Sunday, October 25, 2009

PI Report for September '09 Now Released


The PI (Personal Injury) report for September 2009 is now up on the website. This is a great resource for personal injury and medical malpractice attorneys who want to find out what the top search keywords and phrases are for their practice online.


If you are a Personal Injury or Medical Malpractice, please visit our website today to read the PI (Personal Injury) report so you can improve your online case generation.



Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Another Good Article On The Importance Of Press Release SEO & Link Building

Press Releases--SEO's Booster Shot

In recent years Press Releases, traditionally one tool among many for media marketers, have taken on a whole new role in the world of Search Engine Marketing. The SEO press release is nothing less than a booster shot—an invaluable strategy for new or struggling businesses to dramatically increase the visibility of their message, improve their rankings and build long-term authority for their business.

Increased Visibility: Traditional press releases were distributed through major media, but the technology of new media is faster and reaches a wider audience. Online wire services such as PRWeb, Business Wire, or PR Newswire ensure your release will be syndicated on a host of popular and authoritative online news sites—Google and Yahoo News, among others--and their respective news feeds.

Keyword Textual Links: Strategically embedding your press release with links anchored by your targeted keywords boosts your search rankings for those pages and key terms literally overnight, as your links are desseminated among thousands of websites frequently indexed by search engines. Online wire services set a limit on links per number of words, so be sure to carefully choose your anchor text and link it to a relevant landing page with a strong call to action.

Link Authority: Even after your press release is “old” and is added to the news archives, the inbound links from these high-ranking news sources remain valuable, lending long-term credibility and authority to your site to improve your search engine rankings.

Benefits For Law Firms: Law Firms can now benefit from the use of press releases by creating tectual inbound deep-links into targeted practice area pages to promote the visibility of each. We can help you with this through law firm website consulting services.

Crafting an SEO Press Release Tactical benefits of distributing a press release aside, a good press release should have a purpose and convey a compelling message. You can use a press release to:
- Announce important news or events surrounding your business
- Promote new products, services or special offers aimed at a target audience
- Enhance your brand by responding directly to customers' questions or concerns about your product
- Offer a professional opinion about a current event or topic related to your industry

Finally, to get the most clicks for your message, include a short, catchy and descriptive headline utilizing strategic keywords relevant to your target audience. Most web consumers do judge a page by its title, and so do search engines, so be sure to make yours relatable and coherent!

Source: http://www.corporatepa.com/newsletter/the-press-release-seos-booster-shot.html

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

New York City Is #1 for Entertainment Lawyer Searches Online In September


Searches for Entertainment Layers online in New York continue to rank as #1 nation-wide. For Entertainment Lawyers in NYC who do not have high visibility online, you are potentially losing out on the 65% of Americans who now claim they begin their searches online for a lawyer (NYSBA Journal '09).




Monday, October 12, 2009

New York City Is #1 for Business Lawyer Searches Online In September


Searches for Business Layers online in New York continue to rank as #1 nation-wide. For Business and Commercial Lawyers in NYC who do not have high visibility online, you are potentially losing out on the 65% of Americans who now claim they begin their searches online for a lawyer (NYSBA Journal '09).




New York City Tops The Nation In Bankruptcy Lawyer Searches Online In September


New York City continues to lead the nation in Bankruptcy Lawyer searches online in September. For Bankruptcy Lawyers in NYC who do not have high visibility online, you are potentially losing out on the 65% of Americans who now claim they begin their searches online for a lawyer (NYSBA Journal '09).




New York City Is #1 for Real Estate Lawyer Searches Online In September


Searches for Real Estate Layers online in New York continue to rank as #1 nation-wide. For Real Estate Lawyers in NYC who do not have high visibility online, you are potentially losing out on the 65% of Americans who now claim they begin their searches online for a lawyer (NYSBA Journal '09).




New York City Is #1 for Immigration Lawyer Searches Online In September


Searches for Immigration Layers online in New York continue to rank as #1 nation-wide. For Immigration Lawyers in NYC who do not have high visibility online, you are potentially losing out on the 65% of Americans who now claim they begin their searches online for a lawyer (NYSBA Journal '09).




New York City is #1 for Criminal Lawyer Searches Online In September


Searches for Criminal Lawyers online in New York continue to rank as #1 nation-wide. For Criminal Defense Lawyers in NYC who do not have high visibility online, you are potentially losing out on the 65% of Americans who now claim they begin their searches online for a lawyer (NYSBA Journal '09).




New York Is #1 for Estate Lawyer Searches Online In September


Searches for Estate Layers online in New York continue to rank as #1 nation-wide. For Estate Lawyers in NYC who do not have high visibility online, you are potentially losing out on the 65% of Americans who now claim they begin their searches online for a lawyer (NYSBA Journal '09).




New York In Top 3 States For Medical Malpractice Searches Online In September


Searches for medical malpractice online in New York continue to rank in the top 3 states nation-wide. For Medical Malpractice lawyers in NYC who do not have high visibility online, you are potentially losing out on the 65% of Americans who now claim they begin their searches online for a lawyer (NYSBA Journal '09).




New York In Top 4 States For Personal Injury Lawyer Searches Online In September


Searches for personal injury lawyers online in New York continue to rank in the top 4 states nation-wide. For Personal Injury lawayers in NYC who do not have high visibility online, you are potentially losing out on the 65% of Americans who now claim they begin their searches online for a lawyer (NYSBA Journal '09).







Friday, October 9, 2009

How Divorce/Family Lawyers Are Utilizing Facebook & Other Social Media

This is a great article from a divorce lawyer on how he effectively uses evidence from social media in a court of law. This also includes some very cautionary advice as well...

The popularity of social networking sites is leading to a new avenue of information for divorce and custody lawyers. Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin and MySpace are practically the norm in today’s society, especially among people in their 20’s and 30’s. For anyone who has been living in a cave without wi-fi access for the last few years, Facebook and MySpace allow individuals and their friends to post pictures about themselves and give out personal information; Twitter allows
people to make continuous short updates about anything to a network of friends; and Linkedin is primarily there for business contacts.

Researching Cases Through Social Media, Facebook & Twitter

The ubiquitous updating that occurs on many of these social networking sites can lead to a plethora of relevant information in a case for a savvy family law attorney. Typically, one of the first things I do on a case is check all of the social networking sites for information not only on the other side, but about my client. If the other’s side has utilized some type of privacy setting I will often ask my client to see if a mutual friend can print off any quasipublic information. A few clients have asked me to monitor what is displayed on his/her page, which I have done. On some occasions I have advised clients to completely take down their social networking pages during a case. Amazingly, most clients now resist this request because social networking or tweeting is so much a part of a person’s daily life that they cannot give it up.

Use Social Media In A Court Of Law

Once you have obtained the information, pictures and/or videos from a social networking site, this information can be used against the other side in court. In a recent case, while discussing a mother’s (Mom) propensity to “party” when she had the children in her care, Mom testified that she hardly ever went out to nightclubs or bars. At this point I had Mom identify herself in 57 pictures that were printed off from her Facebook page one by one. In each picture I also had Mom identify the individuals in the picture (“Who is the man with his arm around your waist?”).

Using Pictures To Help Paint A Picture In Court

In another case opposing counsel had presented the father (Dad) as a very conservative and religious person to the court. However, upon cross examination I was able to show that Dad had been posting nude and semi-nude pictures of himself on MySpace. At the hearing, when I attempted to admit this into evidence, opposing counsel objected arguing that you could not tell who the person in the video was because it mainly showed “private parts.” At this point, I asked the witness if he could identify the person in the time-stamped video and he sheepishly stated that he was in the video. Needless to say, opposing counsel failed to look into his client’s MySpace and Facebook accounts, to which my client still had access because they were still “friends.”

Facebook Connections And How They Can Come Back To Haunt You

A litigant’s Facebook or MySpace friends can also be a huge issue of contention. Since nearly everyone’s cell phone now has the ability to capture pictures and many videos, this often leads to litigant’s friends posting pictures from a “Vegas” trip, which are not the type of pictures many of us would want displayed during a custody case. In order to minimize the damage from potential friends, I would suggest telling your clients to inform their friends that they are going through a custody case and there is a chance anything posted about them could end up in court.

Overall, social networking sites have the potential to lead to valuable information or great harm to your client. An out of place picture could severely harm a case, and as cliché as it sounds, a picture is sometimes worth a thousand words

Source:
Louis P. Winner is an attorney
with Seiller Waterman
and chair of the LBA
Family Law Section.

Visit our website to learn more about divorce lawyer website consulting and search engine optimization (SEO)

Thursday, October 1, 2009

Why Your Website is Your Most Powerful Marketing Vehicle - NYS Bar Assoc. Journal

This is a excellent article that recently appeared in the New York State Bar Association Journal. It clearly defines in very simple terms the importance of internet marketing and the how website design and search engine optimization (SEO) are two interrelated yet very specialized disciplines.

Your website is probably your most powerful marketing vehicle

These days, more than 65% of people begin their search for a lawyer on the internet. Not only should you be there, but you should look good in comparison to your competitors’ websites. Prospective clients can and will compare so make sure you do a little competitive intelligence as you work on your site.
Legal websites provide the highest ROI

For sure-fire value in marketing, put monies and time into your website and search engine optimization. As long as you’re not squandering your monies by doing foolish things, work on your website is going to have more return on investment (ROI) than almost anything you can do. If your site is tired and you haven’t been updating it, this is a good time for a redesign. Concentrate on deepening and broadening your site, and commit to making this an ongoing project. Content is still king.
Website professionals produce professional results

Don’t let your nephew (or cousin or uncle) design your site unless he or she is a professional website designer. Make sure your site is engaging with graphics that “speak” to your potential client and some kind of tag line that brands you. For instance, a criminal lawyer might have someone being handcuffed (which certainly speaks to someone looking for a criminal lawyer), with the tag line: “In trouble? We can help.”

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) should not be confused with website design

Search engine optimization (SEO) is a complicated subject. Most website designers are not SEO experts. Look at the sites a company has optimized and see how they place on Google. Without any question, design and optimize for Google. What does well on Google will generally do well on the other search engines as well.

If you have limited funds to spend on marketing, your website is the first place to spend them.

Legal Marketing in Turbulent Times:
Keeping Your Practice Afloat

By Sharon D. Nelson, Esq. and John W. Simek
Source: New York State Bar Association Journal – Sept 2009

The Top 5 Things Every Law Firm Should Know About Hiring An SEO Consultant

“In our experience working with law firms both large and small, there continues to be a level of confusion amongst many law firms as to exactly what role SEO plays in the success of their firm’s online marketing and who should be handle it.” said Dustin Ruge, founder of the Seo Consultant Firm.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) consulting is a specialized field of online marketing focused solely on website and online marketing performance. Much like attorneys who practice different areas of law, the best SEO consultants tend not to specialize in other disciplines of website development but rather tend to advise and direct them in a strategic way to produce optimum performance and ROI.

The following list is intended to help guide law firms in determining whether or not a specific SEO consultant is a good fit for their online marketing needs:

1.) Does your SEO consultant understand your practice? Many law firms make the mistake of hiring website developers based on their ability to produce a nice looking website instead of their ability to help them grow their practice. In order to accomplish both, successful firms should hire a law firm SEO consultant who understands how successful law firm websites can help them grow through increased visibility, case generation and conversion.

2.) Does your SEO consultant understand your geographic competition? The internet search engines are becoming increasing competitive and without a thorough understanding of what firms are competing for the same searches in your geography, your SEO consultant will not be able to put you in a cost-effective position to compete and win. Only an experienced SEO consultant who understands your geographic competition will be able to prescribe the best web presence and online marketing for your law firm.

3.) Does your SEO consultant specialize in Search Engine Optimization (SEO)? Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is an increasing specialized field that should not be confused with a website designer and content writer. Although they commonly work and strategize with these resources, they should not be confused for the same people. Many website designers will claim to know SEO but just like you would not hire a patent attorney to defend a high-profile criminal in federal courts, there is no such thing as a great website designer and SEO expert – each are their own disciplines.

4.) Does your SEO consultant have extensive experience working with law firms? This question only really matters to the law firm that wants to generate new cases from their website. Successful law firm websites are designed and optimized in a specific way to compete for cases. The best win the cases and grow their practice while the rest gain nothing from the growing trend of consumers looking for attorneys and legal advice online. So make sure your SEO consultant understands your business before they try to sell you on theirs.

5.) Does your SEO consultant offer off-site search engine optimization services? There are two type of search engine optimization: on-site SEO which has to do with the optimization of your website and off-site optimization which has to do with all of the other impacts to your website’s performance and visibility that the search engines look for. These commonly include inbound link building, Press Releases, Blogs, etc. If you hire an SEO consultant who cannot provide both on-site and off-site SEO services, you may be fighting a battle with one hand tied behind your back.

Press Release: http://www.officialwire.com/main.php?action=posted_news&rid=16166&catid=10