Practicing law is one of the most rewarding career opportunities in the United States. Attorneys have the luxury of having a career about which they’re passionate, and the job pays pretty well too. Even though law school prepares you to practice law in and outside of the courtroom, there isn’t much that can prepare you for the challenges of running your own firm.

Whether you’re a new attorney or you’ve been at it a while, running your own firm can be strenuous. From managing cases to collecting payments and keeping the lights on in your office, there are so many responsibilities and so little time. Continue reading to learn why running a small business in the legal industry can be tricky.

Driving online traffic to your website can take a long time.

As you well know, there’s almost nothing you can’t ask Google, and as a result, millions turn to the powerful search engine to find products, services, and solutions. The way search engines work is they try to find the most credible responses for search queries, and building online credibility can be difficult for new firms.

The best way to enhance your search engine ranking and drive more traffic to your web page is with search engine optimization (SEO). SEO is a set of practices that aim to increase organic traffic to your site, enhance your credibility, and increase online brand visibility.

One of the best ways to increase your online credibility is to create a blog for your firm. Having a blog allows you to share valuable insights with your target audience and is a great way to your influence by showing your expertise in your industry. Renowned lawyer and mineral enthusiast Howard Fensterman is a good example of what a blog can do for your influence. He’s used his blog posts to establish himself as an authority in his field and garner potential customers.

The usability of your website also has a lot to do with your search engine ranking. If you’re not familiar with best practices for designing websites, you should leave the web design duties to professionals. Everything from your color scheme to the headlines on your web pages plays a role in your search engine ranking, so don’t leave your website design to chance.

Advertising is expensive.

No matter where you live in the United States, you’ve probably seen an advertisement for a lawyer or firm that uses the phrase, “One call, that’s all.” Even though the phrase itself doesn’t create a problem for fledgling law firms, it underscores a larger problem.

Whenever you open a new law firm, your company is subject to brand awareness and name recognition. Unfortunately for new firms, they don’t have much name recognition on their side, and they have to compete with more established local and national firms without their budgets.

Even though television commercials are an effective marketing tool, these days, social media is the cheapest and best way to build a following and increase brand awareness. Over 90% of people in the U.S. have at least one social media account, so it’s obviously not only for teens and young adults. In fact, many professionals in different fields use platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Linkedin as ways to share their expertise and build their credibility.

The main keys to social media marketing are to consistently create relevant and insightful posts and engage with people who engage with your posts. Building a social media presence will go a long way towards increasing your brand awareness.

How do you find talent for your firm?

Finding the right talent to build your firm is the most important thing you’ll do as the founder. Hiring the right people is essential in every industry because the people you hire are an extension of yourself. Labrador Source is a great example of a company that takes great care during the hiring process, and as a result, they’re the largest and oldest direct-delivery water company in all of Canada.

The best way to find the right people for your firm is to go through a staffing agency for professionals. The best thing about going through a staffing agency is they can supply you with the experience and talent you need to fill your most key positions.

Running a business in any industry is challenging, and the legal field is definitely no exception. The keys to successfully launching your firm are to use SEO to increase your online credibility, use social media to increase brand awareness, and hire the right people.