Why Your Personal Injury Law Firm Needs SEO

Car accidents, slip-and-falls, and workplace injuries occur all the time. When people find themselves in these situations, they often Google the best lawyer to assist them with their injuries. Having a website is not enough. You will need search engine optimization to get your website found on Google and subsequently increase your leads. Array Digital has you covered.

What Does SEO for Lawyers Entail?

Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process used to rank well on the search engine results page when a person types specific words, called a query, into the search engine. It is an algorithm-based method that does not require payment for placement but rather keyword-focused placement. The goal of ranking well on these pages is to position the company’s website at the highest point on the results list, potentially increasing the opportunity for the searcher to click on that link and visit the website.

Organic SEO

Organic SEO is a method that focuses on creating high-quality and relevant content using optimized web pages. It also includes using backlinks that point to that content on other websites. Organic SEO also includes the use of metatags and other tag attributes. These are the recommended, expected methods for ranking a website.

The use of organic SEO is critical to law firms. Traditional methods of marketing do not work as they used to because most people research attorneys and legal needs online before calling anyone for a consultation or to get more information. If a law firm does not have a website that is ranking well in the search engines, that person seeking information is going to turn to their competition that is ranking. If you have a well-ranking website, you are likely to get a solid stream of leads coming into your website.

Implementing Local SEO

Local SEO is a big part of the SEO process for a personal injury lawyer. Most often, the leads you have come from your local region. For that reason, you need to ensure that potential clients local to you can find your law firm’s website.

Local SEO is a marketing strategy that involves optimizing your online presence so that your website shows up in more local search results. This can happen through a number of methods. That includes optimizing your website to include the names of cities that you serve. It also means monitoring your competitive search landscape and managing your Google Business Profile.

It’s easy to see how this matters when you look at the Local Pack. If you search for a personal injury lawyer in your community, you will notice the Local Pack in the Google results. It is at the top of the search engine results page whenever someone is using a local search. The Local Pack refers to the top three Google Business Profiles. Hours of local SEO optimization go into making sure that your firm appears within this grouping.

Keep in mind that your Google Business Profile, not your website, ranks in the Local Pack. As a result, you have to create and update your Google Business Profile to be listed in these results. Most of the time, these results have a basis on the location of the searcher and which personal lawyers are near them.

When it comes to attorney SEO, you also need to consider the importance and use of Google reviews. Reviews are something all personal injury law firms need to have because it helps potential clients to determine if they should contact you. Reviews also help with your SEO campaign and operate as a more modern method of referrals. It helps with local ranking, as does using Google My Business and Google Maps data.

Does SEO Actually Work for Lawyers?

Many times, attorneys feel that their leads come from referrals. That is true to a certain point. While some of your leads may come from referrals, it is becoming more common today for consumers to turn to the internet to find a lawyer that would best suit their case. If your law firm marketing only focuses on offline efforts, and you are not using personal injury lawyer SEO, you are likely not maximizing your potential leads.

Law firms benefit greatly from using SEO. If a consumer is looking for a car accident lawyer, they may talk to a friend about it, but they are most likely to go online and search for a reputable firm. Then, they are most likely to turn to an attorney listed on the first page of the search engine results page (SERP).

More so, when you use SEO legal marketing like this, your law firm is likely to rank better organically in the search engines. With SEO, you do not pay for clicks or placement in the same way you would with advertising. In using SEO tactics specifically designed for law firms, you are more likely to receive high-quality cases because your law firm is more visible to people who need your help – like an individual that needs help after a car accident.

Can I Do My Own SEO?

For some attorneys, there is a belief that digital marketing and content marketing are all they need to rank well in the search engines. For example, many attorneys will invest in writing a few blog articles. They hope these will provide SEO value and create better outcomes if they do a bit of keyword research (however, most do not perform keyword research or know where to start). The problem is that most of these blogs are never found online by anyone. The problem is that these articles are not written strategically for SEO.

In order for any content marketing you are doing with blogs and articles to make a difference in Google search, they have to be written by a knowledgeable professional. At Array Digital, we have 6 pillars of SEO that define this type of success that we apply to your personal injury law firm SEO. This includes:

• SEO Strategy: This is a process of organizing content on the website to improve the chance of being visible in organic search engine results. This includes writing high-quality content, doing keyword research, using descriptive page titles, incorporating keywords into your URL structure, and several other steps.
• Content: The goal with content is to balance the quality of what’s communicated with the use of keywords. Quality content is going to generate backlinks, which shows Google your website is credible.
• Backlinks: Backlinks are links on other websites that point to your website. They help Google to recognize the value of your website. This is a type of off-page SEO that contributes to ranking.
• Technical SEO: This focuses on server and website optimization that helps the search engines correctly index your website. In short, this is the behind-the-scenes steps we take to help improve organic ranking.
• On-Page SEO: This is any step you can take on the webpage itself to improve the search engine ranking position of that content. That includes meta titles and descriptions, optimizing existing content, and more.
• Local SEO: We’ve mentioned this previously, but local SEO is tailoring your website to the local communities you serve.

It is necessary to have a healthy website for SEO to be properly done. This requires programming knowledge and a deep understanding of Google’s Core Web Vitals.

When clients come to us with an existing website, we perform a technical SEO audit. This evaluates numerous factors that relate to how well your website is functioning, including:

• Determining if it is mobile friendly
• Ensuring it is secure with SSL
• Speeding up your website using proper hosting, a fast DNS, and other core tools
• Fixing duplicate content problems that could be hurting your site
• Creating an XML sitemap
• Assessing user experience

An SEO Strategy Identifies Your Target Audience as a Personal Injury Attorney

Array Digital uses a collaborative approach with you to help to understand your goals. We want to understand your firm’s mission and what elements you want on your website. We also want to know where you want your leads to come from. For example, we are able to help you to rank in multiple practice areas, like workplace injury and car accidents, or other practice area services you offer like medical malpractice. Our SEO efforts will also help you pull in new clients from other geographical locations. For example, we can use “car accident attorney in Chicago” if you want to pull in business from that area as a part of your SEO marketing. If you want your website design to attract leads throughout your state, we can focus on terms like “car accident attorney in Illinois.”

In order to identify the target audience for your business, our marketing team utilizes several analytics tools, like Google Analytics and Google Search Console, that many lawyers do not have access to or know how to fully take advantage of on their own. Array Digital does all of this for you as we create a personalized SEO strategy for your firm.

How Does Content Creation Work?

Many of our clients like to write their own content. We encourage you to do so even after you join us as a client. You can discuss injury cases and provide more insight into the legal services you offer this way. Many times, we can actually take poor-performing content that is already on your website and add additional information to it. That can improve its ability to rank well on Google.

In order for that to happen, though, our marketing company needs to do hours of keyword research, which is the process of better understanding which words people type into the search engines to find the legal services they need. We also have to invest time in search intent to better understand what someone is looking for when they use those keywords, especially for local businesses.

SEO content also requires authorship and citations as needed. Establishing authority through the articles on your website is important, but that’s not always easy to do. That includes creating an SEO-friendly author bio that outlines who you are and why the information you are providing is valuable and valid to the research. It also includes focusing on steps we can take to show that you are an authority on the topic you are writing about so that a reader understands exactly why they should trust you.

It Doesn’t Stop There

When we write high-ranking content, we also have to complete on-page optimization. That’s the inclusion of meta tags, descriptions, and keywords in the proper places and through effective methods to let search engines know exactly what that page is and why it is worth reading.

Then, we have to consider link building. This is the process of building links to that page and from that page to other pages on your website that allow for a logical flow, with the end goal of getting the reader to call. Our SEO company also uses links on other websites to help establish your site’s authority.

Just Having a Website Is Not Enough

Creating a personal injury law firm website is just the beginning of your digital marketing journey. A website is where your law firm’s information is housed. It is also a way for people to contact you. However, if people cannot find your website, it does not serve its intended purpose. This is why you need SEO.

Our law firm-specific SEO strategy focuses on getting your website to the top of Google search rankings, even in competitive markets. This is done through many hours of research and writing, as well as collaborating with you so that we always have your input. We understand that many companies offering SEO services rarely speak to their clients. At Array Digital, we uphold constant communication with you so that you understand what we are doing with your SEO every step of the way.

What Is the Best SEO Strategy for Personal Injury Law Firms?

Array Digital does not focus on a one-size-fits-all solution. We believe in catering to your specific needs as a marketing agency. For some law firms, the perfect SEO strategy concentrates on picking up local traffic just five miles from their business. This might mean that they will only need roughly one piece of content per month. However, for another law firm that wants to be a big player in their state, there may be a need for several SEO-optimized pieces published each month to quickly build SEO value.

There’s also sometimes the need for our SEO experts to suggest other services such as pay-per-click (PPC) or social media to maximize all possible traffic channels. We can add in additional services as needed.

Call Today for a Personalized SEO Plan That Works

Array Digital’s SEO process is detailed and has proven results. To request a free consultation to discuss your needs, call 757.333.3021 or complete the online contact form to speak with an experienced digital marketing expert at Array Digital today.