5 Tips On SEO Keywords For Lawyers
Updated: Jun 15, 2022
The Basics Of Using Keywords For Lawyer SEO
Keywords are going to be the search terms you want users to find you in. Some keywords are used more frequently than others, and that's why you have to pay attention to them. The keywords you choose to optimize for search engines will also be the ones you will compete in the rankings for.
1. Choose Your Keywords
The first and most important step in your Lawyer SEO strategy is to decide which keywords to use for your law firm's website. Google Analytics is a fantastic tool that may quickly help you find and determine which keywords potential clients use to find you.
Keywords can be divided into two categories:
Short-Tail Keywords. Short-tail keywords are three words or less and cover broad themes. These keywords can also appear in national and global searches. Examples of these keywords are "California Lawyer" and "Criminal Defense Attorney".
Long-Tail Keywords. Unlike short-tail keywords, they might have lower search volumes but are more specific. Examples of these keywords can be "Los Angeles Car Accident Attorney" and "Orange Country Slip And Fall Damages".
2. Do Your Keyword Research
Everything you do for Lawyer SEO should be planned and organized. Don't just go on Google Analytics and pick out the first popular short-tail keywords you see.
You should conduct thorough keyword research, find the most competitive short-tail keywords, and decide long-tail keywords best fit for your law firm. You should also consider using Local SEO keywords, Voice Search, and Mobile Search Optimization.
Set those keywords aside in an excel sheet or text document, so you don't have to worry about remembering all of them.
Remember: Some keywords can lose value over time. Keyword volume, after all, depends on how often searches use them on search engines. So refresh your keywords by doing regular keyword research to update and optimize your pages.
3. Optimize Your Page Using Chosen Keywords
Now that you've determined your keywords, it's time to incorporate them into your website. The following are the best keyword placements:
Headlines, subheadings, and titles. Headings and titles are often the first things site visitors see. They're more likely to click or spend time on a page if it interests them or gives them what they need. So make sure users can see them easily.
Blog posts and articles. If you're using Lawyer SEO to boost your content marketing strategy, you likely have a legal blog. You can strategically incorporate keywords into the body of the text itself. Just make sure the keywords are relevant, and you're not forcing yourself to use them in sentences when they don't make grammatical sense.
Meta tags. Meta descriptions are snippets of information about a specific page that show up in the search results. These should be brief and use keywords to inform the searcher about your page's content.
Images. Search engines use alt text to figure out what your image is about. There's also an image title tag and captions that help describe images to your site visitors.
4. Avoid Keyword Stuffing
Using or "stuffing" too many keywords can make your website look spammy and unsafe.
For Example:
You do not want readers to come across sentences like: "Find a Los Angeles Personal Injury Attorney to resolve California Personal Injury Claims. Personal Injury Damages can help your recovery after a California Car Accident Injury."
Worse, search engines may penalize you if you overuse them. This is "keyword stuffing," and it might affect your law firm's website ranking as a result of it.
The goal is to have a healthy number of keywords in crucial locations, such as those listed above. Don't get carried away by it.
5. Avoid Keyword Cannibalization
You can optimize several pages for the same keywords. However, you have to remember that if two pages or blogs use the same exact keywords, they are likely to compete with each other in the searches. So be careful when you decide how to use you optimize each page.
Remember: The best way to use keywords is to incorporate them in pages where they're most relevant.
So if you're discussing California Personal Injury Laws, save Local SEO keywords like "Los Angeles Personal Injury" and "Orange County Car Accident Lawyer" for more localized blog posts and pages. Likewise, users looking for specific information on "Slip And Fall Accidents" do not want to read about a very general explanation of Personal Injury Laws, so use your keywords wisely.
LawyerLeadMachine Got You in Finding The Right Keywords for Your Law Firm
Remember that you want to select terms that will help you rank and ultimately bring visitors to your law firm website. You will likely achieve these goals if you target as many relevant keywords as possible.
If you want to learn how to do keyword research by yourself, you can look through our Free Lawyer Keyword Research Guide for Law Firms. If you need more advanced assistance with your law firm's marketing strategy, you can review your options here.
