Search Engine Marketing
Here's one thing that Internet users - from Web shoppers to blog readers to
prospective clients of your business - have in common: Their home base while they're
online most likely is their favorite search engine. About 93 percent of Web traffic
begins at search engines, according to NetApplications (January 2008).
Your firm can turn that popularity to your advantage through search engine marketing,
or SEM, the process of making targeted changes to your Web site to attract traffic from
major search engines like Google, Yahoo! and MSN.
SEM raises your profile on search engines, but the goal is not just to attain
first-page, top 10 rankings for a few narrow terms. The goal is to gain more
clients - a greater number of qualified leads and a higher conversion rate. Achieving
it involves three steps:
1. Making changes to your Web site that attract more, and better qualified, search
engine users (known as on-site optimization).
2. Increasing inbound links and ensuring you're represented in directories and other
sites that qualified prospects visit (or off-site optimization).
3. Using Web analytics to track the success of your on-site and off-site optimization,
then making adjustments.
On-site Optimization
Search engines and Web site visitors want the same things. A frequently updated site
that speaks your prospect's language and addresses their concerns is more likely to do
well in search rankings. To begin your search engine optimization strategy, focus on
answering questions like: What sets your firm apart from its competition? What type of
client do you want to attract? And what words and phrases would that ideal client use in
searching for your products ot services on sites like Google?
To improve your search results, schedule time each week - even just an hour - for
updating your site with search engine (and prospect) friendly content:
- Highlight the specific products and service areas you focus on. Strive for a
conversational, jargon-free style and a variety of phrasings and word choices.
- Promote your unique expertise - if you're a criminal-law attorney, for example, with
a background in law enforcement.
- Include references to your geographic location in all its permutations: state, metro
area, city, neighborhood and even regional nicknames.
- Pay attention to title tags and meta-descriptions - HTML code used to generate the
description of your firm that appears in search results.
By doing so, you'll fill your site with keywords and keyword phrases that match your
prospect's search terms, thereby improving your chances for higher rankings (and
increasing conversions, because the content on your site will better meet your prospects'
needs).
If you're unsure how to start, think about your conversations with clients - the
questions they have, the way they ask them, and how you respond. Use your site to address
those concerns and the solutions you provide. Respond to their FAQs in articles you post
and in blog entries.
About 87 percent of search queries are unique, one-time searches. Sites that
successfully zero in on their targeted prospect - through clearly written, relevant
content incorporating a variety of keywords - are more likely to capture the niche "Long
Tail" searches that can be highly profitable for your business.
Hundreds of firms, for example, compete for a consumer using keywords in their Google
search such as "Dallas lawyer." The conversion rate, therefore, is very low. "Arlington,
Texas, child custody lawyer," on the other hand, is a more focused search with better
odds for success. Your time is often best spent competing for those less-popular but more
conversion-oriented searches, which generate qualified leads that fit your client
profile.
Finally, remember that on-site optimization isn't just about words. Well-designed,
browsable sites that aren't overloaded with bells-and-whistles typically fare better in
searches. Use tools like Flash animation in moderation, for example. Ensure your internal
hyperlinks are intuitive and include anchor text for each link ("Chapter 13 bankruptcy
information," not "click here").
Off-Site Optimization
Other factors besides site content and design influence search-engine rankings.
Inbound links - a link on another Web site that directs users to your site - are one of
the most important factors, because search engines see them as providing credibility.
Think of it like a frequently cited legal case. A case is more important if other
rulings reference it, particularly if they're high-profile cases that are directly on
topic. In the same way, when authoritative Web sites link to your site it raises your
credibility.
An expanding network of inbound links should be part of your SEM strategy. Numbers are
part of the story - 500 inbound links generally beat 50 - but quality matters more than
quantity. Factors that search engines use to evaluate link quality include:
- Age: To discourage firms from working with fly-by-night link farms
and similar schemes, search engines prefer a steady accumulation of links instead of
sudden, sharp increases.
- Popularity: Links from a prominent online directory or other popular
sites carry extra weight.
- Relevance: Links from other law firms, legal publications and bar
associations count for more than those from unrelated, non-legal sites.
So how can your firm generate more quality inbound links?
- Get your Web site address out through a wide variety of online resources, such as
national and local search engines, online Yellow Pages and newspaper listings, and the
Web sites of your bar association and chamber of commerce.
- Consider placing your firm in legal directories, which connect you with
pre-qualified, motivated prospects.
- Incorporate your site address into your byline when you contribute to blogs and
forums, or publish articles online.
Treat your off-site optimization strategy like the content on your site - review it
regularly to ensure it's fresh, updated and in line with your objectives.
Web Analytics
Information feeds SEM strategy. The first time you talk with prospects, find out how
they heard about you. Then follow up with more questions. Did they visit your Web site?
If so, did it influence them to contact you?
To improve lead tracking, you can also customize the "contact us" instructions you
give customers. Consider assigning a unique URL extension or 800-number to your various
online ads and other listings, for example, to see which are generating quality
leads.
One of the best tools for evaluating SEM strategy, however, are Web analytic programs
available from site developers. They enable you to look beyond site hits to analyze:
- Number of unique visitors and page views.
- Where visitors enter and exit from your site.
- What content is most (and least) valued.
- Which keywords, search engines and other referral sources generate the most
visitors.
Information from these Web tools help you make informed, data-driven adjustments to
your online strategy, such as focusing resources on popular areas of your site,
rethinking content that's ineffective, or investing more in legal directories and search
engines that drive site traffic with the highest profitability.
With all three elements of successful SEM in place - on-site and off-site optimization
supported by Web analytic tools - your firm will be positioned to harness the power of
search engines to grow your client base.
Article by FindLaw