Let us face it: Google is the king of search engines, accounting for more than 90% of searches globally. Therefore, it is normal for most law firms to ignore Microsoft Bing and focus all their SEO effort on Google.
However, that shouldn’t be the case because Bing accounts for approximately 3% of monthly searches, with about 12% market share to Google’s 88%.
While the number may seem insignificant, it still translates to millions of users who rely on Bing for their web searches.
Since everyone seems to be more focused on Google, ignoring Bing would be a missed opportunity. This is especially true for law firms, considering Bing’s demographics.
Bing users are mainly older people who conduct searches from desktop. Reaching out to these people can expand your pool of clients, leading to more revenue.
So, how can you leverage Bing to boost your law firm’s online presence? Here is everything you need to know about Bing SEO for law firms.
Facts About Bing
Let us start by outlining some critical facts about Bing that you should know:
- Bing is the default search engine for Microsoft’s web browser, Edge.
- It also powers other popular search engines such as Yahoo! and AOL.
- As of July 2023, Bing has an average market share of 3.23% globally.
- Bing accounts for approximately 6% of all search engine traffic in the United States.
- Bing’s algorithm is constantly evolving, just like Google’s, to provide more relevant and accurate search results.
While Bing’s numbers aren’t so big compared to Google, it doesn’t mean that Bing should be ignored completely.
Instead, you should use the numbers to manage your expectations while optimizing your law firm site for Bing SEO.
Don’t expect to drive massive traffic from Bing, but you can surely achieve higher rankings with more ease because the competition is relatively low.
Also, depending on the type of law you practice, Bing users may be an appealing target audience. As mentioned earlier, Bing users are mainly seniors aged between 55 and 64. These people are generally classified as blue-collar and less tech-savvy.
Personal injury attorneys specializing in protection from nursing home abuse may find these groups of users more appealing to target.
Don’t ignore the search engine if Bing demographics align with your law firm’s target audience.
Understanding Bing’s Algorithm
Each search engine has its own unique algorithm that determines the ranking of websites in search results. Bing’s algorithm is constantly evolving, just like Google’s, to provide more relevant and accurate search results.
Here are some key factors that influence Bing’s algorithm:
- Domain age and authority: Bing values older and established domains with a high authority since they are seen as more trustworthy sources of information.
- Keywords: Like any other search engine, Bing uses keywords to determine the relevance and quality of a website’s content.
- Social media presence: Bing takes into account social signals such as likes, shares, and comments on various social media platforms to gauge the popularity and credibility of a website.
- Quality backlinks: Like Google, Bing values high-quality backlinks from reputable sources because they are seen as endorsements for a website’s content.
- User experience: Bing also takes into account factors such as page load speed, mobile responsiveness, and user engagement to determine the overall user experience of a website.
Optimizing Your Law Firm Website for Bing
Now that you understand some crucial facts about Bing and its algorithm, let us delve into specific strategies to optimize your law firm’s website for the search engine.
On-Page Optimization Tips for Bing
On-page optimization refers to the process of optimizing individual pages to rank higher in search results and drive more traffic.
This includes optimizing your content, meta descriptions, HTML tags, and other on-page elements to send the right signals to search engines.
Proper optimization helps search engines to understand your page’s topic and relevance. Below are some on-page optimization best practices specifically for Bing:
Metadata
Pay close attention to your metadata elements, such as meta descriptions and title tags. Ensure every page on your site has a unique, highly descriptive, and keyword-rich title tag that accurately reflects the page content.
You should also craft compelling, keyword-focused meta descriptions that summarize the page content precisely.
Bing relies on these elements to understand the context of your pages and display relevant snippets in its search results.
Multimedia optimization
Multimedia elements such as infographics, images, and videos are essential for Bing SEO. Not only do they make your content more engaging, but they also help to break up large chunks of text.
When using multimedia, optimize them with descriptive file names, alt tags, and captions containing relevant keywords.
Content optimization
High-quality, keyword-rich content is critical for Bing SEO. However, since Bing relies more on keywords, it’s crucial to conduct keyword research and strategically incorporate them into your content. Avoid keyword stuffing because it can lead to penalties.
Focus on creating content that addresses the problems faced by your target audience while incorporating keywords within it naturally.
Keep your content up-to-date and fresh to improve your chances of ranking higher in Bing search results.
Bing also considers the overall content structure and readability while ranking. Therefore, you need to ensure your content is well-organized with proper headings, bullet points, and short paragraphs.
User experience
Bing generally prioritizes sites that provide a positive user experience and are mobile-friendly. In fact, mobile friendliness is a huge ranking factor for Bing.
Improve site navigation by organizing content logically and implementing a clear internal linking strategy. Your site must be easy to navigate, highly intuitive, and user-friendly to rank high on Bing.
Technical SEO Tips for Bing
Technical SEO usually involves optimizing the technical aspects of your website to improve its visibility and performance in search engines. Here are some specific tips for improving your law firm’s website technical SEO for Bing:
Robots.txt
The robots.txt file tells search engines which pages on your site should be crawled and indexed. It is crucial to have a robots.txt file to prevent Bing’s robots from crawling pages that you don’t want to rank.
You can use a tool such as robots.txt Generator to generate your robots.txt file. Once you have your file, upload it to the root of your website.
XML Sitemap
An XML sitemap helps search engines understand the structure and hierarchy of your site’s content. This makes it easier for Bing to crawl and index your pages more efficiently. Ensure you have a well-structured XML sitemap that includes all the essential pages on your site.
Page load speed
Page loading speed is an important ranking factor on Bing. To improve site speed, optimize images, minify CSS and JavaScript files, reduce redirects, and choose a reliable web hosting provider. You can also use Bing Webmaster Tools to detect and fix site speed issues.
Off-Page Optimization Tips for Bing
Off-page optimization refers to tactics used outside your website to improve visibility and authority.
These include building quality backlinks, social media signals, and other external factors that boost your site’s credibility. Here are some off-page optimization tips specifically for Bing:
Build high-quality backlinks
Building high-quality backlinks from reputable sources is a crucial Bing SEO strategy. Reach out to other legal websites, directories, and influencers in your industry for link-building opportunities. You can also submit your site to legal directories like FindLaw and Avvo to improve your backlink profile.
Engage on social media
Social media presence is another critical factor for Bing’s ranking. Create profiles on major social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn to promote your content and engage with your audience.
Share valuable legal information, participate in discussions, and build relationships to improve your site’s visibility.
While engaging on social media, maintain a clear brand voice and avoid using blackhat tactics such as buying followers or likes.
Keep in mind that Bing only values authentic social media performance since it reflects the overall quality of your content and how your target audience perceives your brand.
Leverage Bing Webmaster Guidelines and Tools
Leveraging Bing Webmaster Guidelines and tools effectively can significantly improve your website’s ranking on Bing.
Start by creating a Bing Webmaster Tools account (https://www.bing.com/webmasters/). Add and verify your website. This process may involve uploading an XML file or adding a meta tag to your site’s HTML.
Verify your domain’s www and non-www versions to ensure comprehensive coverage. Generate an XML sitemap for your website and submit it through Bing Webmaster Tools. This helps Bing crawl and index your site more efficiently.
Configure your website settings, including preferred domain (www or non-www), geographical targeting, and crawl settings. Set your preferred domain to ensure consistency in indexing.
Implement structured data markup (schema.org) to provide context to search engines about your content and use Bing’s Markup Validator tool to ensure correct implementation.
Furthermore, use Bing’s Keyword Research tool to discover relevant keywords for your content and incorporate them strategically. You can also track your site’s performance on Bing through their reporting tools.
Bing SEO Can Deliver Results for Law Firms
Optimizing your law firm’s website with Bing in mind can yield significant results. By understanding Bing’s ranking factors and implementing SEO best practices, you can improve your website’s visibility and attract potential clients searching for legal services.
Keep in mind that SEO is an ongoing process requiring consistent effort to maintain and improve your rankings. Stay updated on Bing’s algorithm changes and continue creating high-quality, keyword-rich content to stay ahead of the competition.
You can combine your Bing SEO efforts with other digital marketing strategies, such as pay-per-call marketing, to generate more leads.
At PALO, we help law firms generate highly qualified case leads ready to convert into clients.
Contact us today to learn more about our business model and how we can help your law firm generate more leads.
