Your Law Firm's SEO Agency

What is your law firm's SEO agency really doing?

by: +Gyi Tsakalakisfrom: AttorneySync@gyitsakalakis

Comment SpamWhat is it?Comment spam is when SEOs leave comments on other blogs with optimized anchor text that links back to your site. Why is it bad?First, it has absolutely no value to search engines. Second, it's embarrassing. Real bloggers work hard to provide good online content. Leaving spam comments is akin to giving them the middle finger. How can I find out if my SEO agency is doing this?Head over to http://www.opensiteexplorer.org. Look for backlinks to your site that appear on other blogs that contain link text like [your city] [your practice area] lawyer.

Directory SpamWhat is it?Directory spam is basically adding your firm to one of the millions of online directories. While some reliable and relevant directories may have some value, many law firm SEO agencies will blindly submit your firm to thousands of irrelevant web directories. Why is it bad?While not all directories are bad, this is really a low-end SEO strategy. If your backlink profile contains many spammy directory links, search engines might interpret this as an effort to game them. If that happens, you may subject your site to a search engine penalty. More likely than not, the links won't provide any value and will just be a waste of your money. How can I find out if my SEO agency is doing this?Again, head over to http://opensitexplorer.org and see whether your backlink profile contains links from spammy web directories. Alternatively, ask your law firm SEO agency where they are actively building links.

Article SpamWhat is it?Article spam can take many forms. Typically, it involves publishing a high-quantity of low-quality articles on article directory websites that include anchor text links back to your law firm website or blog. Why is it bad?Similar to directory spam, article spam may signal search engines that you're trying to artificially inflate your authority. These links are commonly disregarded by search engines and may also subject your site to a search engine penalty. How can I find out if my SEO agency is doing this?Check your backlinks. Do you have links from spammy-looking article directories? Are these articles of little value? Are they duplicates from your site or other sites?

Link SpamWhat is it?Link spam is more of a catch-all for a variety of different spammy link building techniques. Link spam might take the form of a network of interconnected resources pages or blog rolls. Why is it bad?As we've discussed in previous slides, building links in order to artificially inflate your site's popularity in search engines is likely to be, at best, a waste of time and money, and at worst, risky business that could subject your site to a penalty. How can I find out if my SEO agency is doing this?Review your backlink profile. Talk to your SEO consultants. Are they linking for the sake of linking? Are they linking several of their clients' sites together? Are they engaged in manipulative link schemes? If so, you may want to have another consultant review their tactics.

Review Spam

What is it?With this spam technique, your law firm SEO goes out and creates fake client and professional testimonials on a variety of third-party sites. Why is it bad?This tactic is especially troublesome for lawyers. First and foremost, it's unethical. Which can get you into trouble with your state bar. Second, it's particularly sleazy and will make you look bad amongst your peers. Finally, it's not very effective. Many review sites are getting better about removing reviews that appear fraudulent. How can I find out if my SEO agency is doing this?Search for your online listings on sites like Google Places. If you see reviews from clients and other lawyers that you don't recognize, you should discuss them with your SEO agents. Ask them whether they left these reviews.

What Should You Do?● Comments - Find relevant sites and blogs that are discussing topics related to your practice. Leave thoughtful

comments using your real name that add value to the discussion of the subject matter. Where appropriate, add helpful links to your content on other sites that expands upon or contradicts the author or other commenters.

● Directories - Claim, update and optimize profiles on relevant and authoritative legal directories. Be sure to

include accurate and consistent name, address and phone number information. Focus on directories that also serve as publishing platforms. Don't waste your time on low-quality general directories. Look for highly-relevant and local business and legal directories.

● Articles - Devote the majority of your online activity to developing engaging web content. Provide information

or answers on your subject matter. Create helpful tools on your site. Publish unique original content on other sites. Consider serving as a guest blogger to attract new readers.

● Links - Focus on acquiring links from highly-authoritative legal websites. Think about how you can motivate

other webmasters to link to your pages. Avoid quid pro quo link exchanges and other forms of link schemes that are designed purely to manipulate search engine results.

● Reviews - Provide excellent service to your clients. When appropriate, encourage them to sing your praises

online. Often times, happy clients just need to know about how they can tell people what an excellent job you did. Make it easy for them by showing them different ways that they can review and rate your services online.

Thanks!Thank you for taking the time to review this presentation. You can read more about law firm internet marketing at: http://www.attorneysync.com. Should you have questions about anything discussed here, please don't hesitate to contact me by emal: gt@attorneysync.com