(Local SERP anatomy from GetListed.org)
Paid search listings are the ones where you pay the search engines for a listing. The most popular paid search engine advertising platform is probably Google Adwords. Advertisers usually pay for paid search listing by the click. In other words, they Pay-Per-Click (PPC).
Paid search advertising is working for many law firms. But it's not a great advertising channel for all law firms. Depending on the practice area and location, paid search advertising can be very expensive. In fact, in some areas, like personal injury, advertising law firms will pay upwards of $100 per click!
Some advantages of paid search advertising are:
Organic search results are the ones that made Google famous. These are the algorithmic listings generated by a search engine's formula to organize the world's information. Very generally speaking, they're generated based upon a page's relevance and popularity for a searcher's query.
You can't pay search engines to be listed here. The key is to create pages that are both relevant to your target audience and popular with the people who view them. That is, popular enough that those people are motivated to link to, share and otherwise talk about you and your pages online.
Search engine optimization (SEO), includes all the things you can do to increase the visibility of your pages in organic search results. While this begins with technical optimizations, the focus really needs to be on creating pages that are so good that people who see them can't help but link to, share and talk about them on the internet.
The easiest way to think about SEO for law firms is to start by thinking about who you want to attract to your pages / sites. Next, comes thinking about what types of things they will be looking for online. Finally, it's about developing sites, pages and profiles that not only motivate those people to consume, link to and share those pages, but also motivate them to engage, inquire, contact and eventually hire the firm.
Local search engines and results are geared around delivering information that's related to a specific location. They relate to both "what" a searcher is looking for, as well as, "where" they are looking.
For law firms who provide local legal services, local search should be a top priority. Depending on your practice, people looking for information about local law firms will prefer localized results. Therefore, firms wishing to attract local visitors, need to focus on increasing the quantity and quality of their local search data. This includes:
We continue to get questions from lawyers asking to explain the differences between paid search, organic listings, Local Business Center listings, etc. I think since there are so many services out there offering all different kinds of internet marketing options for law firms, it's critically important for you to understand the Google search engine results page. By understanding each element of the page, how it works, and whether the results are sponsored or not, you can get a better idea of what each type of service is offering you.
Here's a recent Google SERP for "๐๐ต๐ผ ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฏ๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฟ ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ป๐ ๐น๐ฎ๐๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ ๐ถ๐ป ๐ฝ๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐น๐ฝ๐ต๐ถ๐ฎ." Ads? โLSAs? โLocal Pack? โLinks? โ ๐ท AI Overview? โ 6 firms listed. Only one tiny ๐. Click the ๐ฆ๐ต๐ผ๐ ๐บ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฒ button? ๐ฌ๐ผ๐ ๐ด๐ฒ๐: Here's a more detailed look at some of these firms: THE PEARCE LAW FIRM, P.C.Edith Pearce, […]
On April 22, 2025, Google sent an email updating Local Services Ads Additional Terms for Providers: Subject: Action required: important updates to Local Service Ads Additional Terms Many people are arguing that lawyers cannot participate in Local Services Ads, as this would constitute a per se violation of the Rules of Professional Conduct related to […]
Conrad and I recently joined Zack at Lawyerist to record a conversation about AI and marketing. You might think that we spend the whole time on how lawyers can use AI to publish content. You'd be wrong. While AI can certainly support publishing, there are many more interesting ways to use it in legal marketing. […]
As more legal services consumers turn to ChatGPT for local law firm recommendations, a fascinating intersection between AI, search, and maps unfolds. While Google remains the undisputed leader in local business data, ChatGPT is increasingly becoming an entry point for searchers seeking legal representation. But hereโs the kicker: instead of keeping users within its ecosystem, […]
When law firms contact us, they usually want to talk: โข PPC Ads โข SEO Rankings โข Lead Generation Very few want to talk: โข Brand โข Trust & Recognition โข Emotional Connection Admittedly, much of this concerns that AttorneySync is known for lead generation across those common digital channels. But even when we start […]
According to an October 2024 study by SE Ranking: "The legal niche triggers the highest percentage of AIOs (77.67%). The average number of links matched between the AI Overview resources and the top 20 search results was 6.49 for legal topics. AI Overviews for legal topics most frequently link to NYCourts.gov (114 links), YouTube.com (48 […]
I'm grateful for my friend, Charley Mann of Law firm Alchemy. If you're a lawyer, subscribe to his Free Email List. In a recent email, Charley calls out bad guru advice on hiring: "Trying to execute a major SEO improvement? You need to find people who will help you, instead of trying to DIY it […]
If youโve spent any time on LinkedIn, youโve likely seen posts from law firm SEO experts showing off charts with an โup and to the rightโ trajectory. These screenshots, often pulled from tools like Semrush or Ahrefs, are meant to signal SEO success. And itโs not just the agencies celebratingโ๐น๐ฎ๐ ๐ณ๐ถ๐ฟ๐บ๐ ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ต๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐ต๐ถ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐บ […]
Meh, links! All things being equal, links still tend to move the dial more than any other factor in legal SERPs. Maybe links are having a diminishing impact internet-wide. But in my experience, quality links, especially relevant links (both topically and geographically), tend to improve law firm visibility in search more than most everything else. […]
A very good read. I think more attention on Google places would be pertinent, but all in all a great read for those looking to market their firm.