10 Helpful Marketing Tools for Law Firms

Have you made headway on your law firm’s marketing goals this year? If you’re not seeing the results you’re hoping for yet, it might be time to add some new tools to your legal marketing strategy. Here are 10 free or inexpensive marketing tools that can help maximize your efforts, no matter your firm’s size or budget. We’ve divided them into three categories that are all critical to attracting new leads and converting them into clients: generation, conversion, and execution/measurement.

Tip: Starting from scratch with marketing? For more information on building your strategy, check out “Law Firm Marketing Strategy: Trends and Tips for 2022.”

Lead Generation Tools

Locking in a marketing message that resonates with your target clients makes it much easier to generate attention, interest, and engagement. These tools help you gain insight into your target clients to ensure your marketing message aligns with their needs and wants.

1. Google Search Console

​SEO (search engine optimization) is an important factor in increasing your law firm’s visibility to prospects. Google Search Console is a free tool from Google that monitors your law firm website’s organic search performance​. You can see which search terms (AKA keywords) actually bring users to your site and understand how your site is appearing in search results. Don’t worry if you’re not a search engine expert, as Google also provides free video tutorials on how to use the tool. Google also you guides you through the process of installing GSC on your site so you can start gathering data.

2. Keyword Research Tools

Double down on your search strategy by taking advantage of free SEO research tools, such as AnswerThePublic, BuzzSumo, and UberSuggest. When a client finds your business on a search engine like Google, they did so by typing a few key terms.​ These keyword research tools help you discover what the terms prospective clients are using that are relevant to the legal services you offer. Once you identify these keywords, you can begin to develop content, such as blog posts, webinars, videos, and guides, around them.

3. Google Ads

Another way to leverage your keyword research is to test valuable terms using Google Ads. Google ads allow you to choose a key term and pay to be at the top of search results, so in short, you are paying Google for every click to your website.​ As you learn which keywords, ads, and webpages perform well, you can optimize your Google Ads to favor better performance.​

4. Hootsuite for Social Media Management

Social media is yet another channel that can become a valuable lead generator when your firm uses it effectively. ​Hootsuite is a free/inexpensive tool that allows you to organize your social profiles. You can connect all your profiles, schedule your posts, and engage your audience all in one place, all of which are helpful for creating one cohesive social media strategy. You’ll also be able to see which posts generate the most engagement and then use this information to inform your tactics moving forward.

5. Paid Social Tools: Facebook/Instagram Ad Manager

Paid social media refers to powerful, targeted advertising content on social platforms like Facebook and Instagram. You can leverage these ads to direct interested potential clients to your website or phone number​. The ads target your audience with tailored, on-brand content that gives potential clients a reason to click through to your website​. Facebook Ad Manager guides you through the process of identifying who your target client is and building out audiences in Facebook/Instagram that match this profile (age, gender, location, interests, etc.).​

Marketing Conversion Tools

Once you have the attention of your audience through social media, SEO, or advertising, how you do you convert them into clients? These tools can help you make their decision to convert faster and easier.

6. Mobile-Friendly Test Tool

It’s no secret that most of us spend a lot of time on our cell phones. Therefore, your law firm’s website needs to be both attractive and easy-to use on mobile for potential clients.​ To help find out if your site is meeting the mark on mobile, you can use the free Mobile-Friendly Test Tool by Google. Simply by pasting your site’s URL ​into the tool, Google will analyze the content and offer recommendations to improve performance. ​If you don't know how to make your website more mobile-friendly, check with your CMS, developer, or website builder for help.

7. Canva

While it’s important to have interesting, relevant content for your target clients, it’s also critical that it’s visually engaging and attractive. In short, looks matter! Canva is a free and useful design tool that makes that part of the equation much simpler. You can create professional-looking, on-brand content for your social media channels, website, and more. Even better, Canva has many pre-sized and pre-designed templates for almost any type of content you might need to create.

8. PageSpeed Insights

Not only does your law firm’s website need to be mobile-friendly, it also needs to be fast. People’s attention spans are short, so you don’t want to lose their interest as they wait for your content to load. Check your site’s speed using PageSpeed Insights to get a great rundown of any elements of your site that are causing delays.​ A developer or website builder can help you address them.

Marketing Execution and Measurement Tools

Once you have generated and converted leads, it’s important to track and measure your results. Over time, this analysis will help you determine which tactics are most effective, and will even give you insight into any future marketing tools you might want to add to your strategy.

9. Google Analytics

Google Analytics (another free tool from Google) allows you to establish your website's data baseline. It aggregates, interprets, and reports on all traffic in and out of your website so you can make informed decisions on what’s working and what needs improvement. Also within the Google suite of products is Google Tag Manager. Google tag manager (GTM) is a product that allows you to manage small snippets of code on your website to track performance, without necessarily needing help from your website developer.

10. Legal Practice CRM Tools

CRM (customer relationship management tools) are vital for tracking and retaining your clients. The more clients you take on, the more difficult it becomes to organize and utilize your data about them. There are a wide variety of CRM tools available for law firms, but the most efficient and effective option is end-to-end legal practice management software that includes CRM tools. Through these features, you can develop a structured pipeline that maximizes the conversion of leads into paying clients at each touchpoint.

Maximize Your Law Firm’s Performance

Are you ready to learn more about how you can gain better visibility into your firms’ productivity and client retention? Get in touch with our team today to find out how we can help you reach your goals.