Once a potential client has found your law firm in Google search results, it is important to convince him or her to click on your listing, both in search results and in Google Maps. To do this, you can apply search engine optimization (SEO)
Many service businesses, such as law firms and administrative offices, attribute their success to word of mouth and ignore search engine optimization (SEO) altogether. So while about 80% of people search on Google for the nearest legal counsel, now is the perfect time to understand and use SEO for lawyers.
Once a potential client has found your law firm in Google search results, it is important to convince him or her to click on your listing, both in search results and in Google Maps. To do this, you can apply search engine optimization (SEO), which means using the right keywords and other techniques to make your listing stand out and convincing. You can do this, for example, by using persuasive language and design elements on your website. In this way, you can increase the chances that potential clients will click on your listing and learn more about your law firm and the services you offer.
A website without online reviews is often seen as unreliable and can lead to fewer clients and lower sales. This is because many people greatly value what others think of a company before making a decision about which law firm to choose. Thus, a website without reviews can quickly be written off by potential clients. It is therefore wise to ensure positive reviews and deal well with bad reviews to strengthen your online reputation and increase the chances of potential clients choosing your firm.
Understandable, because people care a lot about what others think, so they themselves don't have to pay for a disappointing service. The use of reviews not only leads to new customers and additional sales, but the management team can benefit as well, using customer reviews internally as feedback to improve its services.
5 reasons why managing online reviews is important for your law firm
It is often the smaller firms that are busy gaining reviews and other marketing tools to gain the trust of the consumer. This is logical because the smaller firms still have to distinguish themselves from their competitors. A large law firm, for instance, needs to do so much less, because they have already distinguished themselves. Here, the larger firms rely too much on word-of-mouth advertising, because this has always worked. But more firms are joining and reviews have never been more important.
It is often difficult for law firms to post reviews because of confidentiality requirements. Yet this really can make such a big difference within the industry. In fact, 88% trust an online review just as much as a personal recommendation. A personal recommendation used to be golden, but nowadays it's not about who says it, but what is said, times are changing.
And for that reason, as of May 28, 2022, additional rules have also been appointed for obtaining and posting online reviews. This should make it harder for companies to put fake reviews out into the world, this has been happening a lot lately. Review platform Trustpilot removed 2.7 million "fake" reviews in 2021.
Fact: 70-80% of legal seekers use reviews to choose a lawyer
In the meantime, people have started to see through the standard 5-star reviews, partly because of the hundreds of "fake" reviews that have been added in recent years. So it doesn't look reliable if you only have 5-star reviews. Because people are often looking for pain company to solve this. So it's only good to receive a single 1-star review, this is a unique opportunity for your company to solve this properly. This shows new customers that the company can be trusted and that things are always solved properly.
What is the first thing you do when product, service or promotion online and can't quite make up your mind to buy it? That's right, you do a little digging and read online reviews. The good reviews are usually not that relevant, but it is of course important that they are there! People are curious about the quality, whether it is delivered on time and whether the service is good. This is only because these customers are looking for confirmation of something they already suspected.
But in addition to positive reviews, no less than 82% of visitors are looking for negative reviews, to find out how the company deals with unexpected problems. The same research has also shown that an overall rating of 4.2 to 4.5 scores better than an overall rating of 5, on a scale of 1 to 5.
Again because a rating of 5 stars seems to be "To good to be true", usually if something is too good to be true then it often is. So a nice division between good and bad reviews is best, with of course an overall rating between 4.2 and 4.5.
We have used DELTA Energie as an example above:
Are you looking for the right online reputation management service for your business?
There are several platforms offering this service, but which one should you use? It doesn't really matter, but sometimes there are differences between the features offered by the platforms. Also, some have a free version that you can upgrade, but most don't even have a free version to try. It doesn't matter what platform you use, because people search for "your business" reviews anyway. But your choice may be influenced by a platform that offers widgets, for example, which of course increases conversions for your website. And Google reviews are also the favourite, because Google radiates the most authority. In addition, Google reviews are displayed in several places and there are many platforms that easily connect to Google, an advantage not every review platform has.
With Google My Business you can manage the reviews your business receives. Google Reviews are so powerful because Google is so big, this means that the reviews you receive are automatically of greater value. This also applies to the other platforms mentioned above. This is because there is an organisation behind it that controls it. You see a lot of websites that have their own reviews on their page, who checks these? Probably they themselves, so chances are that there are many "fake" reviews between them. These reviews are therefore automatically of less value than those of Google or Trustpilot, which are much more reliable.
If you have a good product at a good price, the reviews come automatically. But with a service it's different. Make sure you automatically ask the clients if they want to leave a review. Or even, it takes 30 seconds to invite a client to write a review. Preferably send the link via WhatsApp or e-mail, only to receive the review 1 minute later. And well, when you consider how many phone calls you can expect, then those 30 seconds are more than worth it. Extra turnover is never a bad thing, is it?
Then you will immediately notice which hoover attracts your attention, which are the ones with stars, then the amount of reviews does not even matter.
So don't neglect this acquisition canon any longer. Many clients do online research before deciding which law firm to choose. Satisfied clients are the best marketing for your firm, and it costs you nothing to get positive reviews. Managing reviews can also help strengthen your online reputation and address negative reviews in a professional manner. Enjoy reviewing and reap the benefits of online reviews for your law firm. Have fun reviewing!
Left:
https://fd.nl/opinie/1393876/lessen-van-corona-mijn-tien-voorlopige-tegelwijsheden
https://www.mr-online.nl/advocatenkantoren-laten-kansen-liggen-nu-ze-geen-klantreviews-plaatsen/
https://www.adformatie.nl/reputatiemanagement/trustpilot-heeft-2021-meer-nepreviews-verwijderd3
We help companies in
Book a 100% free, no-obligation strategy call with one of our experts (worth €667). This is exclusively for people who are serious about growing their business. Still a few free spots available in March.
