Website Development for Law Firms – 13 must have features

If you went through our previous post outlining reasons why a law firm needs a website you would know that about 80% of your potential clients are on the internet, seeking to connect with a reliable law firm.

That might stun you, but having an online presence for your law firm is a new age tactic you mustn’t overlook. As you already know, first impressions matter, and that is where knowing the quirks of website development for law firms comes in.

There are numerous web design agencies out there, but getting one that understands the unique modus operandi of a law firm as well as the need to project professionalism is very crucial. Although almost all websites on the internet look alike; there are features which make a website suit a particular industry.

Website Development For Law Firms – what to consider

There are basic features which are a must when commissioning a website project. These include a need for websites to be usable on both desktop and mobile devices, accessible to disabled users, offer a means for easy lead capture as well as optimized to attract free traffic from search engines.

In addition to these basic features of a modern, general website, a firm conducting business in the legal space has it’s unique needs and a web portal for such a firm has to serve these needs or risk being not fit for purpose and returning a negative ROI to the business.

Without much ado, let’s dive into these features so you have an idea of what end result you should be expecting from your next web project.

Must-Have Features in law firm website design

• Proof of expertise

A lot of the points here boil down to this. When potential clients dwell in doubt, what do you do? The solution is easy. You have various means to prove that your firm is real and reliable. One way to make that happen is by integrating a feature that showcases certificates, licenses, and even press releases if there’s any.  A reputable web design agency for law firms won’t overlook such a crucial feature.

• Integration/Compatibility with your existing technology

Most law firms these days are run with a variety of software products for case management, personnel management, document management, billing and the rest.

In building a new site for your firm or re-designing your old website, you would want it to work with what you already use. You want this so you can do things like publish and un-publish current team members by linking to your HR system, having payments taken through your website reflect in your billing/accounting system and so on.

Think of what you would like to work together and add this in your brief to your chosen agency.

•  Must abide with legal association rules

Depending on the part of the world you serve, there are many rules/criteria on how lawyers can promote of market their practice. To avoid sanctions/infractions with your regulatory bodies, when considering website development for law firms, you must follow these rules.

• Social Proof

We are in the era of social media, and social proof is everything. The more people follow your firm’s social handles, the more others want to follow. It shows validation about what your firm does and the services they offer. Integrating social media proofs on your website footer or sidebar would make a lot of difference. Sometimes, even the header works pretty well.

•  Staff profiles

Staff profiles are an extremely important part of any legal website. The legal business thrives on expertise and personal relationships so having your staff profiles published would give you an edge always. The profiles should contain things like professional history, qualifications, education and others.

•  Showcase past won cases

One reason a client would chose a law firm over another is proof that the firm is capable of handling their brief. Good proof of this is past won cases in the practice area of interest. If allowed, a page or section linking to previous cases won by the firm would greatly increase the chances of a cold prospect picking the firm.

•  Client testimonials

Client testimonials are a further way of building trust in your offering/expertise with prospects. Most clients make decisions based on referrals and a testimonial is an indirect referral. Do you collect testimonials? If you do, have them displayed on your website. If you don’t, then start collecting testimonials today.

• Use plain language in your website copy

Lawyers by nature are well read and educated with a vast vocabulary. Prospects on the other hand might come from widely disparate backgrounds. In view of this, communication and website copy should be done in clear and easy to understand language. Legal jargon and complicated words should be left in the courtroom.

•  Display detailed information on practice areas

A client who lands on your website seeking solution to a legal problem is usually seeking for a specific practice area. Publishing all practice areas covered by your legal firm would show the prospect if you are the right firm for them. It would also save time spent on handling inquiries.

•  Add multilingual functionality

As time goes on, the world is getting a lot more multicultural. In every country, there is a large population of people who speak more than one language. Adding more languages to your website would mean your content being made available to far more people than it would have been if it was in just one language.  Seeing the content they need in their local language would also endear you to prospects. Please note, it would be advisable to have staff members who can communicate with clients in the languages you translate your website to.

• Prominent contact methods

Having prospects visit your website is good but having them visit AND contact you is what a website is meant for. There should be multiple, prominent ways to contact your firm if needed on the website. Contact forms should be short and clear and easy to access from any page or section of the website the visitor is in.

• Add a Blog

You are reading this article on our Blog and having a Blog attached to your website has multiple benefits. With a Blog, partners and team members can share their knowledge and showcase their expertise to prospects. Apart from showcasing expertise, a major advantage of having a blog is getting the opportunity of attracting free search engine traffic by posting helpful search engine optimized (SEO) content. We talked on how to know if your law firm website need a blog here.

• A Clear Call To Action

A call to action is simply a prompt telling a website visitor what next to do (e.g the add to cart or buy now button on shopping websites). When a potential client visits your website, what kind of activity would you want them to take? It could be calling the firm’s telephone number for inquiries, or perhaps booking an appointment with a lawyer. Sometimes, the call to action might be to share the page content on social media. A reliable web design agency for law firms will implement without hassle.

It Is Your Call!

The benefits of having an online presence are tremendous. A functional website, on the other hand, is mind-blowing. Getting the best web design agency for law firms would prove to be a decision you won’t regret.

You can contact us now for a FREE consultation to discuss your next web project.