Local SEO For Law Firms: A Definitive Guide

Are you a lawyer or a law firm in need of SEO services to reach potential clients and rank high on local search engine results pages?

If you're a beginner, you must invest in the most effective local SEO tactics for law firms that reap the best results from local SEO efforts.

In that case, local SEO for law firms is where you need to kick-start to optimize for local search results.

In this guide to law firm local SEO, you'll get an insight into what is local SEO and why it matters for law firms, how to optimize your Google My Business, and more local SEO services.

Need to hire an SEO company? Learn about our local SEO services for law firms.

What is Local SEO?

To begin with, Local SEO or local search engine optimization refers to optimizing your website for specific locations. This means that if you have many office locations, each one should have its own optimized page on your website to rank on Google search effectively for your local audience.

When Google determines that a search query has location-based intent, your company will appear in Google's SERPs' local pack.

Why is Local SEO important?

Here are some of the benefits you can get when your website is optimized for Local SEO:

• Boost your law firm's search visibility on local searches.
• Local business listings can increase your local authority.
• Customers can leave their ratings and reviews, which helps local rankings.
• Your local prospective clients can find you faster.
• Provide your business information such as an address, contact details, and services.

How does Local SEO work?

Google bases its decision on local rankings:

01. Relevance:

Google determines if your legal company is a good match whenever someone searches for an attorney. Therefore, be sure to complete your Google My Business profile details so that Google can match your law firm to pertinent searches.

02. Distance:

This indicates that Google considers the travel time between your legal practice and the search location. Therefore, if you work in Boston and the user types "business lawyer in Detroit," your law firm won't appear in the SERP.

One of the local ranking criteria you cannot change is distance; nevertheless, if your legal team provides services that are more relevant to the searcher's needs, it may still be rated higher even though it is a little further away.

03. Prominence:

If your law company is well-known, Google ranks it higher. In other words, law firms that are listed in directories, have lots of reviews, and receive high-quality backlinks are rated higher.

How to optimize local SEO for law firms?

01. Create and optimize Google My Business profile

First, you need to create a Google My Business profile to optimize your law firm's local SEO.

A person is more likely to receive Local Pack results if they are seeking service in their neighbourhood or if they use localized search phrases like "best law firm in London."

That's why, you must optimize your law firm's Google business profile page for local search results. This is how you do it:

• On Google Maps, enter the precise location of your legal office.
• Add your law firm website and other information, e.g. opening hours, business name, address, phone number, etc. (make sure to put in these details correctly and exactly in the same as on your website and other places across the Internet).
• Select a category for your law firm that precisely reflects your area of practice (for example, select "estate planning lawyer" over "law firm").
• Use the 'Introduction' area to give a brief overview of your company and to include links and pertinent keywords.
• Include pictures of the exterior and interior of the business, as well as a 360-degree office tour.
• To increase your exposure and user experience, include a 360-degree office tour and industry-specific images of your company's outside and interior, as well as your legal team.

Here's an example of an optimized GMB local law firm profile.

02. Reviews and Ratings

Consumers care about online reviews, which are a key determinant of their decision to patronize your company.

According to recent research, 53% of customers want a company to reply to a bad review within seven days. Don't forget, though, to include good ratings. Responding to such is also crucial.

Customers can tell you to give excellent customer service and that you care about what they think of your company if they notice that you reply to online reviews.

03. Legal directories and Citations

If you've heard of backlinks or link building, this is a great way to start.

The benefits of listing your website in legal directories are twofold. First, you can build your domain authority. Secondly, having your NAP (name, address, phone number, and website) listed in directories helps your rating.

Google considers recommendations from websites with good domain authority as a sign that your legal business is reliable and authoritative.

For law firm SEO, there are two different sorts of citations that are crucial:

Organized citations:

These can be found in online directories like Yelp and FindLaw for lawyers.

Citations without a framework:

PR, blogs, and social media are some of the citations which fall into this category.

Unstructured citations can provide your law firm with a competitive edge and increase traffic to your website, whereas structured citations are a requirement for any local business.

Read More: Local SEO Audit Checklist To Reach More Locals

04. Optimize Website

If you already have a website, this means you must audit whether the site's on-page and technical SEO issues are resolved and optimized according to the best practices.

Fixing broken links, optimizing your website's load speed, including your goal keywords in page titles and content, and creating a user-friendly site structure are all examples of this.

If you are creating a new website, be sure your web developer knows SEO and can create a site that is both search engine and user-friendly.

Your website will rank higher if it loads quickly, is easy to use, and can be indexed by search engines.

05. Content

To improve local SEO, quality content showcasing your law firm's expertise, and services is essential.

When your audience visits your website, content plays a major role in converting them.

Hence, you must inform visitors about what you do, how you can assist them, and how they may contact you.

Content optimization with local keywords can also attract organic visitors for their local queries.

Here's what you can do to create content for your law firm:

As the first step, you need to know the keywords your website should rank for.

For this, you can use keyword research tools like Semrush, and Google Search Console, or hire an SEO company for content strategy. They can help you in researching the relevant location-based terms, the services you provide and the content topics.

For example, if you offer corporate law services in Glasgow, you could target phrases such as [Glasgow Corporate Law Firms] or [Corporate Legal Services].

With these keywords, you can optimize your meta tags (Meta Title, Meta Description), service pages, and home pages and create informational blog content.

You can also refer to websites and content provided by your competitor law firms to get an idea of how you can create your content strategy.

06. Mobile Friendly Experience

67% of users search for a product or service on a mobile daily. And this percentage is more likely to skyrocket in the future.

Moreover, mobile friendliness is a significant ranking factor and also ensures that users stay engaged.

So, when a client visits your law firm's website, it must be user-friendly on all mobile devices.

Hence, create a mobile-friendly version of your website with clear text, fast-loading graphics, and clear call-to-action buttons.

Tip: Use Google Search Console or Google Mobile Friendly Test to determine the mobile-friendly issues and status of your website.

Read More: Mobile SEO: 9 Essential Best Practices And Tools

Conclusion

By optimizing your website for local search, Google My Business Profile, and creating an effective content strategy, you can elevate your local reach.

Furthermore, you can also supercharge your online visibility with more ratings and reviews. When you optimize for all these elements, you can ensure that you not only reach your potential clientele but also provide a satisfactory, reliable service.

Reach out to us to learn more about our local SEO services.

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