Attorney Internet Marketing: Types & Costs of Marketing

attorney internet marketing

As an attorney, what keeps your practice up and running is getting clients and winning cases. But actually getting leads and turning them into clients isn’t something that happens on its own (in most cases). You have to get involved in marketing, specifically attorney internet marketing.

Attorney internet marketing is any type of legal marketing that runs online. That includes registering on legal directories, running pay-per-click and social media ads, and posting content on your website’s blog. Facebook takes the lead, with 37% of firms using the platform to market in 2018.

If you’re a brand new lawyer or a well-versed lawyer finally converting over to the “digital age,” then internet marketing may seem foreign to you right now. So, stick with us as we go over everything there is to know about attorney internet marketing in 2020.

Why Internet Marketing?

There’s no doubt that you’ve done some form of marketing over the last few years (or decades). Maybe you ordered a 30-second ad slot on a local TV network or sent out fliers on your Every Door Direct Mail (EDDM) route.

You spend thousands of dollars, only to get a few leads that end up going nowhere.

Here are the problems with regular marketing tactics:

  • Most print ads will be thrown away before they’re even looked at.
  • Most people are too distracted by technology to pay attention to commercials and ads.
  • The chances that someone that sees your ad is also looking to hire a lawyer in your niche are incredibly slim.

It’s 2020. More than 81% of Americans own a smartphone, 52% own a tablet, and 74% own a computer. If you want to continue growing your firm and reaching new clients, you need to go where your clients are: The internet.

internet marketing for lawyers

So, why look into internet marketing? 

There’s no other way to reach such a targeted audience repeatedly at an affordable price without you having to do any extra work along the way.

Types of Attorney Internet Marketing

Attorney internet marketing can technically be any type of marketing that happens online. What you may not realize is that marketing doesn’t always have to come in the form of ads (though, that’s still “in” these days).

Let’s talk about what the different types of online marketing are.

Blog Posts & Other Content

blog marketing looking to accelerate2Marketing doesn’t always have to be in the form of an advertisement. Publishing informal and casual blog posts can help you improve your web presence, drive traffic to your website, and build your reputation.

Here’s what you need to know about the content on your attorney website:

  • Only 3% of law firms and attorneys will have personal content on their website. That means weekly content on your website will help you set you and your website apart from your competitors.
  • A mere 25% of Google users will visit the second page of search results. Investing in SEO services is a great way to target specific keywords and improve your rank on Google for related keywords.
  • Content that includes videos or images will be looked at an average of 94% more and are more likely to be shared. Adding content that keeps users on your website for longer will help your Google rank, increasing your chances of getting even more visitors. Plus, this increases the chances that your posts are shared on social media.

The recommendation is to post new content on your attorney website at least once a week.

To make your content worthwhile and truly see your web traffic spike, you need to look into SEO services. Here’s a video explaining what SEO is and why you need it.

Paid Ads (Pay-Per-Click)

SEO can take a long time to see results, sometimes over a year, if you have a lot of big-name law firm competitors. Paid ads on Google are a quick and easy way to get your law firm on the front page of Google (as an ad).

With pay-per-click ads, you’ll be charged every time a web visitor clicks on your ad. In many cases, you’ll be charged over $300 for every click your advertisement receives.

pay per click for attorneys

While this might seem like a ridiculous price to pay to get somebody to your website, there are a few things that you should consider, like:

  • You’ll target certain keywords, so the only people seeing your ads are the people who intentionally search those keywords (your money isn’t being spent on people who aren’t looking for a lawyer in your niche).
  • You’re only charged when your ad is clicked.
  • You can link your ad to a landing page on your website to collect contact information, so you can actually contact your leads.

Just keep in mind that your pay-per-click ads will only keep you on the first page of a Google search result if your ad is still running. Canceling or pausing the ad will remove your presence on the search results.

Social Media Profiles & Ads

If you’re not on social media in the professional sense, then you’re missing out. That’s where you’ll find about 72% of the American population as of 2019, who could potentially be your future clients.

It’s a great idea to create business profiles for your practice on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, and literally any other social media platform where your clients may be hiding.

Here’s what you need to know about using social media to market your practice:

  • Run targeted Facebook and Instagram ads to target the populations and communities most likely to hire a lawyer in your niche (physical location, age, interests, etc.).
  • Interact with other users via likes, follows, and comments.
  • Post content that interests users and is genuinely informative that people are willing to share on their own feeds.

Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn have a variety of marketing techniques that can help you to target the individual interests of your law firm. That means you can use ads to collect contact information, direct users to your website, or just share blog posts from your website.

Legal Directories & Online Reviews

Most people will start searching for an attorney on the internet, but what sets your law firm apart from the rest? In about 65% of cases, people will depend on user reviews to sway their decisions one way or another.

online reviews for attorneys

So aside from giving your past clients something to rave about online, you need to give them somewhere to give these reviews in the first place. For lawyers, that means making profiles on Avvo, Lawyers.com, and FindLaw. Yelp and Google My Business are also great.

What It Costs

The question isn’t “How much does attorney internet marketing cost?” The real question is, “How much is your firm willing to spend on attorney internet marketing?”

Well, there’s no set number or recommendation across the board. But the average cost for marketing for law firms seems to be about 1.9% of total revenue. Larger firms may spend 5% or more on marketing.

One report states that 65% or more of law firms will spend at least half of their attorney marketing budget on internet marketing. That means you don’t have to give up traditional marketing tactics entirely if they seem to be working. Internet marketing can help you to reach a wider and more targeted audience.

Hiring Professionals to Do the Job

Marketing online is easier than it’s ever been thanks to user-friendly websites like Facebook, Google Ads, and Avvo. Yet, that doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re running ads and campaigns that’ll actually work to drive traffic or contacts.

That might be the mistake that 73% of law firms are making.

If you want the best results, be sure to hire a team that excels in marketing, SEO, and web design. This can help you guarantee that your marketing tactics are always working and to adjust them as the pros see fit.

seo marketing need a boost

Conclusion

Attorney internet marketing is one of the best ways to capture leads and convert them into clients in this day and age. Legal marketing online is typically seen as more affordable and can reach a much larger and more targeted audience than typical print advertising. To see the best results, be sure to develop a marketing plan and set aside about 1.9% of your revenue on marketing tactics. Also, note that it may take months to see the leads trickle in, so hold tight.

final shawn
Shawn Manaher
Shawn Manaher is the founder and CEO of Ignite Marketing. He's one part local business growth specialist, one part campaign strategizing ninja, and two parts leader of an awesome nerd pack. He won't eat pancakes unless you call them flat waffles.
Consult With Me

Want more customers for your local business?

Get Facebook local lead generation done for you by experts who understand the value of your dollar. Gain positive ROI in the first 30-40 days of your campaign or your money back on ad management fees.
Schedule a 30 Minute CallCreating Paid Facebook Offers FREE Guide
© Ignite Marketing 2018-2019. All Rights Reserved
As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.