Top Reasons Your Law Firm Website Launch is Going to Be Delayed

Peter Boyd is a Florida attorney who founded PaperStreet. He has helped over 1,500 law firms with their websites, content and marketing.

The sooner your new law firm website launches, the better. No one wins from dragging out the process. Decision makers get tired. Web developers get distracted. Time passes and everyone forgets the goals and the driving purpose behind the big ideas. People with key input leave the firm and the project momentum stalls or dies. Any marketing agency worth a dime will help you get to the finish line as fast as possible, which means you benefit from the boost in marketing and branding sooner. 

There are some pitfalls that will lead to a delay and while most marketing teams can work some magic to make up for the delay it would be an overall benefit to the law firm to consider how you can avoid being on the law firm that works on their new web launch for over a year.

You didn't start content soon enough. 

One of the most common bottlenecks that can hold up the launch of your website is a lack of completed content. Sometimes it can be tempting to focus only on the logo and design steps, and while that is a key aspect of your brand (and a fun part!) ignoring content early in the game is a mistake. 

Reworking content for law firms takes time. There are interviews, approvals, revisions and often several decision makers that need to approve new verbiage, or help organize missing data. Starting early can help ensure you have enough information for the development of the website to begin, and it also prevents you from having to make updates directly in your CMS. When you get the content to your developer early, they can implement it as part of your testing link presentation. 

You're afraid to approve final design mockups. 

Most design agencies will require approval at some stage of the project to ove forward with next steps. There is likely a form, perhaps with some bold text. The form likely acknowledges the approval and outlines what will be an additional cost. It is not uncommon for teams to change their mind on the design regularly, but changes beyond this stage are usually considered extra and that can cause stress.

Keep it going - approve what you worked so hard on and have faith that the big picture will come together just as you desire.

PRO TIP: If you have questions about your approval form; ask your project leads. They do this all day every day and can help explain the parts that may be the hold up for your or your website committee.

Internal firm challenges and contact changes.

The larger your team - the trickier and the longer the required approvals become. Another important factor is to consider how open your team is to change. Some managing partners are set in their ways, and resist an updated look. As the project manager of a web project, you need to get ahead of these concerns and be available and willing to talk openly with your team about why the updates are necessary.

Another hangup is a change in the project manager. We get it. We understand. People leave the firm. You go to trial. You hit your busy season. While these are all valid reasons, they will add time to the length of the project. Be aware and take the necessary steps to put someone else in charge when the current PM is too busy, or otherwise unavailable.

Accelerate Your Website Launch by Overcoming Common Timeline Challenges

A new website is a lot of work. Make the extra effort to get it online sooner rather then later. It's crucial to address common timeline changes in a new website build proactively to avoid a year long project. By addressing these challenges head-on and maintaining momentum, your law firm can achieve a timely and successful website launch, maximizing its benefits for your firm's growth and success.