Attract High-Value Clients with Targeted Estate Planning Lawyer Marketing

To be successful in this highly competitive market, probate and estate planning lawyers must have a solid online marketing strategy. An estate planning law firm's control over its appearance in search results and Google Maps, managing qualified leads and clients, and supporting marketing efforts are crucial for success. This guide will cover some of the most effective marketing strategies for estate planning and probate lawyers. We will give you some website inspirations and tips on implementing these strategies tailored to your practice areas. By the end of this guide, you will better understand probate and estate planning attorneys marketing practices.

A Great Website: The Key to Effective Estate Planning Attorney Marketing

Having a great website is key to effective estate planning attorney marketing. The most important point is that your website should compel potential clients to take action and allow past clients to either return or refer clients. These are planned for with conversion rate and ROI in mind. So, what makes a good estate planning and probate services website?

1. Easy to navigate. A website should be uncluttered, well-designed, and up-to-date with relevant information. The clickable buttons and CTAs should be within reach. The site should have a digital presence easily found by prospective clients searching for estate planning services. 

2. Different types of content. Visitors should be able to quickly find answers to their questions or connect with a knowledgeable estate planning attorney. The website content for attorneys should be comprehensive and include educational articles, case studies, ebooks, videos, and links to other websites related to both estate planning and probate practice. It should also provide answers to frequently asked questions, details on fees and payment options, and contact information. These contents should also be SEO-optimized to help you rank higher on the search engine results page (SERP).

3. Detailed practice area pages. Collaborating with a law firm web design company can help you create a practice page that effectively showcases the attorney's short bio, credentials, and results from previous cases. It should provide new clients with information about the services offered, such as wills and trusts, probate administration, asset protection planning, estate tax planning, etc.

4. Mobile-friendliness. Mobile devices account for around 60% of website traffic. A law firm's website should prioritize all screen sizes—desktop/laptop, tablet, and mobile phones. To avoid making mistakes, you can check out mobile responsiveness using testing tools like Browserstack.

5. Optimized page load speed. It shouldn't be surprising that visitors wait an average of 5 seconds for a site to load. So considering speed goes a long way since it affects SEO. You should test for site speed using tools like Google PageSpeed Insights, GTMetrix, Pingdom, etc.

6. Testimonials and trust badges. Positive reviews are the moving factor that gets clients to take the actions you want, unlike negative ones that drive away clients. Before most website visitors use a service, they read reviews and check achievements. Upload badges on your websites and even third-party mentions. Also, offer estate planning lawyer marketing services worthy of positive reviews to get clients to write them. You can also ask clients to drop reviews after a case is done or your service is over.

SEO Strategies: Effective Marketing for Estate Planning Attorneys

Search engine optimization (SEO) should be at the core of any strategy of marketing for estate planning. SEO is the practice of making a website more visible by optimizing content so that it aligns with search engines’ ranking algorithms, it can help you effectively optimize your website, bolstering your online presence and drawing in potential clients to your firm. An estate planning law firm's online presence can be optimized to improve visibility, credibility, and local client opportunities.

Due to this type of brand-building complexity, many estate planning firms partner with a digital marketing agency that offers SEO services for attorneys. However, we have outlined several steps to leveraging SEO so that you can better understand this vital aspect of digital marketing for estate planning attorneys.

Identify Keywords to Target

The challenge of keyword targeting is deciding which phrases you want to rank for. Suppose you attempt to rank for the wrong keywords. In that case, you will have a challenging time increasing the visibility of your estate planning law firm.

Naturally, common phrases like 'estate planning lawyers' will be nearly impossible to rank for, especially if your current estate planning marketing strategy is virtually non-existent. Typically, well-established estate planning law firms with comprehensive digital marketing strategies dominate these key phrases.

Therefore, we suggest using one of two approaches. The first involves targeting long-tail keywords, and the second involves incorporating localized phrases into your content. Let's take a closer look at each tactic.

Long-tail keywords are phrases that typically include somewhere between five and seven words. These keywords are less competitive than short phrases like ‘estate planning lawyer’ for two reasons.

First, potential clients in a hurry are more likely to punch in just a few short words. Second, naturally, incorporating short phrases into your attorney blog content is much easier.

You can use these perceived shortcomings to your advantage by targeting relevant long-tail keywords. For example, instead of targeting 'estate planning lawyer,' you could use a phrase like 'What does an estate planning lawyer do?'

When used effectively, you can leverage this tactic to acquire more clients. You might even be able to sneak onto the search engine results pages (SERPs) of prospective clients in your area when they query shorter, more-generalized terms.

Speaking of estate planning clients near your law firm brings us to the second keyword targeting strategy — localization.

As with the first tactic, this requires you to modify your keywords. However, instead of turning them into long-tail phrases, you simply add a location-based phrase before or after them. For instance, you could change 'estate planning lawyer' to 'estate planning lawyer in [your city].'

Publish SEO-Optimized Content

As you create content, keep in mind that variety is essential, both in terms of the keywords you target and the types of content you produce. Leveraging SEO for lawyers can assist you in pinpointing the most impactful keywords for your target audience. With these keywords in hand, it’s time to generate a diverse array of SEO-optimized content. An estate planning law firm's content can support marketing efforts and gain exposure.

Ideally, you want a well-balanced library of content that targets several relevant keywords. This setup will help you broaden your reach and appeal to more segments of ideal clients.

You should also ensure that you are publishing more than one type of content. Specifically, your estate planning website should include content such as:

Articles

You should know that potential clients are more likely to choose a probate lawyer or law firm website that appears on the first page of results than the one on the second or third page. So, how can you improve your ranking and get more eyes on your law firm?

If you want your website to rank high in SERPs, one of the popular ways to go about it is to publish SEO-optimized articles. The articles should be keyword-rich, informative, and easy to read. The content should be useful for your audience, and it should be free from any grammatical errors. There are a few ways to go about it.

1. Research the best law-related topics with a lot of competition in the industry to write about and publish on a website. Also, create a blog post that explains or answers client questions about estate planning, wills, trusts, etc. 
2. Include relevant keywords and phrases in your articles to improve your chances of appearing in search results and getting more leads. You can research keywords using popular SEO tools like Semrush or Ahrefs. 
3. Make sure the article has links to your site or other pages where readers can find more information about the topic discussed.
4. Write articles that provide clients in your location with answers to their questions. They will be the ones who use your services the most. Contrary to popular belief, writing outside your local area has low conversion. This is because even though you might target the entire country, your state only saw a small number of conversions.

Service Pages

If you want your service pages to rank highly in search engine results, you must ensure they're optimized for SEO. Luckily, optimizing your service pages for SEO is not difficult, and you can do it with a few simple steps.

1. Make sure your service pages are well-written and informative. Google rewards pages like this with higher rankings.
2. Use relevant keywords throughout your service pages. Use keywords that potential customers are likely to search for when looking for a business like yours. 
3. Ensure your service pages are easy to navigate. Google prefers pages that are easy to read, and this will help your page rank higher in search results.
4. Link to your service pages on other pages on your website. This will help Google index your pages and understand the relationship between them.

FAQ Section

In addition to articles, you should create a section on your website to answer FAQs. FAQ responses should be concise and to the point so that readers can quickly obtain the specific information they need and move on. You can list FAQs at the bottom of each service page or create a dedicated FAQ page on your website.

Webinars and Event Promos

If you participate in or host a webinar, publish this content on your website. You can also provide links to webinars or other video content within your blogs. This approach will help you maximize your audience size and connect with new clients.

You should also use your website for advertising local events you are hosting or participating in. Examples of events you could promote include conferences, webinars, and Q&As.

People love video content. So, creating video-based event promos and publishing webinars are great ways of connecting with your target audience. 

You can also check our guide to content marketing for law firms.

Video Marketing

Video is a great way to engage potential customers. Optimizing your videos for search engines ensures that your target audience will see your content.

You can do a few different things to optimize your videos for SEO. First, make sure that your videos are properly tagged and categorized. You should also include keywords in your video titles and descriptions. Furthermore, promote your videos on social media and other websites. By following these tips, you can ensure that your estate planning video marketing for lawyers will be seen by the right people.

Lawyer Podcasts

Another way to optimize content is by launching a legal podcasts. Podcasts offer an opportunity to showcase expertise in the field while providing a more interactive experience and valuable insights than traditional forms of content. Not only do they provide useful information to potential clients, but they also help increase organic search engine rankings. 

Additionally, podcast episodes can be shared on social media, expanding their reach and helping to build brand awareness. You can use podcasts to target specific keywords related to legal services, and you can easily integrate them into existing websites. Furthermore, lawyer podcasts can offer educational information as well as up-to-date news regarding legal trends.

So, by optimizing podcast content for search engines, lawyers can ensure that many potential clients will see their content. This is an excellent way to increase a law firm's online presence and attract new business.

Can't figure out why your law firm isn't gracing Google's top 3? As a probate and estate planning marketing agency, we have the expertise to solve that puzzle. Get in touch now to learn how we can catapult your firm to the top!

Apply to Niche and Local Directories

As an estate planning attorney, you may wonder if applying to niche and local directories is an effective strategy for marketing for estate planning. The answer is yes! By definition, directories are a collection of links to websites, businesses, or other resources that are organized into categories. Niche and local directories focus on a specific industry or geographic area.

This makes them a great way to market your estate planning firm because they provide links to your website, which can help improve your website’s search engine optimization. In addition, directories can help you reach a target audience with local SEO, which is important for estate planning lawyers who want to attract clients from their geographic area. An estate planning law firm's presence in these directories can significantly improve visibility and local client opportunities.

Here are some tips on how to effectively market your estate planning business through niche and local directories:

1. Identify the niche and local legal directories that are most relevant to your business. These could be directories on estate planning, probate, or elder law.
2. Create a list of the directories you want to target. Once you have your list, you can create profiles in each directory.
3. Include key information about your business in your profile, such as your website, contact information, and a brief description of your services.

Optimize Your Google Business Profile

Formerly known as a Google My Business (GMB) account, a Google Business Profile is a free profile for local businesses. You can sign up for a Google Business Profile account, claim your business, and provide additional information about your services.

Once this is done, you can ensure that details on Google Maps, like your address and phone number, are correct.

When clients search for estate planning lawyers in your area using Google Maps, your website will appear in the results. Suppose they conduct a location-specific search on the Google search engine. In that case, your Google Business Profile will also appear in this set of results.

Once you have claimed your Google Business Profile, you can also take advantage of several other free tools. You can link your firm’s phone number to the profile so clients can contact you directly from the app. This setup will help you track the monthly leads and calls your firm receives.

Your Google Business Profile is a mini-website for your business, and it appears in search results when people look for your firm on Google. This makes it an excellent tool for promoting your practice to new audiences. An estate planning law firm's Google Business Profile can take control of its online presence.

• Use attractive visuals: Your profile photo, cover photo, and logo are some of the first things people will see when they find your profile, so make sure they’re high-quality and attractive.
• Fill out your profile: Include accurate and up-to-date information about your firm since it helps potential clients get an insight into your services.

You can also check out our guide on Google My Business for lawyers to learn more. 

Retargeting with Google Ads for Getting More Estate Planning Clients

While it is true that Google is banning third-party cookies, retargeting is still a valuable tool for marketing for estate planning. If you are unaware, cookies are small text that websites send to users' browsers. These cookies identify which websites the user has visited and allow those sites to engage in retargeting.

Retargeting Ads are the practice of 'aiming' paid ads at potential clients who previously visited your website. Proper retargeting is useful because it allows you to market to individuals who have already expressed interest in your services. These individuals may be on the brink of converting into leads but might just need a little extra encouragement.

Although third-party cookies are on their way out, first-party cookies are still an option. A first-party cookie is a cookie that you transmit from your website directly to a user's browser. When someone visits your site, you can send them a cookie and retarget them with ads later.

Testimonials as a Part of Your Estate Planning Lawyer Marketing

When searching for legal services, the first thing that many prospects look for are reviews from past clients. If your law firm has zero reviews, a few of them might scroll down to the next law firm in their results list. Negative reviews can be even more detrimental to obtaining more clients.

Whether you have accumulated a few lackluster reviews or have none, it is time to take a proactive approach to gather feedback from past clients. When you are nearing the end of a relationship with your clients, ask them to leave you a review on your website or Google directly.

After you have compiled many reviews, create a testimonials page on your website. Highlight some of the best reviews and pull quotes from previous clients to demonstrate your service quality.

You can gather testimonials from your past clients in a few different ways:

• Reach out to them via email or social media and ask them to write a review or testimonial. 
• Include a link to a survey in your email signature, which can help you collect feedback from your clients. 
• Post a question on your website or blog asking readers to share their experiences with your firm.

Social Media as an Estate Planning Lawyer Marketing Tool

Social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram are great for advertising certain businesses. However, they may not be as effective a tool for estate planning lawyer marketing services as nuanced.

While having an active presence on a few social media platforms can certainly supplement your other marketing tactics, these channels should not be used as primary methods of acquiring more clients.

Instead, we suggest using social media for lawyers to draw attention to your blogs, service pages, and webinars. You can launch a paid social media marketing campaign if you need to generate short-term web traffic boosts.

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Paid Marketing for Estate Planning Attorneys

Speaking of paid marketing, leveraging paid ads is a great way to generate some extra web traffic and draw in some fresh leads. There are two primary types of paid marketing that you can use, which are outlined below.

PPC Marketing Strategies for Estate Planning Attorneys

Utilizing lawyer PPC services, enables you to place ads prominently at the top of Google's search engine results pages (SERPs). When setting up your campaign, you must select a keyword to target and decide how much you want to bid for ads using that phrase.

When a user queries that phrase, Google's algorithm will display three or more of the highest-bidding ads. However, the winning bids will not be charged unless a user clicks on the content provided.

Suppose you want to maximize the return on investment of PPC for law firms while also sticking to your estate planning law firm marketing budget. Since running a PPC campaign can get complicated, you may want to partner with a digital marketing agency offering pay-per-click campaign management for attorneys. In that case, you must carefully decide which words to target.

Consider Email Marketing for Your Estate Planning Law Firm Marketing

Email marketing for attorneys is an effective way to increase visibility and brand recognition for any estate planning law firm. You can create customized emails that will include information about your services and any special offers you may have. You can also use email marketing to build relationships with existing clients by sending them updates on changes in the law, relevant legal tips, blogs, law firm newsletters, or other useful content.

With its low cost and high return, email marketing should be considered part of your estate planning law firm's overall marketing plan. 

Email campaigns can also be used to announce seminars and other events to your contact list and engage them in conversation. Email marketing also allows you to track engagement and measure results. This makes it easier to refine your approach and ensure that you consistently reach your goals. 

How to Get in Touch with Your Community

You must form a strong bond with your community when offering a service as personal as probate legal guidance or estate planning. There are many great ways to connect with community leaders and prospective clients. A few methods that we suggest include:

Volunteering for Estate Planning-Related Events

If there are any existing estate planning-related events in your community, volunteer to be a part of them. At a minimum, participating in these events will demonstrate that you care about the people within your community. Donating a few hours of your time might draw in more clients and help you grow your business.

For example, you could volunteer to speak at a retirement planning seminar. These seminars are often geared toward older individuals preparing to retire in the next five to ten years.

Join Estate Planning-Related Committees

Joining an estate planning-related committee or board is another great way of connecting with community members. If your community does not have such committees, consider joining the chamber of commerce.

Contact your local chamber of commerce and find out how much a membership costs. Keep in mind that most chambers have membership tiers. If yours does, ask for details about each option and determine which level would offer the most benefits to your law firm.

Finance Estate Planning-Related Meetings

Organizations that host estate planning-related meetings are always looking for sponsors. Hosting these events is not cheap, especially if organizers rent conference halls, provide refreshments, and bring in guest speakers.

When you sponsor one of these meetings, your law firm will be advertised to participants. Since the attendees are already interested in estate planning topics, getting your contact information in front of them will likely generate great leads.

Host Lectures or Presentations

For the average person, the fields of estate planning and probate law are a bit of a mystery. Many people find these topics downright intimidating. You can clear up all the confusion around your area of expertise and provide a valuable service to your community by hosting lectures or presentations.

Meet with local clubs and organizations to see if their members are interested in learning more about probate and estate planning law. You can reach out to the Rotary Club, local churches, the chamber of commerce, and other community-based organizations.

Digital Marketing Strategies to Turn Estate Planning Leads into Clients: Final Thoughts for Attorneys

Estate planning practice is an important and complex field of law that necessitates a deep understanding of a client's needs. As a probate and estate planning marketing company, we've highlighted some crucial strategies in this guide that you can utilize to connect with potential clients. These include SEO optimization, paid online advertising, email campaigns, and social media campaigns.

It is important to continually assess the effectiveness of these strategies and make adjustments when necessary. Additionally, it is essential to comprehensively understand the target audience and their preferences in order to craft content that will resonate with them. With the right tools and tactics, estate planning law firm marketing efforts can reach new clients and increase visibility.

Hire a professional law firm SEO agency for estate planning attorneys, such as Grow Low Firm; it can be a great way to maximize your visibility online. Grow Law Firm understands the need to optimize probate and estate planning lawyer marketing using the strategies above. We ensure that your probate and estate planning attorney marketing efforts are focused on the proper channels.