Why Attorney-Owned Law Firm Content Writing Services Outperform Generic Marketing Agencies

Why Attorney-Owned Law Firm Content Writing Services Outperform Generic Marketing Agencies

Most law firms struggle with a fundamental problem: their marketing content doesn’t convert prospects into clients. The reason? Generic marketing agencies treat legal content like any other industry, missing the nuanced expertise that separates mediocre law firm websites from those that dominate search results and client acquisition

Most law firms struggle with a fundamental problem: their marketing content doesn’t convert prospects into clients. The reason? Generic marketing agencies treat legal content like any other industry, missing the nuanced expertise that separates mediocre law firm websites from those that dominate search results and client acquisition.

Since founding Lexicon Legal Content in 2012, we’ve created thousands of pieces of content that establish our clients as leaders in their practice areas. This success stems directly from our attorney-owned approach. Our co-founder, Erin Fitzgerald, Esq., practiced law in Missouri for several years before launching Lexicon, bringing real courtroom experience and legal expertise to every piece of content we create.

The Critical Gap in Traditional Law Firm Content Writing

When law firms outsource their content to general marketing agencies, they often receive well-written but legally shallow material. These agencies excel at crafting readable copy with proper keyword density, but they fundamentally misunderstand what potential legal clients actually need to see. The result is content that might check SEO boxes but fails to demonstrate the legal authority that converts prospects into paying clients.

Generic content writers typically produce articles that lack legal accuracy and depth. They miss the industry-specific terminology that clients actually search for when they need legal help. More problematically, they often create compliance risks by providing inaccurate legal information or making claims that violate legal advertising rules.

Why Attorney Ownership Makes the Difference

A law firm content writer at his desk  with the scales of justice and a statute of Lady Justice

Attorney-owned law firm content writing services bring something that generic agencies simply cannot replicate: actual legal expertise combined with marketing knowledge. When practicing attorneys create content for other law firms, they understand both the legal nuances that matter to potential clients and the strategic elements that drive search rankings.

This dual expertise delivers several key advantages:

  • Legal accuracy that builds trust – Content includes precise terminology, relevant case law, and accurate explanations that demonstrate genuine expertise
  • Real-world insight – Writers understand which questions prospects actually ask and which legal concepts cause the most confusion
  • Compliance awareness – Content adheres to legal advertising rules and ethical guidelines that generic writers often overlook
  • Conversion optimization – Material guides prospects toward consultation requests while providing genuine legal value

Consider the difference between a generic writer explaining personal injury law versus an attorney who has actually handled hundreds of personal injury cases. The attorney knows which questions prospects really ask, which legal concepts cause confusion, and how to explain complex processes in ways that build trust rather than create more uncertainty.

The SEO Advantage of Legally Accurate Content

Search engines increasingly reward content that demonstrates expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness. For legal content, this means Google strongly favors websites that showcase genuine legal knowledge over keyword-stuffed articles written by non-attorneys who learned about law from Wikipedia.

Attorney-created law firm content writing naturally incorporates precise legal terminology that prospects actually use when searching for help. It references relevant case law and legal precedents that boost authority signals. Most importantly, it provides accurate explanations of complex legal processes while maintaining the readability that both search engines and potential clients demand.

When an attorney writes about statute of limitations issues, they don’t just regurgitate generic information. They understand the exceptions, the nuances between different types of cases, and the practical implications that actually matter to someone considering legal action. This depth of knowledge translates into content that search engines recognize as authoritative and prospects find genuinely helpful.

Common Law Firm Content Writing Mistakes That Kill Rankings

Many law firms unknowingly sabotage their search rankings through predictable content mistakes. They write overly generic topics like “personal injury law” instead of addressing specific, searchable questions like “what happens if I was partially at fault in my car accident.” They provide incorrect or outdated legal information that damages their credibility with both search engines and potential clients.

Local optimization represents another common failure point. Law firms often miss opportunities to incorporate location-specific legal requirements and local search terms that could dramatically improve their visibility for “lawyer near me” searches. They create content that educates but provides weak or nonexistent calls-to-action, missing opportunities to convert educated prospects into consultation requests.

Perhaps most damaging is inconsistent publishing. Many firms start strong with content creation but quickly abandon regular publishing schedules. This sporadic approach prevents them from building the topical authority that search engines reward with higher rankings.

How to Evaluate Law Firm Content Writing Services

The legal industry requires a different approach to content evaluation than other industries. When selecting a content partner, law firms should prioritize services that offer:

  • Actual legal expertise – Writers with legal backgrounds who understand your practice areas deeply and can create content that resonates with both search algorithms and potential clients
  • SEO integration without compromise – Technical optimization that maintains legal accuracy and readability rather than sacrificing substance for rankings
  • Compliance awareness – Understanding of legal advertising rules and ethical guidelines that generic marketing agencies often ignore
  • Conversion-focused strategy – Content designed to educate prospects while strategically guiding them toward consultation requests
  • Industry specialization – Experience creating content specifically for law firms rather than applying generic business content templates

The best law firm content writing services understand the unique challenges of legal marketing. They know how to optimize content without compromising the legal precision that builds trust with prospects. They also understand the client journey in legal services and create content that addresses concerns at each stage of the decision-making process.

The ROI of Professional Law Firm Content Writing

Quality legal content writing delivers measurable returns that extend far beyond basic website traffic. Higher search rankings for competitive legal keywords translate directly into increased visibility when potential clients need legal help. More importantly, attorney-created content typically achieves better conversion rates because it addresses real legal concerns with authoritative answers.

The long-term value of professional law firm content writing often exceeds the immediate traffic benefits. Well-crafted legal content continues generating leads months or even years after publication. It builds your firm’s reputation and authority in specific practice areas, creating compound returns on your content investment.

Consider how potential clients evaluate law firms online. They don’t just want to know that you handle their type of case—they want evidence that you understand their specific situation and can handle it effectively. Attorney-written content provides this evidence in ways that generic marketing copy simply cannot match.

Building Your Content Strategy for Maximum Impact

Successful law firm content writing requires strategic thinking beyond individual blog posts. The most effective approaches involve creating comprehensive content hubs around core practice areas that establish genuine topical authority. Rather than scattered articles on random legal topics, strategic content development focuses on thoroughly covering specific areas of law where your firm wants to attract clients.

Local market focus becomes crucial for most law firms since legal services remain fundamentally local businesses. Developing location-specific content that captures “lawyer near me” searches while addressing local legal requirements can dramatically improve both rankings and lead quality.

Understanding the client journey in legal services helps create more effective content strategies. Potential legal clients typically progress through distinct research phases, from initial problem recognition to attorney selection. Creating content for each stage of this process ensures you’re visible and helpful throughout their decision-making journey.

Moving Beyond Generic Marketing to Legal Expertise

The legal industry demands content that transcends surface-level marketing approaches. Potential clients can instinctively distinguish between genuine legal expertise and generic business content, and search engines increasingly reward authentic authority over keyword manipulation.

Attorney-owned law firm content writing services bridge the gap between legal knowledge and digital marketing effectiveness. They create content that ranks well in search results while actually helping potential clients understand their legal options. This dual purpose positions your firm as both visible and credible—exactly what converts prospects into clients.

When you invest in content created by attorneys who understand both legal practice and digital marketing, you’re building more than just website traffic. You’re creating a digital foundation that demonstrates your expertise, attracts qualified prospects, and converts visitors into clients through the combination of genuine legal authority and strategic optimization that only attorney-owned services can provide.

Frequently Asked Questions About Law Firm Content Writing

How often should law firms publish new content?

Consistency matters more than frequency when it comes to law firm content writing. Most successful firms publish 4-12 high-quality pieces per month rather than churning out daily posts. The key is maintaining a regular schedule that allows for thorough research and legal accuracy while building topical authority over time.

What’s the difference between attorney-written content and SEO content?

Attorney-written content combines legal expertise with SEO best practices, while generic SEO content focuses primarily on keyword optimization without legal substance. Attorney-owned law firm content writing services ensure that every piece demonstrates genuine legal knowledge while still ranking well in search results.

How long does it take to see results from legal content marketing?

Most law firms begin seeing improved search rankings within 3-6 months of consistent, high-quality content publication. However, the conversion benefits often appear sooner as prospects find and engage with authoritative content that addresses their specific legal concerns.

Can generic marketing agencies really handle legal content effectively?

While general marketing agencies can create readable content, they typically lack the legal expertise necessary to produce material that truly converts prospects into clients. They often miss crucial legal nuances, use incorrect terminology, or create compliance risks that attorney-owned services naturally avoid.

What practice areas benefit most from professional content writing?

All practice areas benefit from expert law firm content writing, but competitive areas like personal injury, criminal defense, and family law see particularly strong returns. These fields require content that demonstrates both legal expertise and local market knowledge to stand out from competitors.

How do you measure the success of legal content marketing?

Success metrics include improved search rankings for target keywords, increased organic traffic, higher consultation request rates, and enhanced online reputation. The most successful law firm content writing campaigns track both traffic metrics and actual client acquisition from content-driven leads.


About the Author: David Arato, JD, is a graduate of St. Louis University School of Law. Since founding Lexicon in 2012, David and his team have created thousands of pieces of content for law firms and law firm marketing agencies throughout North America.

Creating Effective Law Firm Content: A How-To Guide

No matter what type of law you practice, the content published on your website must be accurate, informative, and engaging while adhering to ethical guidelines and SEO best practices. If this seems like a lot to balance, you’re right. However, creating effective content for your legal website will not only attract many potential clients but can also establish your authority and convert visitors into leads. Here are some useful simple tips for creating compelling content for legal websites that will resonate with your readers.

Understand Your Audience

Before creating content, you should understand your target audience. Knowing who you are writing for will help tailor your content to their needs and preferences.

Identify Your Audience

Determine the demographics of your potential clients. Are they individuals or businesses? What legal issues are they facing? What legal concerns might they have? Understanding their needs and challenges will help you create relevant and valuable content.

Client Personas

Develop client personas to represent different segments of your audience. Visualizing who you are writing for and what kind of information they might seek can make your content more effective. A client persona can include demographic information like age, gender, location, occupation, income, and relationship status, as well as psychographic details like motivations, interests, pain points, and likes or dislikes. All of this will depend highly on the type of law you practice and the type of clients you serve.

Common Legal Issues

Identify common legal issues your audience faces. This could be anything from personal injury claims to business contract disputes. Addressing these topics will make your content more relevant and useful. It can be helpful to start by making a list of these general topics and then digging deeper into more specific topics under each one. Then, you can brainstorm titles for blogs or the focus of newsletters based on these particular topics or sub-topics.

Craft Engaging and Informative Law Firm Content

Creating content that is both engaging and informative is critical to attracting and retaining visitors to your legal website.

Clear and Concise Writing

Always keep your legal content clear and free of jargon. Avoid using complicated legal terms without a layperson’s explanation. Remember that your goal is to make the information accessible and understandable to a broad audience.

In-Depth Articles

Be sure you provide detailed information on legal topics. Comprehensive articles will help establish your authority and provide value to readers. However, keep your audience engaged by breaking the content into manageable sections with clear headings. Using bullet points and pictures or graphs can also help break up the text, making it easier to read.

Use Case Studies

Case studies are a powerful way to illustrate how legal principles apply in real-life situations. They provide practical examples that can help potential clients understand how you can help them and how specific laws might apply to their situations.

Client Testimonials

 Incorporate client testimonials and success stories. These add credibility and can help build trust with potential clients.

FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) are a great way to address common concerns and queries. They provide quick and accessible information that can help guide visitors through their legal concerns.

Incorporate SEO Best Practices for Legal Websites

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is essential for making your legal content discoverable and getting it to the top of the search results. Here are some SEO best practices to follow:

Keyword Research

Identify relevant keywords that potential clients might use when searching for legal services. Use tools like Google Keyword Planner, Ahrefs, or SEMrush to determine high-volume, low-competition keywords that you will want to incorporate into your content.

On-Page SEO

Optimize your content for search engines by incorporating keywords naturally into your titles, headings, meta descriptions, and throughout all of the content. Keep your content well-structured by using H1, H2, and H3 tags.

High-Quality, Helpful Law Firm Content

Google prioritizes high-quality, authoritative content. Always focus on crafting informative, well-researched articles with the purpose of providing real value to your readers.

Internal Linking

Use internal links to connect related content on your website. This helps search engines understand the structure of your site and keeps visitors engaged. However, be sure to only link to credible, reliable websites.

Be Sure to Leverage Different Content Formats

Diversifying content formats can help engage a broader audience and improve the overall user experience.

  • Blog Posts – Regular blog posts on relevant legal topics can attract new visitors and keep your audience engaged. Blogs are also excellent for SEO, as they provide fresh content for search engines to index. It’s best to publish a blog at least once, if not two or three times per week, if feasible.
  • Videos – Video content is increasingly popular and can be particularly effective for explaining complex legal concepts. Consider creating video guides, interviews, or testimonials.
  • Infographics – Infographics are a visually appealing way to present information. They can simplify complex data and make it more engaging and digestible to an everyday audience.
  • E-books and Guides – Create and offer downloadable e-books or guides on specific legal topics. Doing so not only provides something of value to your potential clients, but it can also help with lead generation by capturing contact information in exchange for the download.
  • Podcasts – Podcasts are another popular and effective method to reach your audience. Discussing legal topics, interviewing various experts, or sharing client stories can position you as a thought leader in your field.

Monitor and Improve Content Performance

A laptop showing a pie chart and a rising line graph

You will want to regularly monitor your content’s performance and make improvements based on the data you find. If you want to see ongoing success, this is a necessary step.

  • Analytics: Use tools like Google Analytics to track the performance of your content. Monitor metrics such as page views, bounce rates, and conversion rates to understand what’s working and what isn’t.
  • User Feedback: Pay attention to user feedback and comments. While not all feedback you receive will be helpful, this can still provide valuable insights into how your content is being received and highlight areas for improvement.
  • A/B Testing: Experiment with different headlines, formats, and calls to action to see what resonates best with your audience. You might be surprised at how small changes can impact the reach of your content.
  • Regular Updates: Regularly update your content to ensure it remains accurate and relevant. This is particularly important for legal content, as laws and regulations can change. It’s also an essential piece of SEO.

Creating compelling content for legal websites requires a strategic approach that combines many factors, including:

  • Audience understanding
  • Engaging and informative writing
  • SEO best practices
  • Ethical considerations

By following these tips and tricks, you can create content that not only attracts and engages potential clients but also establishes your authority and credibility in the legal field. But don’t stop there. Be sure to regularly monitor and improve your content to ensure it continues to meet the needs of your audience and supports your business goals.

Having Trouble Creating and Maintaining Effective Law Firm Content for Your Website? Contact Lexicon Legal Content Today

If you’re like most attorneys or law firms, you already have a lot on your plate. You probably understand the value and importance of quality content on your website, but maybe you don’t have the time or the experience to give your content the attention it needs. This is where we come in.

At Lexicon Legal Content, we know what takes to create effective content that captures the attention of your potential clients. Our experienced attorney-led legal content writers are ready to take your website to the next level. To learn more, call our office or send us an email today.

Why Law Firm Content Marketers Should Have a Legal Background

When it comes to choosing a content marketing agency, you have lots of options. That said, if you are a lawyer or a digital marketing agency with legal clients, you should be working with a specialized legal content marketing agency, preferably with attorney leadership. Here are a few of the reasons why.

An Understanding of the Legal Industry

As someone who has studied the law, it’s easy to forget that things that seem obvious to you may not be evident to others. Things as simple as the difference between a civil or criminal case or who the parties are to a lawsuit are essential when creating content. Working with a trained legal writer ensures a basic understanding of the way the law works and provides the added benefit of efficiency. A writer with a background in the law is not going to have to look up what negligence means every time they craft a blog for an injury firm.

The Ability to Create Content that Aligns with E-E-A-T

It’s certainly true that a generalist copywriter can craft fluffy content that does not mention the law or violate any lawyer advertising rules. For example, they can write blog posts about “Car Accident Injuries” or “Types of Collisions” in 100 different ways. That said, this kind of content does not rank well in search engines. Google has been clear about the fact that it rewards content that demonstrates experience, expertise, authority, and trust (E-E-A-T) – especially for content that could affect a person’s well-being (such as law firm content). Crafting content that aligns with the principles of E-E-A-T requires deep subject-matter expertise, so if you are outsourcing your content creation, it’s in your best interest to work with specialist legal writers with a background in law.

The Ability to Conduct Legal Research

It has never been so easy to get information, and the entire catalog of human knowledge is literally at our fingertips. While once, you had to go to a law library to do legal research, for most things, Google works just fine. In addition, searchable databases like Lexis Nexis and Westlaw allow anyone with a subscription to engage in high-level legal research.

While this access to information has clear benefits, it also can lead to a false sense of competence. Access to information does not mean understanding that information, and it certainly does not mean that the person accessing the information has sufficient subject matter expertise to determine if it is reliable. 

As stated by Arthur C. Brooks in The Atlantic last summer:

Google isn’t graduate school . . . If you think you understand something technical and complicated after cursory exposure, you might be able to put the knowledge to good use in your life, but you almost certainly don’t understand it well enough to hold forth on the topic.

In other words, reading an article about the 4th Amendment doesn’t make you qualified to discuss search and seizure law.

Legal Accuracy

Relatedly, a writer with a legal background can use precise language that ensures that the content on your website is legally accurate. For example, a generalist writer may confuse the terms comparative negligence and contributory negligence or strict liability and vicarious liability, leading to inaccurate information on your website.

With Google’s emphasis on trust when it comes to content quality, having misinformation on your site could lead to significant penalties. In addition, inaccurate information could lead to an ethics violation with your state bar or even a malpractice lawsuit if a client relied on the information and had an adverse outcome.

Compliance with the Advertising Rules in Your State

The content on your law firm’s website has to comply with your state bar’s advertising rules. As the old saying goes, “You do not know what you do not know.” A generalist writer may not even think not to use the word “specialize” or “expert” when discussing your focus on your practice area. In addition, there is a big difference between saying, “We will get you compensation,” and “We will get you the compensation you deserve under the law” – of course, the first one promises an outcome while the other leaves the door open for the fact that the reader does not, in fact, deserve any compensation under the law. It is doubtful that a writer without legal training will know about these rules or how to apply them, potentially resulting in content on your website that violates the advertising rules in your jurisdiction.

Call Lexicon Legal Content Today to Connect with an Expert Legal Writer

At Lexicon Legal Content, our team of experienced legal writers – including licensed attorneys and JDs – specializes in creating content for law firms that is clear, accurate, and demonstrates your experience, expertise, authority, and trust (E-E-A-T). As an JD-owned company, we understand the importance of accurate and compliant content for law firms.

California Bar Issues Guidance for Lawyers Using AI

Generative AI, such as Open AI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini (previously called “Bard”), are capable of performing tasks that were once thought solely to be in the province of human ability. It can analyze and categorize data and even create human-sounding content in the form of text. As such, generative AI has clear applications in the practice of law and legal marketing. Some of the more obvious uses include document review, contract analysis, and even handling basic client communications.

As lawyers and other professionals have started looking for ways to leverage Generative AI to do their jobs more efficiently, many observers have sounded alarm bells about ethical and professional issues about how it is used.

In fact, some of the early adopters of Generative AI in the legal profession have been subject to sanctions, as the technology is known to “hallucinate” facts. In the case of two New York lawyers, ChatGPT made up case law out of thin air and then doubled down on its existence when asked to verify the cases it cited. Ultimately, the attorneys were each fined $5,000 and ordered to reach out to the judges about the fake cases mentioned. Perhaps worse, their names were splashed all over the national media – from Forbes to CNN – for using ChatGPT and not fact-checking its output.

A year and a few months into generative AI entering the mainstream, state bars are starting to develop guidance and rules regarding how lawyers use it. Given the concerns and uncertainties regarding the use of AI in the legal profession, this guidance is particularly valuable in helping attorneys leverage the efficiency of AI while upholding ethical duties. Recently, California issued guidance that lawyers across the United States can benefit from. I discuss some of the highlights in the material below.

The California Bar Guidance

As part of its guidance, the California Bar takes the position that AI is like any other technology that attorneys may leverage in their day-to-day professional activities. From the guidance:

Like any technology, generative AI must be used in a manner that conforms to a lawyer’s professional responsibility obligations, including those set forth in the Rules of Professional Conduct and the State Bar Act.

The guidance they provide demonstrates ways that lawyers can use AI consistently with their professional responsibility obligations. Some of the obligations they address are discussed in the material below.

Duty of Confidentiality

The California Bar cautions that the use of AI can have implications related to the disclosure of confidential information. The guidance points out that many generative AI models use inputs to train the AI further and the information that users upload may be shared with third parties. In addition, the models may lack adequate security for attorneys to input confidential information.

For this reason, the Bar advises that lawyers should not input any confidential information without first confirming the model they are using has sufficient confidentiality and security protections. Furthermore, the Bar advises lawyers to consult with IT professionals 

to confirm that an AI model adheres to security protocols and also carefully review the Terms of Use or other provisions.

Duties of Competence and Diligence

The use of generative AI also can raise issues related to the duties of competence and diligence. In light of the fact that these models can produce false or misleading information, the California Bar advises that lawyers must:

  • Ensure competent use of the technology and apply diligence and prudence with respect to facts and law
  • Understand to a reasonable degree how the technology works and its limitations
  • Carefully scrutinize outputs for accuracy and bias

In addition, the Bar cautions that overreliance on AI is inconsistent with the active practice of law and application of trained judgment by an attorney. Furthermore, the guidance advises that an attorney’s professional judgment cannot be delegated to AI.

Duty to Supervise Lawyers and Non-lawyers, Responsibilities of Subordinate Lawyers

The Bar advises that supervisory and managerial attorneys should establish clear policies regarding the use of generative AI. In addition, they should make reasonable efforts to ensure that the firm adopts measures that provide reasonable assurance that its lawyers’ and non-lawyers’ conduct complies with professional obligations when using generative AI. This includes training on how to use AI and the ethical implications of using AI.

Using AI Can Also Have Implications for Law Firm Marketing

At Lexicon Legal Content, our sole focus is on generating keyword-rich content that helps law firms connect with their clients. While the California Bar’s guidance does not mention it directly, using generative AI to create marketing materials like social media or blog posts may also have implications related to the rules of professional conduct.

Under California Rule 7.1, a lawyer may not make a false statement about the lawyer or the lawyer’s services, and a statement is false or misleading if it contains a material misrepresentation of fact or law. Importantly, this is analogous to ABA Model Rule 7.1, which many states have adopted. In addition, under Model Rule 7.2, a lawyer should not call themselves a specialist or expert in any area of law unless they have been certified by an appropriate authority of the state or the District of Columbia or a U.S. Territory or that has been accredited by the American Bar Association.

These professional duties related to advertising make it critical to review any AI output a law firm intends to use in its marketing efforts. At Lexicon Legal Content, we are staffed by experienced legal professionals, including law school graduates and licensed attorneys, who understand these rules and ensure that all of the content we create – whether AI-assisted or not – is in compliance with advertising regulations in our clients’ states.

how to increase traffic to your website?

Your law firm’s website plays an important role in terms of marketing and reaching your target audience – and your content matters. Generating relevant and compelling content is the name of the game, but if you find yourself at a loss when it comes to choosing inspiring topics that resonate with your widest potential audience, you are not alone. Many firms find themselves recycling the same, tired titles time and time again, but you can do better, and we have some helpful hints to get you started. 

Think Seasonal

The seasons hit us all the same, and they make a great anchor for developing content. 

The Spring and Summer Months 

With summer nearly upon us, your content should focus on legal matters that relate to summer living, including:

  • With the kids out of school, there are summer child custody schedules to tweak, and child custody modifications are common. 
  • With warmer weather, we see more road trips, which can inspire a wealth of topics, including traffic accidents, road safety, travel routes, destinations, and much more.
  • Summer means vacay, which lends itself nicely to articles about premises liability claims related to hotels, resorts, and pools. 
  • Boats and jet skis hit their stride in the warmer months, which makes articles that explore related accidents a gimme.  

There are also the summer holidays to consider, which deserve some attention of their own. 

Memorial Day

This year, Memorial Day is on May 27, and it tends to kick off summer break for all the kiddos out there. Memorial Day is a three-day weekend that brings family and friends together for beer, brats, and yard games (or some variant thereof), and it’s a great opportunity to visit and spruce up the gravesites of our lost loved ones – with a focus on veterans. Memorial Day, however, is also closely associated with some heavy-duty traffic accident statistics, including (according to the National Safety Council, NSC) that traffic fatalities spike over the Memorial Day weekend (compared to the weekends that bracket it). In other words, you can treat Memorial Day as a springboard for a wide range of related articles. 

Fourth of July

The Fourth of July falls on a Monday this year, which – for many people – means a 4- or 5-day weekend. Fourth of July has everything that summer has to offer on tap, with some extras thrown in for good measure, including:

  • Elevated car accident statistics related to increased traffic, increased impairment behind the wheel and increased distraction
  • Water-related accidents
  • Injuries caused by fireworks

Labor Day

Labor Day means back to school and the child custody concerns that are often sparked by this transition. There are also topics about accidents on school grounds and accidents related to children making their way to and from school – including bus accidents, pedestrian accidents, and bike accidents – to consider. 

We can all relate to the Fourth of July, Memorial Day, and Labor Day – and all the other holidays – on a very personal level, which makes the summer holidays a great platform for blog topics. Don’t be afraid to give your blog entries and articles your own spin – it’s the best way to find your voice and to really speak to all those searchers who can truly benefit from your services. If you have a unique topic in mind, don’t back-burner it simply because it’s not what everyone else is doing – you might have a real winner on your hands, and when you speak from a place of authentic concern, it can have a profound impact. 

The Fall and Winter Months

As temperatures and daylight hours decrease, there’s a lot going on – and there’s plenty to keep you busy in terms of content. Consider all the following:

  • Winter driving risks
  • Holiday travel
  • Increased holiday traffic and traffic accident statistics
  • Increased impairment behind the wheel
  • Weather-related premises liability claims
  • Holiday-related stress and the accidents it causes

These basic topics are the starting point for articles that can be woven into your own masterpieces of content – that also address your potential clients’ needs. Remember, too, that a well-polished title and outline – about a subject of your choice – is going to take you farther than a rote reinterpretation of the basics. 

A Feast of Topics

If your firm focuses on personal injury, medical malpractice, workers’ compensation, or any combination of these practices, NSC has a treasure trove of potential topics on offer. Each year, they publish a Safety Observance Calendar that focuses on specific national health and safety awareness campaigns (replete with valuable resources for you to explore). For example, just a few of the many topics on tap for May and June of 2022 include:

  • May is Motorcycle Safety Month, National Bike Month, National Electric Safety Month, Trauma Awareness Month, National Water Safety Month, National Building Safety Month, and much more. 
  • May 21-27 is National Safe Boating Week.
  • June is National Safety Month.
  • June 5-11 is National Trailer Safety Week (tractor-trailers).
  • June 20 is National Ride to Work Day (focusing on those who commute to work on motorcycles and scooters). 

This is the tip of the iceberg. If you’re looking for current content ideas, NSC has got you covered.  

Keeping Your Content Fresh

In order to create quality content, you need great topics, but that – of course – is not the end of the story. The topic sets the stage, but your content has to deliver. Factors to focus on include:

  • Creating a strong outline that flows seamlessly from your introduction to a solid conclusion 
  • Allowing the reader to hear your voice 
  • Inspiring your readers to take the next step in moving from potential client to actual client

Finally, don’t shy away from revisiting older content and jazzing it up. Polishing the title, tightening the writing, updating the statistics, and including an eye-popping example or two can breathe new life into work that is down but not out.

10 Legal Content Marketing Terms You Should Get to Know

Marketing your legal content seems easy enough – write stellar copy and get it out there where it needs to be. There are, of course, challenges along the way. One of the primary building blocks of solid legal marketing is understanding the terminology that populates its principles and methodologies. Because even major players use terms in different ways – sometimes with newly imagined meanings – it’s important to have a nuanced understanding of the basics. Others may play fast and loose with their legal marketing terms, but once you and your team have settled on meaningful definitions that work for you, you’ll be far better prepared to make your mark in legal marketing.

Continue reading “10 Legal Content Marketing Terms You Should Get to Know”

Four Easy Ways to Find Fresh Ideas for Your Law Firm Blog

Whether you are a solo practitioner or part of a large law firm, improving your Google search rankings and online authority should be one of your top marketing priorities. When your audience likes and can relate to what you are publishing online, Google rewards you, as do your prospects when they turn into clients. The best way to accomplish these goals is to draft high-quality content for your website frequently.
However, creating compelling content isn’t as easy as it might sound. For most attorneys, wordsmithing tasks become buried by the dozens of other duties they must complete. Publishing excellent content that resonates with your desired audience must be a priority, or your blog won’t be an effective marketing tool. You won’t reap the rewards you desire. In fact, it’s so crucial that we highly recommend creating an editorial calendar that can serve as a guide and will remind you to keep creating content.

Finding Fresh Content Ideas

Sometimes it’s less about prioritizing your blog and more about fresh ideas. Far too often, lawyers give up on their blog because they run out of topics they want to talk about or think their audience wants to hear. Generating new content doesn’t have to be complicated or time-consuming—consider these tools to help keep your content up to date and innovative.

What Are People Asking About Online?

Research what people are asking about online. Garner ideas from questions people are asking about in your area of practice. TextOptimizer is one tool that can help you get inside your readers’ heads. It allows you to research what questions are being asked about specific topics. Simply type in a keyword on the “Find Content Ideas” page. For instance, typing “personal injury” reveals these results:

  • Do I have a personal injury case?
  • Do I have a personal injury claim?
  • What is a personal injury lawsuit?
  • Do I need a personal injury lawyer?

For more detailed results and tools, you can pay for the subscription service on the site. Its additional features can help you narrow down content suggestions and find keyword combinations that meet search engine requirements.

Many people turn to the internet daily for answers to their questions. If your website can provide a reliable answer, it will see more traffic and reach higher rankings.

Enlist the Help of Your Intake Team

To help specify your topics even further and keep them relevant to your potential clients, consider asking your intake team to document your prospects’ questions and concerns. This step can provide you with insight into what your audience is looking for when it comes to legal information and help.


Apps such as Slack or Google Docs are an excellent way for them to record the questions they receive on intake. Such a database will provide a convenient way to view them easily in one place when you are ready to do so.

Use Keyword Research Tools

While keywords are typically thought of in terms of SEO, they can serve other purposes. Taking the time to research relevant keywords can give you some valuable insight into your prospects’ questions and interests. Check out these tools:

  • Kparser generates several keyword ideas around the main topic of your choosing. It can provide you with fresh topic ideas that you may never have even thought about.
  • Answer the Public allows you to use keywords or key phrases and receive an aggregated view of the questions Google and Bing receive. For example, if you type in “slip and fall,” you will receive hundreds of different answers and topic ideas.

Recognize Seasonal Trends and Relevant News

Your audience experiences many of the same things you do, including seasonal trends such as:

  • Holidays
  • Back to school
  • Summer vacation
  • Travel
  • The Super Bowl and other popular sporting events
  • Gearing up for winter weather conditions

Suppose you practice family law. In that case, you may want to focus on parenting topics and shared custody during the Christmas season or summer vacation. If your practice focuses on estate planning, make it a point to discuss tax topics during the first quarter of the year.

You may also want to focus on what is nationally recognized on certain days or weeks of the year. For example, if you are a business attorney, publish a blog about National Small Business Week a week or two before it’s recognized.

Making your blog timely and relatable to what is going on will also help draw traffic to your site. Your prospects also pay attention to the news from various sources. As such, if there have been recent news stories or changes to the law that impact your area of expertise, be sure to address these matters in your content. Not only will it help increase your online traffic, but it can show your audience that you stay up to date and are an authority in your area of practice.

Do You Need Help Publishing Frequent Fresh Content?

It’s easy to get bogged down when it comes to publishing fresh and timely blogs on your law firm’s website. Whether you find it challenging to make room in your schedule to write and post your blog or to keep your readers coming back for more with fresh content, our team of attorney-led writers can help. Call us today at 877-488-8123 or contact us online. Our seasoned marketing professionals are happy to address your content needs and show you how we can help.

What Is Content Readability and Who Defines It?

Most of us think something is readable if we enjoy it. We want a piece to have a beginning, middle, and end, preferably in that order. If it’s fictional, we want it to be about people we care about or like. Sometimes, it’s a book you just happen to come across or a title or a cover that drew you in, and you couldn’t leave till you finished the story. Sometimes, it’s something so powerful that you simply can’t let it go. However, these qualities aren’t the only kinds of readability.

When it comes to getting your law firm website to rank, content readability is an important factor. Search engines analyze readability and reward it. In other words, they rank (and put at the top of the SERPs) the articles that have the features the engine thinks will make a reader stick to the end. Aside from all the other things the contributed to readability, being current and up-to-date is one of the most important factors. Keeping your firm’s website current and up-to-date with content that people want to read will go a long way to keeping you high on that first results page.

Do We Know It When We See It?

One of the ways a search engine defines readability is by determining how long a reader stays in place before sliding on to the next result. It doesn’t just matter how many people click on your page; it matters how long they stay after they get there. There are ways to encourage them to stick around, such as with video and audio content and eye-catching graphics. Paying attention to these things takes more time than simply reading – or not reading – whatever copy you’ve offered. Still, words are usually far less expensive than sound, pictures, and graphics, so it is very much worth your time to offer the best and most readable content you can provide.

Key Readability Factors

Factors that Google will focus on when deciding the readability of your page include:

Sentence Length & Variety

You want short sentences but with some variation in their length and style. Avoid unnecessary or overly formal words. Additionally, it’s better not to crowd your text with words like “actually” and “usually,” which give you no value for the space. Avoid using too many adjectives and consider breaking up long, complicated sentences.

Structure & Style

Again, short sentences are vital. Each sentence should have a subject and a verb – preferably in that order. Make sure to include graphics and video here as well. They are supporting tools and hold your visitors. Avoid fussy fonts.

Paragraph Length and Formatting

Use short paragraphs made up of short sentences. Readable paragraphs are usually 5 or 6 lines long. Use a title and subtitles. Bullet points are your best friends, and you should always try to include at least one. Don’t forget to include keywords. You’ll want to put them in subtitles as well as in your paragraphs and try to repeat them without sounding like you’re just adding keywords.

Make It Work for You

All of these factors and more can make your website attractive and engaging to readers. You can contact us to help you provide the most readable copy for your website. We will even provide a free sample, marketing written expressly for you to help you decide how best to move forward with your legal content.