You have the credentials. You have the experience. By all rights, you should have all the clients you want. But in the realm of personal injury attorneys, there’s a lot of competition. If a person is looking for representation in a personal injury matter, they likely have dozens, if not hundreds of options to choose from in the area.
How can you make your practice stand out in this congested, highly competitive field?
Polish Your Brand and Image
First, you need to spend time polishing your brand and your image. Yes, you’re a personal injury attorney, but what is it that makes you unique? What are the qualifications that set you apart from other personal injury attorneys? What kind of experience do people have when they work with you? It’s a good idea to position yourself in an original way, so you naturally stand out from your competitors. Brainstorm to come up with some of your most unique advantages.
Perfect Your Website
These days, most clients start their search for a personal injury attorney online. Those who don’t often consult web resources before they make a final decision. Accordingly, it’s in your best interest to perfect your website. A website is obviously a necessary asset in the modern digital age, but just any old website won’t do.
You need to make a good impression with a website that functions properly, looks aesthetically appealing, and provides people with information they need to make the right decision. Working with professional website designers and developers can help you ensure you’re making the right first impression – and that you’re attracting the right types of clients.
Practice Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
SEO for personal injury attorneys is a strategy that revolves around making your website rank higher in search engine results pages (SERPs). The goal is to increase your relevance for search phrases relevant to personal injury law and increase your perceived trustworthiness, so Google ranks your website higher than those of your competitors.
SEO itself is a complicated strategy full of nuance and tricky problem solving, so it pays to work with an SEO agency directly. The most important fundamentals include:
Onsite content development. Writing and publishing content on your website is one of the most important anchors for your SEO strategy. It allows you to optimize for specific keywords and phrases and simultaneously builds the credibility of your website.
Onsite technical optimization. Onsite technical optimization is also important; Google and other modern search engines consistently prioritize websites that are optimized for user experience. You’ll also need to tweak various details on the back end to increase your relevance for certain terms.
Offsite link building. Offsite link building is also important, giving you a chance to bolster your authority – and your visibility at the same time.
List Yourself in Legal Directories
Legal directories are a convenient way for personal injury attorneys to make themselves more visible and accessible. You’ll typically have to pay for the privilege of being listed in these services, but it’s often worth the money. Do your due diligence and choose the legal directories most relevant to your legal practice and most likely to be used by your clients.
Use PPC Ads
Pay per click (PPC) ads are incredibly cost efficient, because you’ll only pay for the clicks these ads actually generate. You can place them on Google, Bing, or social media platforms to increase the visibility of your brand, directly generate traffic, and ultimately earn more conversions and clients.
Post on Social Media
Social media marketing is a popular strategy in part because it’s a free and totally accessible. In just a few minutes, you can set up a profile page for your practice and start making posts. It’s an easy way to get more visibility for your content, connect with new people, build your network, and ultimately increase your online visibility.
Earn More Referrals
Referrals are the most popular way for lawyers to earn more clients, so don’t neglect it. Obviously, if you consistently do a good job for your clients, they’ll be more likely to recommend you to their friends and family members. But sometimes, you’ll need to expend more effort; don’t be afraid to ask for referrals directly.
Get Involved in Your Community
Finally, get more involved in your community. Attend local events, make donations to charitable organizations, and volunteer your efforts for good causes. It can help you increase visibility, make new connections, and improve the reputation of your brand.
Standing out as a personal injury attorney isn’t always easy, especially if you live in an especially competitive area. But if you’re willing to spend some time strategizing and invest some money in your image and visibility, you can alternately make your practice more visible, more desired, and more successful.
