Apr, 2012
Alternatives to FindLaw
blog post by SamIf you are reading this blog post, you are most likely a law firm that is seeking out a website provider, and for many law firms, both FindLaw and Lawyers.com are the obvious choices.
This blog posts serves to highlight why I, a former Senior Consultant for FindLaw, branched out and began my own marketing firm located in Roswell, GA.
1. Marketing for attorneys online is a competitive environment, and if you can make a law firm show up in searches, you can most likely assist most any small business owner. Rather than limiting the focus of our business to one type of practice, we’re able to work with countless industries, and often times able to learn different techniques and tactics that can be leveraged for other clients.
2. The average FindLaw client has two attorneys, and is considered to be a smaller practice. Thomson Reuters is the parent company to FindLaw, and is a Canadian company that operates in over 100 countries with over 55,000 employees. I thought that small local law firms might prefer to work with a smaller company that understands the pressures of owning and operating a small business. heystac, is a smaller web marketing company that has much more in common with our clients.
3. In the greater Atlanta metro alone, FindLaw works with over 250+ law firms. How is it possible to make everyone show up for the same searches? heystac does work with competing law firms, but is extremely aware of ensuring client trust through openness and honesty. heystac is keenly aware of the pressures facing small law firms, and working with a marketing company that may also provide consulting services to competing law firms as is the case with FindLaw, is one stress that heystac tries to eliminate for our clients.
4. There is much more to success online than SEO. As a FindLaw consultant I was trained to highlight the importance of showing up in the search engines. At heystac we take a more holistic approach to marketing. At the beginning of a client relationship with heystac, I will guide clients as to where they show up in the search engines, who are their competitors, what are those competitors doing, and more importantly, what blend of services is needed to improve the success of the law firm’s online marketing program. heystac focuses on development, design, content, visibility, search, and social elements for law firms. Client goals determine the amount of effort, and expense is needed for each element of the client solution. Not all clients want to… or even need to focus on SEO as the cornerstone to their online marketing efforts, and heystac is fully aware of finding a client solution that meets the specific needs and goals for each individual client. heystac solutions are all custom, and there are no two heystac clients that have the same solution.
5. Success online, does not require upgrades. Each year, FindLaw brings out new client solutions into the marketplace. From directory submission packages, to blogs, video, social media solutions, each year brings more products for FindLaw clients to purchase. New service offerings are excellent, and they help ensure that FindLaw clients are relevant within the online marketplace. I take a different direction with my clients that differs from the “upgrade” approach offered by FindLaw. Each year, we review and assess the online marketing successes and failures from the previous year and then start from scratch to develop a new custom solution for each individual client. I’m a firm believer in heystac services; however, I’m also keenly aware that internet marketing is an ever-changing market. Each year, Google goes through roughly 400 algorithm changes, and the same holds true for Yahoo, Bing, Facebook, Google Plus, and Twitter. Click here to see all of the various algorithm changes that occur. If the market is changing, your marketing solution should too.
6. Leverage all available service providers. heystac as a company is aware of the fact that many other companies have service offerings that can benefit their clients. heystac is in the business of ensuring client success. On multiple occasions heystac has guided clients to FindLaw services, and there are also situations where a client has no need for services from FindLaw or any other web marketing firm.
If at the end of the day, as a law firm, you choose FindLaw or Lawyers.com, I can assure you that they are both excellent companies. If working with a smaller, and more localized marketing firm are attractive to you, then consider heystac, or any other firm that has provided design and SEO services for lawyers, and can demonstrate measured success.
If you are a law firm that is looking for a web marketing partner, look no further than heystac.
One bug in particular that I kept running into was that the generic “Like” button wouldn’t show the number of likes until it had more than 3 likes. I happened to run across a site that showed the full view even when there was “0″ likes. After picking around their code I found the plugin they were using, it was called Simple Facebook Connect and it’s a WordPress Plugin.