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What Constitutes Law Firm Internet Marketing? Beginner Guide with Tips.

By Peter Boyd

Surprisingly, this question pops up from time to time. It?s simple; lawyer internet marketing (or law firm internet marketing) is the umbrella term for all marketing efforts online. It can include:

• Your law firm web site;
• Your practice area(s) blog(s);
• Search Engine Optimization for your web site and blog;
• Pay Per Click marketing for the website;
• Social Network Marketing for your own networking;and
• Press Releases / Newsletters / RSS to hype your firm.

While we are over simplifying things, that is the basics. For more detailed answers, read on. We will be updating this article with more detailed analysis in the coming months on each topic. Check back often.

Web Sites
At this stage, everyone knows what a web site is and does. Your web site is simply your internet presence for your firm. It can be a hard sell web site, in your face marketing, or it can be a soft-sell, here is simply what we do and why we do it best.

Web Site Basics - Most web sites include biographical data, practice areas, firm information, resources, and of course ways to contact the firm. Basically, it?s an online brochure. Our standard site structure includes:

• Home
• About Us
• Practice Areas
• Attorneys
• Resources
• Contact

Of course, there are variations on all those. You could make the site be friendlier with titles like ?Our Firm?, ?Our People?, or ?Our Resources?. You could make the site more specific by not stating ?Practice Areas?, but stating ?Criminal Law? and then listing sub practices under that. In any event, a simple site goes over your firm basics.

Advanced Ideas ? To create a truly interactive presence, you should include blogs, newsletters, customized content, client extranets, client intranets, printable versions of your site and search engine optimization into your sites.

Blogs
Most people know what a blog is, but for those that do not, a Blog is a web page made up of short, frequently updated posts that are arranged chronologically, like a journal. Blogs rank high in the search results and give your firm a great Internet presence.

Blog Basics - In the law firm realm, the blog is typically focused on a specific legal topic such as real estate, construction law, zoning, medical malpractice, or even just on juries. Pick a topic and write only on that topic area. Provide insightful news, updates, case history, issues, and theory about that practice area. Have a voice, say something interesting and benefit from the increased reputation.

Advanced Ideas ? Get social with your blog. Link up to a variety of blogs and follow them. Get your Twitter account on your blog and tweet away. Post regularly, set defined times when you will write and cover big ideas and news.

Search Engine Optimization
The goal of search engine optimization is to get a web site, or blog, ranked as No. 1 in Google. Google provides almost all of search results (70% or more), so they are the 800 pound gorilla. Rank high in Google and you will see an increase in inquiries. Rank high for your specific practice areas and you will see an increase in your business.

SEO Basics - Search engine optimization typically includes: keyword phrase research, analytics, competitor analysis, web site checks, on-page optimization, off-page link building, and reporting. It also involves helping the client convert top rankings into actual clients through a better designed web site.

Advanced SEO ? Write, write and write some more. Write interesting articles that relate to your practice. The goal of SEO is to have the most and the best content on a specific area.

Pay Per Click
PPC as it?s known for short, falls also under the Search Engine Marketing umbrella and is tied closely to search engine optimization. However, with PPC you are specifically paying (or sponsoring) an advertisement on Google and the other search engines. These days you can sponsor a variety of ad types, from banner, to text, to even video!

PPC Basics - Simply put, a basic PPC campaign includes writing a creative ad that draws attention, setting your spending limit, setting your geographic area limit, setting your budget, and of course inserting what keyword phrases you want to bid on. Easy!

Advanced PPC ? Create specific landing pages for each of your keyword phrases. Track all the clicks and optimize your campaign on a daily basis for results.

Social Network Marketing (Twitter / Facebook / MySpace / LinkedIn, Avvo)
Just like networking in real life, you can network online. Signup for popular services such as Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIN and to some extent Myspace. Create a following with content, your personable self. Just DON?T DO ANY HARD SELLS. You will be shunned instantly.

Social Networking Basics ? Get accounts, link up with known colleagues, friends and family.

Advanced Social Networking - Post interesting ideas, get people to follow your posts.

Press Releases / Newsletters / RSS
A good way of getting your name out is still through Press Releases. Create a solid one, syndicate it to PRWeb.com and other online providers and see your name pop-up in the search results and on other web sites.

PR Basics - Create interesting content and publish a regular newsletter to your clients and other attorneys. You would be surprised at how often then are forwarded if you provide good quality info. Finally, syndicate your blog and web site content via RSS (Real Simple Syndication). This allows your content to be picked up in readers and even placed on other web sites with links back. Nice!

Advanced PR ? Create separate PR releases for SEO, journalists, syndication, and for your content. Do it regularly each month on your most pressing topics.

Conclusion
There is a lot to do. Pick a focus, start with a niche and grow your marketing effort online. We will be posting regular updates to this topic in the coming months.

Full post as published by PaperStreet Web Design: SpeakOut on April 10, 2009 (boomark / email).