SEOConsultantFirm.com Announces the 10 Things Every Lawyer Should Know About Online Press Releases
Article provided by SeoConsultantFirm.com. Please visit our website at http://www.seoconsultantfirm.com
New York, NY (PRWEB) June 25, 2009 -- SEO Consultant Firm offers new tips for law firm press releases. "Before the internet, public relations came down to who you knew in the mainstream media and how much you were willing to spend to build visibility and awareness," said Dustin Ruge of SeoConsultantFirm.com. "Back then, marketing promoted your legal services to consumers while public relations was far less controlled by you and relied heavily on media filters and contacts. With the advent of the web, that has all changed."
Ever since the U.S. Supreme Courts' ruling on Bates vs. State Bar of Arizona in 1977, attorneys have been (with certain limitations) been able to move beyond the shingle and advertise their services to the public. Prior to the proliferation of the web, public relations primarily dealt with press releases and media outlets such as television, periodicals and the like. These were the most common vehicles of the time in which your prospective clients could be conveniently interrupted with announcements of your services. Over the past decade or so, customer behavior started to change and instead of being interrupted by TV's, billboards and the like, they started to turn to the web as part of their daily lives. With the help of search engines, an amazing transformation started taking place - people starting looking for attorneys on their time without interruptions. If they have an issue, they now look online for legal advice and attorneys who can handle them, on their own time.
All of these changes have now clouded the once separate functions of lawyer marketing and public relations since technology now allows them to cross some very important paths - chiefly having to do with press releases. In the past, press releases were sent from the attorney to the "press" for the "press" to release through their own channels. This in effect served as a filter to the consumers to which many attorneys had little control. But three important technological changes happened to dramatically change all of this. First, attorney press releases can now be published to the web by anybody at anytime at very little costs. Second, law firm press releases are now indexed in the search engines just like websites and blogs for people to search for and find. Finally, many traditional media outlets are increasing relying on web content for their news and research.
So how can your law firm take advantage of these changes? Here are the top 10 things you should know:
1.) Define your goals and objectives. What are the goals and objectives for your law firm and how will press releases help you get there? This is a fundamental question you need to ask before you start a press release campaign.
2.) Use your press releases to support your website and blogs. If you send out a press release, ALWAYS make sure it provides and easy path for users to find and contact you - a place where a call to action can occur.
3.) Every press release should include Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Keywords: When it comes to the web, content is king. We have provided tools to assist in your keyword discovery process at: Keyword Search Engine Optimization (SEO).
4.) Every press release should include Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Inbound Links: It is also important to include inbound textual links from your press releases into your website - which will act as a vote for your website in the search engines and help increase your visibility and rankings online. We have provided an overview to assist in your inbound linking process at: Inbound Link Building SEO
5.) Make the press aware of your press releases. This might strike some as a bit odd since this process can help bypass the press all together but that is not the point. If you have something important to say and want to become a thought leader in your practice area, you should make the relevant press contacts and outlets aware of your press releases.
6.) Write your releases with your target market in mind. If your press release has to do with trucking accidents and is intended to help generate trucking accident clients, they stay away from the legal jargon such a "litigation", "plaintiff", etc. - words that mean nothing to somebody who just may have been crushed in their car and need legal help for the first time.
7.) Timing can be critical for your press releases. This may come as a surprise to some but a good steady stream of press releases can be just as important as an event drive release as well. A good steady stream of press releases is always a good way to flood the world with information for whenever they may need it - when they need it.
8.) Include compelling offers to potential clients in your press releases. If you law firm offers free initial consultations, make sure to include that prominently in your press releases.
9.) Place press releases on your website and blog. Many press releases provided to the online news services have a limited shelf-life - in many cases two years or less.
10.) Publish your press release online through distribution services. Once you have your press release ready to go, you now need to distribute it through a press release distribution service (or news wire) so others can read and index it. For a list of recommened press release services, please visit our website at: law firm press release services
To learn more, please visit our website at: Law Firm Search Engine Optimization (SEO) or our blog at: Law Firm SEO Blog
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