SEO Analytics for Law Firms

One of the most important aspects of law firm SEO is measuring the performance of your website. SEO analytics allows you to monitor site traffic, track inbound leads, and determine whether your marketing efforts are making a difference for your business.

SEO analytics tools, such as Google Search Console, Google Analytics, and Semrush provide a wealth of insights to help you optimize your online presence. In this guide, we’re outlining the benefits of analytics tracking, plus the SEO metrics that matter most for law firm businesses.

What is Google Analytics?

Google Analytics (GA) is a free analytics platform that allows website owners to track and analyze their web performance. GA allows you to monitor organic traffic (users, page views, etc.), conversion (goal completions, sign-ups, etc.), bounce rate, traffic source, and many more valuable metrics.

Many business owners are familiar with the old Universal Analytics, but this has since been updated to Google Analytics 4 (as of October 2020). Google completely discontinued the old version and transitioned users to the “new generation of analytics” in July 2023.

GA is the most widely used SEO analytics platform and provides a wealth of helpful information to website owners. That said, there are many other SEO analytics tools law firms can use to track traffic, SEO performance, and conversions.

Best SEO Analytics Tools for Law Firms

Google Analytics

As stated, Google Analytics is one of the best sources of SEO analytics for your law firm website. You’re able to create custom dashboards to monitor the metrics you want to track, set specific goals for sign-ups or goal completions, and use traffic source data to identify your top marketing platforms GA is a best-in-class tool for monitoring your site performance.

Google Search Console

Google Search Console (GSC) is another free, Google-built analytics platform that allows you to analyze organic traffic, keyword rankings, clicks, and more all within easy-to-read dashboards. You can also see helpful information regarding your site’s technical SEO, such as Indexation, Core Web Vitals, Page Speed, and user experience (UX).

Semrush

Semrush is a third-party SEO tool that allows subscribers to see their total domain performance, site authority, traffic, backlinks, and keywords. Beyond monitoring performance, Semrush also includes several helpful tools, such as the Site Audit, SEO Content Template, and Keyword Tracking.

Ahrefs

Similar to Semrush, Ahrefs is another third-party SEO tool, best known for its backlink analysis capabilities. You can see your website’s total backlinks, which domains are linking to you, and the ratio of new vs. lost backlinks. You can also monitor number of keywords, keyword rank positions, and even your competitors’ performance.

Google Business Profile Manager

A Google Business Profile is a free listing provided to businesses that want to rank in the local Google search results. Here, you are able to submit your business name, hours, address, phone number, website link, and other important information about your law firm. The Google Business Profile Manager is where you manage your profile on the backend, and this is where you can see information about your profile’s performance (such as views, clicks, and phone calls).

Why Should Law Firms Use Analytics Tools?

Besides the obvious inclination to see your website’s performance, there are many benefits to implementing SEO analytics tools. Overall, tracking performance metrics will empower you to make changes to your marketing strategy, which may increase the number of leads generated for your business.

Here are just a few of the many reasons why law firms should use SEO analytics tools:

• Visibility and ranking: SEO analytics tools allow you to monitor your current organic performance and improve your strategy over time. By analyzing data such as keyword performance, website traffic, and backlinks, you can identify opportunities to optimize your website for better organic rankings.
• Competitive analysis: Analytics tools can help you monitor your competitors’ online activities and strategies. By understanding what keywords and tactics your competitors are using, you can implement strategies to stay competitive in your space.
• Keyword research: Many SEO tools provide valuable insights into which keywords your potential clients are using to search for legal services. This information can help you create content that aligns with your audience’s search interests.
• Content optimization: By analyzing user behavior, click-through rates, and bounce rates, SEO tools can help you identify areas of your website require improvement. Then, you can update your web pages, blog posts, etc. to provide a better user experience.
• Measure ROI: Analytics tools help you track the effectiveness of your SEO and marketing efforts. You can track metrics (such as conversion rate and leads) that can be directly tied to ROI for your business.
• Local SEO: Optimizing for local searches is important for any law firm that depends on local traffic. SEO analytics tools can help you optimize your website and online listings to rank better in the local map results, attracting more potential clients.

How to Set Up GA4 for Your Law Firm Website

Now that Google Analytics 4 is completely rolled out, law firms that have not yet used Google Analytics should first get started by setting up a GA4 property. If you previously had Universal Analytics, you likely made this transition already or GA created the new GA4 property for you.

Here is the process for getting set up with Google Analytics 4:

1. Create a Google Analytics 4 Property

Sign in to your Google Analytics account or create one if you don’t have an account.

Once signed in, navigate to the Admin section of your Google Analytics account.

Under the Property column, click on “Create Property.”

Follow the prompts to set up a new property. You’ll need to enter details about your website, such as the property name, industry category, and time zone.

2. Obtain the GA4 Tracking Code

After creating the property, you’ll receive a unique GA4 tracking code (also known as a Measurement ID). This code is in the format “G-XXXXXXXXXX.” Copy this code, as you will need it for the next steps.

3. Implement the Tracking Code on Your Website

To track user interactions on your website, you need to place the GA4 tracking code on every page of your site. You can do this by adding the code within the HTML of your website’s pages, typically in thesection of each page or via a tag manager like Google Tag Manager.

If you’re using Google Tag Manager:

• Sign in to your Google Tag Manager account.
• Create a new GA4 Configuration tag.
• Enter your GA4 Measurement ID in the Configuration tag settings.
• Add a trigger to fire the tag on all pages or specific pages where you want to track data.
• Publish the changes.
• If you’re manually adding the code to your website, place it immediately after the openingtag on each page.

4. Verify Installation

After adding the tracking code, it’s essential to verify that it’s working correctly. You can use browser extensions like Google Tag Assistant or Google Analytics Debugger to check for tracking code errors and ensure data is being collected.

Set Up Event Tracking and Conversion Goals

Once GA4 is set up, it’s time to set your Events and Conversion Goals. Doing so will allow you to monitor how users are actually taking action on your website.

1. Set Your Desired Actions

First, you’ll need to define what user interactions and website actions you want to track as events (e.g., form submissions, button clicks, page views). Then, you can set up event tracking in your GA4 property by creating custom events. You can do this byusing the GA4 interface or by configuring event tracking through Google Tag Manager.

2. Configure Data Streams

Data streams allow you to collect data from various platforms, such as websites, mobile apps, and more. You can configure your data streams for your website by following the prompts in your GA4 property settings.

3. Test and Monitor Performance

After completing the setup, thoroughly test your GA4 implementation to ensure it’s accurately tracking data. Check the reports in your GA4 property to monitor the data collection and ensure it is working as intended.

4. Set Up Filters and Data Settings

Next, you’ll want to configure your filters, data settings, and privacy settings in your GA4 property. This will vary depending on your specific needs, such as excluding internal traffic, removing spam bots, or complying with privacy regulations.

Awesome – now your law firm’s website is set up with Google Analytics 4! You’ll be able to track user behavior, gather insights, and make informed decisions about your business. Be sure to review your analytics on a regular basis to improve your website’s performance and user experience!

12 Key Metrics to Track with SEO Analytics

SEO analytics tools provide a ton of data regarding your website’s performance, but there are some metrics that matter most when it comes to SEO.

The metrics below provide a comprehensive view of your website’s SEO performance, helping you make informed decisions on how to improve your search engine rankings.

• Organic Search Traffic: This metric relates to the total number of visitors who reach your website through organic search results. Organic Search Traffic gives you an overview of your site’s organic visibility in search engines.
• Keyword Rankings: Measures the rank position of your target keywords in the organic search results. This gives an indication of how well (and how often) your website is ranking in Google.
• Click-Through Rate (CTR): CTR shows the percentage of users who clicked on your link after seeing it in search results.
• Bounce Rate: This tracks how many people “bounce” (leave) your website after visiting a page. A high bounce rate may indicate that visitors are not finding what they’re looking for on your site.
• Conversion Rate: This metric indicates how effective your website is at turning visitors into customers or leads. You can track the conversion rate for different goals, such as form submissions, downloads, or sales.
• Page Load Speed: This monitors the speed at which web pages on your website load for users. A slow-loading website can negatively impact user experience and SEO rankings.
• Organic Clicks and Impressions: This measures the number of times your website appears in search results (impressions) and how many times users click on your links (clicks).
• Crawl Errors: Google Search Console can be used to identify Crawl Errors that are hindering your website SEO, such as broken links or pages that are not being indexed.
• Core Web Vitals: Core Web Vitals metrics like Largest Contentful Paint (LCP), First Input Delay (FID), and Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS) measure the visibility stability and user experience on your website.
• User Behavior: GA4 helps you monitor user behavior through user flow analysis, behavior flow reports, and event tracking. This data can help you optimize the user journey on your site.
• User Demographics and Geolocation: You can use demographic and geolocation data to tailor your content and SEO strategy to your target audience, based on their location or the specific areas you offer services in.

How to Use Analytics to Benefit Your Business

When it comes to law firm SEO, knowledge (i.e. data) is power! Having accurate performance data will empower you to make smart decisions regarding your marketing campaigns, SEO strategy, and lead generation process.

Here are a few specific ways you can use SEO analytics to benefit your business.

See which keywords require improvement

Metric: Keyword Position

By tracking your keyword rankings, you can identify which keywords are performing well and which ones need improvement. For example, if you are targeting “personal injury lawyer” as a keyword and you consistently rank on the second page of search results, you may decide to optimize your content to improve rankings and gain more visibility.

Double-down on your best SEO strategies

Metric: Organic Search Traffic

Monitoring the increase in organic search traffic over time can help you gauge the effectiveness of your SEO efforts. For example, if your law firm’s organic traffic has doubled in six months, and this can be attributed to specific pages on your website, you might want to imitate these same strategies in your future SEO campaigns.

Improve organic click-through rate

Metric: Click-Through Rate

CTR is a measurement of how many people click on one of your web pages when they see it listed in the organic search results. If a particular page has a low CTR, updating its meta title and description may make it more enticing to users, leading to higher click-through rates and increased website traffic.

Optimize conversions on-site

Metric: Conversion Rate

By tracking the conversion rate for contact form submissions on your website, you can measure the effectiveness of your lead generation efforts. If the conversion rate is low, you might consider redesigning your contact form or adding more compelling incentives for visitors to get in touch with you.

Increase time on page

Metric: Average Time on Page

Average Time on Page is an indicator of how long users “linger” on your website. If you see that users are spending more time on certain pages or blog posts and not others, you may be able to apply these learnings to future content.

Monitor client reviews

Metric: Google Business Profile Reviews

Your Google Business Profile is a great place to generate positive user reviews. Within Google Business Profile Manager, you can monitor reviews, respond to negative reviews, request spam removal, and more. Having positive reviews will help you build trust and attract new clients.

Measure the SEO Metrics That Matter Most

At Hennessey Digital, we help clients monitor their organic performance and make data-driven improvements to increase organic traffic and leads. With GA4, Google Search Console, and third-party SEO tools, we equip law firms with a wealth of knowledge to make informed decisions for their business. Maximize your ROI and see real, tangible results from SEO with the help of Hennessey Digital.