How Google My Business Can Help Strengthen Your Legal Website’s SEO

With the decline of local phone books and regional Yellow Pages, Google search is a critical tool that residents in your area can use to find law firms nearby. In fact, an estimated 46% of Google searches have local intent – the need or desire to find products, services, or locations near to the user. In addition, these searches are highly likely to lead to a real-world interaction between the business and a user, as over 88% of users who search locally either call, contact online, or actually visit the business in question within 24 hours.

As a law firm that represents clients residing within a particular geographical area, you can see the benefits of driving potential clients to your website – and ultimately, your office. So, how can you make sure your firm not only appears when people search for services like yours but appears prominently? You’ll need to engage in strategic search engine optimization (SEO) techniques, beginning with Google My Business.

What Is Google My Business?

If you’ve ever performed a search for products or services near you, you’ve undoubtedly experienced Google My Business (GMB) listings. This free service allows businesses and professionals like you to provide critical details about your business, including your business name, address, contact information, website, and hours of operation. Eventually, user-generated content like photos, reviews, star ratings, and more will appear as users interact with the listing.

When a user near you searches for a relevant keyword – i.e., “lawyers near me,” Google provides these local listings along with its organic search results and paid ads. GMB listings appear as flags within Google Maps, in what Google calls the “local three-pack,” a box that sits prominently at the top of mobile results or above regular results blocks on a desktop SERP, or within the “local finder,” the extended box that appears when the user clicks “more places.” Users can then choose to interact with the listing to fulfill their needs – ultimately either navigating to your website, calling your firm directly, navigating to your brick-and-mortar office, or something else.

How Can GMB Help Your Firm’s SEO?

According to statistics released by Google, results within the local three-pack receive up to 47% of all clicks. In addition, if a user searches directly for your firm’s name, they’ll see your full GMB listing, with direct links to contact, navigate, or visit your office. Perhaps best of all, GMB listings give users the opportunity to provide photos and ratings for your firm, helping to increase your firm’s trust and authority.

The potential for such exposure has an undeniable effect on the likelihood that users will make a conversion, like visiting your website or contacting your firm. The opposite is true, as well – employing other SEO practices like utilizing relevant keywords, producing quality page content, and developing a strong backlink profile, can make your firm more likely to appear in the three-pack for local searches. Overall, GMB listings are a critical part of an effective SEO strategy that will help make your firm more visible and more appealing for users searching in your area.

How to Get Started With GMB

Begin with these simple steps to claim and optimize your GMB profile:

  1. Navigate to the Google My Business page. There, you’ll be asked to either search for your law firm’s listing or create one.
  2. Create your business. If you cannot find your law firm within the existing businesses, click “Add Your Business to Google.”
  3. Enter your firm’s name. Be sure to check for spelling and other errors and list your business name exactly as it appears on your official website.
  4. Choose a business category. Once you begin typing, Google offers a suggested list of choices. “Law firm” is a great place to start – you can add others like “personal injury attorney” and the like later.
  5. Update your location. Select “yes” when asked if you would like to add a location customers can visit. Then, enter your street address along with the ZIP code.
  6. Specify the areas you serve. Select “yes” when asked if you also serve customers in other areas. Then, select relevant service areas from the suggestions provided, or search for more.
  7. Add contact information. Here’s where you list your phone number and website URL. Again, double-check to ensure all information you provide is accurate.
  8. Opt-in to updates. At this point, Google will ask if you want to opt in to updates and suggestions. Usually, these are helpful, but the decision is up to you.
  9. Finish and Verify. After you’ve clicked “Finish,” your GMB account is nearly complete. However, you’ll still need to verify that you own the firm. Depending on your selection, Google can automatically call the phone number you listed or send a postcard to your business address within four business days.
  10. Utilize the GMB Dashboard. Once your GMB account is verified, the work is not over – now that you have full access to the dashboard, make sure to add as much accurate information as possible, including hours of operation, a business description, practice areas, and a business logo.
  11. Add a Q&A. Q&A sections can appear in the knowledge panel and give your firm more visibility while answering questions before your users need to ask. Enable questions & answers, and do your best to populate the section in advance.
  12. Add labels, highlights, and attributes. From the “advanced information” section, you can add up to ten labels for your GMB listing. Or select from multiple potential highlights and attributes you believe makes your firm stand out from others. Attributes like “woman-owned,” “handicap accessible,” and more can help your firm reassure clients you can meet their needs.
  13. Complete optimization. To improve the SEO benefits of your GMB listing, consider using Google Posts to feature relevant or important posts from your website. In addition, upload cover photos and profile photos that represent your firm and meet Google’s size requirements. Finally, in any language within your GMB profile, endeavor to utilize SEO-friendly and location-based keywords to further optimize your listing.

As you can see, setting up your firm’s GMB profile is a relatively simple process. However, true optimization has a bit of a steeper learning curve, requiring you to build a familiarity with multiple Google features and GMB accessories – then, once client reviews, questions, and more begin rolling in, it becomes even more critical to actively monitor your GMB listing. If you need help optimizing or monitoring your GMB listing – or any other aspect of your local SEO – you can rely on the team at RizeUp Media.

Contact us today to learn more about our SEO services, including GMB insights. With expert guidance, unparalleled SEO tools, and industry-best techniques, RizeUp can help you achieve the SEO success and GMB optimization your firm needs for healthy growth. Call 866-806-8536 or complete our online contact form today.

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