May was a busy month for dissecting the latest legal marketing trends. Two separate studies looked at the landscape of legal marketing and the expectations of the new legal consumer. The first is summarized with an infographic from FindLaw and Google, while the second was based on a 2015 study conducted by Avvo. Both offer valuable insight for planning your marketing strategy over the coming months.
In addition to rolling out yet another algorithm update relating to mobile, Google also released a tool for testing whether your site is mobile-friendly. If you haven’t guessed by now, having a site that offers a great mobile experience has become a necessity. If you’re still not there, it’s time to look over this checklist for making sure your site is mobile-friendly.
Aside from these top stories, there were some great articles on Search Engine Optimization (SEO) trends, content marketing, and the impending rise of voice search on mobile. Here’s what you might have missed:
- If you’ve been hit up by someone pitching the new .lawyer, .attorney, or .law top-level domains (TLDs), you might want to read Mockingbird’s expose of the highly suspicious “case study” currently being used to pitch these (mostly worthless) TLDs to unsuspecting attorneys.
- High-quality video content can drive potential customers to your website and help convert visitors into clients. There are many ways you can use video to supplement your marketing efforts, and Lawyernomics by Avvo covered four ways video can attract new cases for your firm.
- Vocal search is continuing to grow, with Google saying 20 percent of mobile queries are now voice searches. A recent article from Search Engine Watch offered tips for adapting to the rise of voice search.
- Keyword research continues to be an important element in building a successful SEO strategy. Moz’s Dr. Pete broke down Keyword Research in 2016 and provided insight into what it takes to go beyond the guesswork.
- Also from Moz’s blog, a post on 10 free online marketing tools every small business owner needs provided links to a variety of resources you probably didn’t even know you’d been missing out on.
- For content marketing, two different listicles tell you what you might be doing wrong and how to be better. The first article covered the 7 deadly sins of content marketing, while the second offered 7 ways to ensure you maximize your ROI from content.
- Finally, Search Engine Land wrote about 4 effective local positioning strategies you’re overlooking. The “often-overlooked strategies” included in this article should help you gain insight into what your potential clients are looking for while also elevating your rankings for local searches.
That’s it for this month’s roundup. Keep working toward an optimal mobile experience, start thinking about voice search, and as always, write great content. Best of luck in the SERPs.
About the Author: Jason Arango is the Director of Marketing for GJEL Accident Attorneys. He’s been involved in online marketing since 2007, and has worked with companies such as Village Voice Media and Clear Channel Communications.