No Lawyer Left Behind:
The Risks of Not
Having a Website
By Debra Bruce
 I recently received a request for a lawyer referral. Three lawyers came to mind,
so I prepared to pass on their contact information, including website addresses.
To my surprise, one of the lawyers did not have a website. Without a website, I
feared the lawyer would appear unsophisticated to the client. I calculated the extra
effort necessary to describe his qualifications. In the end, I chose to save myself
some time and avoid the risk of appearing to give low-quality referrals. I passed
on contact information for only two lawyers.
For solo and small firm practitioners,
not having a website may mean losing out on new clients.
Referrals Check You Out
on the Web
Some lawyers say they don’t need a website because most of their business
comes from referrals. According to Margot W. Teleki in the July 17, 2006 issue of
the New Jersey Law Journal, “the first thing your referral will do is check out
your firm’s website before giving you a call to see who and what you are and how
well you’re suited to meet his needs.” Gerry Morris, a white collar criminal lawyer
and Austin sole practitioner, says, “Sometimes clients referred to me by other lawyers
come into my office with a printout from my website in hand.”
If your firm doesn’t
have a website, could you be losing referral business without knowing it? When your
prospective client can’t find you on the web, could that send the message that your
firm is too small, too new, too unsophisticated, too unsuccessful, or too behind
the times to handle the good quality work you desire to attract?
Small Firms Lag
Behind
Legal marketing consultants Alyn- Weiss concluded that “law firm websites
are the single most effective marketing tools employed by corporate, transactional,
and defense firms.” In their 2006 national survey of 119 firms, 82 percent had “received
work directly or by referral during the past 24 months” from their website. Yet
the American Bar Association’s Legal Technology Survey for 2006 reported that only
40 percent of sole practitioners and 65 percent of small firms (2-9 attorneys) have
a website. Virtually all firms with more than 50 lawyers have a website, and 92
percent of those with 10 to 50 lawyers do.
Why don’t the remaining solo and small
firms have websites? Some small firms with stretched resources believe a website
is beyond their financial means because they don’t have the budget to hire an information
technology consultant. Others struggle just to keep up with their clients’ legal
needs and still have some semblance of a personal life. They believe they just don’t
have the necessary time to invest in creating a firm website. Some worry they won’t
be able to keep a website updated. A few technophobes think they can outrun the
tsunami and retire from practice before websites become de rigueur. (They are the
same ones who thought they could avoid a desktop computer and email.)
Benefits of
Websites
Besides avoiding looking inadequate or behind the times, why would lawyers
want websites? Websites give clients a chance to get to know you and your qualifications
at their convenience and before they are ready to make the commitment of a phone
call. Websites can emphasize your achievements and demonstrate your expertise, which
decorum would prohibit in person. Informative articles and other valuable content
pertinent to clients’ needs build trust because you provide service before ever
meeting with the client. Websites save time and improve staff productivity by answering
those recurring client questions about office hours, location, and how the legal
process typically works. They can include intake forms for clients to complete before
their first appointment or lists of essential documentation to bring to the appointment.
Most important, a website with useful content and key words often found by search
engines will reach clients when they are interested, 24/7. Morris says his website
(www.egmlaw.com) brought in enough business in the first year to more than pay for
itself. Soon, it so outperformed his Yellow Pages ad that he canceled it.
Getting
Started
If you are now squirming in your seat with awareness that your firm just
has to get a website, how do you go about it? Begin by shopping the competition.
Many websites have the name and web link of the designer in small print at the bottom
of the page. Contact designers whose work you like for an estimate. Ask your friends
and colleagues whether they would recommend their web designer and what costs to
expect. You can also find plenty of designers by entering terms like “websites for
lawyers” or “law firm web designers” into a search engine. Websites like
www.elance.com and www.guru.com provide a forum for freelance web designers to bid on your project
and provide links to portfolios of their previous work. Those sites also post satisfaction
ratings and comments by previous customers.
What kind of expense should you expect?
That depends on the number of pages and complexity of your site. A firm of 5 to
10 lawyers might expect to pay $2,000 to $8,000 for a custom site. However, according
to Luke Gilman, a web designer turned law student (www.GilmanCreative.com),
a firm
on a tight budget could still get a custom web design for under $1,000.
Websites
on a Tight Budget
For even greater cost savings, check out the many template websites
that are available. Sure, some other firms may have a website that looks like yours,
but that’s better than being invisible. They usually have many templates to choose
from and are so user-friendly that “even a lawyer” can create his or her own website
in a day. To illustrate how easy it is to create a template site, you can view one
I created with another coach at www.houstoncoaches.com.
It took about eight hours
of work initially, and we pay about $12 per month at www.spinsite.com.
For templates
specially designed for law firms, visit
www.legalwebdesigner.com or www.easylawsite.com.
Their five- or sixpage law firm websites cost from $400 to $1,000, plus a monthly
fee of $25 to $40. That usually includes domain name registration, hosting fees,
and a limited number of email accounts. For a real bargain, however, check out www.easylawweb.com,
where you can get a five-page site for only about $6 per month, or www.citymax.com
for $20 per month. There’s only one template to choose from, but amazingly, the
cost includes the hosting fee and an email account. Finally, for the ultimate bargain,
get a minimal site free at www.justia.com.
Legal Directory Websites
Attorneys can
also get template websites created for them at online legal directories such as
www.lawyers.com and
www.findlaw.com. A search for a lawyer usually brings up listings
in those two directories on the first page of any search engine. Due to the directory
listing cost, even the simplest template site runs about $2,000 per year and more
targeted premium listings can cost much more. Many lawyers find directory listings
worth the price, although results may vary depending on the region and area of practice.
Even some firms that already have custom websites pay the fee to have their site
linked to a directory listing. The only excuse for not having a website is that
you already have more business than you want.
Illustration by Gilberto Sauceda
Republished with permission |
About the Author
Debra Bruce (www.lawyer-coach.com) practiced
law for 18 years, before becoming a professionally trained Executive Coach for lawyers.
She is Vice Chair of the Law Practice Management Committee of the State Bar of Texas,
and board member and past leader of Houston Coaches Network, the Houston Chapter
of the International Coach Federation. She can be contacted for questions
or comments at (713) 682-4353 or
debra@lawyer-coach.com.
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