A bad question
As a law firm search marketing firm, we get this question all the time. While getting ranked in Google is undoubtedly a factor in having success with web marketing, it’s not really the right question.
For those of you who aren’t convinced, here are 3 ways to get found in google right now:
1. Adwords
2. Google Places
3. Webmaster Central
Getting ranked in Google really isn’t that hard. You can pay for a listing. You can set up a local business center listing. You can make sure your site is search-engine friendly, write content, and chances are that your pages will be indexed and served in google’s organic results.
A better question
A better question might be, “How do I turn search engine traffic into new clients?” Or even better, “How do I turn search engine traffic into new clients at a positive return on investment?”
The answer to this question is far more complicated. There are many links in the chain from search to retainer signing. If any one of these links becomes broken, it will be difficult to reach the end goal.
The first link is getting search engine traffic to your site. The keys to getting traffic are making sure the technical aspects of your site are “search engine-friendly” and creating unique, frequent, and relevant content on your site (i.e. articles, pages, blog posts, etc).
The second link is converting that traffic into a potential client. The keys to converting traffic into new client leads are calls to action, education-based offerings, and the overall quality of your content with regard to encouraging an action.
The third link is converting potential client leads into new clients. The keys to this link are having systems in place to handle incoming leads. These may include a virtual legal assistant, intake interviewer, and lead follow-up process.
Once these links are in place, the next challenge is to test and measure the performance at each step to increase efficiency. Eventually, your investments or time and money into your web marketing will generate new business at a rate that exceeds the costs.
Was this helpful? Help me spread the word:
