is a Massachusetts Internet marketing and advertising firm working with lawyers and law firms on enhancing their online effectiveness in the areas of SEO, paid search, social media, affiliate marketing, blog and website development, and targeted local search marketing campaigns.

Filed Under: Attorney Marketing, Lawyer Marketing, Legal Marketing, Search Engine Optimization (SEO)