SEO, or search engine optimization, is the process of improving the visibility and ranking of a website or web page in search engine results pages (SERPs). SERPs are the lists of websites that are displayed when someone searches for a particular keyword or phrase such as "Boston Probate Lawyer" in a search engine, such as Google, Bing, or Yahoo.
Typically, SEO techniques include using relevant keywords in the page content, creating high-quality content, adding backlinks, optimizing meta tags, and improving website structure. In future articles, we will take a deeper dive into many of these techniques.
Implementing effective SEO techniques on your firm's website will likely increase its SERP performance which generally will drive more visitors to your website for those search terms. This in turn, can improve your brand awareness, increase your leads, and ultimately, convert visitors.
- 90% of online experiences begin with a search engine
- Google process over 8.4 billion searches per day worldwide with Bing adding another billion of searches.
While some law firms understand SEO, most struggle in implementing best practices. The do nothing or assume that their website developer or content writer is handling it, but that is often not the case. Some rely on in-house staff, or hire agencies or consultants for SEO support - even those resources may not be properly trained or experienced.
DO NOT ASSUME, because you hire a web developer or a consultant that they, alone, will solve your website SEO issues. In some cases, they won’t address SEO at all. In other cases, they will use generic SEO strategy (meta data, title tags, etc.) which are the same as they use for other law firm websites, and still in other cases, the SEO strategy does not match the content on your webpages or your firm strategy. Lastly, in some cases you are not getting an SEO strategy, but instead are having to pay for SEM (search engine marketing) also known as “ad words”.
If you are working with your web developer, an outside agency or consultant, a) make sure that you understand what in and is not included in an SEO strategy or “package”, b) make sure that they understand your strategy and are building the SEO strategy against your firm strategy, and c) your website content supports your SEO strategy. As is often said “you get what paid for.”
In today's digital age, where most people rely on search engines to find information, products, and services, having a strong SEO strategy can significantly impact your online presence and business success, but it is up to your firm to ensure that you have an SEO strategy and that it is executed.
