Teaching Fishing And Law Firm Search Engine Marketing
As the saying goes:
“Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime.”
To the contrary, when it comes to law firm search engine marketing (SEM), most lawyers are better-off getting the fish.
Recently, it seems like everyone is trying to “teach” lawyers how to do law firm search engine marketing (SEM). Now don’t get me wrong, there are some components of SEM that lend themselves nicely to being quite effective for lawyers. For example, many lawyers with whom I have chatted have found great results from their legal blog efforts.
However, when it comes to truly generating large amounts of targeted internet traffic that eventually turns into legal clients, I think most lawyers are better-served “getting the fish” instead learning how to do it.
The truth is, getting found online by legal consumers is complicated, time-consuming, and highly competitive. Keyword research, on-page search engine optimization, and landing page implementation can be a full-time job in and of themselves. And that is not even to mention link-building!
It is not to say that lawyers aren’t capable of learning these strategies, but instead that they simply don’t have time to do all the things it really takes to get ranked and get inquiries. Being a former lawyer myself, I couldn’t find enough time in the day to answer emails, let alone launch search engine marketing campaigns.
Unfortunately, too many “gurus” in law firm search engine marketing are painting an unrealistic picture of what it takes to properly execute search engine marketing campaigns. How many times have you heard that you need to create great content?
You want to make a bet? Go to Google right now and search for a keyword that you think is relevant to your practice and has search volume. Click on one of the sites and look around. I’ll bet you that it isn’t “great content” that is driving that site to the top. Do you see any?
Unless you are Susan Cartier Liebel, Marc J. Randazza, or Richard Posner (authors of some of the most read blawgs in the ABA’s blawg directory), you probably aren’t going to be able drive a whole lot of traffic with “great content” alone.
Lawyers are much better served by developing partnerships with law firm SEM professionals. The trick is finding the right ones and developing relationships that generate positive returns on search marketing investments. Look for law firm marketing solutions that are accountable and measurable. Always remember that in the end, every dollar that you spend on any advertising or marketing, including search engine marketing, must eventually generate more than one dollar of new business for your law firm.
So, to all you so-called professors of law firm SEM, just give the poor guy/gal the fish already.
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