Secrets of Internet Marketing They Don t Want You To Know

Transcription

1 Secrets of Internet Marketing They Don t Want You To Know Search Engine Optimization For Law Firms Stephen Fairley, CEO The Rainmaker Institute

2 About Stephen Fairley CEO of The Rainmaker Institute the nation s largest law firm marketing company that specializes in helping small law firms generate more referrals and convert more leads Nationally recognized expert on internet marketing, blogging, and social media for attorneys Developed the first automated lead conversion follow-up system for attorneys Coached, trained and spoken to more than 8,000 attorneys Academically trained as a Clinical Psychologist International best-selling author of 12 books and 10 audio learning programs World traveler: Visited over 33 countries and taken 14 cruises

3 Brand New Research! LexisNexis hired an independent research lab Phone interview with 4,000 adults Specifically seeking answers to how people use the internet when looking for an attorney To qualify they must have looked for an attorney in the last 12 months Random, stratified sample to match US adult population in terms of: age, sex, race, and educational level

4 Key Findings 60% of adult internet users in the US have looked for an attorney at least once in their life. This equates to about 110 million people. 32% looked for an attorney in the last year! That equals about 58 million in the last year! Another 29% did so more than a year ago.

5 Key Findings 76% of people who needed an attorney used an online resource at some point! The top 5 practice areas looked for: Real Estate Personal Injury Estate Planning Divorce Bankruptcy Looked for an Attorney in Past Year Did Not Use the Internet Used the Internet 76% 24%

6 Key Findings 38% of adult internet users asked friends and family members for recommendations 30% used the internet to look for an attorney! Only 23% hired the same attorney / law firm they used in the past! Why? fffmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm 23% 23% 23% 22% 22% 22% 21% Search Engines 21% 20% Law Firm Websites 20% Online Legal Directories 20% 19% 19% Search Engines Law Firm Websites Online Legal Directories

7 The #1 Reason Why You re Not Getting More Repeat Clients LACK OF CLIENT EDUCATION!

8 The #2 Reason Why You re Not Getting More Repeat Clients & Referrals LACK OF CLIENT COMMUNICATION!

9 88% of all online sessions begin with a search engine Percentage of Search Engine Market

10 The Changing Game of Search Engines The Fastest Growing Search Engine is... Little Known Fact: People now spend more time on Facebook than on Google, Gmail, Google Video, & YouTube COMBINED!!

11 How People Search Online 4 Ways People Search Online: 1. Vanity Search Results: Los Angeles personal injury attorney San Diego DUI Attorney Sacramento Car Accident Lawyer They use 3 criteria: geographical location practice area attorney or lawyer 2. Geographical Search: people search by CITY not county or state the smaller the city the easier it is to get to the top focus on the suburbs (Santa Monica) not just the big name city (Los Angeles)

12 3. Social Media Search People are starting to use Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn the same way they use Google! Don t neglect social media marketing! It s much less competitive than Google right now and more consumers are using it! 4. Long Tail Term Search: people are using more and more words to describe their situation and refine their search results

13 Vanity Search versus Long Tail Search What Are Long Tail Searches? Vanity Search Terms: Los Angeles Divorce Attorney San Diego DUI Attorney Nashville Car Accident Lawyer Long Tail Searches: accident with 18 wheeler on 110 need best injury lawyer need attorney from brain injury for my baby at mount sinai hospital injuries from falling from scaffold being erected downtown brain injury and knee injury I was hit by bus, san diego failure to diagnose breast cancer doctor malpractice expert attorney police planted drugs on me in oakland + need cocaine attorney

14 Long Tail Searches Convert Better! Research Phase Decision-making Phase

15 Long Tail Search Is Unique! Personal Injury Search: 57% of all searches are unique Only 5.3% of searches on top Personal Injury websites contained the phrase personal injury in their search terms Criminal Defense Search: 68% of all searches are unique Now Sweetheart, Dude! So Timmy, Honey, I told what I don t you how s have we think your wouldn t I told that s day you going? make what about they it! making meant up stories! by drive through window! Only 3% of searches for top Criminal Defense attorneys contained the phrase criminal defense in their search terms Rainmaker Rule 101: You are NOT your client!

16 What You Need to Know About the Google Penguin Update Penguin is the most significant update to Google s algorithm in 3 years!

17 What You Need to Know About the Google Penguin Update 3 MAJOR changes you need to know now! 1. Google Places (AKA Google Maps or Local) can influence your Organic Rankings! There is increasing evidence that Google is comparing your ranking on Places and using it to influence your website s Organic Ranking! 2. Social media signals are now counting for or against your Google ranking! 3. Content used to be King. Now it s King, Queen, Jack and Ace!

18 You need to put new content on your website on a consistent basis! 2 of the Best Ways to Add Consistent Content is by BLOGGING DAILY and USING SOCIAL MEDIA!

19 Who Clicks On What? Understanding Search Results: Sponsored Ads: 20-25% clicks Organic Listings: 75-80% clicks Places (Maps) Results: Blended with Organic Search Only 10 Organic Listings On Page 1 Top 3 Organic Listings: 63% clicks Top Organic Listing: 42% clicks 90% Will Never Look Past Page 1

20 A Look At Google What s the Fastest Way to Get Your Law Firm s Website To The Top Organic Search Positions on Google? Link Building Link Building

21 When other websites link to your website it increases your website s perceived credibility and authority in Google s eyes! What is Link Building?

22 What Matters Most for Google Rankings 1. Website Optimization - Design & Structure of your website matters! - Duplicate Content will kill you on Google! - Don t use flash or HTML. Use WordPress! - Consistently add new content to your website! 2. Link Popularity -Total number of inbound links -He who has the MOST LINKS WINS! -Links to internal pages, not just home page 3. Anchor Text of Link -The actual text of the link Long Beach car accident attorney Riverside best injury lawyer

23 3 Proven Ways to Drive More Traffic Link Building & SEO Blogs Social Media

24 2 Critical Factors to Search Engine Optimization On Page Optimization What you do ON your websites page Very technical & detailed! Generally done one time if you do it right! Must be done to every new page you add Effects 30-40% of your ranking on Google Off Page Optimization What you do OFF or outside of your website Primarily consists of building inbound links Very time consuming! Some technical expertise needed Must be done continually to get & stay on top Results dependent on your geolocation and level of competition Effects 60-70% of your ranking on Google

25 Off Page SEO Factors Links coming FROM another website TO yours. There s an ongoing debate in the SEO community: Quality versus Quantity Does Google prefer websites with MORE LINKS (QUANTITY) or HIGHER QUALITY LINKS? We have been researching this in the real world for the last 3 years and here s what we found Google Tells You QUALITY MATTERS MORE Google Ranks Law Websites With MORE LINKS!!

26 How Does Link Building Help? Step 1. People search for key terms online You need to know what keywords they search for and which ones convert to traffic We will do the keyword research for you Step 2. They look at websites at the top on the first page. Link building can get you to the top! They visit an average of 5 websites 63% of people click sites in #1-3 position The #1 ranking website gets ~42% of clicks 90% of people never look past page 1 Step 3. Prospects visit your website and Step 4. If your website converts then you get a lead! Improve conversions with video, a free newsletter, and a freemium Geographic Search Social Media Search Long-Tail Search Vanity Search First Page Results on Google #1-3 #1 Your Website Leads Keyword Analysis Link Building Website Conversion

27 Do It Yourself Link Building Strategies General Directories Yahoo! Directory $300 per year BestoftheWeb.org $150 per year Dmoz.org BBB.org (price varies)

28 Link Building Strategies Legal Directories Nolo.com JDSupra.com Avvo.com HG.org Findlaw.com Over 100 Legal Directories How many do you want to be on? ALL OF THEM!

29 Link Building Strategies Blog Commenting Do it in a professional way Add value Article Marketing writing unique articles and posting them on various article directories like Press Releases search for press release submission. We like PRWeb.com Reciprocal Linking You link to my website and I will link to yours. Google the phrase: add url

30 4 Questions to Ask Before Working With Any SEO Company 1. Do They Understand The Business of Law? When it comes to SEO, the legal industry is very different! Do they understand how attorneys generate new cases How much experience do they working with attorneys 2. Do They Understand My Competition & How To Win? Do they know what other successful attorneys are doing online Do they specialize in working with attorneys 3. What Exactly Are You Getting? Just on page SEO or Link Building? 4. Do They Offer Geo-Exclusivity Or Do They Also Work With Your Competitors? Geo-exclusivity is critical to long-term success If they use the same key terms for you and your competitors who wins? The SEO company does!

31 How to Jumpstart Your Online Presence 1. Commit to doing Something versus Nothing 2. Determine what you need to do yourself versus delegate or outsource 3. Analyze your website to ensure compliance with Google s best practices in website SEO 4. Add a blog and write articles per month 5. Work with an SEO expert to get on the 1 st page of Google using the power of link building 31

32 Thank You! Here s the Next Step: 1. Click: 2. Or Call Sign up for a complimentary Strategy Session 4. Discover how the Rainmaker Link Building or Blogging or Newsletter Service can help you get more and better cases!

33 Thank You!