Most law firms focus on paid ads to get leads, it’s quick and straightforward. But what if there SEO gives solicitors a way to have potential clients find you naturally, without the constant cost of ads?
Here is some interesting stats you should know about SEO for Solicitors
87% of people who contact an attorney go on to hire an attorney, and 72% of them only contact one attorney. (FindLaw U.S. Consumer Legal Needs Survey)
96% of people seeking legal advice use a search engine. (Google Consumer Survey)
74% of consumers visit a law firm’s website to take action. (Google Legal Services Study)
Let’s explore how this can bring more value to your practice in 2024.
What is SEO for solicitors?
Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) for solicitors is the process of improving your law firm's online presence so that it shows up higher in search engine results when people search for specific legal services and branded terms.
When someone is looking for a family solicitor or advice on probate, SEO helps ensure your firm is what they find at the top positions on search engines. It’s about getting the right traffic that could lead to conversions.
Why Solicitors Need SEO in 2024
In 2024, more and more people are turning to search engines when they need legal advice. Being visible online isn’t just a nice-to-have anymore, it’s essential. Paid ads can give you quick visibility, but SEO offers long-term, sustainable results without the need to constantly invest in ad spend. Here’s why SEO is so crucial for solicitors today:
Shifts in Search Behavior: People are increasingly using search engines to find legal services, often on mobile devices or through voice searches like "solicitor near me." If your firm isn’t optimised for these kinds of searches, you’re missing out on potential clients.
Local Visibility: Most legal services are location-based, which makes local SEO a critical part of your strategy. Optimising your website for local searches ensures you show up when people in your area need help with specific legal matters.
Trust and Credibility: Ranking highly on Google isn't just about traffic—it’s about trust. People tend to trust organic search results more than ads. A top spot in search results gives your firm credibility, showing that you're a reliable choice in the legal field.
Rising Competition: The legal market is becoming more competitive online, with more firms investing in digital strategies. To stay ahead, you need more than just an online presence; you need one that’s fine-tuned to reach the right clients at the right time.
Cost Efficiency: Unlike paid ads, which stop driving traffic the moment you turn them off, SEO builds a foundation for long-term traffic growth. Over time, SEO becomes a more cost-effective way to generate leads compared to continuously running ads.
How to Implement SEO for Solicitors
So, how do you actually get started with Search engine optimisation for your law firm? It’s not as complicated as it sounds, but it does require some basics to get right.
Get and Optimise Your Google Business Profile
Your Google Business Profile (GBP) is the foundation of your local SEO. It’s the first thing people see on search results after the ad section when searching for a solicitor near them, and a well-optimised profile can make all the difference.
List Categories, Services, and Write Tailored Descriptions
When setting up your Google Business Profile, you must ensure it reflects everything your law firm offers. Start by selecting the correct categories.
If you specialise in family law, criminal defence, or personal injury, make sure those areas are covered. Don’t just pick a generic “lawyer” category. Each service you provide should have a well-thought-out description.
Be clear and concise, but also make sure to include relevant keywords. For example, instead of simply saying “family law services,” you could write: “Expert family law services, including divorce, child custody, and financial settlements as services.”
This not only gives potential clients more information but also helps Google understand what your firm specialises in.
Include All Relevant Locations and Update Business Hours
If you have multiple offices, list each location separately with its own address, phone number, and operating hours. This ensures that people in different areas can find the most convenient office for them.
Keeping your business hours up to date is also crucial. There’s nothing worse for a client than finding out your office is closed when they expected it to be open.
Google also prioritises businesses with accurate and complete information, so taking time to ensure these details are correct will help your profile stand out.
Encourage Customer Reviews and Reply to Them to Boost Engagement
Positive reviews build trust with both your clients and search engines. Potential clients are more likely to choose a solicitor with a strong reputation.
Encourage satisfied clients to leave reviews, either in person or through follow-up emails and make sure you’re replying to them (both positive and negative).
Responding to feedback shows potential clients that you’re engaged and committed to delivering quality service.
A simple “Thank you for your kind words” can go a long way, and addressing negative feedback professionally can turn a bad review into an opportunity to demonstrate your customer care.
Use the Q&A Feature to Answer Common Legal Questions
The Q&A section on your Google Business Profile is a great way to engage with potential clients.
People often have specific questions about legal issues, and answering these queries directly on your profile adds value while showcasing your expertise.
Although we understand that not all questions can be answered due to legal constraints. You can pre-emptively add your own questions and answers to common inquiries,
like “What should I bring to my first consultation?” or “Do you offer no-win, no-fee services?” It’s a great way to provide immediate answers to potential clients and establish authority in your field.
Post Regular Updates to Your Google Business Profile to Keep It Active
Google favours profiles that are active and regularly updated. Posting updates about your law firm, whether news about a new team member, a recent case win, or changes in your services, keeps your profile fresh.
You can also share relevant blog posts, announcements, or special offers. These updates show potential clients that your firm is dynamic and engaged, while also helping to boost your profile’s visibility in search results.
Do Your Keyword Research
You need to figure out your potential buyer persona and how they behave online. Ask yourself what terms could they be searching for and does it align with what your law firms wants to show up for on searches?
Find Out What Search Terms Clients Are Using
Start by thinking about the words and phrases people use when they need legal advise. Are they typing in “family law solicitor” or something more specific like “divorce solicitor in Manchester”?
You can use tools like Ahrefs or Google Keyword Planner to see how often certain terms are being searched. The more aligned your website is with these terms, the more likely it is ti show up in search results.
Look at Competitors
It’s always a good idea to see what your competitors are up to. If another law firm is outranking you, take a look at your keyword gaps.
Are they ranking well for specific services or are they better in certain location keywords? You can use Ahref to spy on your competitors and use the keywords that bring the most traffic to their websites.
Consider Intent and Categorise Keywords
Not all keywords are equal, and the intent behind them matters. When people search for “do i need a solicitor for wills?,” they’re likely looking for information, and although still in at the awareness or consideration stage. They are likely to convert later down the road.
On the other hand, if someone types in “hire a solicitor for divorce,” they’re ready to take action. These are transactional keywords that target clients at the bottom of the purchase funnel.
You’ve also got branded keywords, which are when someone is specifically looking for your firm by name.
This way you can create content that addresses each stage of your client's journey, from general research to taking that final step and getting in touch.
Learn more about why keyword research is important
Create Optimised Service Pages
Your service pages are where you’ll make the biggest impact on potential clients, so it’s essential to ensure they’re properly optimised not just for search engines but for real people who are ready to take action.
Align with Search Intent to Capture Leads
When someone lands on your service page, they should feel like they’ve found exactly what they’re looking for.
This means aligning your content with search intent. If a client searches “commercial law solicitor,” they’re likely looking for immediate legal help.
So, your service page should clearly communicate how you can assist with commercial law cases, without burying the information in unnecessary fluff.
Write High-Quality, Informative Content
It’s not enough to just fill a page with keywords. Your service pages need to be well-written, clear, and informative.
Whether you write the content yourself or use AI, it’s crucial to have thorough human editing to ensure it doesn’t sound robotic or generic.
Potential clients are looking for expertise and professionalism, and they’ll quickly leave a page that feels like it’s just there to game the system.
Explain your services in a way that’s easy to understand but still detailed enough to demonstrate your expertise.
Optimise Page Titles, Meta Descriptions, and Headers
Page titles, meta descriptions, and headers are basic elements of SEO, and they help search engines understand what your page is about.
your page title should clearly reflect the service you’re offering, such as “Family Law Solicitor Services.” and the meta description should offer a quick summary, but also entice users to click.
Don’t forget to use headers (H1, H2, etc.) to structure your content. This helps both readers and search engines understand the key points of your page.
Add Local Schema Markup
To boost your online visibility in local searches, use local schema markup. This is a bit of code that you add to your website to give search engines more information about your business, such as your location, services, and hours of operation.
It helps Google and other search engines show your law firm to people searching for legal help in your area, giving you an advantage in local search results.
Use Short, Descriptive URLs
When it comes to URLs, simple is best. Instead of something like “/service-page-1234,” use URLs that clearly describe the content of the page, like “/family-law-services.” it help with SEO and makes it easier for users to understand and share your pages.
Implement Internal Linking
Internal links are a simple but effective SEO tool. Link between related service pages and back to your homepage to help visitors easily navigate through your site.
For instance, if a client is looking at your commercial law services, provide a link to your contact page or related services like “business dispute resolution.” Internal linking helps keep users on your site longer and allows search engines to crawl your pages more effectively.
Create Optimised Location Pages for Multi-Location Law Firms
If you’re a solicitor that operates multiple locations, having separate, optimised pages for each office locations can improve your local SEO
Optimise locations pages just like your service pages
Your location pages should follow the same SEO best practices as your service pages. This means optimising page titles, meta descriptions, headers, and URLs.
For example, if you have an office in Leeds, your page title could be “Solicitors in Leeds – [Your Firm’s Name],” and the URL might be something simple like “/solicitors-leeds.”
Make sure the content on each location page is detailed and relevant to both the services you provide and the specific needs of clients in that area.
Include Specific Location Details, Maps, and Office Hours
When people are searching for a solicitor, they often want to know exactly where you are and when you’re available.
Make sure each location page includes the full address of the office, phone numbers, and up-to-date business hours.
Adding a map (Google Maps or a similar widget) is a great way to show exactly where your office is located, which helps with both user experience and local SEO. The easier it is for potential clients to find your office, the more likely they are to reach out.
Build Local Links
Building links as part of your SEO for solicitors help you establish authority online. The more high-quality, relevant websites that link to your firm’s site, the more trustworthy and credible it appears to both users and search engines.
Get Citations from Local Directories
Make sure you’re listed in directories related to the legal service niche or location(s) you serve.
These local citations are trust signals and help search engines understand where your firm is located and areas you operate in.
While building citations ensure your business name, address and phone number are consistent on all directories you are listed in to avoid confusing search engines
Go for Press Releases
If your firm has noteworthy news, like winning a significant case, expanding into a new area, or hiring a key team member, don’t keep it to yourself. Publishing press releases is a great way to get links from reputable news outlets or legal websites.
Newsjacking
Newsjacking is a clever way to get your firm noticed in the media by offering commentary on trending legal issues.
For example, if there’s a high-profile case in your practice area, you can offer your expert opinion to journalists or bloggers covering the story.
This way you get a chance of being quoted and getting a backlink to your site. Just make sure your commentary is timely and relevant.
Build Links from local Publications and Guest Blogging
If you’ve written articles for legal publications or spoken at events, these are excellent opportunities for link building.
Make sure your articles or bios on event websites include links back to your site. You can also look for guest blogging opportunities on legal websites or industry blogs.
There are also services like HARO (Help a Reporter Out) connect journalists with professionals who can provide insights on specific topics.
If you respond to these requests, you can potentially be featured in high-authority publications and get a valuable backlink in return.
Fix Technical Website Issues
Finally, don’t forget about the technical side of things. Make sure your site is loading quickly, especially on mobile, and that it’s secure with an SSL certificate.
You’ll also want to keep an eye on things like broken links and errors, which can hurt your search engine rankings.
Tools like Google Search Console and Screaming Frog can help you monitor and fix these issues.
Do I Need to Hire an SEO Agency for My Law Firm?
Managing SEO requires time and can turn out to be a complex process. You need to be able to create a robust strategy that includes keyword research, content optimisation, on-page SEO, link building, technical SEO and ongoing adjustments based on Google’s algorithm changes and your competition.
If all this sounds overwhelming, then hiring an SEO specialist can make a huge difference
An SEO agency brings expertise to the table, staying on top of latest trends and ensures your website and google business profile continuously attract leads without needing constant ad spend. So you can get in toucn with us if you need help with SEO for your law firm.
FAQs on SEO for Solicitors
Does SEO Work for Solicitors?
Yes, SEO drives more qualified leads to your law firm by improving your website and Google business profile visibility in search results. This means more potential clients are likely to find and contact your firm, ultimately increasing your consultations and conversions into paying clients.
Can you Provide Examples of Successful Law firm SEO Campaigns You've Managed?
Absolutely. We’ve helped numerous law firms improve their search engine rankings rankings, drive more traffic, and generate qualified leads through tailored SEO strategies. Each campaign focuses on the firm’s unique goals and target audience.
How Long Does it Take for SEO to Work for Law Firms?
SEO is a long-term strategy. You’ll start seeing improvements in 3 to 6 months, with significant results usually taking 6 to 12 months, depending on the competition and your current site’s condition.
What level of Communication and Collaboration can we Expect Throughout our Campaign?
We believe in regular communication and collaboration. You’ll receive weekly updates, progress reports, and strategy adjustments to ensure we’re meeting your goals and adapting to any changes.
Can SEO Help My Law Firm Reduce Reliance on Paid Ads?
Yes, SEO builds long-term organic visibility, reducing your reliance on paid ads over time. While ads provide immediate results, SEO helps your firm attract clients without the ongoing cost, offering sustainable growth in leads and consultations.
What Kind of ROI Can I Expect from SEO for my Law Firm?
SEO offers a strong return on investment by bringing in organic traffic from people actively searching for legal services. Over time, this leads to increased inquiries and higher conversion rates, often resulting in a greater overall ROI than paid advertising.