Creating Law Firm SEO Authority

• redesign/rebuild the legal niche directory.
• establish a regular schedule of submission reviews.
• build the law firm social media network.
• engage others to be involved in the goal.
• Increase revenue for the site that has a decade old domain.
• Develop an associated law firm review blog.

Why invest in this Niche Legal Directory?

As I stated in a previous post, I intend to sell the legal directory, but as it stands it is pretty stagnate. Lets take an inventory.

• It does have a Fanpage and twitter.
• 849 cached pages in Google.
• 264 backlinks found
• 454 listings

What Activities We Do

Within the last year, I did create the Twitter profile and Fanpage. I have been trying to make an effort to find a legal resource that has at least a Twitter profile, to add to the directory. I would then send out a tweet that notifies the site that they have gotten a free 1 year listing to the directory.

Tweeting the links does two things. One it lets the owner know about their listing, and two it helps to get the link cached in Google.

Additionally, if there is an associated blog or Fanpage, I will like them and leave appropriate comments.

What Other activity Can I do?

Do you have any suggestions for activities that I can do to increase the authority of the site?

The best way for a PPC Agency to think about this issue, is to consider their target audience.

Now, the PPC algorithm change basically means that those running a campaign will receive a better weighting, if they have strong and relevant landing pages ready for the website user.

Okay, arguably, the Home Page is the mother of all landing pages, because that is where traffic is directed as a matter of course. But, the problem with a Home Page is that it’s almost a contents page and can be very vague at that.

Many modern websites are vast emporiums of information and landing on a page means that the user is facing a bewildering array of facts and information.

How often have we all clicked on a search result on Google, or Bing, and then discovered the resulting page has nothing to do with what we’re after? Or, we have come through to a home page which is so crowded with information, that you also cannot see what you are after.

And most people, when faced with that occurrence, simply click away from the site, frustrated at not only the wasted time, but also annoyed at the ‘brand’ for causing you to waste that time.

This is why landing pages have become so important. A good landing page deals with the specific enquiry that has brought a user onto that page and this is what Google is trying to reward with a heavier weighting within the PPC campaigns.

But, you can see the problem. Landing pages should be specifically tied into the search request and not offer vague information, or feedback. But they are unsuitable for those people who are after the more general information offered by the Home Page after all.

So, the way around this problem is to create properly defined pages to strict search criteria. Let’s say a car company wants to not only bang on about a new model it launched some time ago (and sales are flagging), but would also like to catch people who are interested in all of their brands.

The solution? Two PPC campaigns on different search criteria. It’s the only way. So one campaign which focuses on the company’s brand, the other on the company’s make of car which needs a boost. So two ‘ads’ go online – together with the appropriate key wording – one which goes to the Home Page (corporate) and the other, to a specific landing page which targets the actual model of car.

This then avoids any confusion as to what message the company is trying to get across in corporate and individual model terms.

I have been using Google plus off and on for several months. It does seem to be a decent way to connect with people that have very similar interests.  I also like it because, well its a Google property.

Be sure to create both a personal page and a page for your company as well. Be sure to add the Google+1 badge in addition to creating your company page, to insure that your site is included in the Google+ directory( that is the directory that is used when someone does a search while logged in to Google+.  Additionally, there are some Google+ directories poping up that are not affiliated with Google+. I am not sure how beneficial getting listed in the non-Google affiliated Google+ directories is, but hey you never know.  Here is a link to once such Google+ directory that accepts free submissions.

Much like Facebook, be sure to add some pictures at the top of your Google+ profile.

I have not used Google+ much, so I don’t have a ton of advice. Got any Google+ advice or blog posts to share?

Google+ Resources

• Kristi Hines post on Social Media Examiner for creating a Google+ Business Page.
• Another good post by Kristi on SME about using Google+ for SEO
• Google+ for Business
• Just came across this post on Google+ 11 GOOGLE+ DIRECTORIES TO HELP YOU MAKE MORE FRIENDS

Note: Many of the tips in this Search Engine Optimization (SEO) post could apply to any non-profit or company site.

What is Rotary?

Rotary International is a non-profit service organization.  There are clubs all over the world, and there is probably one or more Rotary Clubs near you. Many towns have multiple Rotary clubs.

Each Rotary Club operates  a little differently, although most meetings have many of the same elements such as sharing info, doing service projects, and networking.

Service projects vary from doing local community projects like student mentoring, park development, or projects that are unique and needed in each clubs town.

In my town, one of the service projects done by  the Rotary was a “playground for everyone” which is a playground that is handicapped accessible.

But Rotary is much more than service..if you are lucky enough to be asked to join, check it out, you’ll be glad you did.

Why do Rotary Club Websites Need SEO?

When I search for a town’s Rotary, I expect it to come up. Often times, I am looking for a town’s Rotary to see when and where it meets, and I can not find the chapter or any info about it. Or even worse, I find an out of date site that is from 2005.

Additionally, I think the Rotary Websites should be optimized so that when someone searches for the club’s town name, the club should be on the search engine results page right at the top of the list. So if I was to optimize my club site fully, it would show up for terms like “Boyertown, PA” ‘Boyertown Service organization” in addition to “Boyertown Rotary”.

Lastly, if the site were to truly become an authority in the town, it would make selling advertising to reputable businesses with the town so much easier. What club wouldn’t love to bring in some extra revenue for service projects?

How Can Rotary Clubs Optimize their Sites?

First, they can use content management systems that are SEO friendly and which can be updated easily and regularly.  ClubRunner, the system we currently use is not SEO friendly, but it does have a ton of features that make it good for Rotary clubs and it is pretty easily updated.  I am thinking about doing a blog post that compares  different platforms for Rotary Clubs. I believe providing platforms for Rotary Club websites is a huge niche that a web development company could do well in.  My small club pays maybe $35 a month for the site. There is a club in almost every small town, and in some towns there are multiple Rotary Clubs.  Additionally, Clubrunner charges more if your club has more members. But I digress…

The second thing that Rotary Clubs can do to optimize their sites, is to integrate their sites with Social Media. Having social media widgets  for your Social Media profiles does affect search rankings.

The third and most important thing that Rotary Clubs should do is to undergo a club link building campaign. This can be as simple as getting each club member to comment on one blog per month, and drop their club’s site url into the website field. Additionally, if the members have websites of their own, they can link to the club on their site. One way links are what it’s all about.

Easy Rotary SEO

These three tips are not a complete SEO strategy, but they are a start. If your club is in a competitive market like Las Vegas or New York, to show up at the top in the search engines, it may take a bit more work. If you need some  help, let me know by dropping a comment with your contact info.

Rotarians: Drop your club or district’s url in to the web page field in the comments section to get a link to your site.