Whether you’ve just graduated law school and you're looking for your first few clients or you're representing an established firm hoping to expand its profile, you need options for increasing your visibility and reach.
In the legal space, one of the most common options for this is utilizing a legal directory.
But what are legal directories? How do you get listed? And are they really worth it?
Legal directories are (typically) online databases that manage profiles associated with lawyers and law firms, providing those profiles to prospects with legal needs – and making them easily searchable and browsable.
Assuming you even remember what they are, you can think of legal directories as massive, modern phone books for legal service providers.
In many cases, legal directories offer an abundance of resources both to the lawyers utilizing them for visibility and the users utilizing them for legal information. These resources may cover things like basic legal advice on a variety of issues and links to authorities on various topics.
Note that spammy directories have long been penalized by Google and other search engines. Historically, building links on low-quality directory websites has been a blatant no-no in SEO (and in the context of marketing ethics generally). However, most prominent legal directories are carefully curated and managed, rendering them valuable for end users and therefore acceptable to Google. That said, not every legal directory is indexed – and not all of them have links that pass authority to your website.
Additionally, keep in mind that some legal directories are free, while others require payment. In fact, most legal directories now offer both options; you can create a profile for free, with basic features, but you'll need to pay to get access to premium features and more visibility. Fees vary depending on the services available and the legal directory offering them.
Are legal directories valuable for lawyers and law firms?
The short answer is yes. There are several reasons why:
· Visibility. As a businessperson, you probably already know the value of visibility. Merely getting to list your name and show off your credentials is a valuable move for your brand. If you feature your profile on many different channels, you can build your reputation and gain name recognition in your field.
· Potential for discovery. Roughly 41 percent of legal service consumers start their search for a law firm or lawyer on a legal directory. If you want to capture these leads, you'll need a profile to attract them. Because so many people use legal directories as part of their search, failing to take advantage of them is a missed opportunity.
· Citations. Earning links and showcasing your profile on various legal directories can function as a citation online. In some cases, these links can pass authority to your website, helping it rank higher in standard searches. In other cases, Google will use the information across legal directories to form a local profile for your business, helping it rank locally.
· Legitimacy. Being featured in many legal directories helps add legitimacy to your law firm or solo practice. It will help your new prospects and clients feel comfortable working with you.
These are some of the best legal directories for promoting your law firm today:
If you’ve ever searched for a legal topic, you’ve probably encountered content from Nolo. Nolo has robust legal guides and a smoothly managed directory that can give you a reliable, steady stream of clients and prospects.
Avvo is a favorite platform for lawyers and law firms all over the country, thanks in part to its built-in rating system. There’s also ample room for customizing your lawyer profile.
Justia has a wealth of legal resources in addition to its main directory. This makes it an attractive resource both for lawyers and the clients they hope to serve.
FindLaw, an extension of Thomson Reuters, has a number of directories, legal articles, and resources for both lawyers and law students.
LawInfo is a subsidiary of FindLaw. It has a lot to offer, but it’s very strict when it comes to attorney lead screening, which could be an advantage for some.
Another Thomson Reuters company is Super Lawyers, which uses a discerning and competitive selection process for determining top lawyers in a given field.
One of the first major legal directories online, Martindale-Hubbell is well known in the legal industry. It also offers both peer and client reviews to help you establish your credibility.
Managed by Martindale-Hubbell, Lawyers.com offers very detailed lawyer profiles – and plenty of resources for prospects and clients to explore and learn about legal issues.
Best Lawyers features a heavy emphasis on peer-reviewed listings, helping to establish it as a major respected player in the field.
Though the National Trial Lawyers is a fantastic directory well worth considering, it’s also exclusive to trial lawyers – and it’s invitation-only, so you may not qualify.
Note that many of the listings here have both paid and free options available for lawyers; these include Justia, Avvo, FindLaw, and Lawyers.com.
Google Business Profile is not a legal directory, specifically, but it is a business directory that could be extremely useful for your law firm. It's completely free, and it doesn't take much time to fill out your profile, so it’s definitely worth doing.
As you might imagine, Google highly values this information and uses it when formulating local search rankings. Make sure you include plenty of keywords and phrases relevant to your specific area of practice, and verify that all your details are accurate, including your name, address, and phone number.
The legal directories we've listed are just the tip of the iceberg, though they are some of the most prominent and best respected directories currently available. When evaluating these or any other legal directory, keep the following in mind:
· Niche. There are many directories that serve general interests, and even more directories that serve individual niches. Many of the directories we've listed specifically serve lawyers and law firms, and there are even directories that are even more specific, such as those covering personal injury law. While generalized legal directories aren't necessarily bad, you should make sure you're listed on relevant legal directories for specific niches. You should also avoid any directory that seems to have no qualifications whatsoever, as these can be seen as spammy and irrelevant.
· Quality. Pay attention to the quality of each legal directory as well. There are many ways to judge the quality of these types of websites. For example, you can start by measuring the domain authority (DA) of the website; the higher it is, the better. You can also scope out the referring domains with links pointing back to the website as an indication of authority, as well as the traffic generated by the website. In short, the more prominent and respected the platform is, the better it will be for you to be listed on it.
· Appearance and functionality. Spend some time browsing the website so that you understand what the average user experiences when they visit it. Website appearance may seem like a superficial consideration, but it plays a massive role in how people perceive the lawyers and law firms listed on that website. Similarly, make sure the website works properly; if you conduct a search, do you get results that are relevant, and do you get them quickly and effectively? Is it easy to compare different profiles? Does it work well on both desktop and mobile devices?
· Accessibility. How easy is it to get a profile on this website, and how much effort does it take to set up that profile? From a convenience standpoint, you should prioritize legal directories that are easy to work with. You'll also want the ability to edit your profile freely as time goes on.
· Customizability. Some legal directories are extremely rigid in how they present profiles and listings. For example, you may only have access to filling out certain fields and categories, or you may be restricted in how you can describe your services. Depending on the nature of your law firm and your strategic goals, you may not care about these restrictions; but in some cases, you'll want extra customizability and flexibility so you can put your best foot forward.
· Reviews. Pay attention to review functionality as well. Some legal directories offer clients the ability to leave reviews for lawyers they've worked with in the past. Among those, many legal directories allow lawyers to curate and post reviews from their other clients. Some legal directories also offer the ability to curate and showcase reviews from peers, adding to your credibility and boosting your profile. These are generally favorable, but they aren't strictly necessary.
· Cost. If you're just starting out, there's nothing wrong with seeking free profiles, but paid benefits can be extremely beneficial on some legal directories. Thoroughly evaluate the perks and services available and try to calculate whether it's worth the extra expense.
· Google indexing and links. Is this legal directory discoverable in Google and other search engines? If so, treat it as an added bonus. You'll also want to determine whether the links on the directory pass authority, or whether they are “nofollow” links that only pass traffic.
· Competition. If you're not sure which legal directories are a good fit for your practice, find a few of your competitors and rivals and see which legal directories they're using. It's not always a good idea to directly copy the legal directories in use by your competitors, but this should at least help you see each legal directory more clearly and in a new context.
Managing a law firm is tricky, whether your biggest challenge is finding new clients or streamlining internal workflows. That’s why we’ve developed the tools and strategies necessary to help law firms like yours navigate this landscape.
If you’re interested in learning more, sign up for a free trial of Law.co’s legal AI software – or contact us for a free consultation today!
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