Legal services firms are investing in websites – turning them into client resource sites (CSRs) at an increasingly rapid rate. As legal clients become more Internet-savvy, they’re expecting the websites they visit to serve as useful resources rather than marketing hubs.
Why Creating a Client Resource Site (CRS) Is a Good Idea
A well-designed website that serves as a client resource site will drive users directly to the information they need to communicate with your firm and make better and more informed decisions.
It will also reduce the number of incoming calls, emails, texts, tweets, etc., that your team currently receives from prospective clients online. If you’re ready to make your website a client resource site and give your visitors exactly what they want from your firm, now is the time to do it.
A User-Friendly Go-to Website
In the digital age, it’s important that law firm websites are optimized to be search engine friendly – a place that visitors can visit that creates a pleasant online experience. In addition to creating a user-friendly site, firms should also consider how their website can serve as a legal resource for clients.
Creating a client resource site will help your users find information about you and your services quickly, as well as provide them with details about upcoming events and news about your firm.
By integrating these features into your attorney website, you’ll be able to streamline access to information for your users.
Why You Need to Develop a CSR
Do you find yourself spending more time explaining legal services than actually providing them? Are your clients constantly asking for documents or information that takes time to provide? If you answered yes, then you need to adjust your site so people can use it as a reserve and archive for legal material.
Ways to Turn Your Website into a CSR that is User-Friendly
The idea is to get all of your relevant information into a central location so that visitors can access it quickly and easily. Here are several ways to do just that:
1. Optimize your website for the search engines
The first thing you’ll want to do is make sure your website is optimized for their search engines. In general, you should keep your content focused and concise, use appropriate keywords and create a URL structure that is simple to remember and access. If you’re unsure about how to get started with optimizing your website, you may want to consider hiring a digital marketing agency or SEO consultant to help you get the most out of your website’s function and design.
2. Make your website more user-friendly
Next, you’ll want to make your website more user-friendly so that visitors can easily navigate the site and find the information they’re seeking. Start by creating a clear hierarchy of content so that users can readily see what’s most important and click on those pages first.
You should also keep your website design simple. Using too many design elements may distract visitors from the core messages you’re trying to provide.
Beyond visual design, you may also want to consider creating a content management system (CMS) for your website so that it’s easy for you and your team members to add and edit content. A CMS will also allow your users to access and update content directly from their own accounts and interact more easily with clients.
3. Use your website as a primary–not secondary–resource for clients
Next, you’ll want to think about how you can use your website as a primary resource for your clients. This can help you stand out from your competitors, while also streamlining access to the legal information on your site.
One way you can do this is by creating a library of FAQs and Guides. This will allow you to supply quick and easy information to your users.
FAQs tend to be short and focused answers to commonly asked questions, while guides generally contain more in-depth details on a particular topic.
Add a media page where you can share recent press coverage and feature interviews that showcase members of your team. This can help visitors stay up to date on your firm’s cases and give them the information needed to stay on topic legally.
4. Provide information about upcoming events
Finally, you may want to include information about upcoming events on your website. This can help your visitors stay current on your upcoming events and provide them with a place to sign up if they’re interested in attending an event on-site or online.
This may be done by directing website visitors to a third-party registration website where they can sign up directly from your platform.
Create a calendar on your platform and share event dates and times so that your visitors can see what’s coming up.
Beyond creating a calendar, you may also want to consider including a roster on your website that includes information about past and present events and event reminders.
5. Share news about your firm on your website
Finally, you may also want to consider sharing news about your firm on your website. This could include publishing stories about your team members and the firm’s history, or publishing articles about industry trends and topics.
Publishing content related to your industry can help you establish yourself as a thought leader in your field and provide your visitors with valuable information.
You can also use your website to solicit guest posts from industry experts and authors. This can help you build relationships with other thought leaders and supply your visitors with additional reading material.
Take HEART and Learn from the Experts
According to the Harvard Business Review, business educators and researchers have found that the following 5 primary strategies help legal firms or companies weather a crisis (such as COVID-19) and maintain bonds with clients or customers. These methods are based on a HEART framework. This means that you want to:
- Humanize your firm
- Educate your audience about changes
- Assure stability
- Revolutionize your practice’s offerings
- Tackle the future
These basic tenets show clients–current and potential–your legal firm’s plan for supporting them and providing them value for their legal needs. By turning your legal website into a CRS, you are following the principles that make up the HEART framework – a successful solution when it comes to digital marketing.
Making Your Legal Website a Primary Client Resource Site: A Quick Summation
Legal websites should be optimized for search engines and user-friendly so that visitors can easily navigate the site and find the information they’re seeking.
You can use your legal website as a resource for clients by creating a library of FAQs and guides, as well as publishing articles about industry trends and topics.
You can also use your website to solicit guest posts from industry experts and authors to help build relationships with thought leaders in your field.
Sharing news about your firm on your website is also key to keeping visitors up to date.
Integrating all the above features will give you an edge when it comes to driving traffic to your legal firm and continually staying in contact with clients.
Call Attorney Marketing.Online to Turn Your Legal Website into a Client Resource Site
To ensure marketing success, learn more about turning your legal website into a client resource site. Contact Attorney Marketing.Online today so you can enhance your online presence and keep in touch with current and potential clients. Call (888) 992-9529 for additional information now.