Last week, the heads of our company divisions met in Temecula, California for staff meetings to discuss the latest trends in lawyer marketing and to brush up on our skills.
 

Search Engines Optimization (SEO) for lawyers’ websites has definitely been the focus.  Many of our clients are already showing up well in the natural/organic listings; however, the rules continue to change.  The biggest lesson: don’t try to outsmart Google.  Make sure you narrow the focus of keywords per page (no more than 10), have good titles and descriptions in your meta tags, and focus your H1 tags.  Don’t go after generic words; find keywords that really explains who you are – not just a New Jersey personal injury attorney, but that you are an Atlantic City security negligence attorney.  The more specific – the better.
 

Pay-per-click is still a strong aspect of a law firm’s marketing strategy.  Since some keywords can cost $40/click, you really want to be wise in the keywords that you choose – again, the more specific the better.  Then you want an appealing title and description; make sure it has a call to action.  Also, try more than one ad to see what works best.  Google allows you to rotate ads and then automatically chooses the most effective one.  If Google offers help, definitely take them up on it! 
 

Another hot topic was attorney website designs.  The biggest point to make is that you want your law firm web design to be different; don’t use the typical columns and gavels – use pictures of your firm and office and city.  Use a logo and a slogan – that may be what someone remembers.  Don’t be afraid to let the website show consumers who your firm really is – do you wear jeans and boots to the office, are you all business all the time?  It’s no longer a matter of what color is most appealing – it is what lawyer website design best describes who they are and to what type of client they want to connect.
 

As always, there was goal planning, convention planning, and more planning.  But, that’s not to say we didn’t get to have fun, too.  We went surfing in Carlsbad (or I guess you can call trying to get on your surfboard and getting beaten up by the ocean surfing) and we went wine tasting in Temecula.  Did you know that Temecula is Southern California’s wine tasting region?  Wilson Creek’s almond champagne is definitely my favorite sweet drink.  But, if you are looking for a laid back winery that is informative and fun – go to Cougar and make sure to say hi to the two dogs Sandy and Diego (get it? San Diego? Haha!)
 

I think this session definitely revitalized us and we are back and working hard already!