Every month in France, over 100,000 people search for a lawyer on Google
And then there are the more specific requests!
That's why it's so important for your practice to be well-referenced on the search engine, so that potential customers can find you.
There are two main schools of thought:
- Organic SEO: By optimizing your website for search engines and publishing high-quality content, you can improve your ranking in the results pages and receive more calls from people in need of legal services.
- Pay-per-click Sponsored Listing: Using paid advertising and social media marketing to reach more potential customers.
These two methods are both highly effective and complementary, with their own advantages and disadvantages. In this article, we present these two levers in detail, specifically applied to the legal profession.
What does it mean to get your lawyer's website listed on Google?
On Google, most clicks are captured by the first 3 results in the search engine.
SEO for a law firm therefore consists in optimizing its website to move up in search results such as Google, in order to improve its ranking in the results pages. However, as organic search engine optimization can be a time-consuming process, there is the paid Google Ads solution. This platform allows you to appear immediately on a targeted keyword.
As these two levers require a great deal of resources (time and money), it's important to research relevant keywords for your practice beforehand, so as not to waste your efforts.
Référencement avocat : How to find the right keywords for your law firm?
The first step in finding the right keywords is to start by researching those that are relevant to your business. The best way to do this is to think like your target audience and identify what they are likely to type into a search engine when looking for legal services. This can include searching for specific areas of law, such as "divorce lawyer" or "criminal defense lawyer", or more general terms such as "legal aid" or "lawyer near me".
Once you've identified a few potential key phrases, you can use online tools such as Google Keyword Planner and SEMrush to research their search volume and competition rate. This will enable you to determine which expressions are most likely to bring in the most traffic, as well as those for which it is more difficult to rank your website in the SERPs (search engine results pages).
You should also consider adding location-related keywords, such as city or state names, where appropriate. This can help you reach local customers looking for legal services in their area. In addition, long-tail keywords, i.e. phrases made up of several words (for example, "best divorce lawyer in Paris"), can be particularly useful as they tend to have less competition than shorter keywords and are therefore easier for your website to rank for in the SERPs.
Study: Referencing a lawyer specialized in criminal law
In this example, I suggest you start by using the free Google Keyword Planner tool. To start using Google Keyword Planner, first visit the main Google website and log in to your Google account if you have one. Otherwise, create a new account and log in. Once logged in, hover over the "More" button at the top of the page and select "Advertising & Measurement" You'll then see an option to access Google Ads.
Alternatively, here's a direct link 😉
Once on the Google Ads page, click on the hamburger menu icon in the top left-hand corner and select "Tools & Settings". You'll then see a side menu with an option for the Keyword Planner. Clicking on this option takes you to a new page where you can start searching for keywords and other related information.
From here, you can type in any keyword related to your law practice and analyze its performance in search engine results pages (SERPs). You can also filter your search according to various criteria such as language, location, device type (desktop or mobile), etc., as well as keyword match type. Broad match is the least restrictive match type, while exact match is the most specific and generally gives the best results.
So in our example we type "criminal lawyer".
Google Keyword Planner provides useful metrics such as monthly search volume, competition rate, suggested bids, etc...
Finally, once you've identified the most relevant keywords for your legal business, there are several ways to use them to improve SEO performance.
Natural or "organic" referencing for your law firm
Search engine optimization (SEO) is a way of ensuring that your website comes up in the natural (non-sponsored) results when Internet users search for information.
There are four types of user intent:
- Information requests : which lawyer for a divorce?
- Navigation queries : Business start-up lawyer in Paris
- Commercial queries : Best criminal lawyer in Paris
- Transactional queries : Buy company statutes online
The idea is to understand what type of intention your keyword or set of keywords corresponds to, and to create content that is adapted to it. For example:
- Information requests : Blog, guides, tutorials
- Navigation queries : Home page, category page
- Commercial queries : Opinion, comparison
- Transactional queries : Service page
Your idea for an article or page is in place - now all you have to do is write an SEO-optimized page!
How to write an SEO-optimized page
SEO-optimized keywords should be strategically placed within the content. Each header, meta-description and title tag should include one or two of the main keywords, as well as any relevant variations of these words. In addition, the main keyword should be included in the first sentence and at least once per paragraph in the body text of the page. It's also important to use synonyms for each keyword, to increase your chances of ranking for those terms as well.
In addition to including targeted keywords in text, you can also add them in more visual elements such as images, infographics, videos and slideshows that have been optimized with ALT tags. This will help Google understand what each image is about and how it relates to your business as a lawyer.
A few other tips to consider are the use of external links related to attorney services or regulations to provide more context and credibility to your attorney business website. Also be sure to optimize your URLs with a keyword related to attorney services or regulation to further improve search engine rankings. Finally, use social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook to share quality legal content that includes relevant legal keywords to extend your reach beyond organic searches alone.
Advantages of SEO for lawyers
1. Significant increase in site traffic - One of the main advantages of SEO is that it's long-term and scalable. So, over time, you'll see an ever-increasing mass of visitors connecting to your site. It makes your site a real asset for your company.
2. Improved brand visibility - When your law firm becomes more visible in search engine results pages, some potential clients will be more likely to see your brand and consider contacting you for legal services without necessarily visiting your site every time. so it's a real asset in terms of branding.
3. Lower costs - Compared to traditional marketing methods such as print advertising, TV spots, or digital sponsorship, SEO is a relatively inexpensive way to promote your law firm online. And when done correctly, SEO can deliver a high return on investment (ROI).
Disadvantages of SEO for lawyers
1. SEO can be complex - In the law firm sector, competition is fierce! Many websites are already positioned and are making a constant effort to stay on top. Keyword selection, content quality and optimization, page titles, meta-descriptions, image optimization, backlinks, site structure and navigation are all factors taken into account when evaluating a website's performance in search engine results pages.
2. It requires ongoing maintenance - There's a lot to consider when it comes to properly optimizing a website for SEO. It requires in-depth research and a good understanding of the sector in which you operate. It's also essential to keep a constant watch on your positions, so you can take action if a colleague relegates you to second place.
3. SEO is a long-term lever - SEO is certainly a powerful long-term lever, but it will take some time to bear fruit. And it may even test your patience a little!
4. It's not free - Contrary to popular belief, SEO is never free. Writing articles is free (and then some), but being well referenced often requires your website to be cited by influential sites. These sites usually charge a fee for publishing a link to your site. Of course, it's possible to avoid or negotiate this kind of service for free, but it's extremely time-consuming.
Paid search or "PPC" for your law firm
Google Ads is a powerful tool for law firms to reach potential clients and gain visibility. Unlike SEO, it allows you to place your ads instantly in front of consumers who are actively searching for legal services related to your business. It also lets you control how much you spend, who sees your ads, when they see them and what kind of results you get from the campaign. Used correctly, Google Ads can be an effective way to attract more customers and grow your law firm.
Advertising campaigns with Google Ads
In addition to keyword research and creativity, another key factor in the success of a Google Ads campaign is the bidding strategy, i.e. the amount you're willing to spend per click on each keyword. The higher the bid placed on each keyword, the more likely your ad is to appear high up in the search results pages (SERPs).
If budget is an issue for your business, consider starting with a low bid amount and gradually increasing if necessary - this will ensure that the money invested goes to targeted traffic rather than untargeted clicks from users who may not be interested in using your services
With Google Ads, you can target specific demographics based on factors such as age, gender, location, preferred language and interests, so that only people likely to be interested in what you have to offer see your ads. You can even refine your targeting by excluding specific audiences, so that only people genuinely interested in legal services come into contact with your ads.
Finally, once the campaign has been launched, it's important to constantly monitor its performance and fine-tune it over time to ensure that it remains effective and produces the desired results. Conversion tracking - i.e. the number of leads generated by the campaign - as well as click-through rate (CTR), cost-per-click (CPC) - which tells you the cost of each click - impressions (how many times the ad has been seen) and quality score (QS) - a metric used by Google Ads to determine whether an ad is relevant enough to be displayed - all play an important role in the success of Google Ads campaigns for law firms.
Disadvantages of paid search for law firms
1. Cost - One of the main disadvantages of using Google Ads is its cost. Unlike SEO, which is a long-term investment, paid advertising requires ongoing investment to achieve results. How much you spend on ads will depend on a number of factors, including the competitiveness of the keywords you're targeting, your budget and how aggressive you want your campaign to be.
2. Competition - Competition for advertising space on Google is fierce, so it can be difficult to stand out from the crowd. To succeed, you need to create ads that are relevant and compelling enough to grab users' attention and convince them to click.
3. Time required - Paid search also requires a great deal of time and effort if you want to achieve good results. You'll need to research relevant keywords, write compelling copy and regularly monitor your campaign's performance to make any necessary changes and adjustments.
Advantages of paid search for law firms
1. Increased visibility - One of the main benefits of using Google Ads is that it gives your law firm increased visibility, as your ad will be displayed at the top of search engine results pages (SERPs) for relevant keywords.
2. Targeted traffic - With Google Ads, you can target specific demographics based on factors such as age, gender, location, preferred language and interests, so that only people likely to be interested in your offer see your ads. You can even refine your targeting by excluding specific audiences so that only people who are genuinely interested in legal services come into contact with your ads.
3. Cost-effective - Paid search is also a very cost-effective way of reaching potential customers, because you only pay when someone clicks on your ad. This means you don't waste money on ads that nobody sees or is interested in.
4. Saves time - Paid search also saves time, because you don't have to wait for organic traffic to pour in; you can start seeing results from your campaign almost immediately after you launch it.
5. Flexibility - Google Ads lets you tailor your campaign to your specific needs and budget constraints.
SEO for lawyers: Why use an agency?
Search engine optimization (SEO) is going to require a lot of resources and time from your company, so surrounding yourself with professional SEO support will reduce the risk of this investment falling through.
Paid search on Google Ads is even trickier. Although profitable when well managed, it can be very costly. An agency can help you choose the right keywords and create ads that are more likely to be seen by people interested in legal services.
Mangrovea is an expert in lawyer referencing
If you're a law firm looking for more calls and leads for your practice, don't hesitate to get in touch with us. Our agency specializes in Google ad management for law firms, and we'll be able to offer you appropriate services.
Managing your Google Ads performance-based campaigns
We offer performance-based management of your Google Ads campaigns. We take a holistic approach to paid search, starting with a thorough analysis of your company's objectives, target audience and competitive landscape.
We proceed in two stages:
- A test phase to assess your account's potential and compatibility with our performance-based offers. This period generally lasts 2 to 3 months.
- If all goes well, we make you a proposal based on a percentage of the sales generated by our campaigns or a cost per lead.
Once you've switched to pay-for-performance, our objectives are completely aligned with yours.
