Getting More Law Office Clients Via the Internet
One of the most economical ways to promote your law firm is through Internet search marketing.
It consists of using search engines (specifically Google and Bing) to bring prospective clients to your website.
One advantage of search marketing is that you're reaching potential clients as they actively seek your services.
Search marketing is a broad term which includes two primary tools: 1.
Optimizing your website to make it more "search engine friendly", and 2.
Paid advertising on search engines, referred to in the search marketing world as "pay-per-click advertising".
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the process of optimizing your website so it appears high in natural (organic) search results in search engines like Google and Bing.
Using keywords, having clear navigation and engaging content all help to increase your site's rank, thus increasing the chance prospective clients will find your site.
Pay-per-click (PPC) marketing consists of buying sponsored results on search engines that appear when a keyword you select is entered.
For example, these appear in Google on the top and right side of the page and are labeled "sponsored links".
The main PPC provider is Google AdWords.
It's the most cost-effective in terms of traffic provided and time spent on management.
It uses a version of an auction model where you select keywords prospective clients would use to find you on a search engine and set a maximum cost you're willing to pay each time someone clicks on that ad to visit your web site.
For example, you might want an ad listed for your office each time someone enters "Dallas personal injury lawyer".
You'd then pay Google (say 25 cents) each time someone clicked on that ad.
You wouldn't pay anything for the ad to be displayed, only for it to be clicked on (which then brings the visitor to your web site.
Here are some tips for setting up a PPC campaign for you law practice.
• Select your terms carefully.
Pick terms that are specific to the service you are providing and use the tools provided on the search sites to find keyword phrases that are popularly searched for to bring the largest amount of targeted traffic to your site.
• Be specific in your selected keyword phrases.
In most cases, single words may produce erroneous and expensive clicks.
In other words, "Dallas divorces" is a lot more cost effective than "divorces", since you don't want to pay for someone in Boston clicking on your ad when you can't easily meet and handle that case.
• Take advantage of the "negative keyword" option provided by major PPC providers.
Negative keywords keep your ad from being displayed for inappropriate searches.
For example, you may be bidding on "Los Angeles auto accident" however you don't want to show up when users are searching for insurance, so you add the negative keyword "-insurance" to this listing.
With this in place your ad will not appear when a searcher enters "Los Angeles auto accident insurance", saving you money from irrelevant clicks.
• Avoid bidding wars.
The price can go up sharply when competing for popular terms.
Evaluate whether this will be cost-effective before trying to bid a term into the top position.
Keep in mind that a percentage of visitors will become clients.
To compete effectively you must be realistic about expectations and be willing to devote some time to managing and monitoring the return on investment of your campaigns or, consult with a professional service provider to do it for you.
It consists of using search engines (specifically Google and Bing) to bring prospective clients to your website.
One advantage of search marketing is that you're reaching potential clients as they actively seek your services.
Search marketing is a broad term which includes two primary tools: 1.
Optimizing your website to make it more "search engine friendly", and 2.
Paid advertising on search engines, referred to in the search marketing world as "pay-per-click advertising".
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the process of optimizing your website so it appears high in natural (organic) search results in search engines like Google and Bing.
Using keywords, having clear navigation and engaging content all help to increase your site's rank, thus increasing the chance prospective clients will find your site.
Pay-per-click (PPC) marketing consists of buying sponsored results on search engines that appear when a keyword you select is entered.
For example, these appear in Google on the top and right side of the page and are labeled "sponsored links".
The main PPC provider is Google AdWords.
It's the most cost-effective in terms of traffic provided and time spent on management.
It uses a version of an auction model where you select keywords prospective clients would use to find you on a search engine and set a maximum cost you're willing to pay each time someone clicks on that ad to visit your web site.
For example, you might want an ad listed for your office each time someone enters "Dallas personal injury lawyer".
You'd then pay Google (say 25 cents) each time someone clicked on that ad.
You wouldn't pay anything for the ad to be displayed, only for it to be clicked on (which then brings the visitor to your web site.
Here are some tips for setting up a PPC campaign for you law practice.
• Select your terms carefully.
Pick terms that are specific to the service you are providing and use the tools provided on the search sites to find keyword phrases that are popularly searched for to bring the largest amount of targeted traffic to your site.
• Be specific in your selected keyword phrases.
In most cases, single words may produce erroneous and expensive clicks.
In other words, "Dallas divorces" is a lot more cost effective than "divorces", since you don't want to pay for someone in Boston clicking on your ad when you can't easily meet and handle that case.
• Take advantage of the "negative keyword" option provided by major PPC providers.
Negative keywords keep your ad from being displayed for inappropriate searches.
For example, you may be bidding on "Los Angeles auto accident" however you don't want to show up when users are searching for insurance, so you add the negative keyword "-insurance" to this listing.
With this in place your ad will not appear when a searcher enters "Los Angeles auto accident insurance", saving you money from irrelevant clicks.
• Avoid bidding wars.
The price can go up sharply when competing for popular terms.
Evaluate whether this will be cost-effective before trying to bid a term into the top position.
Keep in mind that a percentage of visitors will become clients.
To compete effectively you must be realistic about expectations and be willing to devote some time to managing and monitoring the return on investment of your campaigns or, consult with a professional service provider to do it for you.
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