HTTPS is taking over Google search results: Are law firms keeping up?

HTTPS is taking over Google search results: Are law firms keeping up?

It's been two years since Google announced that a secured (HTTPS) connection was a minor ranking signal. While most websites that conduct transactions or have user registrations and other features that involve processing data already utilize an HTTPS connection, law firms rarely do.

HTTP vs HTTPS Simplified

By default your website is accessible via an HTTP connection. With an SSL certificate, you can change your prefix from HTTP to HTTPS. An HTTPS connection adds an extra level of encryption between the...

Read More
In Search of the Missing Links: How 30,000 links were lost then found.

In Search of the Missing Links: How 30,000 links were lost then found.

When a client with a robust link portfolio and growing rankings informed me that their links had disappeared, I almost dismissed it as another Google Search Console error.

The law firm's link portfolio has more than 30,000 links from about 400 domain names. Google Search Console generally reports about 350 of those linking domains.

They can also expect about 1,000 clicks each month to be reported in Search Console. You can understand why they were concerned when they logged...

Read More
Google updates its mobile algorithm: how your firm can stay on top

Google updates its mobile algorithm: how your firm can stay on top

In February of 2015, Google made waves in the SEO community by announcing a major algorithm update before rolling it out. The change, which went into effect two months later in April, expanded Google's use of mobile-friendliness as a ranking signal. The ensuing rankings shake-up, hyperbolically dubbed “Mobilegeddon,” did push website owners to make significant changes. According to Smashing Magazine, eight months after the event, 25 percent of websites that were not previously mobile-friendly had made the...

Read More
Twitter releases study showing what tweets are most successful

Twitter releases study showing what tweets are most successful

A new study from Twitter reveals what factors cause some tweets to be more successful than others. The research confirms what third-party analysis and user observation have long demonstrated: tweets that contain images prompt the most engagement. Posts with video and links also receive more attention.

Twitter analyzed over 2 million tweets sent from accounts within the United States. Researchers looked for tweets containing photos, #hashtags, links, videos and a number or a digit — such as...

Read More

Five Things the Most Effective Websites Have in Common

ladderLaw firms may not want to think of themselves as small businesses, but competing for new clients increasingly requires the implementation of business strategies, from law firm practice management to holistic marketing plans. As traditional methods of attorney marketing continue to move toward obsolescence, online marketing efforts are taking a larger and larger share of marketing dollars. Because of this, your website must be effective.

MarketingProfs published a Read More

Mobile devices and responsive design are trends with staying power

tabletInternet connected devices such as phones, tablets and e-readers now outnumber people in the United States, according to data released by The NPD Group. Americans have 425 million web-enabled gadgets in homes across the country, while the latest Census report puts the human population at only 311.5 million.

Laptop and desktop machines are still the primary method people use when accessing the Internet from their homes, but the rapid...

Read More

Top 2012 web design trends – part two

trends 4Last week we examined some of the strides website design has made while advances in technology continue to expand creative options. The year 2012 has seen the introduction of some interesting new styles and programming methods, as designers and developers eagerly experiment with some of the advanced capabilities in HTML 5. Here is the second part of our list of the top seven most popular web design trends of the...

Read More

The Law Firm Website Disconnect

gavel freeAttorney websites have come a long way in the past few years. Lawyers are catching on to false marketing prophets and looking beyond cheesy and ineffective SEO tricks. Websites are becoming more helpful, more well-designed and more relevant to people seeking legal help. This is a good thing.

However, it is a big Internet, and there are still too many firms that fall victim to the lawyer website disconnect. To demonstrate this problem, Tech4Law created a law firm...

Read More

Prevent SEO mishaps during website design projects

twoplustwoSome website design projects offer a chance to create a new site entirely from scratch. Perhaps a firm is just starting out with a new url, or maybe it has a relatively young or neglected website that is nowhere to be seen in search engine results. This gives designers and developers the chance to flesh out an information architecture, design and SEO strategy with what is basically a...

Read More

Avoid these five frightful web design mistakes to maximize usability

pumpkinTricks or treats, which is your website handing out to you? While you are gathering your costume or procuring your candy, your website is still out there, speaking on your behalf and functioning as a brand ambassador twenty-four hours a day. Do you know what it is doing when you are not watching? What it says about you behind your back?

Simply throwing up a static brochure site...

Read More