Is Your Practice Page Ready for Prime Time?

Lance Lawyer got up from his desk where he had been reviewing L&L Law's website and went across the hall to sister Linda's office. Suppressing a smile, she asked "What's up?"

"The practice pages on our website are 'what's up,'" said Lance. "Our home page is fresh and engaging and gets lots of attention, but our practice pages are boring. Readers don't stay long enough and the conversion rate is low. They need to be revised."

The goals of practice pages are to 1) attract search engines by focusing on terms prospective clients are searching for such as family law, DUI, personal injury, or elder law; 2) inform prospective clients on what you do, how you do it, and why someone should choose you; and 3) tell readers what to do such as call, download a form, or sign up for a newsletter.

Each practice page should focus on one topic. By doing so, it's easier for search engines to find you and a prospective client to find the topic they are seeking. For example, L&L Law specializes in elder law, so they can organize their site with a main topic and then sub-topics such as:

Elder Law (Overview)
Wills & trusts
Powers of attorney
Guardianships or conservatorships
Medicare & Medicaid
Social Security
Elder abuse

Your writing should be in plain English, not legalese. While spousal support may be the term you use, your prospective clients call it alimony, so use the general term and explain that the law in your state calls it spousal support. As you write, think about your prospective clients on how they are feeling and what information they need to make a decision. Give legal information instead of legal advice, use spell check, and let others review it for typos and difficult wording before posting it to the web.

Other techniques to keep the reader on the page include:

• Short videos—they can expand on the written content to give readers a quick breakdown on the main points
• Keep your topic concise and link to more information
• Use white space to make points stand out
• Add bullet points and relevant images

You can also add testimonials or taglines that speak to your reader's concerns. And, remember to announce your new pages using social media and e-mail blasts.

Roberta Gubbins has served as the editor of the Ingham County Legal News. Since leaving the paper, she provides services as a ghostwriter editing articles, blogs, and e-blasts for lawyers and law firms. She is the editor of Briefs, the Ingham County Bar Association e-newsletter, and The Mentor, SBM Master Lawyers Section newsletter.

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