Websites are a critical meeting point between lawyers and clients. Maintaining an optimized site is crucial to acquiring new clients, building credibility and nurturing client relationships. Yet, today, almost 1/3 of lawyers maintain their websites themselves, neglecting key site functions that clients want, like mobile optimization, social network integration and user-friendly design. Here, we look at the costly mistakes lawyers make when they try to maintain their own websites.

1. THE BIG PROBLEMTHE BIG PROBLEM
WITH LAWYER SITES
Websites are a critical meeting point between
lawyers and clients. Maintaining an optimized site is
crucial to acquiring new clients, building credibility
and nurturing client relationships. Yet, today, almost
1/3 of lawyers maintain their websites themselves,
neglecting key site functions that clients want, like
mobile optimization, social network integration and
user-friendly design. Here, we look at the costly
mistakes lawyers make when they try to maintain
their own websites.
C O S T LY M I S TA K E S
Lawyers face many obstacles when trying to maintain their own websites
NOCALLTOACTIONNOCALLTOACTION
Without a main call to action, clients
won’t know what your firm has to offer.
Without metrics, law firms are unable to
track their progress, their reach, or their
clients’ habits and needs.
Discoverability is
important and helps
potential clients
find your law firm.
Most people today look at websites on their mobile devices. Without the technology to engage this group, small law firms
are missing out on key clients.
Without designated IT
help, small law firms risk
security breaches or costly
mistakes. By going to the
professionals, IT help is
included with your website.
of websites do not
display contact email
addresses.
of site owners find the
time necessary to
update the website a
major challenge.
93%
64%
say the cost of
maintaining the
site is a big hurdle.
25%
lack any phone numbers
on their home pages.
49%
did not use analytics
tools to measure their
websites’ performance.
75%
of small
businesses have
been cyber
attacked.
44%
do not feel they have the
tools needed to make
sense of their site
analytics or take action to
resolve issues.
60%
?
?
Poor Design By taking design into their own hands, small businesses such
as law firms cause themselves headaches and risk having
poorly designed sites.
of small law firm lawyers who plan to improve their
websites say design/aesthetic is the top choice of action.41%
of small business sites cannot be
found in online searches because
their websites earn a Google
Page Rank of zero or have no
Google Page Rank.
26%
0 100%
do not have mobile websites or know if
their websites are mobile-capable.60%0 100%
Time-Consuming Updates
When you maintain your site yourself, you run the risk of wasting time
you could be using to cultivate business.
No MetricsNo Metrics Poor SEO
With keyword data, meta
descriptions, and page
titles, your site can stand
out from the rest.
By allowing your clients to share their
experiences with your brand via social
channels, you’re enabling information
about your law firm to reach people you
might not have otherwise targeted.
Lack
Facebook widgets 91%
94%Lack
Twitter widgets
83%Lack
Twitter links
No Designated IT Person
SORRY!
This website isn’t
optimized for
mobile devices.
Small law firms may not be as tech-savvy as larger companies, or they don’t
have the staff to provide for a full-time IT person.
A single
cyber attack
costs
on average.
$8,669.48
COMMON LAW FIRM WEBSITE MISTAKES
Give your clients the tools they need to interact with your law firm and ensure you
don’t make these same website mistakes. Focus on what matters and leave your
website to the professionals.
PRACTICE MORE AND MANAGE LESS.
SOURCES: YODLE | NATIONAL SMALL BUSINESS ASSOCIATION | SITEAPPS | VSPLASH | LAWERIST.COM
http://www.slideshare.net/attorneysync/how-do-people-find-and-hire-lawyers | http://www.google.com/insights/consumersurveys/view?survey=ta62sqc3ujmfw&question=1&filter&rw=1
To learn more, check out MyCase’s new ebook, Keys to a Successful Website at bit.ly/MyCaseWebsites
25-34 year olds are more likely to use the
Internet to find a lawyer than any other source.
30%
of clients seeking a lawyer with
special expertise start their research
by viewing the law firm's website.
The searchMore than 35% of
legal consumers
start their search for
an attorney using
online resources.
Google Consumer Survey conducted in Nov 2012
NO MOBILE OPTIMIZATION
Using The Right Internet ToolsUsing The Right Internet Tools
Clients look for you in search engines. If you’re not appearing in search engines, many won’t find you.
25-34 year-olds were more likely to start their seach
via a search engine than by asking a friend.
Even 25-34 year-olds
were not likely to use
social networks to begin
their search (1.5%)
said their first move in searching for a lawyer
would be visiting your website, closely followed
by reading reviews on Google (28%).
30%
First impressions
said the impression created
by a law firm's website was
the most important factor.
11%
ONE-DIMENSIONAL MARKETING
look for information
about you elsewhere
on the Internet.
31%