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Consumers & Lawyers Benefit from SBM Member Directory

By Roberta Gubbins posted 06-14-2019 02:43 PM

  

During the month of May, the SBM Member Directory had 598,880 page views. Of the 61,052 visitors to the site, 45,326, or 67%, were new visitors. The remaining 33% were returning visitors. Why does the online directory get so much traffic and how does this affect you?

The member directory helps the public easily find the information they need when looking for an attorney and, because listings are provided by the State Bar of Michigan, they trust the results.

That trust is supported by these policies:

  • The object is to protect the public while improving access to legal services.
  • There are no paid lawyer ads in the search results.
  • Profiles list the lawyer’s experience, credentials, and background.
  • Profile information is provided by lawyers and synced with the State Bar of Michigan.
  • Attorney reviews are verified before posting.

Is your profile ready should one or two of these 61,000 monthly visitors search your profile? It is if you have expanded your profile to include online appointment scheduling, your blog, publications, and professional events.

To enhance your basic profile:

  • Use your biography to tell prospective clients your education, experience, and practice areas. Add hobbies and interests—clients like to feel a connection to a human being.
  • Include a recent photo.
  • Add your title—are you the owner, shareholder, or partner of your organization?
  • Add your active social media accounts with easy links.
  • List all the jurisdictions where you are licensed. It’s possible the client needs a lawyer who practices in a neighboring state.
  • List other languages you speak.
  • Include fees and payment options.
  • Add a badge to your website that links potential clients directly to your SBM profile.

Other features to add include a client contact form and reviews, and be sure to click the box that says you’re accepting clients.

The member directory assists both consumers and Michigan attorneys. Consumers have access to qualified lawyers, and lawyers have all their information where there are over 2,000 searches a day and more than 7 million page views from the past year.

After years practicing law, Roberta Gubbins served as editor of the Ingham County Legal News. Since leaving the paper, she provides legal content writing for lawyers. She is editor of The Mentor, the SBM Master Lawyers newsletter. Writing as Alexandra Hawthorne, she published a cozy mystery, Murder One in Midvale Corners.

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