Anyone can do legal content writing. But not everyone can do it well.

Unless you have been trained as a lawyer and have strong copywriting skills, as well as an endless amount of time, it can be an impossible uphill battle.

So what constitutes great content writing for law firms? Glad you asked. Here are 10 tips to produce the very best in legal content writing.

1. Implement Easy-to-Read Writing

Have you ever looked at a website you could barely understand? It barely seems to be written in English. That’s because the copywriter was trying so hard to cram unnatural keywords together, such as “best Lancaster drunk driving lawyer,” that he or she forgot to write for clarity. Great legal content writing makes sense when you read it.

2. Be Smart About Keywords

That’s not to say that keywords should be ignored. You should employ them, but do it intelligently. Use the keywords naturally to build content — don’t build around the keywords.

3. Understand the Law

It might be possible for someone who isn’t an attorney to try to write legal content, but it won’t turn out well. The law is too complex for a person who does not grasp certain concepts to write knowledgeably about them.

4. Emphasize Your Firm’s Strengths

What do you do better than anyone else? That’s what your site should be conveying.

5. Offer Something Extra

Whitepapers, blog posts, e-books — these are all great extras that your legal content writer should be able to produce. You want to give people a compelling reason to come to your site.

6. Choose the Right Person

If you’re searching for someone in your firm to do your copywriting and they ask you, “I’d love to do it, but what is legal content writing?” then you’ve picked the wrong person for the job. You want an expert, not an experiment.

7. Switch Things Up

Don’t write about the same topic over and over again on your site. Use some imagination. Tie in current events to your posts, offering analysis of a big Supreme Court decision or a case that’s getting lots of attention.

8. Break Things Up

Use bullet points, boldface type and numbered charts to break up your copy and keep the reader’s attention.

9. Employ Links Liberally

Think of your firm’s website as a living, breathing thing. All the content on it is connected, and each piece should be sending people to another part of your site to explore.

1. Don’t Be Afraid to Go Outside

Outside your company, that is. Many law firms are so busy with their caseloads that they don’t have time to learn the ins and outs of legal content writing. Outsourcing your content to a qualified professional can sometimes provide the best results.

At Lawyers Writing for Lawyers, we have the experience and the expertise to provide you with high-quality legal content marketing services. Contact us today to get started on fulfilling your legal writing needs.

(photo via)