I have often heard attorneys complain that they are lawyers and not business men (or women). That is why I have been surprised lately to hear a number of attorneys lament that they are lawyers, not internet search engine optimization experts.

I guess it is time for all lawyers to face the reality that clients will use the internet to find their next lawyer or at least to research their legal issue prior to interviewing their next lawyer.

That leaves individual attorneys with the dilemma of figuring out internet search engine optimization or hiring a search engine optimization firm. For many lawyers, this is the choice of two evils.

The reality is that most lawyers make a living by selling their billable hours to clients. Time spent on non-billable non-legal work takes lawyers away from the practice of law and, as a result, it reduces the lawyers income.

That is why many lawyers are turning to woefully overpriced and seedy search engine optimization firms. These firms perform various services under the heading of search engine optimization, services such as analyzing traffic patterns and keywords, creating website content, and building internet links. Many of these firms will not unbundled their SEO offerings, because buying the “package” allows the firm to charge much much more for their services (consequently, the number one service provided by these firms seems to have something to do with overcharging the legal community for basic SEO services…).

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