Lawyer’s Guide to Getting
More Local Clients in 2014
by Michael Waddington, Esq.
What Do I Know About Law Firm Marketing?
• Lawyer – Licensed in PA, NJ, GA, SC
• Duquesne & Temple Law School
• 1998-2000 - Temple Journal of Science, Technology &
Environmental Law
• Started Building & Marketing Websites in 1997
• 10,000 hours of Internet consulting experience
• Have consulted with over 500 law firms on Internet
marketing
• Own consulting firm, Legal Niche Pros
What Do I Know About Law Firm Marketing?
• In 2013, wrote the best selling book, "Google+ for Business
Owners”
• Lectured to groups across the USA
• 5,000+ members in my Linkedin Marketing Groups
• YouTube Channel “Lawyer Marketing Series” has 3,775+
subscribers
• Featured in Forbes Magazine in 2014 as one of America’s
Premier Experts
• Wrote a chapter in the best selling book, "Dare to Succeed,"
with author Jack Canfield, author of "Chicken Soup for the
Soul"
Free Download - Google+ for Business Owners
http://www.legalnichepros.com/google-for-business-owners/
2014 SOLO PRACTITIONER BOOT CAMP
Wednesday, November 5, 2014
Location:
The John Marshall Law School
Atlanta, Georgia
• Slides and Video will be available after
the recording
• Ask questions in the questions panel
Let’s Get Started
Steps to Local Search Domination
1. Fix Google Places Listing(s) - Audit Your Google Places Listing For Duplicates
And Problems. Then, Fix And Optimize,
1. Audit & Cleanup Citations - Find All Your Correct, Incorrect, And Duplicate
Listings. Remove Duplicates, Fix Discrepancies, And Enhance Your Listings.
1. New Citation Building - Analyze Your Existing Citations, Analyze Your
Competitors’ Citations, And Identify New Citations. Get New Citations.
2. Optimize Website For Local Search.
1. Setup Social Media Sites & Promote Content Using Social Media.
1. Create New Content (Articles, Videos, Photos) For Your Website, Social Media,
And Blogs.
2. Get Relevant & Powerful Links.
1. Review Strategy… Then, Rinse & Repeat.
Most Businesses Fail
Including Law Firms
Just getting by is not the same as succeeding.
Income Categories
of Small Firm and Solo Lawyers
1.
Earn less than $50,000
2.
$50,000-$125,000
3.
$125,000-$300,000+
Lawyers at the bottom are easy to spot
1.
They are negative
2.
Jump from one marketing type to another (unfocused)
3.
Want immediate, unreasonable results
4.
Blame everyone but themselves for failure
5.
Don’t have long term plans and goals
6.
They surround themselves with similar people
7.
Follow the pack
8.
Lazy
Lawyers at the TOP are easy to spot
This applies to all professions: Financial planning, SEO,
medicine, etc.
Would you take financial advice from someone who is broke?
•
37% of SEOs earned less than $30k in 2013
•
50% of SEOs earned less than $50k
(Source: Bright Local)
Goal: Get & Stay In the $125k$300k+ Group
Success Leaves Clues… So Does Failure
We must:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Analyze data and study the clues of success
Master the basics (Local Marketing not Facebook)
Systematic approach
Long term plans & goals
WHY FOCUS ON LOCAL INTERNET SEARCHES
•
By the end of 2014, mobile searches will surpass computer searches
•
The majority of mobile business searches are for Local Businesses (not national)
•
In 2013, Local Searches provided the same results (customers) as organic
searches
•
(Local is expected to surpass organic as a source of customers)
•
Local Searches outperform Social Media, Facebook, Blogs… in getting customers
•
Few business know how to do Local Internet Marketing
•
In a 2014 study, 87% of SEO experts agree that Local Marketing is getting more
complex & time consuming
Takeaway – Put your efforts into Local Search Marketing before moving on to
other areas
Why Google Local is crucial?
Desktop search for "divorce lawyer Philadelphia PA"
•
Top 3 are
directories
•
Next 7 are
Google Local
Results
•
NO law firm
websites are
organically ranked
at the top
Google Maps - "divorce lawyer Philadelphia PA"
•
Similar Results
to Google Local
•
Identical to
Mobile Searches
What does this look like on a Mobile Phone?
Default View
Map Only View
Listing Only View
How Do I Get Into the Top 7?
1. Location
2. Relevance
3. Prominence
Office Location Matters
“Location is a vector against which all
factors and metrics will be considered.”
-Ken Norton, Google Latitude
DON’T EXPECT TO RANK LOCALLY IF YOU ARE
NOT LOCAL!
Local is within a short driving distance
Results 1-10
Google Maps - "divorce lawyer Philadelphia PA"
Results 11-20
Google Maps - "divorce lawyer Philadelphia PA"
Results 21-30
Google Maps - "divorce lawyer Philadelphia PA"
Offices in
NJ… but on
the 3rd page
Lesson
•
Get an office as close to the city center as possible
•
Target clients in YOUR area (not 30 minutes away)
Examples:
Atlanta divorce vs. Buckhead Divorce
Evans, GA vs. Augusta, GA
What Factors Get Me Ranked?
General Ranking Factors
•
Place Page Signals (19.6%)
•
Categories, Proximity to city center
• External Location Signals (16%)
• NAP (Name, Address, Phone) consistency, Citation Volume
•
On-page Signals (18.8%)
•
Presence of NAP, Keywords in Page Titles, Domain authority
• Link Signals (14.4%)
• Inbound anchor text, Linking domain authority, Linking domain
quantity
Key Terms
NAP – Name, Address, Phone
Citation:
Smith & Smith Attorneys at Law
111 Broad Street
Philadelphia, PA 19101
215-222-2222
NOT THE SAME
Jack Smith Attorney at Law
111 Broad Street, Suite B
Philadelphia, PA 19101
215-111-2222
Specific Ranking Factors – 15 out of 100
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
Proper Category Associations (i.e. Divorce Attorney, Personal Injury Lawyer)
Physical Address in City of Search
Consistency of Structured Citations (NAPs are exactly the same)
Quality of Structured Citations
HTML NAP Matching Place Page NAP
Quantity of Structured Citations (Internet Yellow Pages, Data Aggregators)
Domain Authority of Website
Individually Owner-verified Local Plus Page
Quality/Authority of Inbound Links to Domain
Quantity of Native Google Places Reviews (w/text)
Product / Service Keyword in Business Title (John Smith Attorney at Law)
Quantity of Citations from Locally-Relevant Domains
Proximity of Physical Location to the Point of Search\n(Searcher-Business
Distance)
14. Quantity of Citations from Industry-Relevant Domains
15. City, State in Most/All Website Title Tags
Negative Ranking Factors – 15 out of 50
1.
Listing detected at false business location
2.
Keyword stuffing in business name
3.
Mismatch NAP / Tracking Phone Numbers Across Data Ecosystem
4.
Incorrect business category
5.
Presence of Multiple Place Pages with Same/Similar Business Title and Address
6.
Mismatch NAP / Tracking Phone Number on Places Landing Page
7.
Mismatch Address on Places Landing Page
8.
Absence of Crawlable NAP on Website
9.
Presence of Multiple Place Pages with Same Phone Number
10. Including Location Keyword in Categories
11. Incorrectly placing your map marker
12. Address includes suite number similar to UPS Mail Store addresses
13. Keyword/city stuffed Place page descriptions
14. Non-Compliant Categories (those that do not fit
15. Listing 800 Number as Only Phone Number on Place Page
Time Line
Local Search Marketing is a Marathon
•
When done by an expert, it takes about
6 months to see solid results in Local
searches, sometimes longer
•
Local marketing is an ongoing task
•
Local search is time consuming and
requires a level of expertise
•
Use technology to learn about your
competition and replicate their
successes
Use Technology to Gain an Advantage
Use Technology to Learn from Competitors
Competitor Citations
Competitor Business Categories
How Do You Appear Online
Find and Fix Duplicates
Attention to Detail
Minor Errors Can Be the Difference Between Being
in the Top 7
and
Making $50,000 vs. $250,000+
Citations
Remember: Citation
consistency is crucial
Like a Wild Fire, Duplicates Get Out of Control
One Online Engine Can Create Hundreds of Duplicates
Incomplete Listings Lower Your Ranking
• We are tracking 15
listings
• 12 out of 15 are
incomplete
• Which means, there
are hundreds of
incomplete listings
Before You Get Started
• Proper local online marketing is time consuming
and requires a level of expertise.
• If you are serious about success and would rather
have a team of professionals help you, contact us
for a free consultation.
• Caveat: We only work with select positive lawyers!
Contact
If you have questions or would like a FREE consultation,
call 1-888-807-3380.
E-mail: legalnichepros@gmail.com
WEBSITE: www.legalnichepros.com
YOUTUBE: http://www.youtube.com/user/legalnichepros
LINKEDIN: www.linkedin.com/in/michaelwaddingtonlawyer