Content & SEO

Content & Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

While potential legal clients are the primary target audience, most of our law firm clients are also engaging us to create content that will help them improve their rankings in the search engine results pages (SERPs). As a result, the content we create also needs to adhere to search engine optimization (SEO) best practices.

SEO is the process of optimizing websites to rank highly when certain search terms are entered into search engines. For example, a personal injury practice in Chicago would likely want to optimize for the search phrase “Chicago car accident attorney” and a Denver family law practice would try to obtain high rankings for “divorce lawyer in Denver.” In many cases, the content we create is part of a larger effort aimed at improving where our clients rank for specific search terms.

Optimizing Content

As mentioned above, law firms (and marketing agencies) optimize their sites to appear for certain terms. Part of that optimization process is adding optimized content to their sites. There are a number of considerations when optimizing content.

Keyword Density

When you receive an assignment, it will usually include a keyword phrase that the client is targeting. Typically, this will take the form of a geographic target, a practice area, and the word lawyer or attorney. These phrases are designed to match a phrase that a potential client may be searching on Google. Examples could include “Denver personal injury lawyer” or “St. Louis divorce attorney.”

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Keyword phrases should be included at a density of between 1 and 2 percent. The idea is to use the keyword phrase (and iterations of that phrase) in a way that allows search engines to determine what the page is about. Be careful of keyword stuffing, which is the practice of overusing a keyword to the extent that the content seems unnatural.

Section Headers and Formatting

Another critical aspect of creating content for search engines is using header tags for subheadings. Header tags indicate to search engines how a page is structured, and they are numbered from H1 to H6. Titles are typically formatted as H1, subheadings as H2, sub-subheadings as H3, and so on. You should try and add keywords to header tags whenever possible. For example, the call-to-action header should typically be in H2 and include the keyword phrase in the following format:

Call Us Today to Speak with a Las Vegas Personal Injury Attorney

This may sound technical, but it’s actually as easy bolding or italicizing text. Here’s where to find the Header formatting in Microsoft Word:

And here is where to find it in Google Docs:

Also, there are keyboard shortcuts on both platforms. In Google Docs it is Ctrl+Alt+[NUMBER], while in Word it is “Shift+Alt+[NUMBER].” Using the shortcuts can make using headers significantly easier.

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Sentence and Paragraph Length

Keep your sentence structure simple. We are creating content for consumers – not other lawyers or judges. A common industry standard is to write for an 8th grade reader, as doing so gets your point across quickly and efficiently. In addition, it ensures that a wide audience can understand the content on our clients’ sites.

Divide Content into Sections

Use sections (and section headers) liberally. In some cases, it may be appropriate to set individual paragraphs off with their own headers. In addition, use bulleted lists whenever appropriate, and avoid overly long paragraphs. Online readers can be deterred by long blocks of text, so formatting is key.

Internal Linking

Internal links are links that connect pages within the same website. Making your site easily navigable with relevant links from page to page improves user experience and allows search engines to determine the structure of your site. For example, if you are writing a blog about car accidents, at some point, it will likely make sense to link the text “car accident” to the main car accident page.

External Linking

External links are links that go to other sites. In our content, we should link to authoritative external sources at least 2 times per 1000 words - unless you are writing a 500-word piece, which should also have 2 external links. You can think about external links like “citing your sources” in a paper. For example, if you are writing a piece about injuries and are discussing traumatic brain injuries, that would provide an opportunity to link to the CDC’s page about traumatic brain injuries. External links should always go to authoritative sources (.edu and .gov sites are ideal), and never link to a website that promotes other law firms or is, in fact, another law firm’s website.

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Subject Matter Considerations

A couple of miscellaneous issues to address:

Š As a general rule, please do not discuss comparative negligence, outside of the context of suggesting that insurance companies may try to raise the issue to lower a settlement (and victims should retain an attorney).

Š In general, it’s a good idea to avoid prevention articles. If a reader is on a personal injury firm’s website, there’s a strong chance that they are already injured. Please submit all content as Word document attachments or shared Google Docs and send to submission@lexiconlegalcontent. com

Š Duplicate content, even if it is your own, will be ignored by search engines. While it is understandably tempting to copy and paste boilerplate legal or marketing language, it is critical to take the time to reword it into unique content.

Š Search engines are getting smarter every day, and have made clear that they are rewarding relevant, informative, and fresh content. Your best bet is to use natural language rather than try and use awkward constructions or complex legal jargon in order to get certain phrases into your piece.

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