Search for something on Google and you might notice three listings with contact information that appear next to a map.
In fact, these listings even show up before the paid advertisements.
These are known as Google maps listings, and every law firm should aim to land in one of these spots.
But unfortunately, there are only three local business listings near the map, so it will take a little bit of effort and the right legal marketing company to secure one of these spots.
How Google Chooses Local Businesses For Google Maps Listings
The listings that appear next to the map are not chosen at random.
Google chooses these listings based on the business’s proximity to the searcher.
For example, let’s say someone in the Upper East Side of Manhattan is searching for a personal injury attorney.
Ideally, Google would like to show this person three listings for personal injury attorneys in the Upper East Side.
Therefore, it’s important that Google clearly understands where your law firm is located otherwise you won’t appear as a Google maps listing.
How to Get on Google Maps
There are several steps that lawyers can take to increase their chances of securing one of these spots.
First, review your law firm’s website to determine if it has enough information to communicate your location to Google.
If you are a DUI attorney in Baltimore, the keywords “Baltimore DUI attorney” and “Baltimore DUI lawyer” should be found throughout your website.
Another way to show Google where you are located is to build backlinks from other local businesses or organizations.
Some lawyers choose to personally reach out to businesses in the community to ask for a backlink, but this can be fairly time-consuming and many small business owners might not understand what you mean.
Instead, consider contacting youth sports organizations in the city. Offer each of these organizations a small donation in exchange for a backlink on their website.
It’s much easier to build backlinks using this approach since the organization is getting something in return for taking their time to update their website.
The donation does not have to be large-most law firms donate between $150-300 when implementing this strategy.
Web marketing for lawyers doesn’t have to be difficult. Simply incorporating location-based keywords into your website’s content and building local backlinks will show Google how relevant your law firm is to the community.
Since showing relevant results is so important to Google, this could be enough for the search engine to add your business to Google maps.
