SEO for law firms: Be found when someone needs advice

What are future clients looking for?

Clients start with their situation, not a practice area. Only once they understand what is at stake do they look for a firm. A good law firm website meets them at both moments.

Search Console shows which queries already reach your pages. The guide to search intent helps you sort them.

Practice area pages: specific rather than general

One page for each practice area you genuinely handle is the foundation. Describe typical situations of your clients there, not the statutes. An employee who has been dismissed needs different information from a company that wants to dismiss someone. Say whom you represent.

• Which cases do you handle, and for whom?
• What happens in a first consultation, and what should clients bring?
• How are fees calculated? A rough framework helps more than no information at all.
• Are there deadlines people should know about? Point them out without giving individual advice.

Guides should state when they were written and by whom. Law changes often, and outdated statements do more harm than good. The guide to E-E-A-T describes how to make expertise verifiable. Common questions work well in an FAQ section.

Lawyer advertising: inform factually

For lawyers in Germany, section 43b of the Federal Lawyers’ Act (BRAO) applies: advertising is permitted as long as it provides factual information about professional activities in form and content and is not aimed at obtaining a mandate in an individual case. The professional code (BORA) and the specialist lawyer regulations (FAO) add detail. The German Federal Bar collects the rules.

For SEO, this means good copy informs. A specialist lawyer title may only be used if it has been awarded. Use terms such as “specialist” only if you can back them up. Superlatives and promises of success are risky and often seem less trustworthy to clients than a clear description.

Confidentiality also applies to reviews. Do not confirm in replies that someone was a client, and do not mention details. Outside Germany, your local professional rules apply. This section is general guidance, not legal advice.

Lawyer directory, Google profile and portals

The official nationwide lawyer directory of the German Federal Bar is the authoritative source for admitted lawyers. Check that your firm name and address are current there. In the Google Business Profile, the right category, current opening hours and a clear route to booking a consultation help.

Lawyer portals and review platforms can bring additional enquiries. What matters is that name, address and practice areas match everywhere. Contradictory details unsettle clients and make it harder for search engines and AI assistants to place your firm correctly. The guide to business directories covers which listings are worthwhile.

Locally visible without copying location pages

Many clients look for a firm nearby, at least for the first meeting. So show clearly where you are and whether you also advise by video or phone. If you have several offices, each needs its own page with real details about contacts and availability.

Avoid copied pages for neighbouring towns where only the place name has been swapped. Such pages help neither clients nor search engines. The guide to local AI visibility describes how to build local visibility sensibly.

Does ChatGPT mention your firm?

More and more people ask an AI assistant before calling a firm. Check what it says with questions from a client’s point of view:

• I’ve been dismissed. Which employment lawyer in [city] would you recommend?
• Which law firm in [city] helps with [concern]?
• What do you know about [firm name] in [city]?

Look at whether your firm is mentioned and whether the practice areas are correct. Ask each question several times in a slightly different form. In our study of AI recommendations, the providers named changed almost completely with small changes in wording. The free AI prompt generator creates suitable questions.

Nalqerio documents selected API answers with sources, does not measure personal chats and does not promise a recommendation. The measurement guide has more.

Getting started: one practice area first

Choose the practice area in which you most want new mandates. Revise that page, write a guide on the most common client question and link the two. Then check your entry in the lawyer directory and ask the AI assistants three questions.

If you want to record the AI baseline in a structured way, Nalqerio offers a free 14-day trial if you have not used it before. It starts with your first project and includes one project, three active questions and one complete AI measurement round in total. No card is needed and no paid subscription begins automatically. The pricing page describes the plans.