6 Tips For Optimizing Your Firm’s Website For Local Search
One of the most important resources for getting your practice in front of local audiences is the Internet. But, for potential clients in your local area to find you, your site needs to be optimized for local search. This is especially important given the rapid increase in mobile search and the fact that 4 out of 5 people use their smart phones to look up local information.
Here are 6 tips for optimizing your website for local search:
1) Establish and maintain a consistent N.A.P. (Name, Address and Phone Number) Profile across the web. This begins by claiming your identity on Google Plus, Angie’s List and other local-focused resources. Your identifying details should be identical on every search site. There are professional services that can help you maintain N.A.P. consistency. One example, NeustarLocaleze, is a subscription product that will provide your up-to-date and accurate contact information to hundreds of local platforms so that your identity is consistent.
2) Include your name, address and phone number on all relevant pages of your site. Make sure that the information is consistent with the N.A.P. profile discussed above. And, do not include the information in an image. Your contact information needs to be in the text of your page so that search engines can crawl it and include it in your listings.
3) Mention your city and state location in title tags and body text of your site. When crafting a title tag for your home page, choose a name that reflects your specialty and location. A Phoenix family law specialist, for instance, should use something along the lines of “Phoenix, Arizona Family Law” or “Family Law Practice – Phoenix, Arizona.” Repeat usage of these location details on other relevant pages of your site like the contact, about, and practice area pages. Your blog posts and body text on your pages should also include information about your location, but make sure that the references are natural.
4) Create a Google+ business page. This page helps establish your identity and authenticity as a business with Google and can rank in local search results, typically grouped along with other local law firms and a map showing the location of each.
5) If you blog on your law site, establish Google Authorship, as well. Google Authorship links your personal Google Plus profile to any content that you author. It puts your headshot and your name next to your site in search results, which can increase your name recognition and increase click-through rates to your site.
6) Get listed on your local Chamber of Commerce websites and other local business and association websites. One of the prime benefits of these listings is that they provide what is known as local citations. These are mentions of your website and links to your site from a locally targeted, authoritative source. Google considers these local citations valuable to local search so they help improve the search engine ranking of your site.
A local search optimized legal website is one of the most powerful and cost-effective tools for helping new clients find you. Put it to work for your small or solo firm to make the most of your online presence.
Thinking about updating your law firm’s website?
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Want to learn more? Attend the free SEO webinar this month!
Jennifer Ellis, attorney, educator, and online marketing consultant is teaming up with MyCase to present the basics of SEO and give you the tools you need to start driving traffic to your website.
Register for the free 60-minute webinar on Thursday, May 29, 2014 at 11 AM PT and 2 PM ET to learn:
• The difficulties surrounding modern SEO
• How to avoid black hat SEO efforts
• Why content is king
• The importance of local search
• Appropriate and inappropriate links
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