SEO Tips for Law Firms: 30 Proven Tips to Help Improve Rankings

In order for new clients to learn about you online, they have to find your website first. The more visibility your website has, the greater your chances of generating more traffic and new leads. This visibility and ability to reach potential clients is highly dependent on search engine optimization. It’s always a good idea to take stock of your current SEO efforts and see where you can improve. Take a look at this list of tips regarding SEO for law firms from our experts and see what else you can do to improve rankings and your overall law firm SEO. 

SEO Tips for Law Firms

1. Use a Content Delivery Network (CDN)

These systems help to manage and direct traffic from websites by using multiple delivery channels. This can reduce slowdowns, so if you haven’t explored CDNs before, it’s a good time to.

2. Pay Attention to Image Sizes

If your site takes a while to load, it takes longer to render for viewers. Take a look at the various images on your website and reduce sizes if necessary. When you save images in smaller formats, it saves space and time across your website. 

3. Eliminate Junk Code

“Junk code” can build up over time if your site has been through a few updates, especially significant ones. Use a tool like WP Optimize to find and get rid of junk code in order to speed up your website. 

4. Use Compression Tools

These are a great way to reduce the size of various CSS, HTML, and JavaScript files. 

5. Limit Page Redirects

Page redirects make your page slow. Directing to old pages from a new one takes time and if this happens over and over, it compounds. Take the time to seek out redirects and eliminate them. 

6. Use Browser Caching

You can utilize these tools to store data on user browsers (with their permission). This saves users from having to load your entire site every time they visit. 

7. Properly Research Keywords

The correct keywords in your content will make a huge difference in SEO. It’s important to find popular and relevant keywords that will drive traffic to your site. Use a tool like Google AdWords to find the right search terms to incorporate. And don’t forget to research local keywords relevant to your location in order to boost your local SEO efforts.

8. Create Both Evergreen and Timely Content

You need content that is focused on topics that are currently relevant, but you also need some evergreen content that will always be interesting. The right content mix is a blend of newer content like blog posts that is consistently applicable. 

(If you’d like help creating a content strategy that is timely and relevant, check out this free eBook: The Law Firm Guide to Content Marketing eBook.)

9. Understand Keyword Placement

Keywords are key for web content, but they matter in other places as well. Learn how to place keywords in social posts, titles and meta descriptions, video transcripts, etc. 

10. Evaluate and Optimize Content

Periodically, review your content analytics and make changes where necessary. Using a tool like Google Analytics or other third-party platforms can help with this. 

11. Keep Content Simple

Don’t get too complicated or overly verbose. Don’t add word count to content just for the sake of lengthening. Remember your readers are real people – and both humans and algorithms prefer simpler content. 

12. Listen to Feedback

If readers leave comments or any form of feedback, take the time to listen. You never know what feedback might provide valuable insights. In particular, look for trends that you may need to address. 

13. Search Competitors

As part of your research, see what competitors are doing. Perform searches for your primary keywords and see what comes up. If it happens to be a competitor, see what content they are highlighting and what gaps you can fill. 

14. Run A/B Tests for Keywords

A/B testing is a common concept in the world of marketing, but you can gain a lot of insight by creating two different content items based on different keywords and seeing what performs best. 

15. Look for Trends

Things like seasons or particular events can affect SEO performance. Track online activity to find trends and then use this information to implement SEO tactics. 

16. Focus on “Experience Indicators”

Search engines take the user experience into account more than they used to. Things like the time users spend on your site or how many pages they visit are all signals that are considered by algorithms. Make sure your user experience is a great one so that you are sending the right signals. 

17. Look at Relevant Questions

As you research keywords, see what questions pop up in the results. Top-rated queries can provide valuable insights into what people are searching for and what’s important to them. Use these insights to develop new content ideas. 

18. Know Where You Rank in the First Place

Many people start venturing into SEO without understanding what they need to accomplish. Begin by simply searching your site and seeing where you fall on the results pages. If you’re on the first page, you have a head start. Most users won’t venture past the first page, so if you’re not present, start making SEO plans right away. 

19. Use the Right Tools to Research Keywords

Platforms like Google Trends, Google AdWords, and HubSpot’s SEO solutions can all help you to find important keywords. Use tools to find keywords or phrases that are relevant and trending for your industry. These tools will streamline the keyword research process and help boost law firm SEO efforts.

20. Know Where Traffic Comes From

Similar to understanding your general rank, you want to know how visitors are driven to your site. Review channels like organic search, social media posts, referral traffic, etc., and document what you find. 

21. Measure Organic Visits

Traffic driven to your site from searches rather than paid content is considered organic. This traffic is some of the most valuable to your site and you want to see the trend line move positively over time.

22. Know the Click Rate on Search Result Pages

How many people actually click through to content after seeing your result in SERPs? If you find that a high volume of people see your page result but don’t go to the page, then your SEO strategy needs some work. 

23. Take a Readability Test

You want your content to be highly readable. This is particularly important since search engines will sometimes pull up specific pieces of content in search results. Find a readability test online and put your content through it to see where you stand. 

24. Measure Bounce Rate Over Time

A bounce happens when someone comes to your page and then leaves without taking an action. It’s crucial to measure bounce rate to get an idea of how your website is compelling action. Firm websites with high bounce rates will have a harder time ranking in search engine results pages.

25. Properly Use Metadata

Always fill in all relevant parts of metadata including the title tag, description, keywords, and alt text. This will give users and algorithms as much context as possible. 

26. Optimize Images

Image loading can make a difference in performance. Make sure images are the right size and high quality. 

27. Have a Compelling Title

Even the best content won’t get a lot of traction without a great title. Use titles that involve your most important keywords and also grab attention and encourage action. 

28. Streamline Navigation

Keeping your structure simple will help search engines as well as readers. Ask for feedback from various user groups to see what can be improved. Look for ways to simplify your navigation and menus on each page. 

29. Keep Focusing on Humans

It can be tempting to focus too much on search engine algorithms and ranking. At the end of the day, the content needs to make sense and offer value to visitors. Search engines are getting better at identifying searcher intent and rewarding sites that are focused on providing helpful information. 

30. Don’t Keyword Stuff

This last tactic is something NOT to do. Keyword stuffing was a popular strategy in past years, but is no longer effective – and in fact, will likely get you flagged by search engines. Make sure you regularly evaluate the keyword density of each content page. Pages with too much keyword density should be reworked. 

Takeaway: 

Impactful SEO isn’t something that just happens. Without a proactive and thoughtful effort, your SEO efforts and your law firm’s website will suffer. Try some of these ideas to get search engines to notice and rank your site more often. If you’d like hands-on help with creating an SEO strategy that boosts your rankings and generates leads, then don’t hesitate to reach out for a free consultation. We’ve helped many law firms and lawyers improve their search engine rankings.