I’m starting to get a lot of questions from professionals about why they would actually want to know about SEO, let alone web marketing, for their business that has always thrived on referrals and print advertising. I’m going to break it down into the main buckets of web marketing and explain how SEO is great, but only takes care of a piece of the pie.
1. SEO
This is the gorilla in the room with lawyers, specifically injury law and practices that have little to no repeat customers. Getting leads is the name of the game…or is it? The most important thing to remember is that leads that lawyers, accountants, real estate agents, etc have gotten in the past require an action, typically a phone call. With SEO alone, you get more leads, but you also drop your conversion rate unless you are getting phone calls directly from those search results. It is very difficult to make a sale on your website with no extended marketing strategy, just your web site’s content. PPC tends to have a higher conversion rate, but is most effective when leveraging a brand name, not a service, especially when you are trying to make the return on investment work. The bottom line for SEO is simple – it can generate traffic and can help create leads, but how qualified those leads are depends on your entire strategy.
2. Analytics Funneling/Targeting
Once you get this lead onto your site, what are they looking for? So often websites create the site and leave it alone, spending all their time working on getting more hits to the site instead of giving the current traffic what they want. Analytics funneling describes the process of moving people through a pre-determined course of action to measure effectiveness. After the homepage do they go to “About Us” or do they go to “Services”? How many pages does it take for them to go to the “Contact” area, and once they are there, why don’t they actually contact you? By understanding the traffic flow, you can capitalize on the traffic you work so hard to pull in from search engines.
3. Blog
One of the best ways to build your credibility is to take the time to show you care about your clients by sharing information. A blog can be a great way to differentiate yourself from other professionals in the area, especially if you do not have the big budgets and name recognition. Blogs also synergize with SEO – one of the biggest components to your search engine score is how relevant your content is and how often it is updated. It is one of the most powerful tools you can have to create a personal touch to your website and to help boost your overall marketing presence. When people believe you care about your clients, they are more inclined to sit down and talk with you.
4. Email Marketing
Beyond SEO and PPC, email marketing is the buzz word these days. Gone are the days of loading up your Outlook account with an entire database of clients for events and happenings – now email marketing is a streamlined process that can contain important information about tax law changes, top 5 lists (Top 5 things you need to know if you get pulled over, etc), hottest/featured properties in your area – all content that is relevant and powerful for keep a client or potential client interested. It also gives an easy medium to drive people back to your site (shown to increase lifetime value of customer) and gives email subscribers an easy way to forward your messaging on. Email is also measurable so you know exactly what are the most important issues for your subscribers and what they want to know more about. Similarly, you can see who opens and clicks on your email and do follow ups with those people, as they will be your most qualified leads.
5. Social Media
Facebook and Twitter may seem like they have no place in the professional world, but you would be surprised at how effective it is for a client to see their friends and neighbors join a specific lawfirm’s group or following their accountant on Twitter (esp during tax season!). The credibility you can gain in a niche market can be greatly heightened with a strong social following. Once you get those people on board, they are much less likely to leave your group or move to another one, unless they have a very strong reason to do so. Facebook and Twitter and can also be great avenues of offering insider information such as tips and exclusive access to case studies. Each practice needs a specific strategy to really get this element of marketing to sing.
Special Note: What About Professional Directories?
When choosing a marketing strategy, it may be tempting to buy into the directory pitch. They promise great things – they know your industry better than anyone else, they focus specifically on your area, and they have a fleet of marketing assets to leverage against yours. These are all music to the ears of a professional looking for leads. Before you redeem this golden ticket, you may want to think about the following:
• Professional directories almost make you pay for a year up front. They don’t say “let us prove that this is worth your money and then you can pay the balance.” Everything up front. If it doesn’t work, you’re in a really tough position.
• Directories are notorious for price shoppers. Studies show that customers find a directory in one of the top listings, then filter by case or practice type, then call a handful of practices to find the one that they like and meets their budget. Internet shoppers are extremely price savvy and are not always looking for quality. The leads you get from a directory will be more “this is what I want, how much does it cost” instead of “I need the best professional service in the area, can you help me out?”
• Large systems are built on cutting costs and doing enough to keep you off their back. It’s true with most businesses, but from my experience with people in the professional field, the only thing that matters to these sales teams is getting you to pay them every year. I saw some analytics reports that came from a few of these services and it was a print out of traffic data. If you call a directory team and say “This isn’t working, let’s try something else,” do you think they will create an entirely new strategy that focuses on new marketing methods, turn up the gas on what is currently working, and make sure that they stay flexible so that your phone keeps ringing? Or would they make a few changes and say “We’re going to need a few months for this to really flesh out.”
Each piece of the marketing puzzle has a benefit, but it is only together that your company will really see results. SEO itself can get you a few more leads, but you still might be losing them through the cracks. Having a dedicated resource that can push your business to the next level is vital to the success of your business. To find out what Bluecloud can do for you, contact us.
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Terrific work! This is the type of information that should be shared around the web. Shame on the search engines for not positioning this post higher!
Great article indeed! You really did a great job in telling the world about SEO and web marketing. Kodus to you!
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