Google Places for injury lawyers

Most injury lawyers have not yet grasped the importance of Google Places. Many don’t know what it is, and only a few know how to optimize for it.

This blog post will explain what Google Places is, why it is important, and how to obtain a prominent position on Google Places.

1. Google Places (aka Google Local) contains the listings preceded by a red pushpin containing a letter, lawyer photo, and address. Sometimes the Places listings appear in the middle of Google page one and sometimes at the top, but the position is always prominent. A map shows the location of each letter, so the searcher can see how close each lawyer’s office is.

More website owners have recognized the value of Google Places, so in many cities it has become harder to obtain a page one position. You can see how many total Google Places listings exist for your city by clicking “More Results.”

2. Importance. Prominent placement on Google Places has become more valuable because Google now devotes so much premium space to Places. Placement and quantity of listings will vary per search and location, but Google Places listings are frequently at the top of the free listings, and sometimes occupy half to three quarters of page one

The photos and addresses mean that each Places listing occupies more space than a plain organic listing, and the photos are eye-catching. Bottom line: a good position on Google Places can drive meaningful traffic to your site.

3. Optimization. Obtaining a top position on Google Places requires a different approach than optimizing your website for good organic placement. Good organic page position is driven by a steady flow of properly-keyworded, high-quality content on your website, along with a regular increase in inbound links from relevant sites.

Optimizing for Google Places, on the other hand, occurs primarily through the placement of hundreds of consistent business listings on directory sites. This is tedious, time-consuming, and ongoing work that has to date not been automated with software. It nonetheless remains important labor, for Google Places will only grow more important in generating traffic.

The sooner you create your listing and start optimizing the easier it will be to obtain a prominent position; the later you start the harder it will be to rise to the top. Why? As is the case with organic listings, (1) the field will only get more crowded and (2) Google rewards longevity. For more information, call Travis Hise at 714-918-1848.

If you don’t have the time, interest, or expertise to create and optimize your lawyer Google Places listing, we will do the work for you.