Personal injury attorneys need clients to keep their law firm in business. Making sure your law firm is easily found online and offline helps both your clients and your firm. 96% of people seeking legal advice use a search engine and 74% of those prospects end up contacting a law firm over the phone.
One of the best ways to help prospects find your law firm online and make that phone call is to invest in an SEO strategy that includes getting added to personal injury attorney directories. This can boost your personal injury law firm’s digital presence and visibility while also increasing credibility, and OppGen can help do just that. Contact us for more information.
How Personal Injury Directories Help With SEO
SEO is an acronym that stands for Search Engine Optimization, a strategic, organic (unpaid) process of optimizing your website and its content in a way that makes search engines like Google or Bing rank it higher for certain keywords. A higher position is a better position, particularly if it’s on the first page, where it’s more likely a prospective client will click on your website.
Websites optimized for SEO run well and quickly on mobile devices, include in-depth content that helps site visitors and is linked back to by other websites (referred to as backlinks).
The process of getting more backlinks, known as link-building, takes a good portion of time, especially because it depends on other people to link back to your firm’s website.
One of the simplest link-building strategies is to ensure your law firm is included in personal injury attorney directories and local online directories. Not only does being in personal injury attorney directories increase your law firm’s visibility, but it also tells search engines that your website is credible because it’s listed in these directories.
As a result of that information, search engines will push your website up higher in the search results pages for relevant keyword searches.
To learn more about OppGen Marketing’s SEO program, contact us today.
National Personal Injury Attorney Directories
Even if your law firm’s website doesn’t show up on page 1 of a relevant Google search, it may show up on a personal injury attorney directory, where people are already looking for an attorney and are probably close to selecting the attorney who will represent their case.
Having a profile on these types of directories also increases prospects’ trust in your personal injury law firm, making them more likely to select you over a competitor who is not listed on relevant legal directories.
The following personal injury attorney directories are used all over the United States but narrow down results based on state and sometimes county and metro area locations.
Enjuris
Enjuris is a law firm directory that specializes in personal injury law. It goes beyond the scope of being just a directory; Enjuris offers legal advice and explains issues in a way most people can understand.
Because Enjuris is specific to personal injury law, it has a lot of information about the subcategories of personal injury law, such as car accidents, workplace injuries, and even nursing home abuse.
Providing educational information to prospective clients can help them determine whether or not they have a case that can win a lawsuit or result in a settlement.
In order to be added to Enjuris’s personal injury attorney directory, your firm must adhere to its requirements:
- Your law firm must practice personal injury law in some capacity
- If your firm’s primary practice area is not personal injury, you will have to prove how you serve injured clients
- Your law firm must have a U.S. address
- Listings must be submitted directly by your law firm or marketing representatives
- Your law firm website must contain unique content, be available for users at all times, not be under construction, and support multiple web browsers and capabilities
- If your law firm website is accepted, you will be charged on a recurring schedule based on the payment plan you chose
Enjuris editors have the sole and final discretion regarding your law firm website’s listing, placement, and content, and there is no guarantee your law firm will be approved and accepted into the directory.
The fact that Enjuris requires a membership payment may be a deterrent for some personal injury law firms, but that narrows down the number of competitors who appear on Enjuris’s personal injury attorney directory.
Lawyer Legion
Lawyer Legion’s personal injury attorney directory page goes into a great amount of detail about personal injury law that can educate prospective clients and potentially weed out cases that may be better served under a different area of law.
Lawyer Legion provides basic information about personal injury claims, including the elements of a personal injury claim and what must be proved in order for there to be a case; specific types of personal injury cases (i.e., medical malpractice, motor vehicle accidents, mass torts, etc.).
Lawyer Legion can help prospective clients find PI law firms that specialize in highly specialized areas of personal injury such as brain or spinal cord injury, which may make it one of the best directory options for more specialized personal injury law firms.
Lawyer Legion’s directory listing application process is done in 3 simple steps:
- Undergoing a duplicate profile check
- Submitting information about you and your personal injury law firm
- Verifying your identity
Once your information has been verified by Lawyer Legion, your listing will be made public.
Unlike Enjuris, Lawyer Legion’s directory listing is free.
Justia
Justia combines some of the best qualities of Enjuris and Lawyer Legion in terms of personal injury attorney directory and educational content, respectively. Even though Justia doesn’t specialize in personal injury law like Enjuris does, Justia does have an extensive list of Frequently Asked Questions/FAQs and a list of related topics and practice areas. It also does a great job going in more depth about the types of compensation a client can expect if they win a personal injury case.
Having a Justia directory listing can do more for your personal injury law firm than just having a listing. Its platform lets you interact with prospective clients and list your experience, fees, education, practice areas, and more, all in one place. Think of it as a LinkedIn for lawyers.
To be listed in Justia’s directory (which also creates a profile for the Legal Information Institute/LII, another legal directory), all you have to do is create a profile. Justia is free to use.
Martindale-Hubbell
Martindale-Hubbell, usually referred to as Martindale for short, is similar to Justia in that it’s also a networking website for lawyers on top of being a legal directory. It has a list of law school alumni and a massive database of articles from fellow attorneys.
Martindale even has a section for its newest law firms and attorneys, so that can definitely help your law firm stand out for those seeking personal injury services for as long as your profile is considered to be new.
Due to its focus on connecting lawyers around the globe, Martindale is an excellent site to have a profile in the event a lawyer needs to refer a client to another expert. Plus, having a profile on Martindale also gets you professional profiles on Lawyers.com and Nolo.com, two websites known for their in-depth information that helps prospects research their legal options.
Martindale’s peer review ratings and client ratings have been around since 1896 (with the company itself opening in 1868, over 150 years ago), which makes the company’s ratings a trustworthy staple for both lawyers and their clients.
For best results, Martindale-Hubbell offers a subscription-based profile that helps prospects find lawyers based on their firm’s name and their specific practice areas on both Lawyers.com and Marindale.com. These profiles also list law firm contact information, whereas nonsubscriber profiles do not.
Given the reach and visibility, you’ll find from Lawyers and Nolo, it’s probably worth the subscription price, which will vary based on certain factors. The best way to find out how much a subscription would be for your personal injury law firm would be to get a quote.
Avvo
Avvo, which is actually part of the Martindale brand, gives its users two main levels of options for directory profiles:
- Avvo profile: This option is the most basic one, but it’s free and gets the job done. The basic Avvo profile allows users to upload their headshot, include contact information, select a practice area, fill out their resume, request peer endorsements, and request reviews from clients.
- Avvo Advanced: While the basic Avvo profile covers many of the basics most directories should have, Avvo Advanced profiles allow you to have a more in-depth profile that includes a carousel with featuring awards you’ve earned and answer questions from clients, which can help you get more personal injury leads. You can even allow prospects to book a consultation on your digital calendar. Most importantly, Avvo Advanced profiles give you a better position when prospects search for a personal injury attorney and don’t have ads for competing attorneys on your profile.
In our opinion, the basic Avvo profile should work just fine because it covers the basics a directory should cover, plus a few extra features.
FindLaw
FindLaw lives up to its name because its main goal is to connect prospective clients with lawyers. It is part of a network of legal directories that includes Super Lawyers, Law Info, and a Spanish directory, Abogado.
As a result of its main goal, FindLaw’s personal injury attorney directory page does not include informational resources, though it does have outbound links to relevant resources for both consumers and attorneys.
However, FindLaw does offer good advice on how to select a lawyer based on a client’s comfort level, the lawyer’s credentials, the expense, and law firm location.
FindLaw’s directory listings start at $158 a month, but given that the website has 11 million users and hosts 2 million monthly visitors seeking legal assistance, that price may be worth it. Especially when you take into account that it’s part of a massive legal directory network.
Super Lawyers
Super Lawyers is part of the FindLaw legal directory network that helps prospects find the top-rated attorneys and law firms in over 70 different practice areas.
Getting a Super Lawyers profile is more intensive and far more competitive than the other options, which is exactly why you should always strive to do the best you can with your clients and peers.
Super Lawyers are selected each year using a patented process involving a combination of different types of nominations (surveys, peer nomination, third-party feedback, Super Lawyers research team recognition); independent research, and peer evaluation based on what the research found in 12 different areas:
- Verdicts and settlements
- Transactions
- Clients represented
- Experience
- Honors and awards
- Special certifications and licenses
- Position within the law firm
- Bar and professional activities
- Pro bono and community service
- Scholarly lectures and writings
- Education and employment
- Other achievements
Only 5% of attorneys are selected as Super Lawyers, making it a very prestigious title and listing to go along with it, which only gives you and your personal injury law firm a massive boost in credibility to future clients.
Local Directories
These directories may not be as specific to personal injury law (or law in general) as the others mentioned are, but they’re still very important to local SEO.
Local SEO uses your personal injury law firm’s location, website, and contact information that makes it more likely to appear in local searches. Search engines use searchers’ physical locations when they search for certain businesses or services, and the nearest relevant businesses often show up higher on the results pages.
When multiple websites and directories include your law firm’s location, website, and contact information, it reinforces to search engines that you are close by, and will rank higher as a result.
Besides, it is always a good idea to be easy to find on a local level: 72% of people looking for a lawyer think it’s important to have a local attorney.
Google My Business
Creating a Google My Business account can put your personal injury law firm on the map — Google Maps, to be precise. Google My Business also lets you update your law firm’s location and hours, should they ever change, and even share business-related updates.
Google My Business makes it easy for people to leave reviews and testimonials. Search engines take five- and four-star ratings into account, too, when ranking relevant websites, which encourages businesses to provide the best service possible.
Bing Places for Business
Bing Places for Business is basically the Microsoft search engine’s equivalent to Google My Business. The process for getting your listing approved is similar to Google My Business, too, as it requires your law firm’s name, address, contact information at the very least. You can add photos of your business and include the hours of operation, too. From there, you’ll have to verify your listing.
Even though Bing may not be used as much as Google is, there are still benefits to using it. Bing can reach prospective clients in places Google can’t, and the people who use Bing tend to be older and have more funds than Google users.
Yelp
Like Google My Business, Yelp makes leaving reviews and responding to reviews a simple process. Plus, it adds one more place for your business to be found and can help improve your position in relevant searches.
Yellow Pages
The Yellow Pages have gone digital, making it easier than ever to be included in the local business directory. Just like Google My Business, Bing Places for Business, and Yelp, Yellow Pages’ listings are free.
Contact Us for More Information
Being added to personal injury attorney directories and local directories boosts your visibility, increases your credibility, and instills trust in prospective clients.
Visibility, credibility, and trust, when combined, create a recipe for successfully finding more clients and cases.
At OppGen, we have perfected this recipe for personal injury law firms who have seen more leads and gotten more cases as a result.
If your personal injury law firm is seeking more cases and/or needs a digital marketing strategy, contact us today for more information and advice.
