Larry Bodine thinks so:
Clients use Google to look up phone numbers and addresses, so law firms can cancel their yellow pages ads. When clients want to check out your firm, they are not going to call up to get your printed brochure, they will look you up online.
Kevin O’Keefe agrees but sees the directories playing a part in your visibility on Google:
As for directories such as FindLaw, Martindale-Hubbell, Super Lawyers, Avvo, and the like, the most important function they can play is getting the biographical information of your firm and its lawyers indexed at Google. The days of a lawyer directory portal site where Internet users go to look up lawyers are coming to an end.
However, I’m sure both Larry and Kevin would agree that what’s most important is for you directly to influence your visibility on the search engines – Google in particular – as that’s where most people search, unrestricted by the broad subject classifications used by the directories; you target the specific terms that will be most relevant and most effective in attracting hits. Gaining front page rankings on Google is not easy, but a significant improvement is achievable and need cost very little: the basic principles for improving the “keyword relevance” of your pages are straightforward, and, for example, the effectiveness of blogs in generating Google juice is well proven. When you’ve done what you can, you can then consider where to spend your “directory” budget – lawyer directories or Google Ads? I think Google wins again.
No question Nick that having an independent appearance at Google, most preferably, on the first page of Google’s results is key.
Lawyers who are producing valuable content on their niche through publishing a blog are achieving those results. The outcome is a couple calls a week on new cases as opposed to what has been as little as a call a year from a legal directory listing.
Google has always been about the greater good. Whoever contributes valuable information to the benefit of the Internet community as a whole is going to do well. Those who choose not to contribute will not do as well.
As Kevin & Larry describe, the lesson here is that content and rankings are in balance. Google rewards great content, and in turn, great content is required to put your best ‘business development’ foot forward.
Plus, the logic to use legal directories simply isn’t there. Legal directories are just another node between the user and your legal services. Not only must the searcher find the directory page in question, but then they must choose your firm over the others listed.
Makes way better sense to market using quality content, and then use that introduction to expose your services.