Local SEO for Law Firms: How to Get Into the Google Map Pack
Local SEO for Law Firms: How to Get Into the Google Map Pack
Short answer: Local SEO for a law firm means getting into the three-firm map Google shows for searches like “criminal lawyer near me.” It comes down to the right Google Business Profile category for the cases you want, one website page per practice area, a real track record, and steady reviews. Below is how I set it up.
What local SEO means for a law firm
When someone searches “criminal lawyer near me” or “divorce attorney” with a city name, Google shows a map with three firms before most of the regular results. Local SEO for a law firm is the work that gets you into that map and keeps you there: your Google Business Profile, your website practice pages, and your reviews, all saying the same thing about what you do and where.
I talk about lawyers a lot on my channel because legal searches are some of the most competitive local searches there are. A lot of firms pay for every call through ads when the map could be sending them calls without a per-click cost.
“I showed you a 2-minute GBP edit that I made for one of my clients, right? I used an attorney as an example that brought his his daily phone calls from four to nine.”
Bret Moleta, This GBP Setting Is Silently Killing Your Calls (2 Min Fix), at 0:06
That edit was a category change. I go through it below.
1. Pick the category that matches the case you want
Your primary category on Google Business Profile carries more weight than almost anything else you control. “Law firm” is the generic choice, and plenty of firms leave it there. If you want criminal defense calls, look at what the firms in the top three use. In one video I searched “criminal lawyer near me” and the firms ranking in the map used “Criminal Justice Attorney.” The firm with “law firm” as its category was showing up as a paid ad instead.
“that’s the reason why he has law firm, but he wants to rank for Criminal Justice Attorney. So, he has to pay.”
Bret Moleta, This GBP Setting Is Silently Killing Your Calls (2 Min Fix), at 2:16
Check your secondary categories too. They should be practice areas you actually handle. Adding categories for work you don’t take is a fast way to get calls you can’t use, and it can draw a suspension. If that has already happened, read what to do when your Google Business Profile is suspended.
2. Build one page per practice area
Google needs to see the practice area on your website, not just on your profile. A single “Practice Areas” page with ten bullets won’t rank for any of them.
“If you’re a criminal lawyer, right? You need a page that says that you’re a criminal lawyer. You need a page on that.”
Bret Moleta, Google Trends Just Got Dangerous for Local SEO, Here’s How I’d Use It, at 2:41
Each practice-area page should name the service and the city, explain how you handle that type of case, and link back to your profile and contact page. Use the words people search for. When I compared terms in Google Trends, the result surprised a lot of lawyers who watched:
“more people are typing in defense attorney than criminal lawyer.”
Bret Moleta, Google Trends Just Got Dangerous for Local SEO, Here’s How I’d Use It, at 8:03
Look up your own terms before you name your pages. The phrase you use around the office may not be the phrase your clients type.
3. Show a track record
A person who needs a lawyer is scared and in a hurry. Your profile and your pages need to show them you’ve handled their kind of case before.
“You need to show a proven track record. So in this case for the lawyer cases dismissed, reduce charges, not guilty verdicts, right?”
Bret Moleta, Impact of Googles New AI MODE on Local SEO Services, at 7:08
Only publish outcomes you can stand behind. Results vary by practice area and market. One attorney I worked with went from about four to nine daily calls after a category change; that is not a typical or guaranteed outcome.
4. Reviews that mention the case type
Reviews are one of the biggest factors in the map pack. Ask every client for a review after their matter is closed, the same way every time. You can’t offer anything for it, and you can’t only ask the happy ones. When a client mentions the kind of case or the city in their own words, that helps Google connect your firm to the search.
5. Keep your name, address and phone the same everywhere
Your firm name, address and phone number should match on your website, your Google Business Profile and the main legal directories. A firm that moved offices and never updated its old listings sends Google mixed signals. Fixing that is boring work, but it is part of every law firm campaign we run.
What Mindsaw does for law firms
We work on the Google Business Profile, the practice-area pages and the review process together, because the map rewards firms where all three line up. You can see the full service on our local SEO page or our Google Maps SEO page. We work with law firms on practice areas such as personal injury, divorce, mediation, business law and accident cases. Firm names stay off this page.
Note: Guarantee not available for legal, roofing or water damage. Law firms are not covered by the Mindsaw guarantee.
Questions we get
Is local SEO for lawyers different from law firm SEO?
Local SEO focuses on the Google map pack and your Google Business Profile. Law firm SEO also covers ranking your website in the regular results. Most firms need both, and they use the same practice-area pages.
What Google Business Profile category should a law firm use?
The category that matches the cases you want most, such as Criminal Justice Attorney or Divorce Lawyer. Check what the top three firms in your area use.
Does the Mindsaw guarantee cover law firms?
No. Guarantee not available for legal, roofing or water damage.
Want to talk?
Call Mindsaw at (718) 227-2300, or start with a free Google Maps audit. Mindsaw, 221 Main St N, Suite 708, St. Petersburg, FL 33716.