How can Lawyers Grow their Practice with Digital Marketing?

The internet is the first place people turn to when looking seeking general legal advice or the services of a lawyer.  It is important to develop a clear digital marketing plan for your law firm you can help you identify the right potential clients and grow your practice.  
Here are just a few tips to help you build an effective digital marketing strategy for your practice. 
Invest in your website
Your first plan of action to attract more clients is upgrading your website to stand out from other law firms in your area.  Focus on what you do best by highlighting your specialties because people don’t come to your website to purchase goods, they want to see what you do and how well you do it.   An effective website should be use an advertising channel like search engine optimization to make it easier for potential clients to find the legal representation they are looking for.  Your website should be easy to navigate, have contact information, credentials, office hours, location. Lastly, it is important to note that since law firms are subject to rules of ethics you should make sure that the content on their website is in compliance.
Maintain a legal blog 

Having a blog provides the foundation for social interaction and should be an integral part of your website.  By maintaining a legal blog you can provide clients with useful information and drive traffic back to your site. The content you discuss in your blog will help establish credibility and expertise which can influence a potential client’s decision to choose your firm over the competition. When writing posts be mindful of how you present the content, avoid too much legal jargon as your potential clients are not well versed in legal terms and this could possibly alienate them early on. 

Have a mobile plan
Like most other businesses the success of your practice is affected by how you respond to the emerging technology.  Since you invested time and money in building a great website you will want to reach your audience on the mediums that they have become accustomed to, which is mobile.  A mobile site is easier to navigate and responds to the need for instant access to information, while allow you to offer a more direct call-to- action to ‘Contact Us. This increases your opportunities for success because visitors often want legal advice right way.  Also, in order to stand out among so many other law firms, keep your mobile site focused on a very specific area of law. Being too general will cause visitors will pass up your site in favor of one that advertises a particular expertise.   

Social media
Lawyers need to be active on select social media sites to not only attract new clients but to build a level of trust well.  LinkedIn is one of the best professional social sites used by business owners or people searching for professional services.  However, sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ are also effective for boosting your visibility, as well as long as you invest the time to create profiles that will speak directly to people looking for legal advice. You can do this by providing useful legal resources to your targeted audience 
Final Thoughts
A digital marketing strategy is critical to the success of your law firm because it provides a unique opportunity to be in constant contact with new and existing clients.  You firm will see the greatest results by identifying the synergies between traditional methods of marketing and new online technology.   

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Lexis Nexis Resource Center http://bit.ly/1z3ZViU

You know the law, we know law firm marketing. Access these free resources to gain insight into best practices in online marketing for your law firm. Fresh resources are added often so come back frequently to keep abreast of the latest trends.

Business Development for Lawyers: Strategies for Getting and Keeping Clients by Sally J. Schmidt. http://amzn.to/1qSrMbD  

Written by one of the leading law firm marketers, this guide covers the gamut from positioning to preparing pitches and proposals, helping lawyers create their own sources of work

Solo and Small Firm Resource Center  http://bit.ly/1D6UnTa  

Marketing, Technology, Practice Management, CLE & Substantive Law Resources for SOLO Lawyers & Small Firms