Below is somewhat of an introductory DIY guide to search engine optimization for lawyers. If that’s what you’re looking for, read on! If you don’t have the time to invest and you’re looking to hire SEO experts to get your law practice ranking for you in a timely manner, click here.
Lawyer Search Engine Optimization Houston
Recently we’ve been getting a lot of inquiries from lawyers in the Houston Texas area, so we decided to write this guide for our attorney audience.
What is SEO?
Before we dive into the specifics of how we apply SEO principles to our clients in the legal industry, let’s give you a brief foundational understanding of what the term “SEO” refers to.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the process of optimizing the content on your website so that a search engine will show it as a top result for searches of a certain keyword. In simpler terms, it’s about making your law firm easily discoverable to those seeking legal help online.
Why is SEO important?
- Visibility and Ranking: Higher visibility on search engines increases the likelihood of attracting potential clients. With high enough visibility you are virtually guaranteed to see an increase in the number of client inquiries on a regular basis.
- Credibility: Sites that appear on the first page of search results are often perceived as more credible, because Google has deemed them credible enough to prioritize them in search results.
- Cost-Effectiveness: Unlike paid advertising, the organic traffic generated from SEO is free. Even if you have to invest time and/or money upfront, once you reach certain rankings, your investment in SEO will pay for itself over and over again.
How Does SEO Work?
Keyword Research
The important work of SEO revolves around Keywords.
If you found this guide via a Google search, the words you put in the search box are one example of a keyword.
Keyword is a technical term that can refer to a word or phrase, so whether a search contains 1 word or 10, we still call it a keyword.
For example, if you searched “lawyer search engine optimization Houston,” this counts as one keyword, even though it’s technically a 5 word phrase.
You’re going to have to figure out what keywords you should be focusing on using Keyword Research Tools such as Google Keyword Planner, Ahrefs, SEMRush, among others.
Each keyword tool is a little different. Some are free, like Google’s, while others might offer one or two free tools and also paid plans with advanced functionality and extended/unlimited use.
Content Creation
Once you have a list of keywords you need to create unique content that addresses the intention behind the keyword.
Providing valuable, accurate, and informative content that addresses the searchers’ intention will provide a high quality user experience, giving you favor in the eyes of Google.
Technical SEO, aka On-Site SEO
Technical SEO involves ensuring your site is fast, secure, mobile-friendly, and easy to navigate.
It also involves your appropriate use of header tags, meta descriptions, images, and keywords in your content.
Link Building, aka Off-Site SEO
Link building refers to directly and/or indirectly attracting Backlinks to the specific pages on your website.
When you regularly publish quality content, other websites might link to what you’ve created.
We covered On-Page SEO in the previous section. Link Building is part of Off-Page SEO.
You can think of On-Page SEO as SEO that someone can do on their own, alone, and Off-Page SEO as SEO that requires a “friend”.
How Can I Use SEO For My Law Firm?
So far you’ve learned the basics of SEO, why it’s important, and how it works in general.
Now it’s time to focus on the unique approach to SEO that is required for lawyers and law firms.
The main distinction between general SEO and “lawyer SEO” is the keywords you’ll be optimizing for.
Examples of SEO Keywords for Lawyers
The keywords you will want to target in your firm’s SEO strategy will depend on your area of law. Below we listed different potential keywords to optimize for based on the type of law you practice, giving a few examples for each.
| Type of Law Firm | Potential Keywords To Optimize For |
|---|---|
| Family Law |
“Houston family law attorney”, “Family law specialist in Houston”, “Houston child custody lawyer” |
| Personal Injury Law |
“Personal injury lawyer Houston”, “Houston car accident attorney”, “Slip and fall lawyer in Houston” |
| Criminal Law |
“Houston criminal defense attorney”, “DWI lawyer Houston”, “Felony defense lawyer in Houston” |
| Employment Law |
“Employment lawyer Houston”, “Houston workplace discrimination attorney”, “Wage dispute lawyer in Houston” |
| Estate Planning Law |
“Estate planning attorney Houston”, “Houston probate lawyer”, “Trust and estate lawyer in Houston” |