Hey lawyers, this is episode 2 in a 3 part series and today I’m talking about “What are the Most Valuable Elements for a Law firm Website?”

In the last episode, “What law firms should bother with a website?” I shared a brief history of websites and my weird story of learning SEO under very odd circumstances.

The short answer is all law firms need a website, but be sure you understand what a website really is – and what it is not in 2022.

Today’s episode is about the most valuable elements in a law firm website today in 2022 with a little history lesson so you can see if you are paying for something you don’t need. But first a personal note.

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PERSONAL (WHY NO VIDEO THIS WEEK!)

Jump down to chapter one if you don’t want to know about what can go terribly wrong on a video shoot….

Yup… I’m crying in the corner over my beloved 5 year old amazing monster camera called “Pinky” (not pink at all).

My “Pinky” was like my right arm. She was my expression of creativity shooting my lawyers (and music videos).

But 5 years is old in the life of Pinky (or any video camera). Nevertheless, I’m about to contact United to see if there’s any recourse for her irreparable damage.

(I always name my cameras with girl names…)

Here’s the story:

Well, I just returned today from Louisville, Kentucky filming one of my most favorite clients. I set off to film 20 videos. Mike usually comes to us in Sausalito, but because of a lot of extenuating circumstances I wanted to go to him with one of my favorite friend/actresses. We’re all very close friends.

We usually film a handful of spots for TV and Internet (including Facebook, Google Maps, YouTube and of course Instagram). Some lawyers are asking me about Tik Tok and that’ll be the next frontier!

To cut to the point, I got all the footage but every single thing around the gear went wrong!

This is my warning to you video enthusiast law firms!!! You might want to really consider A.I. videos (articles linked below).

All my issues on this shoot would have been solved if we simply had A.I. videos. But there’s never a substitute for the real lawyer on camera if she/he has the inclination.

• How to Use A.I. Videos for Law Firm Training
• How to use Avatar Videos for Email Automations (Training and Marketing)
• How to use A.I. Videos for Facebook Ads

What went wrong with the KY shoot:

1) when I got to Louisville, my camera was smashed by United.

2) The lighting never showed up.

3) The green screen Mike ordered was forever going to be wrinkled which does not allow us to use it for filming.

4) The only video camcorder in Louisville available had no audio input.

So with no camera, lighting, green screen or audio how did I make it work?

Let’s start with my broken camera. My camera was unable to film anything visual but the audio inputs worked. So we clapped (like the old clapperboard days) to line up the audio later in post production (big job).

What about lighting? We went to Home Depot and got lots of what I call “Painter’s lights” which actually looked fabulous at least during production!

Wrinkled green screens don’t work. While the green screen Mike ordered had wrinkles after steaming, ironing and washing/drying I always try and have back ups of things and had ordered a roll of green paper which did show up in time.

The only camcorder in Louisville was awful. The stabilization was much worse than an iPhone. So it had to sit on a tripod. But it did have the right file format. It worked as long as you don’t move it at all! (So lame in 2022) But that’s exactly what’s needed for green screen footage! (And this camera cost me nearly $1,000). I returned that camera on the way to the airport and luckily got my money back!

It was actually lots of fun and I will never forget the love, kindness and hospitality of Mike and his team. We came back to Sausalito triumphant with all the footage we need to start logging and editing the footage. We got a pile of “Warm and Fuzzy” and “Funny” spots! I’ll keep you posted!

And now on with the show! (about Websites)

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CHAPTER 1: The History of Law Firm Website Elements

DON’T BE EXPENSIVELY STUCK IN THE PAST

This section is so you can see if you have an up to date website or you are relying on something that is no longer necessary. I’m talking about search optimization, blogging and backlinks.

Now remember this section is so you can see if you’re paying for something that is not necessary in today’s world of websites for law firms.

SEARCH OPTIMIZATION
Old days SEO
In the old days there were paid Google Ads, and then organic search results. And you got there by doing a lot of work on and off your website to place your website at the top! Only the top three websites would get any clicks. 

BLOGGING

Are you paying for blogging in the right way?
Starting in about 2010, it was necessary for your website to have continuous and regular blogging with keywords to get and keep your website to the top of the organic search results. Being one of the top three in organic search meant you would meet lots of new clients who found your website on Google.

Lawyers would hire someone like us, to write weekly articles about your practice areas. When written correctly for SEO, these articles were educational and packed with the right keywords in all the right places in order to give Google bots the idea that your website should be on the top of the search results.

To be honest that kind of writing was weird. We had to put the keywords everywhere, in the headlines, the URL and in the body of text making the articles have a strange redundant quality.

BACKLINKS
Are you getting links to your website?
Back in the day it was also crucial to get lots of high quality links to your website. This often meant press relations. Getting a news article written about your firm was crucial, and talking the writer into linking your website while using the right keywords (called anchor text) was also part of the equation for top Google ranking.

The section that used to be called “organic” or “natural search”, is now Google Maps.

Today, usually only 1 law firm tends to be at the top of the Google Searches. But what is “the top of Google Searches” exactly? What do I mean by this?

We mostly see Google Ads, then Google Maps, then listing sites like Findlaw and Avvo, then maybe one law firm gets in there near the end.

I do not want to put you to sleep, so that’s all the geekiness I’m going to share here. (of course there’s lots more)

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CHAPTER 2: The Most Valuable Law Firm Website Elements Today

Today, Google Maps is now the top organic three search results.

Yes, it is still necessary to understand SEO, keywords, writing articles and search optimization these days just like before. Today we utilize this talent on all platforms, not just your website. And when I say “all platforms,” I mean Google Maps, Social Media (including YouTube), and of course your website.

So be sure if you’re paying for “content writing”, make sure it’s all optimized the same way I’ve described here.

DUPLICATE CONTENT
Duplicate content will lose your Google Maps listing and it’s hard to get it back. So yes, you need to write content slightly different for each place you post.

CONTENT STYLE
Also I always note the most valuable content is written at the level of about 6th grade.

CONTENT
Educating potential clients about what to do next when they’re beginning to think they need your help is the most valuable content.

Every potential client is in the same frame of mind. Something happened, and now they need to know what to do next. Believe it or not there is an endless amount of content you can write on this subject to fill your website with helpful educational content.

INWARD FACING CONTENT
Also I mentioned in the last episode that your website contains private areas where we have intake forms that notify the law firm when a new client has been taken through a questionnaire. Client forms can be uploaded to your website, and so much more. Think of your website as a cloud based content management system.

RECAP

• Use your search engine optimization on all your assets
• Make sure your website has well written content that educations clients what to do next
• Use your website for inward facing documents and forms

In the last episode you learned your website needs regular maintenance and hosting. There’s a monthly expense to having a website.

In my final episode about websites, I’m going to go deeper into “What Law Firm Websites Cost and Why.”

If you need help modernizing your website, or building a fresh new website, or want to learn how to build WordPress websites, kindly let me know. I’d love to hear your ideas. My name is Mary Cary and my email is Mary@GoMediaMarketing.com