⅓ of prospective clients vet their attorneys online before choosing who to hire.
Lawyer websites make the first impression for these prospects and should:
- Attract attention by demonstrating a firm’s legal prowess and accomplishments.
- Explain services and areas of practice.
- Be fresh and professional, while standing apart from the local competition.
74% of visitors to lawyer websites are ready to take action. Don’t miss out on this business because your website doesn’t make a good first impression.
Is your firm making these typical lawyer website mistakes?
- Not using local SEO: If your law firm isn’t being found on local Search Engine Ranking Pages (SERPs), that’s where you should start first. Local SEO is often overlooked. Local SEO tactics can help prospective clients in and around your town and surrounding areas find your website, contact information, and directions on how to get to your law firm. If you haven’t done so already, fill out your firm’s Google My Business Profile. This will ensure your firm’s info is correct on Google (and Google Maps!).
- Having a site that’s not secure: Does your site have an SSL certificate? If your site isn’t safe and your visitor’s information isn’t protected, Google will warn visitors when they click on your website link. 10 times out of 10, prospects will abandon ship before ever seeing what your firm has to offer.
- Forgetting the importance of user experience (UX): This lawyer website mistake is one of the most common. Most users on their sites sometimes forget about the end user and what their experience is like when they visit. This is a huge mistake. Don’t make these mistakes!
- Lawyer websites must be mobile-friendly. Did you know 70% of online traffic is on mobile tablets and phones? If a website is only optimized for desktops, it won’t look or work properly on mobile devices, leading to a loss of business for your law firm.
- Lawyer websites with slow load times are going to be dropped immediately. In this day and age, everyone is in a rush, and nobody has time for a slow website. Slow site=slow service=onto the next lawyer website.
- Poorly executed calls-to-action (CTA): A call-to-action is “something to do in order to solve a problem”. CTAs should be short, to the point, and easy ways to communicate with your law firm. They should be strategically placed throughout your website, and they should NOT be all over every page. Calls to action should be simple and not overbearing. i.e. A “Click here for your free consultation” button in the middle of the home page.
- Not having a direct way to communicate with clients. We’ve seen it so many times. Lawyer websites won’t put their phone numbers anywhere on their website, but they expect clients to give the attorney theirs. There are no email addresses, social media buttons, or simple ways for prospective clients to reach out and ask a quick question, receive a quote, or get guidance on who they should contact about their problem. Put your contact information on your lawyer website. It’s really that simple.