As a lawyer competing for clients in the tech-savvy 21st century, your most valuable tool is the internet. And to compete against the myriad of other lawyers already online, you need to invest in an effective website that attracts, engages, and converts readers into clients. This is no time for a blind approach, either. You need a well-crafted strategy that’s designed with your niche in mind.
Understanding What Your Website Does
It would be incorrect to assume that simply having a website is enough. There is a major difference between a website and a high-converting website, and you want to focus on the latter. In fact, many would argue that having a poor-designed website is actually worse than not having one at all. That’s because it shows potential clients that you lack commitment and quality and they’ll inadvertently view your services in the same light.
A website is more than a few pages thrown on a screen. It’s essentially your piece of internet real estate – a blank canvas of sorts – that needs to be built and maintained. It’s your virtual storefront and should be a critical component of your client acquisition strategy.
Tips for Building a Website That Converts
Don’t underestimate the value of your website and start focusing on how you can use it to drive business and reinforce your overall reputation. Here are some of the top tips for lawyers and firms looking to build a new site or increase existing conversion rates:
· Focus on simple. Over time, it’s become clear that internet users prefer a simple layout and streamlined navigation over complicated overlays and busy pages. Your goal should be to keep your web design as simple, attractive, and concise as possible. You want to say more with less and avoid distracting site visitors with irrelevant information or unnecessary bells and whistles.
· Invest in A/B testing. The value of A/B split testing can’t be stressed enough. This technique allows you to analyze the efficacy of two elements side by side. For example, you could set up an A/B test to see which headline converts better, or which call to action does a better job of encouraging readers to submit their contact information. Conversion testing is incredibly powerful and there are plenty of free and paid tools to help you get started.
· Tout your value. Can website visitors clearly see your value on your site? Is your value proposition easy to understand? It’s up to you to convince readers to stick around and you must provide elements of trust. For example, this firm does an excellent job of posting their certifications, awards, and membership statuses at the top of the homepage. This is much more effective than tucking them away in some corner at the bottom of your contact page.
· Pay for content. Attempting to write site copy on your own can be a bad idea. Unless you have a professional writer on your staff, it’s probably best to contract this task out to a reputable content marketing company. While your layout and images attract, it’s ultimately the copy that converts. If you already have existing copy that seems to be underperforming, you may need to make a few tweaks.
· Drive traffic with SEO. Finally, you can’t forget to invest in SEO. Without a strong SEO foundation, even the best website will underperform. You need traffic and the search engines provide the best opportunity to increase visits and add clients.
Putting it All Together
In the end, it comes down to how well you can use your website to clearly convey value and incite emotional responses in your visitors. By focusing on engagement, instead of self-promotion, you can expect high conversion rates and healthy returns on your investment in online marketing.
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