Demonstrating that your firm is trustworthy and credible can help boost your leads. But showing that you are a credible firm is more than posting any awards and recognitions on your site. Although accreditation can certainly help, there are other ways you will need to prove to potential claimants that your firm is one they can trust to win their claim. Here’s how:
Consider Site Design
Having a clean site design that is well thought out can help make a good first impression. If your firm’s site looks unprofessional or is difficult to navigate, it may turn away potential clients. A site that does not seem legitimate or seems old may cause confusion on if your firm even exists or is still in business. If a claimant cannot figure out how to contact your firm or cannot easily find an answer to your question, it may seem as if your firm is hiding information, taking away any sense of trustworthiness or credibility. In addition to making a good impression, an easy to navigate site can help your firm’s SEO. It will help search engine’s crawl your site and index pages, allowing them to appear on the search results.
Professional Writing Style
Going hand in hand with site design is your site’s content. A potential client may be visiting your site looking for specific information, so you will want to seem like experts in your area of law. Your content should be easy to understand and give clear information. It should seem like it is professionally written but it should still be written with your target client in mind, which is typically a 6th level. Avoid legal jargon that may confuse a claimant or come off as elitist.
Reviews & Testimonials
Reviews and testimonials from past and current clients will help further prove that your firm is a reputable law firm and easy to work with. If you have reviews on your Facebook, Google Business Listing or other directories, link to these on your firm’s site. Hearing what others have to say about your firm, especially when it’s been posted on different platforms, will help build trust and credibility.
Attorney Bios
Potential claimants want to be able to put a face with a name. Add attorney bios to help a lead get to know your firm before actually meeting you. Don’t just the attorney’s name and where they went to law school. Add things like interests, why they practice law, any strengths, interesting facts, how long they’ve worked with your firm, etc. These will help build up trust and make your firm seem relatable. The more personality you can give your firm, the more trustworthy you will seem.
Having a Secure Site
No one wants to go to a site and see that is labeled as “not secure.” This warning message occurs on any “HTTP” domain on Google Chrome. “Not secure” warnings are especially important to avoid for law firms collecting sensitive information, such as Social Security claimants listing their disabilities. If your firm’s site still says that is it not secure on Google Chrome, you should act fast to get a secure socket layer certificate (SSL) and migrate your site to “HTTPS.” This certificate will help protect any information a potential claimant has to fill out on your site, such as on a contact form. To get an SSL, contact your website manager or seek assistance from your domain host. Once you have a secure site, you may even see your firm’s site move up on the organic rankings!
Credibility and trust are the foundation of the any successful of any attorney-client relationship. With many potential claimants finding your firm online, showing that your firm is one a claimant can trust is important. The more credible you portray your firm online, the better you’ll stand out from the legal competition. Continuing to improve your site to show your firm is credible will help continue to increase your caseload.