CEPACLAW.com is a cutting edge technology; this online newsroom product was developed to give law firms the ability to deliver articles and press releases directly to the Internet through their own personal newsrooms, bypassing expensive and bureaucratic press release distribution outlets.  With the advent of Vision Smart News®, attorneys will have a direct connection with the World Wide Web. Their news will be carried on a large and continuously growing network of newswires assembled by CEPACLaw.com, with the objective of being included in Google News and other web wire services.

Smart News Technology

By integrating into their websites, in a seamless fashion, small, medium and large attorney law firms will have the power to login to their own unique, “Newsroom Engines”. Lawyers will then have the ability to write and publish their news, articles, events and corporate announcements and syndicate these with a push of a button.  The news will then be carried over a diverse array of approved newswire partners, reaching large distribution networks including Google news, all articles subject to meeting press release guidelines.
 
This private label newsroom product will be tailored around your firm’s distinct image. These press releases and corporate announcements will have the look and feel of your law firm’s website.

Unlike existing large online press release distribution services which offer little or no help for optimizing articles and press releases for better indexing on the web. Smart news technology’s search engine optimization feature will give each press release the best possibility for pickup on the web. Each press release will create a page of precious, fresh website content, since each deliver article of news will become part of your website, providing your law firm improved ranking on the search engines.

Other Benefits include:

•    News Links, Linking to your Website
•    Auto Approved Press Releases
•    Customized RSS Feeds
•    Logo or Image Included in News Article
•    Video News Optimization – Google Universal

For more information on Vision Smart Newsroom®, and its eligibility requirements please contact:
Rene Perras | Vice President Cepac| Tel: 1-888-web-law-tv

Kevin Quinlan Phone: 561.313.7410

If you are considering hiring an SEO partner to help you market your law firm, sooner is better than later. One of the most optimum times to take this step is when you are about to embark on a redesign of your current website or launching a new one. Partnering with an SEO firm prior to the development stage can help ensure that your new site's architecture is both W3C (World Wide Web) compliant and spider friendly to enable the search engines to crawl the site and make it easier to improve your rankings. Re-engineering your existing site can also make improvements.

Here are a few questions to ask to hire the right team for your law firm marketing program:

Do you use White Hat techniques and follow the Google Guidelines?

Google offers insights into what makes websites both more user friendly and more easily indexed in their algorithms. Many SEO consultants try to "game" Google and take shortcuts that may get short term results, but ultimately can get a website penalized in the long term.

What is your experience in SEO for the legal category?

Experience marketing law firms on and off the web provides a framework from which to build and allows for a shorter learning curve for your firm. Working with professionals familiar with your unique business model and target market can make a difference in both quantifiable results and in preserving the image of the profession.

What is the focus of your SEO efforts?

In addition to providing the basics such as improving a website's architecture to aid in indexing, building links, the addition of web analytics and thorough research into keyword rich content and semantic indexing, are there other techniques that are offered that are proprietary to the firm.

Will you provide a detailed analysis of the benefits of all of the modifications and techniques that you are recommending for our law firm?

It would seem only natural that an SEO engineer would carefully explain the reasons for the various elemental changes to a website and for the strategies and tactics used to elevate your law firm's website rankings, but that is not always the case. It is important that your law firm has a grasp of what tactics are used, so that you are not surprised down the road. For example, when optimized articles and press releases are syndicated for pick up on the web, it can be very beneficial for building links to your website. That said, while you and your SEO may have control over what goes directly on your website or blog, very little can be done about bloggers that pickup your article and repurpose it for their blogs.

In conclusion, finding the right SEO to market your law practice on the web is not just about picking the best firm for the job, it's also about learning as much as you can so that you put yourself in the best position to find the right SEO and know when you do.

For more information on law firm web design or search engine optimization for lawyers contact Kevin Quinlan.

Kevin Quinlan Phone: 561.313.7410

There has been a steady evolution in Internet marketing for lawyers and everyone else over the last year. At the end of 2009 Google announced the launch of real-time search. What that means to law firm marketers is that news articles, blogs and web pages can now appear on the actual results pages for your prospects searches. Google has also incorporated data from publicly available Facebook pages and Twitter as part of this offering. Real time searching seemed to be inevitable and with the inclusion of the two top social media sites, it would appear that Google is setting the pace.

This new development combined with the higher frequency of Universal search results (inclusive of video, images and books), make it even more imperative for law firm web marketers to create content that is more compelling and unique than the traditional web content of a few years ago. Because law firm websites are in a very competitive and par category, and lend themselves well to breaking news, firm updates, and new developments in case law, legal marketers would be well served to take advantage of the following tactics:

• Create a law firm blog - Post often covering topics that are of interest to both prospects and referring attorneys. Incorporate keyword rich content and syndicate your blog across the Internet.
• Create a Facebook page with interesting content- Include images, videos and allow fans to make appointments for free case evaluations through your page.
• Take advantage of the Google ten-pack- Use Google local so that you appear on the local map for geo targeted inquiries for the key words that make the most sense for your practice.

Use optimized online press releases - Include links back to your law firm website and images and/or video where

More and more legal marketers are jumping on the real time search bandwagon along with the rest of the Internet marketing universe. The advent of this search capability is a double edged sword, as it provides a sure fire way of being front and center when a prospect begins their research based on their need for legal assistance. On the other hand, in order to stay front and center fresh content that is of interest to these prospects must be created on a steady ongoing basis.

Cepaclaw.com, a lawyer marketing agency, can catapult your law firm's Internet presence to a higher level by providing an array of services such as custom website design for attorneys, social media strategies and lawyer newsroom/blog solutions that include the creation of relevant content. Cepaclaw.com's Smart News Technology works like a blog on steroids, and can be custom tailored to your law firm's website providing the ability to write, publish, and distribute firm news, press releases and articles with an automatic optimization feature second to none. In addition to taking advantage of real time search engine results, our private label newsrooms provide longer term improved rankings by creating fresh web content because each delivered article becomes a part of your website.

For more information on how Cepaclaw.com can help you with web design for attorneys, take advantage of real time search engine optimization, or develop a complete Internet marketing program including Google maps and social media, contact Kevin Quinlan lawyer marketing expert.

http://www.cepaclaw.com

Kevin Quinlan Phone: 561.313.7410

Kevin Quinlan, President of Cepaclaw, a law firm web design company, provides insight to law firms on how the Florida Bar advertising rules that have been applied to all attorney advertising will now be applied to lawyer websites along with tips for compliance

Originally, the Florida Bar petitioned the Florida Supreme Court to consider proposed changes to the rules regulating Computer-Accessed Communications, or web-based communications, such as websites, banner ads and email blasts for law firms in Florida. In an opinion in early 2009, the Court chose not to adopt the recommended amendments.

After hearing a motion for rehearing, the Court, on November 19, 2009, withdrew its prior opinion and replaced it with the current ruling. The goal of the proposed amendment is to clarify changes in both terminology and technology while being mindful of how consumers access computer based information and to create new mechanisms to regulate web-based attorney advertising.

In the past it was generally assumed that since a consumer had to deliberately access an attorney's website, there was a distinction made between general advertising and the type of research that the public would undertake to find the appropriate law firm for their needs. This new ruling no longer views web access in the same light and means that the advertising rules (Rule 4-7.2) that apply to all other advertising media also apply to lawyer websites, except for the filing requirement. As with all other forms of advertising, websites must not contain any misrepresentations of fact or law, characterize the quality of the firm's services, promise results or claim specialization in any area of law unless an attorney has board certification in that specific area. All of the smaller details that apply to other advertising media also hold true for websites.

This development has caused an uproar in the legal community over certain elements common to many attorney websites. These include testimonials, verdicts & settlements pages, and statements that characterize the quality of work. One of the elements that has caused concern is that websites are not only exempt from submission; they will not be reviewed even if submitted voluntarily. Guidance will be given by the ethics in advertising staff to attorneys with narrowly specific questions about compliance.

While at first glance, the new rules seem intimidating given the large size of the average website and prohibitive in terms of marketing a firm, the Bar's Standing Committee on Advertising has approved guidelines to help attorneys meet the new regulations. These guidelines represent a significant accommodation that will allow certain pages to be exempted from compliance with Rule 4-7.2.

The guidelines will allow law firms to designate certain pages of their firm's website to be "information upon request" sections that can only be accessed after a website visitor views a disclaimer page that clearly outlines what information is available for viewing and that the information is not regulated by Bar advertising rules. Access to these sections of the website must be blocked from visitors who have not submitted a confirmation that they viewed the disclaimer page and have also been provided with sufficient information to evaluate the content they will be viewing.

The best way to make sense of the new advertising rules and to be certain that your law firm's website complies is to partner with an attorney web design firm that has an extensive history of working with the Florida Bar on a broad array of advertising media and a successful track record of designing compelling web sites for law firms. The new requirements will also have impact on search engine optimization for lawyers, as these pages may not be accessed directly through a search engine bypassing the disclaimer pages.

For more information on law firm website design or SEO for attorneys or an evaluation of your current website, contact Kevin Quinlan

Kevin Quinlan Phone: 561.313.7410

Kevin Quinlan, President of Cepaclaw.com lawyer marketing discusses how their custom legal web design with content management system can improve page rank for law firms and raise their search engine optimization to a higher level.

Is your law firm looking to increase its visibility on the Internet, but your current page rank in the search engines is less than stellar?

Cepaclaw.com lawyer marketing, a nationwide law firm search engine optimization (SEO) and legal web design shop can build a custom website and legal blog for your firm with a content management system that allows anyone familiar with Word the ability to edit, add or update web pages and news articles with the push of a button.

Our total website/blog package for law firms has a proven success record of increasing Google page rank and improved lead generation for personal injury, mass tort, divorce and family attorneys and other law firms in markets around the country. We focus on creating a superior user experience and providing high quality content and videos so that users feel comfortable with your law, firm thereby elevating the conversion rate from visitor to prospect.

More and more consumers are looking to the Internet to research, evaluate and contact a law firm, whether they have been in a car accident, injured on a construction site, been the victim of crime at an unsafe premise or have been wronged by a negligent medical practitioner. If your website does not achieve page one rankings on Google and the other search engines, your competition will likely acquire business that you could have captured.

By integrating a legal blog with your website your law firm will have a custom tailored newsroom that will maintain the distinct brand of your firm. Law firms of any size can now have the ability to log in to their own newsroom and write, publish and syndicate their own articles with just the push of a button. Once syndicated each article or release travels like lightning across Cepaclaw.com's approved network of newswire partners including Google news.

Contact Cepaclaw.com lawyer marketing now and take advantage of this complete website and Internet marketing program that includes:

• Completely Custom Web Site
• SEO Friendly Architecture
• Google Compliant Design
• Private Label Legal Blog/Newsroom
• Optimization Feature to Enhance Search Engine Indexing
• Complete Content Management System
• Online Updating From Any Computer With Internet Access
• Blog and Press Release Writing Package

For more information on law firm web design or search engine optimization for lawyers contact Kevin Quinlan.

Kevin Quinlan Phone: 561.313.7410

Kevin Quinlan, law firm-lawyer marketing Internet  strategist, offers tips on how press release distribution and sharing on social news sites can increase inbound links to legal websites and improve search engine optimization efforts.

Many law firms are missing out on new lead generation because their websites are not performing well in the search engines. Legal websites that are not easily found through search not only lose the opportunity to convert new visitors, but also fail to attract repeat visitors that use Google to re-find sites they have already visited. It is mission critical to make your website as spider friendly as possible. Working with a law firm web designer that is also well versed in SEO can ensure that your site has these key search elements:

• Keyword rich content
• Architecture consistent with Google guidelines
• Optimized code and tagging
• Large quantity of inbound links from sites of distinction

Prospects also find out about attorneys through recommendations by friends and through social media. The addition of a legal blog or a social network to your website provides opportunities for prospects to interact with your law firm. Most importantly, social media and blog content offers the search engines fresh content to crawl and inbound links, potentially boosting your rankings. By adding sharing options to your blog that enable readers to submit your content to social news and other sites like Digg, Facebook and Twitter you can help boost your online word of mouth.

Syndication is an important strategy that we utilize in our Smart News Technology private label branded newsrooms for attorneys. The articles, press releases, and law firm announcements created on the news platform can be written, published and syndicated with the push of a button. While most online press release distribution services offer almost no assistance in optimizing articles and releases for improved indexing, content created on the Smart News Technology platform is automatically optimized with the search engine optimization feature. This functionality gives each release the best possibility of being picked up on the web, expanding your reach across a vast network of newswire partners including Google news.

The web is a work in progress and the importance of an integrated law firm SEO and social media strategy for lawyers cannot be taken lightly by any firm that wants to increase their lead generation numbers. The key is to align your firm with a legal web design/strategy team that understands your goals and what is realistic for your firm.

For more information on law firm SEO and social media for lawyers or Smart News Technology, contact Kevin Quinlan-President of Cepaclaw.com.

Kevin Quinlan Phone: 561.313.7410

Kevin Quinlan, accomplished law firm marketer discusses how new Federal Trade Commission regulations will impact Internet users by creating a more trustworthy environment so that they can rely more on consumer opinions and testimonials on social media and websites.

In a move that is seen as long coming by many and government interference by others, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has unanimously voted to update its guidelines regulating endorsements by bloggers and require disclosure of any "material connection" to a marketer which includes payments or free products/services for their endorsement. The guidelines become effective December 1, 2009.

The FTC is tasked with overseeing consumer protection by preventing unfair business competition and "unfair and deceptive acts or practices." Although they have been involved in a variety of regulation, including telemarketing, pay-per-call (900 numbers) and the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, the FTC has not updated its rules on endorsement and testimonials in advertising in nearly 30 years.

While these new rules also include liability for celebrity endorsements on social media sites or even mentions in interviews when statements are false, misleading or do not include results that consumers would "generally expect," the application of these rules on bloggers will have significant impact on a public that can now publish their own opinions without the use of traditional media. These social media guidelines are fundamentally similar to those currently applied to traditional media.

As reported by a Nielsen Online consumer survey of over 25,000 Internet users in 25 countries, 70% of respondents trusted consumer opinions posted online. These new regulations may go a long way towards increasing the trust factor, making testimonials on social media sites and optimized law firm testimonial videos on firm websites, YouTube, Facebook and other social media sites even more compelling.

As consumers become more reliant on web-based opinions, testimonials and law firm web videos can provide the information that positions your firm as an authority and the boost provided could be the difference between converting a new case and missing out.

For more information on social media for lawyers, web videos or SEO for lawyers, contact Kevin Quinlan.

Kevin Quinlan Phone: 561.313.7410

Rene Perras, Vice President and attorney Internet marketing guru offers his advice on how an online newsroom that features newsworthy articles and provides an online resource for prospects can also help search engine optimization efforts and create higher rankings in search engines.

Recently I have read several articles expounding on the need to have an online newsroom associated with your law firm website. Many of these articles have been written by PR consultants underscoring the adaptation necessary to transition from more traditional PR to an online-based model. Gone are the days when a slick press kit and a solid list of contacts were the mainstay of PR for law firms.

Of course technology has precipitated the biggest change to public relations, so providing an online resource that offers access to press releases, the firm's profile and other newsworthy articles can serve multiple purposes.

By continually adding keyword rich, detailed content to your newsroom, you can support your search engine optimization (SEO) efforts with highly relevant search engine friendly subject matter. In addition, because traditional media, like newspapers are slowly, but surely reducing the number of reporters on staff, news aggregators and reporters alike have become more reliant on using Google searches to find relevant information for stories that they are writing, while ignoring the many unsolicited email blasts. A law firm's newsroom can be a source of interesting content for both online and traditional reporters while positioning your firm as an authority on a range of subjects.

Most importantly, because the regular addition of fresh new content helps support SEO efforts, prospects will be more likely to find your firm website in their time of need, when they are searching for information about their injury or are looking for an attorney. That is especially true when that content addresses their needs and helps them navigate the legal realm.

Now what if you could take your newsroom to a higher level so that it actually helped optimize your articles for better indexing on the search engines and then broadcasted your news and articles across a wide network of newswire partners? And what if this newsroom was seamlessly integrated into your law firm's website so that it mirrored your firm's distinct image and brand?

Then what you would have is Cepaclaw.com's news engine called Smart News Technology. This unparalleled product was created to enable law firms to transmit their articles, press releases and firm announcements directly to the Internet without the need for bureaucratic and expensive press release distribution outlets. Virtually no other product offers lawyers the unique ability to create maximum visibility and improve website rankings through a single news software platform. Smart News Technology does everything a newsroom can do plus much more. Here are some additional benefits:

• Enhancing your law firm's reputation as an authority on the Internet
• Educating potential clients and building their comfort level with your firm
• Boosting search engine rankings on top search sites like Google and Yahoo
• Increasing the conversion rate for unique visitors to your website

To take your Internet marketing to a higher level or for more information on lawyer website design, Smart News Technology or SEO for law firms, contact Rene Perras.

Kevin Quinlan Phone: 561.313.7410

Kevin Quinlan law firm marketing afficionado discusses how article marketing, especially using high quality articles, can supercharge a law firm's marketing efforts and help search engine optimization drive traffic to legal websites.

Article marketing has been a tried and true method for boosting the credibility of a business, branding and attracting new clients for many years.  Prior to the use of the Internet as a venue for these marketing efforts, lawyers and local businesses wrote quality articles, pertinent to their area of practice, and submitted them to local newspapers to publish free of charge.  This arrangement worked well for publications with limited budgets and for marketers angling for free space in the paper that featured their byline and contact info.  The public at large naturally viewed these articles and writers as an authority on their respective subjects.

Fast forward to the Internet with the current Web 2.0 focus on interactivity, user driven content and the development of social networks such as blogs, Facebook and other sites, and the theory remains the same; only the medium has changed.  One of the key differences between the web and print is the focus on the articles as part of search engine optimization (SEO) efforts for attorneys and other businesses.  Articles are targeted very specifically and crafted with researched legal keywords and then distributed across the web via RSS feeds and the blogosphere.  By attracting quality back links to a firm's website the page ranking of the site can be improved.  In the past, editors could choose to print an article or not, but the open interactivity of the web has lead to an increase in the quantity of articles and a to some degree a reduction in the quality.  Attorneys that want to market their firm need to maintain their focus on informative, educational articles that address the questions that their typical clients often raise.

The crafting of high quality articles and releasing them on the web can enhance your law firm's reputation, increase your site's ranking by creating back links and drive traffic to your website that may be converted from prospects to clients.  While articles can be published on a blog or article directory sites, it is more a matter of the quality of the sites linking back to your law firm's website rather than just the sheer quantity of links.  In the eyes of prospects, and in the calculations of the search engine algorithms, quality matters in making you an authority on the web. 

Recently we launched an online newsroom product called Smart News Technology that can streamline the article/press release process for your firm.   Smart News Technology was developed to provide law firms the means to deliver articles and press releases directly to the Internet via their own private label newsrooms, bypassing expensive and cumbersome press release distribution outlets.  

Seamlessly integrated into a firm's website, attorneys will have the ability to syndicate their news across large distribution networks, including Google news, with the push of a button.  The search engine optimization feature gives each release the best possibility for pickup on the web.

To find out more about SEO for law firms or article marketing using Smart News Technology, contact Rene Perras.

Kevin Quinlan Phone: 561.313.7410

Kevin Quinlan, legal marketer, weighs in on the importance of creativity and relevant content in SEO copywriting that is written for the benefit of prospects and not just for search engine optimization and Google algorithms.

Many people have come to believe that writing legal content for search engine optimization (SEO) is just a matter of stuffing keywords and phrases into copy without regard to how interesting or relevant the communication is.  SEO copywriting is about much more than incorporating keywords into content so that search engines can find your pages, but consumers find them unreadable, unusable or just plain irritating.

It has always amazed me when I land on a page that has virtually no relevance to my original Google search.  As a marketer with a background in retail, it is not lost on me that there are certain items and techniques that can result in impulse buys.  That said it is hard to fathom how results so unrelated to a search could pique someone's interest to a greater extent than it would irritate them enough to never return to that site.

Copywriting for SEO has always been more of a creative process than just focusing on the density of keywords on a page or where keywords are placed based upon what some optimizers speculate the search engine algorithms look for.  Many attorneys have reluctantly come to accept excessively optimized content as the norm and are unaware that professionally crafted copy for SEO should serve the same purpose as writing for traditional print media; it should be informative, address the questions posed by typical prospects for your law firm and be a smooth easy read.  The bottom line is that the content on your law firm's website or in your news releases should be crafted for the benefit of your readers/prospects first and to satisfy an algorithm last.

The challenge for professional legal SEO copywriters is to strike a balance between personal style, creativity and providing the most relevant content to address the questions and concerns of prospects for law firms and the inclusion of content relevant to search engine spiders.  Staying on message while following best practices for Title tags, keyword placement and density, and inclusion of anchor tags can be a challenging task, but that is why it makes sense for law firms to work with seasoned legal Internet marketers. 

Uninspired SEO copywriting can increase the bounce rate on an attorney's website almost as quickly as poorly designed navigation.  The title tag must make a prospect want to click through to your website and when keywords are used only as often as it makes sense for the content, users will tend to read on and hopefully answer your call to action.

For more information on SEO copywriting for lawyers, web design or web marketing for law firms, contact Rene Perras

Kevin Quinlan Phone: 561.313.7410

Kevin Quinlan, an Internet marketing expert and web design professional, discusses the similarities between translating traditional advertising into a foreign language and selecting idiomatic expressions as keywords for search engine optimization for personal injury attorneys.

I recently read an interesting article on why keywords and page titles for an English website should never be translated directly into a foreign language.  The author was referring to literal translations as opposed to having a "native speaker" assist in keyword research and using the results to craft titles, descriptions and keyword tags.  Idiomatic expressions render literal translations useless, as common speech patterns tend to create phrases that may not be grammatically correct but are what locals would probably search for. Speech is an evolution of language that cannot be intuited by someone who thinks in a different language and then translates the content.

Reading the article reaffirmed what I had already experienced with traditional advertising media and the necessity to "transcreate" rather than translate.  But the nuances of culture vs. language have always had a role to play, as phrases in Mexican Spanish may not connote the same meaning as they might in Cuban Spanish.  That kernel of truth also has an affect on keyword selection for search engine optimization on a regional basis for English websites in the US.

Marketers of personal injury attorneys' websites must be mindful of that fact even when it comes to what would seem to be a fairly mundane topic such as car accidents.  In spite of the fact that there may not be a typical web user and every prospect for a law firm may create their own web experience, there are localisms that influence how users might search for info on an attorney.  For example, many Texans might search for the term "car wreck" lawyer, when a New Yorker would never describe an accident in that manner.

It is important to partner with seasoned search engine optimization (SEO) and legal web design professionals that have experience on a nationwide basis who will work with you to create a customized web marketing program designed both for your firm and for your geographic area.  When it comes to key word research and SEO for law firms, there is no substitute for experience and a successful track record marketing attorneys on the web in geographic areas around the country.

For more information on SEO for attorneys, legal content writing or law firm web design, contact Rene Perras.

Kevin Quinlan Phone: 561.313.7410

Kevin Quinlan an attorney-marketing guru offers his insight into trends in wireless Internet access by African American and Hispanic consumers and how they impact law firm marketing and search engine optimization.

In a recent report, data provided by a Pew Internet study of mobile web use indicates that the number and frequency that African Americans and Hispanics have accessed the mobile web has outpaced white consumers by a double-digit margin.  Law firm marketers should take note of this dramatic rise in minority mobile web access.

While wireless Internet access has risen to nearly one third of all consumers over the age of 18, more black and Hispanic consumers tend to use a mobile phone as their principal phone and therefore have a lower rate of hard-wired high-speed connection use than white consumers.  This factor provides insight into why minority Internet users have had a bigger bump in wireless access than whites. Seventeen percent of white consumers accessed the Internet with a mobile device on an average day versus twenty nine percent of blacks and Hispanic consumers.  It is noteworthy that the study did not include a Spanish language option, so the data is for English-speaking users.

The playing field for Internet access has been leveled for Hispanic and African American consumers when mobile devices are included in the statistics.  For attorneys marketing their services on the web the fact that black and white households utilize the web in the same ways means that there is greater access for these demographics to law firm marketing messages.  That also means that attorney search engine optimization (SEO) efforts are now reaching across demographic lines providing the opportunity for law firms to acquire a broader range of clients and for more consumers to have equal access to skilled legal support in their time of need.

As consumer average daily web activity has grown to 61% for white consumers and 54% for African Americans, the importance of well designed and executed web sites, SEO for law firms and a strong Internet presence becomes an even greater tool in reaching out to consumers.  That is especially true because regardless of the manner of access the range of activities is equivalent.  That means that searching for and researching goods and services, such as legal services, has an even broader reach.

For more information on attorney web site design, SEO, social media planning or a complete marketing program for your law firm, contact Kevin Quinlan.

Kevin Quinlan Phone: 561.313.7410

Attorney TV marketing maven, Kevin Quinlan says "New research shows the power of video testimonials for law firm marketing to influence internet users browsing web sites and video sharing sites"

If your law firm had any doubts about the power of client testimonial web-videos for law firm marketing, recent research by Nielsen Online should put them to rest.  According to a consumer survey of over 25,000 Internet users in 25 countries, 90% of consumers indicated that they trusted recommendations from people that they are familiar with while 70% trusted consumer opinions posted online.  TV advertising still garnered a 62% degree of trust and most advertising media also have higher levels of trust.

As the Internet has evolved, consumers on social networking sites, forums, blogs and discussion groups have generated more and more content.  This has resulted in a new form of word-of-mouth between consumers with similar interests.  It is believed that it has also had an impact on the style of advertising message conveyed-related more to real consumer experiences.

If consumers are more reliant on web based opinions, your law firm could benefit from video testimonials featured on your law firm's website and posting optimized videos on video sharing sites like YouTube.  

Aside from providing helpful information that positions your law firm as an authority and assists in making the decision to hire your firm, the powerful boost provided by testimonial web videos can be the difference between missing out or converting a new case.  The value of testimonial web videos on YouTube or Facebook is two-fold; the capture and conversion of prospects currently looking for an attorney and the grooming of younger users who are tomorrow's potential clients.

That said, knowing how to use a video camera is not the equivalent of professionally producing web videos that effectively convey your brand nor will it produce a refined video testimonial by a client. Virtually every client needs to be interviewed, prepared and professionally edited so that his or her true story of recovery can be told in the most compelling manner possible.

Our legal website design for lawyers is proud to offer our clients  and  full service television and web video production and optimization. Our award-winning advertising creative professionals deliver sound advertising campaigns built on strategy and vision. When it comes to TV and web video production for law firms, we believe in out-of-the-box thinking and high production values. We deliver quality.

For more information on SEO, TV or web video production or Internet marketing for attorneys, contact Kevin Quinlan at cepaclaw.com

Kevin Quinlan Phone: 561.313.7410

Across the country journalism professors are scrambling to come up with new teaching models for a profession that is in the midst of a cataclysmic change.  More and more consumers are looking to the web for their news with its 24-hour news cycle and that has drawn journalism and SEO closer together than ever before.  This upsurge in demand for news on the web provides great opportunities for content writing for law firms as a method to position your law firm as an authority in your respective field by crafting and distributing news across the web.

The change in the way news is delivered also presents unique challenges in the way content must be created in this digital age.  These challenges are in style, in form, in how the content relates to the audience and in the new expectations of an increasingly interactive consumer who has transitioned from traditional print based news.  

The journalistic skills used in the print based model cannot just be adopted for the web, as a whole new lexicon is mandated by the new medium.  The basic elements of a good story- who, what, where, when and how are no longer enough and must be tempered with how people search for the topic of the web page or article.  The crafting of an article must not only take into account whether the reader will understand and relate to the article, but how the reader and the search engine spiders both interact with the site on which the content will appear.  It is obvious that legal writers that want their story read must know how to write for an audience that now Googles for news instead of waiting until 11:00 pm to watch it on TV.

Google news alerts and the various social networking sites have even impacted the way traditional media delivers the news. TV news broadcasts no longer wait for the next broadcast to break a story; they break it on the web as it happens.  

If your law firm wants to harness the power of the Internet and catapult your search engine rankings to a new level, our online newsroom product, Smart News Technology, provides all of the tools necessary to optimize every article for the best possible chance for pickup on the web.  We specialize in writing content for law firms based on solid research into the most widely searched keyword phrases that potential personal injury and family law clients use.  

For more information on Content Writing for lawyers, legal website design and well crafted website copy for law firms contact Kevin Quinlan for legal website solutions by visiting CepacLaw.com

Kevin Quinlan Phone: 561.313.7410

Most lawyer marketing for personal injury law firms are already aware of the necessity to build and maintain a powerful brand online.  Some are beginning to realize that building a personal brandfor the individual members of the firm can be highly effective in helping to turn web prospects into conversions.  Anytime that you can make the web experience more personal for an injured consumer, you make the decision to contact you that much easier.  To a large extent clients hire the attorneys, not the firm.

There is no question that the greater your presence on page one of the search engines, the greater the credibility attributed to your brand.  The greater the number of highly ranked results for the attorneys in your firm, the more supportive their individual brands are for the parent brand, your firm.  Having dominance in the top ten search results that include profiles, news media mentions and videos is more than just an ego boost.

Some of the tools that can be easily put to use to build a brand for firm members are not complicated.  Social media provide great opportunities to be seen in a positive light on the web.  Blogging or creation of online news/commentary for web release can create a favorable profile for your personal brand, as you develop into an authority on topics relevant to your clients' needs.  

YouTube is also a great venue for providing additional information about individual attorneys within your practice and for building a strong reputation with searchers who are searching for more in-depth info on an attorney or the firm.  By uploading and optimizing video on topics that address the frequently asked questions posed by new clients entering the legal process, you can elevate your personal brand in the minds of searchers.  

Although LinkedIn may not be where you might guess that most of your current clientele would be browsing, having your career history in a public profile on business-networking sites provide additional opportunities for your name to appear on a search.  That is especially true for a direct search for your name, when a potential client is digging deeper in their decision making process.

A comprehensive personal branding strategy can be developed for attorneys in your firm using the above-mentioned social media and more.  For more information on online brand development or Smart News Technology, contact Rene Perras.

If you are a personal injury law firm wanting to develop your brand call CEPAC Lawyer marketing

Kevin Quinlan Phone: 561.313.7410

If there was any doubt about how huge a share of the population of all ages is acquiring their news online, it was put to rest on June 25th when searches related to Michael Jackson's death almost rendered the Internet unusable.

Everyone from Google News to sites like TMZ, that broke the story, to Twitter and even CNN, felt the ripple effects of the massive number of Jackson related searches as people frantically looked to the web for the most current news.  CNN reported receiving 20 million page views in the hour after the story broke and users experienced difficulty accessing search results on Google, the LA Times site, Wikipedia and even AOL's instant messenger service was down for nearly 40 minutes.

It is not uncommon for breaking news on the web to create a domino effect when it comes to more shocking stories that appeal to a wide ranging demographic.  Once the story is broken it is read, shared, commented upon and spreads across the web through social media like Twitter and instant messaging.

The lesson to be learned for marketers is that if you had any doubts as to whether you should be promoting your law firm on the Internet using the latest search engine optimization (SEO) techniques, they should now be put to rest.  While stories like the death of a celebrity like Michael Jackson may cause unprecedented consequences for the Internet, failure to promote your website and your law firm with help from a professional SEO firm will also have consequences. Consequences on your ability to grow your business.

For more information on lawyer web design or SEO contact Rene Perras.

Kevin Quinlan Phone: 561.313.7410

Since the launch of Microsoft's new search engine Bing, we are frequently asked if this new entry will affect current injury law SEO programs.  As has been demonstrated in many other categories, the ability to change a brand preference is no simple task, and Google has a very entrenched brand.  Aside from the fact that Google currently enjoys a 65% market share, according to ComScore, its searchers are generally satisfied with their results. Yahoo the number two player currently only has a 20% share.

Bing's goal is to provide more than just a list of search results, and take the next step by providing relevant options that link to other sites and feature more information about the pages returned in the search with just a movement of your mouse over the page.  It also enables users to make purchases and book travel with just a few clicks.  Bing is being billed as a "decision engine" rather than just a search engine.

Aside from differences in the aesthetics of the page and where certain items appear; Google has related searches at the bottom of the page, Bing on the left where they are a bit more visible, similar searches yielded similar results.  Bing's launch has been supported by a marketing blitz that exceeds most major national product launches and has started strongly as a result.  In early June, the site attracted more than 16% of all search engine users, which was an increase over its launch week of 13.7%.  Of course it is only natural for a Microsoft product with as much marketing support as Bing to be able to develop some trial.  The question is will searchers forsake their primary search engine and continue to use Bing exclusively, use it in conjunction with Google or will the curiosity just dry up?

In any case, it will be a very long time before any search engine, including one by Microsoft, can overtake a brand as strong as Google.  Google has become part of the lexicon, and it just doesn't seem possible that if we need to find something out that we will Bing it.  

Ultimately, when SEO is done correctly and the site architecture and content are of high quality, law firm sites that have achieved high ranking in Google will benefit from those efforts and should achieve similar results with Bing.  Professional SEO for law firms is still SEO.  Bing may have different algorithms than Google, but best practices and solid principles still apply.   Reacting to changes in the SEO environment will never be as productive as ongoing efforts to improve performance through link building and on-page optimization strategies.  


For more information on Cepaclaw.com web design, SEO for law firms or Smart News Technology, contact Rene Perras.

Kevin Quinlan Phone: 561.313.7410

Once you have decided to take your law firm's destiny into your own hands and get serious about marketing on the Internet, it is time to consider joining forces with a professional SEO firm that can initiate and manage your online campaign.

SEO is absolutely essential to any site that has a long-term goal of generating new business.  Every site must rely on some volume of free traffic to drive new business and the only way to get volumes of free traffic to your site is by having high rankings on the major search engines.  For the long haul, organic search has a more level cost than pay-per-click and although the ramp up time may be a bit longer, more users select from the organic search results than from online ads.  High rankings from carefully researched and highly competitive key words can generate a lot of unique visitors to your web site.

Many law firms are surprised at the cost to hire a professional SEO firm.  To a large extent, that is because SEO is an intangible commodity when compared to creating TV spots or a web site, both of which result in a physically evident "product".  SEO is an extremely labor intensive process that requires constant monitoring and tweaks throughout the campaign.

Our firm starts with a complete analysis of your web site to ensure that the architecture, key words, tags and overall structure is consistent with Google's guidelines to give the site the best chance to be crawled and highly indexed by the search engines.  We re-engineer any flaws, provide recommendations that will improve usability, make directory submissions and begin the link building process.  We offer proprietary newsroom platforms that act like blogs on steroids to create valuable content and link bait.

Google and the other major search engines constantly make minor adjustments to their algorithms so ranking can change slightly on a regular basis.  There are also major updates done less frequently that can more dramatically affect the rankings of your site.  The management of your site, the ongoing link building process, addition of new pages of content and the knowledge requisite to stay on top of the changing environment and maintain site rankings while competing with thousands of other sites is a major undertaking.

SEO is not a commodity and your selection should not be strictly a matter of who offers to do the work for the lowest price.  There are scores of mediocre SEO firms that just seem to come and go.  It is imperative to partner with a credible and ethical SEO company that has a proven track record of providing top page rank for other law firms practicing in your field of specialty.  They should be able to offer both tangible results online and references from satisfied clients.  

Remember, when you pay peanuts; you get monkeys.

For more information on SEO for attorneys or client testimonials, contact Rene Perras.

Kevin Quinlan Phone: 561.313.7410

Over the years we have become familiar with many law firms that have all of the right stuff to build a successful practice.  They have attorneys with brilliant minds. They have major recoveries both in and out of the courtroom.  They have the financial resources to fund even the most complex cases.  They have the people skills to convince potential clients and juries that they are the real deal.  The one thing that they lack is the knowledge and confidence to take the leap into Internet marketing.

Without this key element in place, even the most skilled trial firms may be relegated to obtaining the majority of their cases through referrals.  As more and more consumers use the Internet, rather than the yellow pages to search for goods and services, firms that have shied away from traditional advertising like TV, need to develop a relationship with a seasoned legal marketer to take advantage of this subtler but highly effective medium.

If a personal injury, family law, real estate or a wills and estates attorney wants to acquire more consumers as clients, they must have a website, and that site needs to be much more than an online brochure. It must clearly personalize the firm, provide insights about the attorneys, offer relevant answers to the questions typically asked by potential clients and it absolutely must have a dedicated tracking phone number and a simple contact form to start a dialogue.  That said, more than anything else, the site must show up prominently in major search engine results.

Although none of the comments above can be considered groundbreaking, it is still amazing how many firms have cookie cutter websites that offer no insight into the brand of the firm or can be distinguished from any number of other attorney web sites.  And that is if you can actually find them through a web search.  Many of these sites offer very little chance of converting first-time visitors into clients, as they do not take advantage of tools like web videos to personalize the site and do not satisfy the research component of a need-driven prospect searching the web for help.

Our firm custom designs every web site incorporating Google's design and content guidelines to create useful, information rich sites that anticipate the content that visitors might be looking for.  All sites are constructed with logical link structures to help the search engine crawlers find your site and improve indexing.  Our proprietary newsroom engines are integrated into your firm web site and deliver optimized news articles and press releases through large distribution networks, including Google news, that create valuable link bait for highly effective web site optimization.

There is no time like the present to add that final ingredient for success on the Internet - a seasoned web-marketing partner that can make sure  everyone knows that you have all the right stuff.

For more information on web site development or Cepaclaw newsroom products, contact Rene Perras.

Kevin Quinlan Phone: 561.313.7410

Social media is all the rage right now and sites like Facebook, YouTube and Twitter have been garnering a huge amount of press both online and offline.  Everyone from movie stars to local morning news shows that tweet trivia and traffic/weather related comments has seemingly adopted Twitter.  With all of this buzz, on the surface it would seem that this social networking site where your firm could post short messages might be a must-have weapon in your marketing arsenal.  

While social media is a valuable tool for marketing your firm and for supporting your web marketing efforts, the question arises, should your firm be tweeting?  

Statistics provided by a Harvard study and Nielsen Online show that visitors to the site rose from less than a half a million to nearly seven million in the year starting February 2008. That said the research also shows that the site has a high degree of trial without subsequent usage.  Unfortunately, it seems that for now there is more sizzle than steak when it comes to its use as a two-way communication tool.  On social networking sites like Facebook content is provided more evenly by users, but on Twitter ten percent of users produced ninety percent of the content.   Evidently, everyone that tries Twitter does not instantly become an advocate, let alone a user.  Most people tweet once but never return and a majority of those that did return did not update their page more than once every few months.

Although Twitter has been portrayed as a site for social networking and a means of communication, it actually is being used more like a broadcast medium where small numbers of users communicate their message to many.  So the answer to the question is that for now, there are other more effective social media sites that can benefit your law firm's marketing program and your posture should be wait and see.  It will be interesting to see whether Twitter develops a sense of direction and purpose; marketing, communication or just freedom of expression.


For more information on how to integrate social media into your web-marketing program, contact Rene Perras.

Kevin Quinlan Phone: 561.313.7410