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Jul 23

What lawyers can learn from Google's latest search quality handbook

What lawyers can learn from Google’s latest search quality handbook

Google's algorithm uses a myriad of factors to determine what content to show users in search results. The algorithm is tweaked constantly in an effort to provide results that answer a searcher's question in the best possible manner.

However powerful Google's algorithm may be, it is not 100 percent responsible for evaluating the quality of pages and sites. Google employs human raters, known as its search quality team, to manually evaluate pages and assign page quality (PQ) rankings from...

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Jun 18

What your law firm needs to do to feed Panda 4.0

What your law firm needs to do to feed Panda 4.0

Google began rolling out the latest iteration of its Panda algorithm on May 20th. As is the case with all major updates, results are mixed. Some sites have seen rankings and traffic drop, while others have seen improvement — and many sites have seen little to no movement at all. The big news surrounding the release of Panda 4.0 is the significant hit several large, well-known sites appear to have taken. Analysis performed since the update reveals some common...

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Jun 6

Strengthen your writing: 5 common grammar mix-ups

Strengthen your writing: 5 common grammar mix-ups

Attorneys have to write. A lot. Writing for judges, colleagues, clients and blogs requires a different tone and level of formality depending on the audience. Online writing can be much less formal than official writing — sometimes throwing in an occasional, intentional grammar error is ok. Blog entries should be conversational enough to hold a visitor's attention, after all. But conversational does not mean sloppy. You are trying to be an authority, and repeating routine grammar errors works against...

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May 14

6 tips for writing successful attorney bios and about pages

6 tips for writing successful attorney bios and about pages

Attorney bios and about pages are underutilized resources. A website's home page and a firm's practice area offerings understandably receive a lot of attention. Such landing pages are a priority since they are in many cases the first page a visitor will see. However, attorney bios and about pages offer an opportunity for both individual lawyers and the firm as a whole to provide visitors with memorable reasons to become clients.

Analytics show that attorney bios are some of...

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May 7

4 sustainable marketing strategies to displace old SEO myths

4 sustainable marketing strategies to displace old SEO myths

The search marketing landscape is constantly changing. Google will continue to strive to stay one step ahead of companies trying to find an easy trick for achieving page-one rankings — and it will continue to succeed. Google is very open about what its algorithm is looking for in a quality site. It is also very willing to share what tactics it considers to be spammy and what can earn your site a penalty. Regardless, some old SEO habits are...

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Apr 30

Content marketing: 4 tips for creating compelling, sharable infographics

Content marketing: 4 tips for creating compelling, sharable infographics

Content marketing is not a new idea, but the growing ease of online media distribution has prompted a surge in the number of businesses wishing to take advantage of the trend. Content marketing is the process through which a business uses information to build brand awareness and trust. By providing helpful facts to an interested audience, the business becomes a thought leader and a resource for consumers.

Branded recipe books are an example of offline content marketing with which...

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Apr 22

Target niche audiences with LinkedIn Showcase Pages

Target niche audiences with LinkedIn Showcase Pages

On April 14, the Products and Services tab was removed from all LinkedIn Company Pages. With the Products and Services tab gone, recommendations are no longer available. The recommendations feature has caused debate among attorneys in the past, some of whom believe it may be unethical to display recommendations on a firm's Company Page.

LinkedIn announced the move in March, and it is allowing businesses who wish to save their recommendations to request copies from customer service until May...

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Mar 26

6 ideas for creating compelling, sharable content

6 ideas for creating compelling, sharable content

Producing a consistent stream of content for your website, social media profiles, marketing materials and blog is a necessary but sometimes arduous task. When you create a schedule for posting new content, be realistic about how much time you and your associates have to spend on writing and commenting. Aim to post something at least once a week, but do not over schedule. Writing three social media posts and two blog entries every week sounds wonderful, but only if...

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Mar 17

Google webmaster help: Write content that is clear and understandable

Google webmaster help: Write content that is clear and understandable

In a webmaster help video published at the end of February, Google's Matt Cutts was asked this question:

Should I write content that is easier to read or more scientific? Will I rank better if I write for 6th graders?
- Ben Holland, Phoenix, AZ

Cutts said he struggled with this question and that it took him more time than usual to formulate an answer. Ultimately, he said he came to the conclusion that, “The clarity of what you write...

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Mar 7

Use content to set your firm apart from competitors

Use content to set your firm apart from competitors

Too much content that is written for online consumption has no real meaning. Previous iterations of Google's algorithm rewarded voluminous content stuffed with keywords rather than information, and law firm marketing companies stepped up to the challenge, producing long pages of mostly repetitive, generic copy. Some websites still have pre-Penguin hangovers; writing for search engines has left a legacy of boring content and overused phrases.

Visitors are unlikely to remember messaging that is similar to that of the...

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