As a lawyer, one of the biggest and most effective marketing tools you have at hand is your website. Many potential clients looking for representation will begin and end their search on the Internet. If your site doesn’t stack up to the competition, you could find yourself losing cases before you even have the opportunity to talk to a claimant. Therefore, you need a website that will assure a potential client that there is no need to look any further.

What do you want your website to say about your firm?

Within just a few moments of arriving onto your web page, the visitor will have already made a judgment about your firm and quite possibly already decided whether he or she wants to hire you as a lawyer. When someone is looking for representation, some of the most important qualities he or she might seek out in an attorney are trustworthiness, experience, professionalism, dedication, compassion and understanding. If you can successfully convey that you embody these qualities online, potential clients will be more likely to choose to work with you.

Here are some tips for building the best site for your law firm:

1. Design for user experience

Making sure that your website is easy to use will allow visitors to find exactly what they are looking for and decrease frustration that could cause them to move their search elsewhere. Additionally, you want to optimize your site for mobile use so that you are not limiting yourself to potential clients browsing on a desktop. Having a web page that users can navigate with ease will increase time spent on your site, and thus allow them to see all that you have to offer.

2. Choose colors wisely

The color scheme that you choose for your firm’s website might have more of an impact on potential clients than you think. Research shows that different colors evoke various emotions and feelings. With this in mind, it is important that the colors on your site are sending the right message and giving the visitors an impression of your firm that will make them want to work with you.

3. Avoid stock photos

Rather than generic stock photos, having real photos of you, your colleagues, and your office on the site can help potential clients to get a quick glimpse into the feel of your firm. A cheesy stock photo may give a potential claimant the impression that your firm is disingenuous. If you must use stock photos, feel free to edit the photos or add texts so users can connect the dots between the photo and the message your firm is trying to convey.

4. Target your content to your clients

Your site’s content should be simple, to the point, and communicate your most important messages. Think about what you want to emphasize most to potential clients and focus on it. Whether your selling point is your experience winning claims, value of your clients, or another defining characteristic, make sure that this content is easy to find. You are designing your site for your clients, so it is important to keep their needs in mind when writing your content.

5. Post testimonials

Ask current or past clients to write you a testimonial. Potential clients quickly browsing your website will be impressed if they see a number of real, honest reviews of your firm. They want an attorney they can trust and you can begin building this right away by sharing testimonials.

6. Make your contact information easy to find

Your firm’s phone number and address should be a focal point, as this is one of the most important pieces of information on your site. At a minimum, it should appear on every page. You never want to lose a client because he or she could not figure out how to get in touch with you. You can help to facilitate the process with live chats. However, these can be intrusive which could cause visitors to leave your site. If you do opt for the live chat feature, it is better to take a subtle approach and place the chat box either in the header or on the side at the bottom of the page.

By implementing these suggestions, you can see an increase in the number of visitors to your site that submit a contact form. Creating a website specifically targeting potential clients will allow you to increase traffic to your site. Those potential clients will be much more likely to want to work with you if your site is easy to use, easy to look at and has content that resonates with them. Keeping all of this in mind, there is no reason that you shouldn’t be able to create the best website for your law firm.