Criminal Law SEO Services That Bring In Calls
Criminal law SEO is the monthly work that moves your firm up Google for the charges you defend. Here is exactly what that work is, so you know what you are paying for.
Updated October 2026 · Built for criminal defense firms
What you get each month
Most firms we talk to have paid for SEO before and never knew what was done. We fix that by being specific. Every month, the work falls into a few simple buckets, and your report shows each one.
Website health. We fix anything that slows your site down or confuses Google, like broken pages, slow loading on phones and missing page titles.
New pages. We write clear pages for the charges and cities you want more of, such as DUI in your county or federal drug charges. Each page answers the questions a worried person actually asks.
Google Maps. We keep your Google Business Profile complete and active with photos, services and posts, so you rank in the map with three firms.
Trust signals. We list your firm on legal directories and local sites and help you collect reviews, so Google sees you as a real, trusted local firm.
The searches we target
We focus on searches made by people who need a lawyer now, not people doing homework.
Charge plus city
Searches like "DUI lawyer Houston" or "assault attorney in Denver". These bring the most calls.
Near me searches
"Criminal lawyer near me" and similar. These are won mostly through your Google Maps listing.
Urgent questions
Searches like "what happens after a DUI arrest" that bring in people early, before they pick a lawyer.
Criminal law SEO vs. paid ads
Both can bring calls. Here is the simple difference.
| SEO | Paid ads |
|---|---|
| Takes a few months to build | Works the day you switch it on |
| Keeps bringing calls without paying per click | Stops when you stop paying |
| Gets cheaper per client over time | Cost per click stays high in criminal law |
| Builds trust: people often trust top unpaid results more | Clearly marked as an ad |
What a criminal law SEO campaign covers
These are the parts of the work, and why each one matters for a defense practice.
Keyword research by charge
We find the exact words people in your area use: "DWI lawyer" in Texas, "DUI attorney" in California, "felony lawyer", "expungement lawyer" and more. Each charge gets its own target.
Practice area pages
One strong page per charge: DUI, drug possession, assault, theft, domestic violence, sex crimes, white collar, juvenile and federal cases, based on what you want more of.
Location pages
Pages for the counties and courthouses you work in, with the local details that show Google and readers you really practice there.
Technical fixes
Page speed, mobile layout, broken links, duplicate pages, page titles and schema markup, so Google can read and trust every page.
Links and mentions
Listings on legal directories, local news, bar associations and community sites. Links from trusted sites are still one of the strongest ranking signals.
Call tracking
Tracked phone numbers and form tracking, so you can see which pages and searches bring calls, not just visits.
How long criminal law SEO takes
SEO is not instant, and any agency that says otherwise is guessing. Here is what a typical timeline looks like for a defense firm that starts with a working website.
Month one is setup. We run the audit, fix the technical problems, clean up your Google Business Profile and agree on the first pages to write.
Months two and three are building. New charge pages go live, your listings are cleaned up across the web and the review system is running. Map rankings often start to move in this window, usually within 30 to 45 days.
Months three to six are growth. Pages start to rank for charge plus city searches, competitive terms move up, and calls from Google become steady. Hard markets like Houston or Los Angeles can take longer, usually 60 to 90 days or more for the bigger terms.
After six months the work compounds. Every page you add has a stronger site behind it, so it ranks faster than the last one.
What to have ready before you start
None of this is required on day one, but each one speeds things up.
- Access to your website, or the name of whoever manages it
- Owner or manager access to your Google Business Profile
- A list of the charges you most want more of, and the ones you do not take
- The counties and courthouses you appear in most
- Any past SEO reports, so we do not repeat old mistakes
Criminal law SEO vs. buying leads
Many defense lawyers try lead services first. Here is how they compare.
| SEO | Lead services |
|---|---|
| The calls come to your firm only | Leads are often sold to several firms at once |
| You own the pages and rankings | You rent access and it ends when you stop paying |
| Cost per client drops over time | Cost per lead stays the same or rises |
| Builds your firm name in your city | Builds the lead seller's brand |
Frequently asked questions
Still have a question? Ask us directly.
What do criminal law SEO services include?
Website fixes, new pages for each charge and city, Google Business Profile work, reviews and listings on trusted sites, plus a monthly report. You can see exactly what was done each month.
How is criminal law SEO different from general SEO?
Defense clients search in a hurry, often at night, and usually on a phone. The searches, the pages and the trust signals are different from a store or a dentist. Our criminal defense team does this work every day, so we know which searches bring clients.
How much do criminal law SEO services cost?
Plans start at $1,500 a month. See all plans on our pricing section.
Will I own the pages you write?
Yes. Every page we write for your website belongs to your firm.
Which charges should I target first?
Start with the charges that bring you the best cases and that people search for most in your area, usually DUI or DWI, drug charges and assault. We check real search data for your city in the free audit.
Do I need a page for every charge?
For the charges you want more of, yes. One clear page per charge ranks far better than one long page that lists everything. Charges you rarely take can share a page.
Can SEO help with federal cases?
Yes. Federal searches are fewer but often lead to bigger cases. A clear federal defense page, linked from your main pages, can rank for searches like "federal drug charge lawyer" in your district.
What if my firm has been penalized by Google before?
We check for past penalties, bad links and spam in the audit. Most problems can be cleaned up. We will tell you honestly how long recovery is likely to take.