2013 AmLaw 100 Websites: Ten Foundational Best Practices Research

Transcription

1 Prepared for the Delaware Valley Law Firm Marketing Group 2013 AmLaw 100 Websites: Ten Foundational Best Practices Research July 22, 2014

2 FBPs Break Down into 3 Major Categories 1. Strategy Communicating your message strategy, brand and first impression / who are you and why should I care? Site optimization and online awareness site and content optimized/seo strategy 2. Content Lawyer biographies relevant, current, SEO and human friendly Content (other than bios) visitor/client focused, current and compelling. Multimedia Site hygiene and usability browser compatibility, visitor page tools, spelling, nothing broken 2

3 3 FBPs Break Down into 3 Major Categories 3. Features and Functionality Graphics and design bold branding design, strong imagery, consistency, legibility, HTML5 instead of Flash Navigation intuitive, descriptive and one-click Interactivity and social outreach dynamic, interactive and Web 2.0, leveraging all Internet content Site search relevant, multiple search tools and easy finding Mobility specially designed mobile site; intuitive, device-specific user interface, interactive map and location features

4 4 Foundational Best Practice #1 Communicating your Message 1. Clear and differentiating positioning strategy Practice and industry focus are apparent Geographic reach is apparent (1 office or 40) Contact information is clear and easy to find Site features or links to foreign language translations 47.8

5 5 Foundational Best Practice #1 AmLaw 100 Average: 72.6 Barely Good

6 Wsgr.com 1 of 7 to Score 100 6

7 Winstead.com 7

8 8 Foundational Best Practice #2 Graphics and Design 1. Bold, branded layout style, grid and use of white space The site uses CSS@FONT-FACE web fonts to further branding design Strong imagery reinforces the brand and is fresh and unique. It effectively advances the story about what the firm does Site makes good use of HTML5 instead of FLASH Site is optimized for = or > than 1024 pixel screen resolution - 80

9 9 Foundational Best Practice #2 AmLaw 100 Average: 77 Good

10 Goodwinprocter.com Winner for FBP 2 10

11 11 Foundational Best Practice #3 Navigation 1. Global and local nav styles are consistent visitor doesn t have to relearn new styles throughout the site Global nav uses mega-menus/cascading nav that gives visitors 1- click access Easy to navigate across multiple devices smart phones, tablets, desktops Cross-linking promotes horizontal travel from one section of the site to the next 87.7

12 12 Foundational Best Practice #3 AmLaw 100 Average: 70.9 Fair

13 Kramerlevin.com - #1 in Navigation 13

14 Foundational Best Practice #4 Lawyer Bios 1. First 150 characters of the bio are current, compelling and relevant for SEO benefit Overview paragraph first 2-3 sentences are descriptive of the work the lawyer does and the types of clients the lawyer represents Bio does not use Mr. or Ms. Lastname throughout it uses the lawyer s first or nickname Current photos that convey personality Full contact info is easy to find and links to v-card Bio includes links to social media profiles and pages Bios list and crosslink to practices/ industries, articles/ news/ events Bios include detailed experience and matter lists The page technology supports elegant content organization that enables visitors to quickly scan and access what they want? (e.g., Ajax, jquery, javascript) Associates have full biographies 88 14

15 15 Foundational Best Practice #4 AmLaw 100 Average: 75.3 Good

16 Jones Day Bios Scored

17 17 Foundational Best Practice #5 Content (Other than Bios) 1. Visitor-focused has consistent language use and is specific Content is organized intuitively, by services and expertise clients buy, not how the firm is organized Practices and industries are broken out separately. Geographic regions is a bonus option Descriptions include experience specifics, including client names or descriptions of clients Video and multimedia content is available, and is relevant and current News/press pages are current and written for maximum PR benefit Publications / articles / events are well organized and are easily sorted by topic and author / speaker Site has a statement of core values Site illustrates firm s commitment to diversity Charitable and civic commitment is described and evident Pro bono commitment is described in detail, highlighting stories and specific matters - 91

18 18 Foundational Best Practice #5 AmLaw 100 Average: 70.6 Fair

19 Sutherland Practice Descriptions - InfoGraphics 19

20 20 Foundational Best Practice #6 Interactivity and Social Outreach 1. Client extranet is offered and accessible RSS feeds throughout the site Alumni center or link to alumni page on LinkedIn or Facebook Newsletter subscribe feature and other info sign-up Links to firm/lawyer blogs on home page, bio, practice and other relevant pages Offers educational Webinars and podcasts The site links to social media sites and has an active and current presence on these sites Share functionality is present throughout the site - 34

21 21 Foundational Best Practice #6 AmLaw 100 Average: 52 Barely Fair

22 Barnesthornburg.com Scored

23 23 Foundational Best Practice #7 Site Search 1. Site offers full-site keyword search Advanced search link appears on all pages and enables visitors to narrow or refine the search in multiple ways Search results are clear and well organized: Most relevant categories appear first Utilizes modern search technology features: type-ahead / predictive, did you mean, highlighting of search terms in annotated results, exact phrase Site offers multiple searches, including detailed lawyer search, news /publications / articles / events searches, law school alumni search in careers Site offers a separate experience search 24

24 24 Foundational Best Practice #7 AmLaw 100 Average: 49.2 Poor

25 Cozen.com Top Scorer in Site Search 25

26 26 Foundational Best Practice #8 Site Optimization and Online Awareness 1. Online Awareness: backlinks, link popularity and PageRank for landing and details pages Strong, properly structured HTML content on the home page and interior (H1, H2, H3 etc. for headings and subheadings, doc type, no image-based navigation or other text, etc.) Data feeds from external sources (blogs, social media, videos, etc.) HTML sitemaps are present and include all pages organized hierarchically Smart URLS with appropriate syntax used in all sections Metatags, page titles, keywords and meta-description are correctly used and placed, and utilized throughout site Images have alt tags that provide alternative text when images can t be displayed 36

27 27 Foundational Best Practice #8 AmLaw 100 Average: 54.5 Fair

28 MoFo.com ranked Good in SEO 28

29 29 Foundational Best Practice #9 Mobility 1. Does the firm have a true mobile site? 34.5

30 30 Foundational Best Practice #9 AmLaw 100 Average: 34.5 Poor

31 QuinnEmanuel.com Mobile Scored

32 32 Foundational Best Practice #10 Site Hygiene and Usability 1. Site perfectly functions on all modern browsers IE7 and newer, Chrome, Safari and Firefox Ability to collect and bind PDFs together No error pages are found on spot check No broken links or images are evident with spot check Pages print and easily Site offers dynamic print to PDF option on most pages Copy and content have been checked for spelling and grammar 87

33 33 Foundational Best Practice #10 AmLaw 100 Average: 73.7 Good

34 WilsonElser.com 1 of 5 Firms to Score

35 AmLaw 100 Websites Total Scores Totals based on 99 firms

36 2013 AmLaw 100 Websites Top 25 Firms 36

37 37 Content Pilot Contact Thank you! Deborah McMurray Content Pilot LLC Law Firm 4.0 Blog