In this space we take pains to educate the trial bar about the growing importance of word-of-mouth and reputation marketing. With rapidly increasing frequency, consumers of all things, including the services of trial lawyers, are turning to their trusted networks of friends and collegaues for suggestions. When they get a name or two, the next step is naturally to Google that professional and see what comes up. We’re seeing a decrease in online searches for lawyers by practice area (i.e., not so much in the way of “personal injury lawyer Tampa” anymore) and an increase in searches for a specific attorney’s name. Why? Because your reputation rightly precedes you. And sites like Facebook make asking friends for recommendations and advice on hiring an attorney easier than ever. They get your name from a friend and then research you further online.
So what does this mean to the practicing plaintiff attorney? It’s great news if you have a fantastic reputation and the support of your collegaues in the legal community. You can start scalling back your advertising budget. You can finally cancel the yellow pages. You should start sleeping better at night knowing that the best attorneys will once again get the best cases, because reputation matters. The biggest advertising budget no longer always wins. Sure there are exceptions. And yes, this will take a few more years to shake out, but it is a very positive direction and there’s no stopping it.
Is there anything you can do to take better advantage of this dynamic? Sure. Make certain your online reputation matches your offline one. How? Take control of your online profiles and directory listings. Sites like Avvo have populated their databases with listings of every lawyer from almost all 50 states. They’ve simply pulled your Bar info from the state authorities. Go to Avvo, claim your profile, and beef it up with at least a headshot and some bio information. Do the same thing at LinkedIn. Take pride in your online profile listings, they are now more valuable than any diploma you have hanging on your office wall. Link from one profile site to the other. Provide links from your web site and blog to your various profiles. Work to make those profiles rank on page one for a search of your name.
For example, a search for the very common name Tom Young, lists my profile on InjuryBoard.com #2 out of 69,000,000 other web pages about the various other “Tom Young’s” of the world. #2 is pretty valuable real estate, and I control it. There are only ten spots on that first page. Where are you?
As sites like Avvo, LinkedIn, InjuryBoard.com and others continue to grow, standalone law firm web sites will loose traction and it will be more important than ever to have established a strong presence on these mega-platforms.
Stake out your territory. Police it. Challenge negative reviews if they are inaccurate (sites like Avvo have appeal procedures). Build your presence. This month’s ABA Journal article You’re Good… If the Net Says So is telling:
“One negative result in the top search results on Google reduces the chances that a new client will contact you,” said Michael Fertik, CEO of ReputationDefender. “And you won’t know you’re not getting that chance.” Increased competition and information have made diligent online reputation management a necessity, said panelists [at the ABA annual meeting]. Static websites and law firm bios will fade in importance as ratings by clients and peers on sites like Avvo and Yelp gain traction.
Potential clients are more likely to trust a client review than an ad, and current clients are more vocal about lawyer performance than ever before.