Expert witnesses who have websites face unique challenges. The site should be optimized for the search engines so attorneys can actually find you on the internet and should also contain enough information that it is useful to the attorneys who may be looking to retain someone with your background. This must be balanced with the fact that any information that you have on your site is discoverable and can and will be used against you in depositions and at trial.
Mistake #1
Not using a website
design that allows the search engines to successfully crawl your entire
site
Poor site design includes a lack of clear navigation, poorly designed
frames, and large sized graphics which the visitor must download. Search
engine spiders can be blocked from crawling sites that are not
well-designed, so it's a major part of website optimization. If
visitors can't find what they’re looking for on your site quickly and
easily, they'll no doubt leave your site and go somewhere else. We’ve
all been on websites that take forever to load, and we usually decide
that it really isn’t worth it and close the site and move on to another
one.
Mistake #2
Not thinking like a
“searcher”
Targeted keywords and phrases are critical in determining the ranking of
your site. Put yourself in the shoes of a searcher who may be looking
for your services. What terms are users typing in the search
engines when looking for your services? Use keywords and phrases in the
copy of your site that they may be looking for, and not the
keywords that you think they’re looking for. This is an
important point and should not be overlooked. Most websites are
designed using terms that we think people should be using to locate our
site, when in actuality they are often using different terms or phrases
altogether. Find out how your potential visitors search for someone in
your field and then incorporate these buzz words in the copy of your
site. Do some research by searching for various terms that you would
like to be found under, and see how your website ranks. Are those terms
included in your site? If not, maybe you should consider adding them.
If you don't have these particular keywords and phrases on your site -
then that searcher will most likely not be able to find you.
Mistake #3
Not using meta tags
correctly (or at all)
Meta tags include title tags, keyword tags, and description tags. While
not the most important factor in website optimization, they do have an
important role to play. Make sure to include all these tags in every
page of your site, and target them for each individual page.
Mistake #4
Not having relevant, credible incoming links to your site
Search engines use “spiders” to crawl the web going from link to link
and webpage to webpage. Link popularity is the number of relevant links
that link to your site. It’s to your benefit to have credible links that
link to your site. Some see this as one of the most important factors
of SEO. Search engines see the number of relevant links as how important
a site is. The more important a site is, the higher it should rank.
Mistake
#5
Using unethical search engine optimization techniques to get higher
search rankings.
There are no golden bullets in
long-term search engine optimization. Techniques which are unethical and
frowned upon by search engines often called “Black Hat” include: keyword
stuffing, doorway pages, invisible text, etc. If search engines do find
that you are using these techniques to bolster your ranking they may ban
your site.
About the author
Alex Babitsky, MBA deals with expert witnesses and the attorneys who
retain them on a daily basis as the Product Manager of SEAK’s
National Directory of Expert Witnesses and SEAK’s National
Directory of Independent Medical Examiners (www.seakexperts.com).
Mr. Babitsky consults regularly with experts of all fields on the
subject of expert witness marketing. His publications include the
2004
National Guide to Expert Witness Fees and Billing Procedures
and
The A to Z Guide to Expert Witnessing. Alex
can be reached at
Alex@seak.com
By Alex Babitsky, MBA
SEAK, Inc.
www.seak.com
Click here for SEAK's Expert Witness Directory