SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization and is the process of adjusting a web site so that it appears higher up on the search engine results pages and experiences an increase in site traffic. Often times we’ll get attorneys that are looking to add a little extra visibility to their site’s search engine rankings, so here is a little free advice that really works:

• Submit your site to a few search engines like Google, Yahoo, and maybe even MSN (the big three). Skip the 1000’s of other engines as the big three drive about 90% of web traffic.
• Create a few online profiles that link back to your web site at places like merchant circle and Mojo pages just to name a few. Search engines will think your site is worthy for top placement if you have lots of other web sites that “recommend you”. These recommendations are know as “links”. For example, when web site “A” links to web site “B”, then web site “B” is getting a recommendation and will rank a little higher in the search engines.
• Get recommendations that say something specific about your site. Search engines don’t just look at the number of recommendations you have but also what each recommendation is saying. If you create recommendations that are saying you are a “lawyer in san diego” then the search engines begin to weigh in on what those recommendations are saying about your site and start to rank you accordingly!
• Place a short description of what you do into your page TITLE tags. Our ESQ dashboard lets you do this to any page on your site. FYI: Title tags are the portion of your site at the top of a web browser and are what also show up in the search engines results pages as the “blue” links - they are the first thing a potential client sees before entering your web site, so make it good! Try to keep your TITLE tags at around 65 characters because Google, for example, only shows Title tags that are 65 character in length or less.
• Write well thought out pages with lots of useful information about what kind of law you practice. In fact, take the time to fill out all of your pages. Search engines love content rich pages that offer value to searchers. If your pages are good, the search engines will think so too and will begin ranking you better.

These are just a few quick SEO tips for your site. There are many more things that can be done to a web site to help it’s search engine rankings. For the time being, ESQ does not specialize in search engine optimization but you might find after reading a little on the subject can help you understand the value and power that a good Search Marketing campaign can offer.

If you have more questions about SEO or designing a legal web site, you can contact ESQ Sites today.