The year 2020 set the tone for jobs practiced in the online environment. The big change has touched almost all niches, and the legal field has expanded much more digitally. In particular, we are talking about law firms with local clientele. Why? The digitization of the activity in the legal field has brought new perspectives in finding potential clients.

Physical presence at the office became mandatory only in exceptional situations and in court hearings.

However, you might run into a fairly popular problem in this area, which is the Code of Ethics for the Legal Profession and certain legal rules prohibiting a lawyer from advertising on a large scale. We are sure you are very well aware of these regulations. Perhaps because of them you have decided to promote yourself only through the "word of mouth" method, which is no longer current in the age of information technologies, and we will explain why in the following.

The time has come to "take advantage" of the pandemic crisis and rethink your communication strategies about your legal services. In this sense, we propose a guide of best practices in digital marketing and communication, which will help you bring your services closer to your prospects and create a presentable image in the online environment.

Are you ready? Let's begin!

1.  Place more focus on SEO optimization

Short Definition: SEO is the optimization and promotion of websites for more traffic from Search Engines. SEO has 2 big parts: On Page SEO and Off Page SEO. When we talk about on-page optimization (SEO On Page) we mean actual work on the website pages. Its content is being worked on to improve it. We work with special SEO tags: title, meta description, alt, Headings, etc. We work with relevant keywords, with the images on the website, and with their loading speed. On the other hand, work is also being done on the overall optimization strategy, and even more so - on educating the owner. It is aimed that the content that will be created in the future corresponds to high-quality standards and complies with the rigors of SEO.

Off Page SEO refers to promoting and increasing the popularity of a particular website. To improve this popularity, marketing techniques are used. Namely: writing advertorials, getting banners, relevant links for the website yes, partnerships, etc. All this is done with utmost care (following a special, well-thought-out plan) and the quality of the links thus obtained is monitored. It is not enough to understand what SEO is, you need to know how to effectively apply this knowledge.

Whether you are an independent specialist or you work in a law firm, first of all, you need a presentation website. This is how you will show the search engine who you are, what you do, and what you bring to your community. To begin with, you should opt for an informative site (80% of the content should be useful and only 20% commercial). By sticking to this ratio, you'll gain the trust of both your prospects and Google.

From the very beginning, you need to create SEO-optimized content, i.e. inserting keywords relevant to the legal niche throughout your website content.

Each keyword brings plenty of opportunities to attract your customers through informative content, relevance, and authenticity. We're sure you wouldn't want to miss the chance to do it.

Nota bene: Do not forget to optimize with keywords and phrases and the meta tags of the site (title and meta description):

This is how you will show users that your website contains exactly what they need.

Other suggestions on the SEO side that will increase the visibility of your site:

- Optimized speed for both Desktop and Mobile versions. You can start with the loading speed audit HERE, and then pay maximum attention to each aspect that needs improvement. If you have any questions, you can contact us directly on the website, in the chat box. We're around to answer any questions you may have about SEO tools.

- Quality visual content for every page. If you can't create quality visual content, you can opt for photos from free international stocks.

- Quality SEO copywriting. Google gives priority to sites that have good and useful content for their followers. This category also includes maintaining a thematic blog, where you will regularly post informative articles and relevant content.

If all this seems complicated to you, you could turn to SEO services. It is important to know that results from website optimization appear no earlier than 6 months. This is how Google's algorithms work.

Want to know more about SEO and how search engine optimization works? We are ready to give you a free ONE-HOUR consultation and discuss SEO optimization specific to your niche.

But until then, let's move on to the next point and talk about…

2. Google My Business and reviews

If you carry out your activity in a certain locality, the free tool from Google - Google My Business is very handy. Google My Business helps you maintain your visibility online. It is advisable to encourage your clients to leave reviews about the services provided by you or your law firm.

In addition, with the help of this tool, you can promote your name. When the user types keywords such as law firm or lawyer in X city, you must be present with all the relevant information about you at the right time and place, i.e. on the Google map.

Thus, your Google My Business profile must contain the following data:

- Your name, address, and telephone number or that of the company you work for;

-       Location of the business on the Google Maps map;

- Work schedule;

- A link to your or your company's website;

- Photographs related to the business (facade of the location, team, etc.);

-       Reviews left by former or current customers, along with a rating from 1 to 5 stars.

This information will help those in need of legal advice to find you more quickly.

3. Social Media presence and regular thematic webinars

Consistency, authenticity, and regularity - 3 pillars on which you must build your presence on Social Media. You can opt for at least 2 of these 4 recommended platforms: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Linkedin. The most effective for lawyers are usually Facebook and Linkedin. There are a lot of communities on these platforms, where professionals share their experience, are closer to their target audience, and are where they create long-lasting partnerships.

Facebook webinars have gained increasing popularity among freelancers and well-known legal brands. It's important to come up with ultra-useful material for your followers if you want authority. Additionally, you need a strategy to promote your live events and of course, regularity, and that too to keep your audience interested in what you have to say/deliver.

4. Building a personal brand

We probably don't even need to tell you about the importance of personal branding. Your online image represents the experience and results you enjoy.

When you consistently tell your story and share snippets of your professionalism and profession with your social media audience, you'll notice more people reacting, following, and resonating with your content.

In addition to the above, personal branding allows you to show current and potential clients your skills, and strengths, and this will surely appeal to them.

The key to building a successful brand is to consistently present yourself and be great at selling your story so people want to work with you.

5. Collaborations with thematic sites for Guest Posting

Guest posting is the way to grow your audience faster and promote your legal services where there is demand.

Guest posting means writing and publishing articles on niche blogs. These articles can be of different types: guides, interviews, advertorials, or informative articles on any topic.

An important aspect of this type of online promotion is that the given article includes a keyword link to your website. It is recommended that this link be near the beginning of the article.

Over time, these links will increase your site's value to search engines.

Perhaps the best part of guest posting is that it allows you to tap into an already-formed community and share your message. You have the opportunity to connect with new people, which can pay off in the end if you do it right.

Certainly, there are dozens of other ways to promote yourself as a lawyer or legal consultant, here we have collected only the ones that work 100% and bring long-term benefits.

Throughout our experience in digital promotion, we have tested, discovered, and observed that there is room for improvement in promoting these services. And if you're willing to outdo your competitors, you can do it through ways tested and practiced by marketing experts for years.

If you liked the material, don't forget to share it with your guild mates. Stay with us for more useful and interesting guides to come or call us at +373 69 809 235 for a discussion about promoting your niche!