A Lawyer’s Guide to Online Marketing

Online marketing is a broad term that covers all manner of digital brand building and lead generation. The internet evolves constantly, but it’s important to understand how to use online marketing for law firms – because most potential clients convene there every day. Keep reading to learn more about how to meet your future clients where they are – online. 

The Goals of Online Marketing for Law Firms

Online marketing is called many things, including internet marketing, web advertising, etc. The objective is to deliver a promotional message to your target audience through digital channels like search engines, social media, or your website. Strategies that can make the most of these channels are things like SEO, PPC, and web design. How you will use each of these channels and strategies depends on your goals:

Internet marketing to attract new clients 

If your focus is primarily on attracting new prospects, you’ll want to drive traffic and collect leads through tactics like paid social media ads, search engines, and web design. A strong advertising strategy and effective SEO are particularly important if new clients are your goal. 

Internet marketing to create brand loyalty

Attracting new clients is not enough – you need to build lasting relationships and create a long-term audience. You can use email, blogging, and social media tactics to cultivate a strong online community and increase brand awareness. 

Internet marketing vs. content marketing

It’s important to note that content marketing and general internet marketing are similar, but not the same. Content marketing is a form of internet marketing and involves only the process of creating and distributing content to reach audiences.

Internet Marketing Strategies

To ensure you’re successful at online marketing for law firms, there are several things you’ll need to do. 

Design a user-friendly website

An easy-to-navigate, mobile-friendly website is the cornerstone of online marketing for law firms. 

Make the most of SEO

Having a website isn’t enough – people need to find you. Carefully research keywords and then use those insights to improve your pages and content. 

Create email marketing or opt-in campaigns

These are some of the most effective long-term strategies for cultivating loyalty and nurturing leads. 

Write press releases for the internet

Creating online press releases is a good way to generate more coverage through digital channels. 

Maintain a blog

Blogging is one of the very best ways to attract a larger audience to your site. Blog posts are particularly helpful at getting people to land on search result pages. 

Engage on social media

Having a social media presence is great, but you should be using those platforms to engage with your audience through regular posting, contests, or campaigns. 

Take advantage of PPC Advertising

Pay per click is most commonly used in search engine marketing and can be helpful in getting your firm to appear in searches related to your field. 

Implement CRO

Conversion Rate Optimization, or the process of optimizing web pages to get people to take a desired action, is important if you plan to have traffic convert to real leads. 

Produce and post videos

Video has become an undeniably powerful tool. It’s important to develop a thoughtful video strategy so that you can create compelling videos and post them appropriately on various channels. 

Work with influencers

Social media influencers have developed strong and meaningful relationships with their followers. Collaborating with leaders in your industry can expose your firm to a wider audience. 

Host a Facebook group

Unlike a Facebook page, a Facebook group is private and by invitation only. Creating one will help you to build a strong community, strengthen loyalty, and share content in an organic way. 

How Can My Firm Actually Do Online Marketing? 

We just covered some internet marketing strategies, but what should attorneys or legal marketers actually do to implement these strategies and make traction with online channels? Here are a few tips to help you execute online marketing strategies. 

1. Choose the right keywords and use them to optimize your site for search. Google Analytics is a good place to start, but there are other third-party tools that can help.
2. Perform an audit on your website to make sure it’s optimized for mobile and user-friendly. 
3. Create a schedule for your blog and then post regularly according to your content calendar. 
4. Develop various email marketing campaigns personalized according to the audience (use marketing automation if you’re able). 
5. Encourage conversation and interaction on social media. Begin dialogues and respond to people promptly. 
6. Leverage PPC campaigns for competitive keywords (according to the keyword research you already did). 
7. Post videos on YouTube and other channels. Include social media, but make sure videos are tailored to each channel. 

Takeaway: 

If you look around, there are great examples of online marketing for law firms everywhere. Draw your inspiration from social media, email, website content, or other digital channels that resonate with you. If you’re interested in becoming an effective digital marketer that can create and execute impactful strategies for your own practice, consider our Digital Marketing Certification Course. It’s the only course designed specifically for marketers at law firms and will support legal professionals in learning how to navigate the ever-changing world of online marketing.