It’s vital for any business, whether in the legal sector or not, to generate more leads and clients through its online channels. But before that becomes a possibility, you must establish your brand as trustworthy to prospects while nurturing current client relationships.
Law firm reputation management allows you to do both: positioning your business as reputable to prospective clients without neglecting your existing ones. In this blog, we go over the following topics:
- Lawyer reputation management and attorney reputation management: What is online reputation management?
- The importance of lawyer reputation management for law firms.
- Lawyer and attorney reputation management strategy: Tips for the best online reputation management for lawyers.
- Get 5 star reviews and better
brand recognition with law firm reputation management services.
Lawyer Reputation Management and Attorney Reputation Management: What Is Online Reputation Management?
Online reputation management for lawyers is the tracking and shaping of public perceptions of your brand as a legal professional, your services law office, if any. The primary objective for implementing reputation management for attorneys and lawyers is to improve brand recognition that, ultimately, allows you to generate more leads and clients.
The Importance of Lawyer Reputation Management for Law Firms
In the past, legal professionals and law offices only needed to list their businesses on printed directories such as Yellow Pages — where potential clients seeking legal services find a number they could call. Prospective clients would then base their hiring decision on that conversation.
But such days are gone; your prospects no longer, if not rarely, do business in this manner. Rather, they wield the power of the internet and look for individuals or companies offering legal services. Prospective clients may use a key phrase such as “legal services [location]” on search engines like Google.
If you’re still on the fence as to whether reputation management is essential for law firms, here are only some of what you can achieve with reputation management:
- Appear on search results. Reputation management involves local search engine optimization (SEO). Local SEO is fundamental if you want your business to appear on search engines like Google and be found by your prospects.
- Provide accurate information on Google Maps. Providing accurate business information such as name, address and phone number (NAP) ensures potential clients find the correct information to contact you successfully.
- Get better ratings with 5-star reviews. As you can see in the image above, ratings are prominently displayed in search results. With reputation management, you can get 5-star reviews with generation campaigns.
- Recover from a reputational crisis. If you’re faced with a brand crisis, reputation management involves measures you can take to recuperate while practicing preventive measures to protect your brand from future incidents.
Thus, reputation management for law firms not only bolsters your brand visibility but the quality of information prospective clients find online.
Lawyer and Attorney Reputation Management Strategy: Tips for the Best Online Reputation Management for Lawyers
Any professional services provider would do better with a collection of 5-star reviews under its name. Here’s how you can get started with reputation management for attorneys and lawyers.
1. Research and Audit Your Online Presence
Before anything else, you must identify your current standing online. In this phase, you’ll dive deep into what people say about your brand, its key personnel and its services. You can start your audit by performing a search with keywords directly related to your practice or law office, such as your business name. As you audit your online presence, take note of the following:
- Negative reviews that you haven’t responded to.
- Positive reviews that you can extract and highlight.
2. Claim Your Online Brand Assets
Secure your business listings on top directories and review platforms such as Google Business Profile, Facebook, LinkedIn and Yelp. Prioritize your listings on these big platforms as smaller ones aggregate your business information from such sites. For reputation management for lawyers and attorneys, you also want to include targeted directories such as:
- Avvo
- Best Lawyers
- FindLaw
- Lawyer.com
- LawyerRatingz
- Martindale-Hubbell
3. Optimize Your Listings
Claiming your business on directories isn’t enough. You must fill them up with the correct information. Search engines may prioritize showing your business higher on search results when your business listing is complete. While the sections or data you must provide vary per website, here are some pointers to consider when you optimize your listings:
- Only use your law firm’s actual name; your listing name should be the same as the one physically posted outside your office.
- List a local phone number to demonstrate you’re operating a legitimate local business.
- Set regular hours of operation and include your special or holiday hours; update in the future if necessary.
- Write a compelling business description; you can highlight your area of specialization to attract the right prospects.
4. Address the Reviews
In your research and audit, we asked you to take note of reviews that need your attention. It’s critical that you respond to negative reviews at once, as prospective clients specifically seek such reviews. Responding to negative reviews gives you the opportunity to reposition your brand, which would help prospects see you in a positive light. Now, for the good reviews you found in your audit:
- Positive reviews are user-generated content (UGC) that highly appeals to potential clients.
- You can extract them and highlight the reviews on your website and social media channels.
- It’s okay not to reply to all 5 star reviews, but saying a simple thank you won’t hurt.
5. Curate a Reputation Management Plan Going Forward
Online reputation management is not a one-off task; it requires consistent brand monitoring and managing for you to actually reap the benefits. Thus, it’s wiser to dedicate a team who will be responsible for the ongoing management of your brand’s online reputation. In your planning, consider the following:
- You must have an individual in charge of monitoring online conversations to stay on top of any brand risks.
- For the person in charge of responding to reviews, set and follow a brand guideline so you stay on-brand.
- Develop a crisis management plan, which includes specific measures to take in case of a brand emergency.
Get 5 Star Reviews and Better Brand Recognition With Law Firm Reputation Management Services
When you consistently receive 4- to 5-star reviews, it leads to better brand recognition over time, ultimately allowing you to generate more leads and clients through your online channels. However, while it’s definitely worthwhile, law firm reputation management can take up so much of your time that you could otherwise spend dealing with clients and working on cases. It’s virtually impossible for busy legal professionals to undertake such a task.
Fortunately, lawyers can partner with reputation management companies like Rize Reviews. Rize Reviews is made up of online reputation management specialists. Our team allows you to focus on your profession while we oversee and protect your online reputation. Our services include:
- Listing management
- Regular review monitoring and social listening
- On-brand and timely review response
- Strategic review generation outreach
- Survey campaigns outreach and management
- Online reputation recovery
Rize Reviews also offers full-service, white-label solutions for businesses with specific needs or if you’re looking to expand your services. For accuracy and automation, our team employs customizable reputation management software where you have a quick overview of your reviews and star ratings in a single dashboard.
Call us at 866 325 0303 for a free demo!
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