"Most search marketers are used to looking at things from a single perspective: that of a search marketer. Some of the more savvy marketers know enough to look at things from the perspective of end users as well, since those are the people they are ultimately trying to influence. The savviest of search marketers know that it's also important to step back from time to time and try to think like a search engine engineer."

 It is so true.  I am constantly amazed by the lawyers I speak with who want to show up for searches that consumers would never even consider typing in.  If you are a lawyer, you have to remember that your training and experience put you in a whole different place than your clients.  They don't think like you do - and they don't search like you do. 

 Consumers are hungry for information - so give them information.  Provide them with relevant and useful information about their injury or condition.  Provide them with resources.  Become the resource so other websites provide your site as a resource.  Then consumers will find your site and, when they are ready to hire a lawyer, they will contact you.

 It's simple, just stop thinking like a lawyer.

Dan Goldstein
Page 1 Solutions

Check out a few pictures on my blog:

http://www.page1solutions.com/Blog/Jonathan/ 

Jonathan Fashbaugh
Internet Marketing Consultant
Page 1 Solutions

First of all, I recommend that you bump it up toward the top of your to-do list.  Blogging is a really fast and easy way to promote your website, so give it the attention that it deserves. Afterall, if it brings more clients in the door, isn't it a worthwhile investment?

Next, eliminate every excuse - including, "I don't know what to write about." Writing topics are everywhere. Did you pass a car accident on the way in to work? Blog about it. Be mindful of possible blog ideas when you watch the news. You can also quickly browse some of the news websites out there such as CNN.com, Google News, and your local newspaper's website. These sources frequently feature stories that you can use to create blog posts.  Simply mention the news item, possibly including a synopsis of the story, and offer your opinion as an attorney. If you found the story online, you can link to the page where you found it. It's also helpful to link to any relevant pages of your site. So, when commenting on the latest drug that has been brought under scrutiny, you could link to your dangerous drug page.

You can also blog about the things going on in your community and about office activities. Blog about the office Holiday party, a birthday, a retirement; anything's fair game. These kinds of posts show visitors to your site that you're human and that you care about what goes on at your office enough to post it on your site.  This illustrates caring and dedication.

Remember, your blog entries don't need to be long, although more content does provide more for the search engines to spider. The important thing is that you blog often: at least once per week.

Jonathan Fashbaugh
Page 1 Solutions

1. Add two new pages every month.  Search engines are looking for fresh original content - and consumers are too.  So help them out by adding new pages to your website every month.  There are lots and lots of things to write about.  Just think about all the questions you answer for your clients every day.  We can help too.  Page 1 writes lots of content for our attorney website sites every day.  Think ahead.  Identify 12 topics for new content.  We will write all twelve pages and you can review and edit them all at once.  Once approved, we will add two pages a month like clockwork and the search engines will see your site as a growing resource about consumer oriented legal information.
2. Add a blog to your site.  For the same reasons explained above, a blog can be a tremendous resource.  It doesn't take long to make an entry.  15 minutes at most.  Just think about what you did today or what issues came across your desk.  Dictate it and add it in.  If you write two or three blog postings a week, the search engines will start to take notice.  You can make it easy on yourself by asking other attorneys and even paralegals in your office to write blog entries.  The more the merrier.  You just need to make that commitment.
3. Add a privacy policy to your website.  This is a minor item, but it does help create an aura of legitimacy to your website.
4. Get more inbound links.  Links are one of the major ways that search engines judge the credibility of your website.  The more links you get from more credible sites, the better.  Ask your colleagues at other non-competing firms to link to your website.  Ask medical professionals including chiropractors and physical therapists who you work with to link to your site. Go to the websites of your college and law school.  Make sure your listing with the alumni association includes your website address - maybe link directly to your bio page.  Ask for links back from charities or other community organizations that you contribute to or participate in.  All these will help you, but you can still do more.
5. Buy links (carefully) from reputable websites where you can do so without indicating that you are buying them.  We can help you with this.
6. We will help you with links from directories.  There are lots of them.
7. Make sure your yellow page listings (online) all link back to your website.
8. Write articles and get them posted in the local newspaper.  Most of them include an online edition.  There are lots of websites that will accept a credible article from you.  Make sure that you include a hyperlink back to your website.
9. Write a press release each time you have a success.  Send it to your local publications.  There are lots or places that will publish your press releases.
   

This only scratches the surface.  There are lots more ideas where this came from.  The point is RESOLVE to get busy to help promote your website in 2007.

 Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Dan Goldstein
Page 1 Solutions

It is equally important however to keep in mind that it is the visitors to the website who are the ultimate decision makers for the site’s popularity and are hence the single most important aspect of a website.

Visitors are those people that you attempt to attract to your site and they are the ones that will essentially make your website and hence your business successful. Hence , it is very important that the site be "user-friendly" and have the ability to attract a visitor to contact the Business or to make that Purchase.

Today Search engines too are changing the way they rank sites and are not only promoting natural web pages, with good content and natural links but are also looking into tracking a user's browsing pattern in order to rank search results . A site that is bookmarked and visited frequently will almost always rank higher.

Ultimately, the focus comes back to emphasizing visitor optimization and content optimization, creating a unique experience for the visitor and holding their attention by providing information in a simple, attractive and fun way.

Debby D'silva

Bill Fukui

Page 1 Solutions 

Now, while there is nothing wrong with promoting any given law firm in such a way, the one thing I was always trying to find with these commercials (besides the fact that none of them offered a website) was any individual law firm's Unique Selling Proposition (USP). In other words, what was it that one personal injury law firm had over the next one in my town that would get me to pick up my phone?

You see, the problem I deal with the most in everyday website marking is not so much how to get any particular law firm into the top of Google's results, but rather, how to keep them there. And the one thing I've noticed is the law firm that offers some sort of unique proposition will typically have an easier time of not only creating better results in Google, Yahoo, MSN and others, but maintaining those results will be less work due to the fact that their website doesn't appear to be an average, run-of-the-mill law website.

There are many reasons for promoting your USP. First of all, unique propositions create unique content that, with the help of a skilled copywriter, can be transformed into highly relevant and highly informative information - just the information the top search engines are looking to rank. Second, unique propositions peek the interest of potential clients, especially those who are doing research for who they think really is the 'best lawyer in town'.  Also, USPs give people something to remember – something to hold on to. It's something they can easily translate to their friends and family, something that's useful.

So how do you find your USP?

I think most lawyers can come up with this on their own time. But here are a few ideas. Start with facts and figures. Lets say you just won a huge personal injury case against a popular drug manufacturer, or public company, and you recovered a large sum of money for your client. This is just the sort of information you wanna splash all over your website. Or, say a very popular magazine just voted you "One of the Top Law Firms in the State". Again, make it well known. Another way of finding a great USP is to simply offer a benefit that the general public is unaware of. Free consultations, and No recovery, no fee, are fine propositions, but highly overused, and quite frankly, the effect is not the same as say a lawyer who announces that he will travel across the state for free to consult with someone who is injured.

In other words, help your potential client see the benefit of hiring you.

 Nathan Joynt

Long-term search engine optimization basically means that your website will receive ongoing optimization on a regular basis. This is something that Page 1 Solutions strives to do.

We are constantly researching new keywords that generate results for our clients and will incorporate those keywords into our client’s websites through updated content. In order to succeed, your website needs to be graphically up to date and most importantly, have frequently updated content. This helps the search engines to see that your website is always being updated and kept fresh, which encourages the Search Engines to come back to the site more frequently. This helps the website to obtain higher rankings.

Long term SEO also includes monthly site submissions, link building and doing ongoing analysis and maintenance of the website.

We provide reporting of our analysis to our clients so that they are always kept in the loop. We also provide continuous link building efforts. Our link building strategies include constant research into finding the most qualified and relevant links for your particular site, which can help to raise your ranking with all of the search engines.

With constant research of your website along with the competitors, we are able to find the best ways for your site to reach the top and remain there.

Alex Juel
SEO Specialist
Page 1 Solutions