Ways to Build Links as Attorneys
By Tom Foster
So, in the last post, I mentioned the importance of building links. If there was some sort of chart proving why building links to your site is important and how much it can help you improve your search engine ranking position (SERP), I would include it.
How about this…. SEOMoz published an article last year, but it still holds weight today (with the exception that keyword in domain name should now be higher and so should SEO-friendly URLs):Â Search Engine Ranking Factors, where a number of experts in the industry ranked different on and off-page search engine optimization factors on a scale of 1-5. Some of those related to link building:
Anchor Text of Inbound Link- 4.4 According to most, this is the second most important factor when it comes to Google and other search engine spiders figuring out what your site should rank for. For Foster Web Marketing clients who Tom and George have been preaching to about changing your titles in DSS and making them shorter: your practice area and home pages are linked to and from on other FWM clients. The anchor text for these links pull directly from…. you guessed it… the TITLES! Get them under 70 characters and make them page-specific… meaning don’t focus on the home page for every keyword, that’s why you have practice area and other pages!
Global Link Popularity of Site- 4.4 And the third most important factor. Your inbound links shouldn’t only point to your home page. That’s why FWM clients have blogs, library pages, and other resources. Now you have to build links to these pages. It’s called deep-linking, and is VERY important.
Link Popularity Within the Site’s Internal Link Structure- 4 And number five overall. Each link on your site to another page on your site counts as a link. When writing blog posts and other content, include links to your other pages that are relevant, and use the proper anchor text. And remember that footer feature that we mentioned we’re launching for FWM clients this month? This is why.
So, as Dave Frees mentioned in his comment the other day, what are some ways of building links as an attorney or law firm? Here are a few great techniques to use:
1. Blog Commenting
Dave couldn’t have done it any better. In his comment, he included a link back to his blog, which, while blog comment links don’t carry as much “link juice” as other methods, they kill two birds with one stone.
Blog comments can be good for building link juice and traffic, but it also helps you expand your social network. If you’re a motorcycle attorney in New England (he wouldn’t be the Million Dollar Man without a link back to his site, would he?) and you come across a blog post or article that you think is relevant or interesting by a motorcycle attorney in California somewhere, comment on it! Not only will you be getting a link back to your site, but you’ll also be expanding your online social network.
Tip: Exercise good taste when using this link building method. Don’t put your practice area as your name and don’t shamelessly self-promote. READ THE BLOG POST and then comment, and add something that is relevant to the discussion and topic. Nobody likes a spammer. Use some of the resources I mentioned in my Ways to Market your Attorney Blog post like Google Blogsearch and Google Alerts to find posts relevant to your practice area(s). And don’t focus too much on NOFOLLOW vs DOFOLLOW, it’s not a huge issue if you’re commenting on blogs that are relevant to what you do.
2. Forum and Answer Services Participation
You, as an attorney, offer valuable information that can be relevant to everyone. And this information is trusted. You didn’t spend all of those years in law school and making a name for yourself over the years for nothing, people know that the knowledge you possess is trusted and accurate. So share it!
You might be saying to yourself, why offer advice and information for free? I’m here to get leads and clients, not trade industry secrets.
The Web 2.0 mentality is all about transparency. People (and search engine spiders) notice you taking time out of your busy day to contribute to legal forums and other informative websites. Including a link back to your site in the signature of these sites can’t hurt either. I’ll make a post later about some legal forums you can use to answer law-related questions (and get a link or two in the process), but in the meantime, registering and using answer sites like Yahoo! Answers, Fluther, and others cant hurt.
TIP: Again, be tasteful. Don’t use wording like “for a free consultation, visit http://www.spammylawyer.com”. And again, the forum and answer service links don’t carry a LOT of linkjuice, so don’t focus too much time on these thinking it will help you reach #1 next week. The main goal of this is that search engines see you contributing to relevant conversation. Also, deep-linking (linking back to a blog post or library page) is much better than linking back to your home page when using this method.
3.. Article Submission
Creating articles and submitting them to article submission sites is a common link building technique. However, two things to keep in mind:
1) Duplicate Content
You can either a) write an article specifically to submit to these sites, and don’t publish the article on your blog or website. or b) revise the way the article is worded if you decide to include it.
2) Trusted Article Sites
Google has made it known that there are articles sites out there that are not trusted. Stick to sites like EzineArticles, GoArticles, iSnare.
TIP: If you have a website as well as a blog, you can link back to each through this method. And if you don’t…
4. Get a BLOG!
Many debate whether it is better to have a blog on or off-site. On-site is good because it’s another way to add content. But off-site is better for link building and networking purposes.
Bloggers don’t mind linking to other blogs; in fact, they are way more likely to link to another blog than they are to your website. You can also use an off-site blog to drop links to your site pages from time to time. Take the time to build the authority of the off-site blog by
1. Linking to useful pages and resources
2. Submitting your blog to the resources I mentioned in Ways to Market your Attorney Blog3. You can even install a footer on your off-site blog that links every page to your web site. This is good, because most blogs are multiple pages, resulting in more links to your website. But, content is key, and building the blog’s authority not only improves the link juice coming to your site, but it also gives you another site that has a chance to rank well.
4. Promoting your blog as actively as you promote your website, and take the time to come up with useful and informative content.
5. Get a domain name that is relevant to your practice area. Google seems to be putting more and more emphasis on ranking sites with good domain names higher, so see what is available other than your or your law firm’s name.
5. Niche Directory Sites
Google has made it no secret that regular directory sites like DMOZ are not as valued as they once were. However, relevant niche (law-related) directory sites are still good, if they are trusted and have a decent authority built. Look for directory sites that include content and a few articles, and not one that just links in and out.
TIP: Set up a “links page” for niche directory sites that require reciprocal linking.
These are five (and by the way, top 10 or top 5 lists as link bait and article topics are great because they are easier to read through) link building methods that are good for attorneys and law firms. I will share some more next week some time.
Posted Under: link building for attorneys Tags: attorney, law firm, link building, marketing, SEM, SEO
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