Peter Boyd is a Florida attorney who founded PaperStreet. He has helped over 1,500 law firms with their websites, content and marketing.
We see a lot of amazing things on the web, and then we see some tactics that make us cringe. With February being the month to celebrate all things "love," let’s explore some of the latest things we love lately about attorney websites with good design and usability.
It is helpful for prospective clients to get to know not only the attorneys at your firm, but also the support staff who will be responsible for much of their interactions with your legal practice. While you are focused on maximizing your billable hours and productive time, it is your administrative staff and assistants who are regularly the face of your organization. By providing the contact information of your administrative staff, your clients are better able to connect with the person or persons most relevant to their concerns. This can also help ensure that attorneys are not needlessly contacted, helping to maintain focus on productivity and billable hours. Considering adding pictures and contact information for intake specialists, receptionist, paralegals, legal secretaries, accounting professionals, and your marketing team.
Stock photos are an easy (and cheap) option when first populating your website, but custom photography really makes a law firm stand out as a force of power. Custom images tell your story and let users pick up on a vibe without any words. Taking the time to get professional headshots of your employees, including the administrative staff and attorneys, helps your clients and prospective clients alike to put faces behind the names. Custom photography of your office is also helpful to prepare clients what to expect when they come in, and to help express the unique style and sensibility of your firm.
A sticky header is one that stays in place as you scroll through the website, and can include links to your home page, contact, and fast links for scheduling an appointment (or whatever is most important for the firm). The benefit of having a sticky header is that when your viewers are looking for information on a different page of your site, or when they are ready to move forward into another area, the header is right there to allow them to take that step easily.
By contrast, a static header is one that disappears when you begin scrolling through the website. A sticky header is always recommended and a standard best practice in the marketing world to help with conversions and overall website navigation.
Optimizing the design and usability of attorney websites involves integrating key features that enhance user experience and drive engagement, but these are features that users love! By incorporating all the firendly faces at your law firm, leveraging custom photography to convey the firm's personality, and implementing a sticky header for seamless navigation, law firms can effectively capture the attention of prospective clients and build credibility.