start your criminal defense website...practice (february 9, 2017) •additional tools for long-term...
TRANSCRIPT
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LawLytics
Phone: (800) 713- 0161
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.LawLytics.com
START YOURCRIMINAL DEFENSE WEBSITE
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DAN JAFFE, ATTORNEY & LAWLYTICS CEO
● J.D. - 1998
● Admitted in WA & AZ
● 10 years in private law practice
● Built practices in Seattle & Phoenix
● 100+ jury trials to verdict
● Co-founded LawLytics in 2011
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PRESENTERS
Sophia Oliboni, MSTopic: Design
Rachel Chalot, MSW, JDTopic: Content
Victoria Blute, BATopic: Strategy
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CRIMINAL DEFENSE: THE OPPORTUNITY
● Marketing for criminal defense cases is changing;
● The internet is a great equalizer.
● There are now two paths to success: Effort or budget.
● Getting started is easy and cost-effective.
● There is a lot of money to be made.
The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.
- Lao Tzu
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THIS CRIMINAL DEFENSE WEBINAR SERIES
1. START (today’s topic): Get going the right way.
2. GROW: Build smart.
3. DOMINATE: Take over.
WITHOUT WASTING TIME OR MONEY
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WHO IS THIS SESSION FOR?
● Your law firm handles criminal defense cases or intends to; and
● You’re starting your website or your website isn’t working; and
● You want it to work; and
● You’re able to invest your time or money to make it work.
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SUMMARY OF TAKEAWAYS
1. Start smart;
2. Don’t overcomplicate;
3. Your participation matters.
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WHAT IS LAWLYTICS?
LawLytics is the leading website system for lawyers who want their marketing to work without wasting time or money.
Unlike full-service marketing companies, our system adapts as the law firm’s needs evolve, so our members don’t overpay.
Unlike do-it-yourself software, our system was built for lawyers, so our members don’t struggle or miss opportunities.
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HOW LAWLYTICS WORKS
1. Needs and strategy assessment;
2. Membership registration;
3. Website setup and styling;
4. Content is added;
5. Your website is launched;
6. We train you and help you with strategy;
7. We support and advise you.
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WHY HAVE A WEBSITE FOR A CRIMINAL DEFENSE PRACTICE?
• Your clients are online and will use the internet to make hiring decisions.
• Referral sources and opposing counsel are validating you online.
• You’re already online anyway, so you need to control your messaging.
• Show you care. Show you know. Show that you’re successful.
There’s no magic trick.
There’s a proven method and a window of opportunity.
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MARKETING ASSETS
Invest in marketing assets, but make sure they are assets you own.
Google: “commoditization of lawyers”
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WHY CREATE HIGH-QUALITY CONTENT?
• Search engines will like it;
• Your clients will find it;
• They’ll know that you care;
• They’ll know that you know;
• They’ll trust you;
• They’ll be more likely to hire you;
• They’ll be easier to manage as clients.
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LAW FIRM SEO
Victoria BluteLawLytics Community Manager
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WHAT IS SEO?
Search Engine Optimization (n.):
The process of growing your website’s visibility in organic search engine results.
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HOW SEARCH ENGINES WORK
• Crawling
• Indexing
• Retrieval
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HOW YOUR PNCs USE SEARCH ENGINES
The fundamental problem with law firm SEO…
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HOW YOUR PNCs USE SEARCH ENGINES
• My potential client opens their laptop.
• They go to Google.
• Then, because they need a criminal defense attorney in Arizona, they conduct a search for
“Criminal defense attorney Arizona.”
• They find my website because I’m a criminal defense attorney in Arizona.
• They contact my law firm.
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HOW TO ATTRACT POTENTIAL CLIENTS
Content.
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Law Firms & The Longtail
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SEO PROVIDER MYTHS
• A promise of quick results
• “We can get you to the top of Google.”
• SEO is complicated or that you won’t have time to learn.
• Special relationships with Google
• There’s a secret to ranking well
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OTHER COMMON SEARCH ENGINE MYTHS
• Keyword meta tags
• More web pages = better ranking
• Overvaluing keywords/keyword stuffing
• Paid search helps organic results
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THE CONTENT PROBLEM...
Will you write it?
Excellent!
Yes
Will you delegate
it?
You need content.
No
Yes
Youneed
content.
No
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ConveySameness
Tell A Compelling
Story
InspireConfidence
EngenderTrust
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YOUR PNC: ABOUT THEM AND THEIR PROBLEMS
Show them that:
• You know what you’re talking about. Establish subject matter expertise.
• You’re passionate and interested in them and their problem.
• Their problem is complex and they’ll benefit from your expertise and assistance.
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Maps, Forms, Etc.
StructuralElements
Text ImagesVideo & Audio
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CONTENT: YOUR FIRM’S MARKETING FOUNDATION
Types of Content:
• Blog
• Substantive
• Reputational
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BLOGGING
Why do attorneys need to blog?
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SUBSTANTIVE CONTENT
About you and your firm
• About your firm.
• Attorney bios.
• Office locations.
• Recommendations.
• Case results, deal flows, etc.
About them and their problem
• Practice area pages.
• Detailed law pages.
• Local pages.
• Questions and answers pages.
• Case studies pages.
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ABOUT YOUR FIRM
• First person vs. third-person?
• Does it engage?
• Does it set you apart and capture your firm’s USP?
• Does it let PNCs and referral sources get to know your firm?
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YOUR ATTORNEY BIO
The most important page(s) on your site(s).
A powerful business generator.
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HIERARCHY OF POTENTIAL CLIENT NEEDS
They Want To Know How Much You Care
They Want To Know How Enthusiastic You Are
They Want To Know What You’ve Done
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OFFICE LOCATIONS PAGES
• More than just an address and phone number.
• Bring your office to life and make it interesting.
• Add dynamic maps (LawLytics does this for you automatically).
• Add attorneys at each location (Single click in LawLytics).
• Add office location facts. What you do there? Directions, parking, finding the suite, landmarks, etc.
• Add office pictures (internal and external).
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RECOMMENDATIONS
• Write a good lead-in to your recommendations page.
• Explain each recommendation to give it context
• Consider the order of your recommendations to tell the story your way.
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YOUR CASE RESULTS
• Give each result, deal flow, representative client context.
• Let each entry tell a story that your PNCs and referral sources can relate to.
• Explain details in both legal and simple terms.
• Add visual elements such as maps, pictures, videos.
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TELL A COMPELLING STORY
The Facts
● Detailed fact patterns
that tell a relatable
story.
● What was at stake?
● Who (or what) you
were fighting for?
● Where did this
happen?
The Challenges
● What were the odds?
● What needed to be
overcome?
● Who was your
opponent?
● How did you prepare?
● Why did you care?
The Result
● How did it improve a
person’s life or the
world?
● How did it stack the
deck in your favor
going forward?
● Marry to
recommendation when
possible.
The Quest
● What heroics or
ingenuity did you bring
to bear?
● How did your
background make you
uniquely suited to win?
● Marry to bio when
possible (see Bio Clinic
Webinar).
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Who did it help?
Why was it necessary?
Why did you
succeed?
What did you learn?
What were the odds?
Where did it happen?
Is it replicable?
Why is it remarkable?
The Story Of Your Results
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PRACTICE AREA PAGES
• Describe in their language (usually not lawyer-to-lawyer).
• Give simple overviews of each area. Then cascade to more complex and
nuanced treatment of each topic:
• On the page.
• On different pages using intuitive linking.
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DETAILED LAW PAGES
• Let readers drill down in as much detail as they are curious about.
• Don’t be thwarted by the idea that readers consume only a small fraction of
what you write. This is a good thing.
• If even one client asked you about a detail in the past, many more may be
curious about the same thing.
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LOCAL PAGES
• Get hyper-local.
• Call it out with its own page, map, pictures, etc.
• Criminal Defense Examples:
• Courts. Police stations. Jurisdictions. Jails. Checkpoints. Road/Crime Areas.
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QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS PAGES
• Q&A’s may be woven into any other page, or displayed on dedicated free-
standing FAQ page(s).
• Write the question like your PNCs and clients ask.
• Answer in simple and direct terms.
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CASE STUDIES PAGES
• Use real, published cases and fact patterns as teaching materials.
• Create hypothetical case scenarios and talk about possible outcome and
approaches.
• Consumers respond to fact patterns that they can relate to.
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Landing Pages
Substantive Pages
BlogPosts
About Pages
LANDING PAGES
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INTRODUCTION TO CONTENT
RACHEL CHALOT, JD, MSW
Vice President of Content Operations
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CREATE GUIDING AUDIENCE PRINCIPLES
- Synthesize common characteristics of a potential new client
Who are they?
What is their mindset?
What is the target “local language” (geographically and colloquially)?
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WHAT IS NECESSARY TO LAUNCH?
Focus on covering the basics, while planning for the future
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THINK LONG-TERM
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PRACTICE AREA PAGES : COMMON MISTAKES
• Attemping too high a volume pre-launch
• Failing to incorporate guiding audience principles
• Focusing on low-value (to your firm) content creation
• Focusing on low-value (or detrimental) SEO techniques
• Inadvertent mistakes
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TRANSITIONING TO GROW
Track as much data as possible
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TRANSITIONING TO GROW
• What types of cases are you attracting?
• What questions are being asked of you (and your staff)?
• What trends do you notice in your area?
• What local information do your clients need as they progress through the court
system?
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GROW YOUR CRIMINAL DEFENSE PRACTICE (February 9, 2017)
• Additional tools for long-term content strategy and planning
• Fleshing out practice area pages
• Lessons learned from successful growing defense firms
• Pitfalls to avoid when growing your criminal defense firm
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DEVELOPING HEALTHY CONTENT HABITS
• How often?
• What topics?
• Who will write it?
• “It’s not a brief, it’s a blog!”
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WEBSITE DESIGN FOR ATTORNEYS
Sophia Oliboni, MS
Senior Designer
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YOUR DUI LAW FIRM’S WEBSITE
Is your website design for you or
for your potential clients?
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AESTHETICS IN WEBSITES
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WHAT IS USABILITY? WHY IS IT IMPORTANT?
“Coffeepot for Masochists,” from the
collection of Don Norman, 2002.
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FOCUS ON WHAT MATTERS.
Don’t sweat the small stuff.
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THE IMPORTANCE OF WHITE SPACE
Minimalism brings important
content forward and minimizes
distractions.
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LESS IS MORE: HICK’S LAW
Related phenomenon:
“Analysis Paralysis.”
Too many choices can
overwhelm.
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YOUR LAW FIRM WEBSITE LINKS
“View our firm’s case results here”
vs.
“View our case results”
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YOUR LAW FIRM’S BRAND
How does branding affect a criminal defense firm?
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DEFINING YOUR LAW FIRM’S BRAND
• What is your firm’s mission?
• What are the benefits of choosing your firm?
• What do clients think of your firm?
• What qualities do you want prospective clients to associate with your law
firm?
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CHOOSING A LOGO
What’s in a good logo?
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LAW FIRM TAGLINES
Does your tagline capture your brand?
65NEXT MONTH:GROW YOUR CRIMINAL DEFENSE WEBSITE
Learn more about design details
that encourage potential clients
to engage your firm.
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GETTING STARTED
The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.
- Lao Tzu
