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Legal Marketing Blog

How to Manage Your Online Reputation

These days an individual’s or law firm’s reputation can be enhanced or tarnished by what appears in search engine results. This is because so many people rely on online reviews. Check out these recent statistics from at 2013 ReviewTracker article: 85 percent of consumers say that they read online reviews for local businesses to determine whether these businesses are good or not. (This is up from last year’s 76 percent.) 67 percent of consumers read six reviews or less before they feel that they can trust the local business. Meanwhile, only 22 percent read more than seven reviews. 73 percent say that high ratings and positive online reviews make them trust a local business more, while only 12 percent said that they take no notice

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How can I keep tabs on my name online?

Monitoring your reputation online can be time-consuming. You want to make sure you’re visiting review sites and searching for your name every day. There are several tools that can make this a lot easier. One of the simplest is Google Alerts. This free service from Google allows you to type in any search term, such as your name or the name of your firm. Google Alerts are email updates of the latest relevant Google results (web, news, etc.) based on your queries. You can enter as many terms as you like. It’s a great way to see where your name is being mentioned and see any reviews as soon as they’re posted. You can also use Google Alerts to keep track of a developing news

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Online Lead Generation: Seven Tactics To Grow Your Law Practice

The Internet has transformed the way we live our lives. The average person consults the Internet to find everything from recipes to yesterday’s game highlights and, of course, legal services. The typical consumer will search Google first, then proceed to the firm’s website or a review site. He or she may watch a YouTube video, “like” the firm on Facebook, or follow it on Twitter. The challenge for today’s attorneys is to understand how these activities work together and how to use them to connect with potential clients. Having a well-defined Internet marketing strategy is crucial for many businesses, but is especially important for attorneys whose main source of business is their local communities. Here are the seven tools and techniques of an effective online

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Question: Snapchat, Vine, Pinterest, oh my! Do I need to stay up to date with all the new online tools?

It depends. When in doubt, the most important thing to ask yourself is, “What are my clients using?” More and more of us are signing up for Facebook accounts every year, including users over 65. On the other hand, the only people I know using Snapchat (the photo sharing app) have an average age of 14. Vine (the 6-second video app) is being leveraged by businesses of all types and some consumers. Pinterest (the image sharing website) is huge among women age 35-44. If any of those are your target audience, you might want to at least read the Wikipedia entry to find out more, in case it comes up in conversation. You don’t need to use every tool, but being up to date is

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Take Your Referral Network Mobile

Growing your practice through referrals is a must. In addition to providing knowledgeable legal advice and excellent service, asking your clients to share your name with their friends, family and colleagues is invaluable. Yet it is one aspect of marketing that many attorneys are uncomfortable with. Even though you have provided good service, you may wonder whether it was good enough, whether the client is truly satisfied, and whether asking for a referral makes you seem salesy or desperate for new business. Nothing could be farther from the truth. People would rather do business with someone they know than with a stranger, and getting a name from a friend is the next best thing.  Clients that you have good relationships with do not mind passing

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Question: Is it true that the more someone clicks on my website, the higher my website will rank in Google?

No. Search engine marketing — on Google, Yahoo, or Bing — is one of the most effective tactics to generate leads, help you promote your expertise, reach prospects and stay connected with clients. Search rankings are notoriously unstable, and subject to a variety of factors such as the location of the person searching and whether they’ve logged in to Google and are using personalized results. But one thing they do not depend on is the amount of traffic coming to your website. Enhancing your website so that it’s listed at or near the top is called Search Engine Optimization (SEO). Higher rankings can boost your visibility and a drop in rankings can mean a loss of potential consumers. A good SEO project can take three

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Client Spotlight – Simmons & Schiavo, LLP

This Massachusetts law firm specializes in elder law, estate planning, and real estate law, with clients ranging in age from young couples buying their first home to seniors preparing to pass on their estates. The one thing they have in common is that most of them have mobile devices. “We see the Google reports and a good number are searching for us on smartphones and tablets,” said Marco Schiavo, Esq. The firm began offering its clients the “AttorneyConnect” app earlier this summer. The app allows them to share their bios, firm information, legal articles and Q&As, and clients can use it to make referrals, request an appointment and get directions. “People love the layout. It’s easy to use. It does everything we wanted it to,”

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Five Things Attorneys Need To Know About Mobile Marketing

Marketing a product or service on a mobile phone is a new and growing practice. There have been several big turning points in marketing history, and we’re living through another one. Beginning with the first newspaper ads in the 1700s, the first radio ads in the ‘20s, the first TV ads in the ‘40s, and the first Internet ads in the 1990s we’re now seeing the first mobile phone ads, apps, and more. It’s the beginning of a new opportunity for businesses of all types and attorneys would be wise to get on-board. That’s because it’s where your clients and prospects are. Smartphone use is booming in all demographics, not just teens. In fact, 37 percent of smartphone owners are over age 35 (Google). Mobile

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Question: Should I add video to my law firm website?

Yes! Video has many benefits for attorneys. Website visitors in general are getting more visual and enjoy viewing video online. It’s a great way for prospects and clients to get to know you quickly and easily. You can share your expertise on a particular topic without having to write a long article. And according to a new study, having video on your website can improve your search engine rankings. In fact, according to Forrester Research, an indexed video has a 50 times greater chance of ranking on the first page of Google results than a text page. Videos can be hosted on YouTube and link to your website, and other online profiles like LinkedIn, AttorneyConnect, Avvo, and Justia. Adding video to your marketing mix is a smart

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Why Your Law Practice Needs a Mobile App

The mobile phone is the most widespread and most rapidly adopted technology of all time. In the past few years, usage has grown dramatically. There are now almost 6 billion active mobile phone subscriptions around the world – almost 84% of the people on Earth have a mobile phone! In 2011 more smartphones were sold than all types of personal computers added together including desktops, laptops, and tablets like the iPad. Mobile Apps for Attorneys One way for individual attorneys and small law firms to take advantage of the boom in mobile phones is by offering their clients a mobile app. A mobile application (or mobile app) is software designed to run on smartphones, tablet computers and other mobile devices. Most importantly, a mobile app

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80% of Mobile Time is Spent on Apps

Mobile phones are a growing part of everyday life. We get directions, find local businesses, play games, and more. Here are the latest statistics on how Americans use our phones. Accessing maps and directions is the number one mobile activity, followed by social networking, finding local information and reading news (comScore). Mobile searches have quadrupled in the last year (Google). One in seven searches are now mobile and one in three mobile searches are local (Google). After looking up a local business on their smartphone, 61 percent of users call the business and 59 percent visit (Google). 80 per cent of mobile time is spent on apps (Flurry). People are now using more apps than ever, launching 7.9 per day (Flurry). When given a choice,

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Mobile Apps Keep Your Clients Connected

There are more than 6.5 billion mobile devices in use worldwide today, significantly more than the number of Internet users. Consumers are adopting new technology as fast as it becomes available and expect to be connected at all times in order to find the products and services they need. Today’s multi-tasking consumers depend on their trusty smartphones for so many important activities. And to stay in front of these phone-dependent clients, savvy attorneys who want to advance their businesses and leverage technology are jumping into mobile. It’s like the first days of the Internet when early adopters launched websites for their law practices – got ahead of their competitors – and have reaped the benefits ever since. Mobile Apps Are Exploding One way to connect

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How can lawyers reach prospects who are using smartphones and iPads?

Here in the Northeast we’re “on the go” and tend to be early adopters, rushing out to buy the latest thing. We’re using all kinds of mobile phones and tablets more than ever. What’s interesting is that as the demand for mobile devices grows so does the need for local business information like your firm’s name, address, and phone number. According to a recent study, search for local business information on mobile phones continues to grow with nearly 86 million people accessing this info on their mobile phones last year, a 63% increase since 2010. Two things lawyers can do now to make sure prospects can find you via their mobile phone are 1) make sure your website is readable on a mobile phone and

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Is Your Legal Directory Profile & Advertising Worth the Cost?

A directory listing is one of the most traditional ways to promote your services. It used to be that attorneys would be listed so that other attorneys could find them for referrals. Now that most directories have moved online, more and more consumers are using them to find the legal representation they need. Some of the biggest providers include FindLaw (a part of Westlaw) and Martindale-Hubbell. These are established companies that once produced only print directories and have since moved into the world of online attorney directories and marketing. Many of you have paid to appear in their listings and have hired these venerable firms to create and host your websites, and advertise your practice in their online directories.

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Is FindLaw or Martindale-Hubbell Worth The Cost?

If you don’t have a website or your website is simply a business card online without video, testimonials, articles, or Q&As, you may benefit from investing in these services for a year or two to jump start your marketing efforts. Then you should harvest your investment by transitioning your site to a more affordable option and invest the money you saved in even more marketing opportunities. The point is that you don’t have to pay just one company a premium rate year over year. Once you decide to take your Internet marketing to the next level, it’s time to move on to an agency that’s dedicated to your success.

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Google Authorship – Personalizing Your Online Image

Just a few months ago the search engine giant Google launched a new feature called Google Authorship. Google Authorship lets you link any content you publish on a specific domain (such as www.yourwebsite.com) to your Google+ profile. This means that every time someone searches for your name or someone with your expertise, anything you have written with your byline (by Jack Smith, for example) will show up on the Google results page with your name and your photo. It will also include a link to a page with any other articles, blog posts, or even Q&As with your name on them! For example, Googling the phrase “Greater Boston litigation attorneys” produces: Appearing on the results page with a photo and byline adds credibility, which builds

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Attorney Reviews Boost Business

Client reviews are one of the most valuable factors for building your business. Asking a happy client to write a few words about the quality of your work and the help you provided shows prospects that you are a knowledgeable, credible and trustworthy attorney. Ratings and reviews are the digital equivalent of “word of mouth” referrals and are critical for raising your profile online and helping you stand out from the competition. In fact, 70 percent of consumers say reviews are important to them. The three best places for attorneys to ask for reviews are on Google, LinkedIn, and Avvo. These sites are committed to including only legitimate reviews, which in turn raises their value to you. On Google, for example, you must write a

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Today’s Seasoned Solo Practitioner: How to Market Your Experience, Reputation and Value

The business of law is at a turning point. A recent article in the ABA Journal reported, “The legal profession is undergoing a massive structural shift—one that will leave it dramatically transformed in the coming years.” The shift stems from a combination of events including new laws and changes in enforcement, the mobility of businesses and individuals, as well as new competition from non-legal firms such as accounting and real estate and the availability of legal documents online.  The average person today requires more legal representation than ever before and how they choose their legal representation has changed too. The attorneys who have the most to gain are probably those like you: a mid-career solo practitioner or a lawyer at a small firm. Why? Because

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Question – Is YouTube something attorneys should use?

YouTube is an excellent place for attorneys to promote themselves with short online videos. Videos hosted on YouTube may be embedded or link to your website, and other online profiles like LinkedIn, AttorneyConnect, Avvo, and Justia. A short intro video of yourself can help break the ice for potential clients who may be hesitant to call your office to discuss a legal matter. Videos give folks a glimpse of who you are and can be an effective way to present yourself when you can’t.

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Legal Search Marketing – The Rise of Local Search for Attorneys

The way consumers look for anything and everything has changed in the last ten years, including how we find an attorney. While we used to rely on the recommendation of a friend or relative, or start our search in the Yellow Pages, now we head to our computers. Search engines, social media, and smart phones have dramatically affected the way consumers find legal representation. According to a recent study, last year most people looking for an attorney — three out of four — used online resources at some point in the process, according to The Research Intelligence Group. It just makes sense. Not only are we used to “Googling” for information, advice, products and services, but also when someone needs an attorney, it’s usually a

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