Best Practices for Becoming a Rainmaker on the Internet, Part 2 of 5

All this week, I am giving readers several of the best practices in becoming a rainmaker on the Internet.
 Today’s post is about content.

Create compelling copy. I strongly recommend you consider hiring a professional copywriter to write the copy on your website. Yes, I know, every lawyer out there writes for a living. However, the gulf between writing a great legal brief and creating compelling copy can be like the Grand Canyon. The number-one purpose of your website is to compel visitors to pick up the phone and call you. A great copywriter can create credible copy that will get your phone ringing. Another purpose of your website copy is to help you rank well in the search engines. One way to do this is by using the exact same words and phrases you researched in step one in the copy of your website. Each page should focus on four to six phrases. For example, one page may focus on four phrases such as “Orange County California personal injury lawyers,” “Orange County California personal injury attorneys,” “Los Angeles California personal injury lawyers,” and “Los Angeles County California personal injury attorneys.”


Key Action Points:
•    Consider hiring a professional copywriter to write your website copy.
•    Be sure to include on each page the keywords for which you want to rank high.
•    Include a call to action on every page. Tell people what you want them to do: call you, register, sign up, etc.

Add fresh content regularly. Perhaps the top strategy used by high-ranking lawyers today is to add new, relevant content to their websites on a consistent basis. This is one of the major reasons for the explosion in blogs in recent years. A blog is a type of website that is regularly updated, and the entries are often displayed in reverse-chronological order with the newest entry at the top. Although some law firms are selecting blogs instead of websites, I believe there is a place for each in online legal marketing. If, for economic reasons, you are forced to select between one or the other, I recommend starting out with a blog. Why? Because they are very low cost (or free) as compared to websites and, if done properly, will help you rank faster than a traditional website.

Anyone can start a blog at no cost using sites such as www.wordpress.com and www.blogger.com. At a minimum, we recommend updating your blog weekly. For any serious traffic, you need to be updating three to five times per week. Lawyers who want to be at the top of the search engines update their blog three to five times per day. Google loves fresh content. The more relevant content your blog gives Google, the more it will love your blog by ranking it higher.


Key Action Points:
•    Search engines love fresh content.
•    The more fresh, relevant content you post on your website or blog, the higher you will rank on the search engines.
•    Blogs are a great place to get started, but in order to be effective they must be updated frequently.
•    Update your blog at least three to five times per week.

Read more of the series:

Best Practices for Becoming a Rainmaker on the Internet, Part 1 of 5.

Best Practices for Becoming a Rainmaker on the Internet, Part 3 of 5.

Best Practices for Becoming a Rainmaker on the Internet, Part 4 of 5.

Best Practices for Becoming a Rainmaker on the Internet, Part 5 of 5.