Long-Tail Searches (Multiple Word Searches) Are Increasing

I am frequently asked by law firms what types of words and phrases prospective clients use to find them. Of course, the answer has a lot to do with their respective practice areas and the common terms searched within them. Then there is the 40-50% of those non-repeatable searches that although less in volume, tend to be more case specific and therefore more valuable to law firms.



According to a report out this year by Hitwise, the number of these long-tail searches continue to increase while the more simple searches of 3 words or less, although still significant in total volume, continues to decline. In fact, searches with 8 or more words witnessed the largest year-over-year growth at 20%.



So how do law firms increase the chances of catching these searches? SEO Design and increased SEO content is usually the first place to start. In highly competitive markets, it is also helpful to improve your off-site SEO methods as well with such things as inbound linking, Google local optimization, etc.