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Writing for Your Law Firm Web Site

By Maya Blyth and Ken Matejka, Legal PPC

Great Web site design is very important because visitors to your Web site will decide whether to stay or click away within the first few seconds. An appealing Web site will hold their attention and an ugly Web site can drive them away.

However, great Web site design can only do so much. Once you’ve gotten them to stay on your site to see what you’re about, how do you get them to keep reading, and more importantly, how do you get them to make contact with you?

You need great content as well or your Web site will not realize its fullest potential in converting visitors into paying clients. Many law firm Web sites favor style over substance, but after you have a good design, it may be time to focus on your Web site’s copy.

Here are some tips to improve your Web site content:

1. Above all else, write for your visitors.
A lot of times, Web sites are written for search engines, not for people. Keyword stuffing is obvious to most visitors (sometimes the search engines too) and should be avoided.

2. Use an authentic voice that conveys the unique character of your law firm.
Sound human, be colloquial even, write as if you were talking to someone directly in your office.

3. Don’t be boring.
A page about your criminal law practice, for example, doesn’t have to read like an entry in an encyclopedia. Punch it up and make it interesting.

4. Write clearly and simply.
Use the kind of language that your visitors use. For examples, try “divorce,” rather than “dissolution” and “use,” rather than “utilize.”

5. Be informative.
Think about questions that you are frequently asked and see if you can address them on your Web site.
Two possible formats include creating FAQs and an article about “what to do if such–and– such” happens.

The most important thing to remember is that your Web site copy should be written for the people who come to your Web site, not the robots that come in to count your keywords. If you write with the purpose of reaching out to your Web site visitors and telling them how you can help them, it’s likely that your rate of inquiries from your Web site will increase.

Ken Matejka and Maya Blyth are cofounders of LegalPPC, a San Francisco based marketing company dedicated to helping solo practitioners and small law firms get more clients from the Google search engine. They can be reached at ken@legalppc.com or maya@legalppc.com