The Expert SEO
Questions and answers

Straight answers, before you call.

What law firms ask us most about prices, contracts, results, ads, websites and AI search, in one place. Every answer links to the page that covers it in full.

A hand writing notes in a notebook next to a cup of coffee, a laptop and a tablet
57questions answered
8topics
11pages behind the answers

The three we hear most.

If you only read three answers before the call, read these.

How much does law firm marketing cost with The Expert SEO?

SEO and AI search starts at $2,999 a month, paid advertising at $1,499 a month, and website design at $599 a month.

The All-Access Pass combines all three from $4,899 a month. The SEO audit is free.

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How long before I see results?

SEO is a long-term strategy, and timelines vary with your market, your competition, your website’s authority and your starting position.

The first month is repairs. In most markets we work in, the report stops being flat around weeks 9 to 12, and the fourth step, Execute and Scale, starts from month 6.

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Which states do you work in?

All fifty.

Our SEO strategies are tailored to the cities, counties, and competitive markets where your firm wants to attract clients. Whether you serve one local market or multiple locations, we build your strategy around your practice areas, competition, and growth goals.

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Search every answer.

Type a word like “contract”, “reviews” or “ChatGPT”, or jump to a topic. Each answer ends with the page that covers it in depth.

Getting started

Who is The Expert SEO?

The Expert SEO is a specialized search marketing agency working exclusively with law firms nationwide. We help attorneys grow through SEO, Local SEO, AI Search Optimization, website design, and paid search. Founded by Roger Aguiar, who brings over 7 years of experience in search marketing, we combine deep industry expertise with tailored strategies designed to increase visibility, attract qualified leads, and generate more consultations.

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Do you only work with law firms?

Yes. We do not rotate between industries. Every account belongs to a firm, across twelve practice areas, from personal injury to tax law.

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Who will work on my account?

One dedicated account manager who has your account in their head, not a ticket queue that starts the conversation over every time. You always know who to call.

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What do you need from me?

To know which cases you want more of, to approve the plan before we start, and to answer the phone when the leads come in. Access to Google Analytics or Search Console helps, but it is not required to begin.

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What happens on the free strategy call?

We walk you through what we found in your website, your local visibility and the firms ranking above you, explain where the strongest opportunities are and recommend next steps. You decide whether you want us to help execute the strategy.

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Can I start with just a review?

Yes. The review and the strategy call are free, come back within 24 hours, and are yours whether or not you hire us.

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How is this different from a free online SEO checker?

A tool scans your site in isolation and returns hundreds of warnings with the same weight. We compare you with the firms ranking above you in your counties, look at your Business Profile and backlinks, and tell you which few fixes will actually move your firm.

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Pricing and contracts

Why do you publish your prices?

Most agencies keep the number off the website so you have to book a call to hear it. We would rather you see it now and decide if we are in the same range.

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Are these the final prices?

They are starting points. The final scope depends on your market, your practice areas and the condition of your website, and it is confirmed in writing after the free review.

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Why do two firms pay different amounts?

Because the work is different. It depends on your market, how many practice areas and cities you want to rank for, the condition of your website and the authority your domain already has. Same price, very different jobs.

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Is there a contract or a minimum term?

SEO takes time to build lasting results. That’s why we start with a six-month contract, followed by flexible month-to-month service that can be canceled at any time. All terms are clearly outlined and confirmed in writing before we begin.

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Can I cancel?

Yes. Our SEO services start with a six-month contract. After the initial six months, your plan automatically continues month-to-month, and you can cancel at any time with no long-term commitment. Everything we build is in your name from the first day, so if you leave, the website, the content and the accounts stay with you.

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Are there setup fees or hidden costs?

No. The monthly price includes the link building budget for your plan. Anything outside the plan, such as a new website or paid ads, is quoted separately and you approve it before we start.

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Is there a discount if I combine services?

Yes. SEO clients who also run ads with us get $200 off every month, and the All-Access Pass combines SEO, ads and the website design and build from $4,899 a month.

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Can I start small and move up later?

Yes. Most firms start with SEO and AI Search, then add Paid Advertising or a new website once the base is fixed and the first results show. The All-Access Pass puts the four services together for less than buying them one by one. Adding a service widens the scope; it does not buy faster rankings.

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SEO and results

What is included in your law firm SEO services?

Our law firm SEO services cover technical SEO, on-page optimization, practice area content, local SEO and Google Business Profile, link building, AI search optimization and reporting. The mix and depth depend on your plan and on what our review of your firm shows it needs most.

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How is law firm SEO different from Google Ads?

Google Ads buy visibility for as long as you pay for each click, and the traffic stops when the budget stops. SEO builds visibility your firm owns in organic results, the map pack and AI answers. Many firms use ads for immediate demand while SEO builds a steadier source of cases.

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Do I need a new website before starting SEO?

Not always. The audit shows whether your current site can be improved or whether its structure, speed or platform will hold your SEO back. If a rebuild makes sense, we explain why and what it would change before you decide.

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Do you work with more than one firm in the same city?

Not in the same practice area and the same market. If we take your firm on, we are not going to optimize the firm competing with you for the same cases.

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Why do you track leads instead of rankings?

Because a ranking does not pay your staff. Contact submissions, lead submissions and phone clicks are closer to a signed case, so those are the numbers we lead with.

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Will my firm get the same results?

Not necessarily. Results vary by market, practice area, competition and your starting point. What we can promise is the same process and the same honest reporting.

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Local SEO and reviews

What is local SEO for a law firm?

Local SEO is the work that makes your firm show up in the map results and the local listings when someone nearby searches for an attorney. For a law firm it means your Google Business Profile, your reviews, the accuracy of your name, address and phone across the web, and pages built for the cities you serve.

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How long does it take to show up in the map pack?

Profile and citation fixes often move positions within the first weeks, because they correct problems that are holding the listing back. Competitive practice areas in a large city take longer, and depend on reviews and on the pages we build. We report positions every month so you see the movement.

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Do I need a physical office to rank locally?

You need an address that meets Google’s rules for your type of practice, and it must be consistent everywhere it appears. If you serve clients at their location rather than yours, the profile is set up as a service area business. We tell you honestly which of the two your firm is.

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How do reviews affect local rankings?

Reviews are one of the signals Google uses to order the map results, and they are what a potential client reads before calling. We set up a process your team can follow, and we respond to what comes in. We never buy or incentivize reviews, which is against Google’s rules and against most bar advertising rules.

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Do you build a page for every city?

Only for the cities where you actually want cases and can serve clients. A page for a city you do not serve is a page nobody reads and nothing ranks. We decide the list with you after the audit.

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Can you help my firm get more reviews?

Yes. A review strategy is part of our local SEO for law firms: a simple way for your team to ask clients at the right moment, and responses to what comes in. We never buy or incentivize reviews, which is against Google’s rules and against most bar advertising rules.

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Websites

What is the difference between replatforming and a custom design?

Replatforming moves your current site to WordPress and rebuilds it to load fast and convert, keeping what already works. A custom design is a new site built from the ground up around the cases your firm wants to sign.

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How long does a law firm website take to build?

Replatforming usually runs six to eight weeks from the day we have your content and access; a custom design is closer to ten to twelve. Most of the calendar is not design time, it is decisions and content: which practice areas get their own page, which cities you want to be found in, and who at the firm signs off.

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Will a new website hurt my Google rankings?

A careless redesign can, because old pages disappear and the links pointing to them break. We map every existing address to its new page with permanent redirects and keep the content that already ranks, so what the old site earned is carried over. No one can promise rankings, but a migration handled this way protects them.

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What makes a law firm website convert?

Speed, clarity and reach. The page loads fast on a phone, the headline matches what the person searched, the phone number and the consultation form are always within reach, and proof such as reviews and credentials sits next to the decision. Design matters, but in service of those four things.

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Ownership and reporting

Do I own my website and accounts?

Yes. You own your website, your content and your accounts from the first day. If you ever leave, all of it stays with you.

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Who owns the ad account?

You do. The account is created in your firm’s name, the platforms invoice you directly, and if you ever leave, the account, the history and the data stay with you.

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Who owns the work?

You do. Your website, your content and your accounts are yours from the first day. If you ever leave, all of it stays with you.

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How do you report on SEO progress?

We look beyond rankings and impressions. Our reporting tracks organic visibility, keyword performance, local search presence, traffic, calls, leads and qualified opportunities, so you can see how SEO is contributing to your firm’s growth.

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Where does the data come from?

From Google Analytics and, for Gammill Law, also Google Search Console. We report the source next to every number so you can see exactly what it measures.

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Five questions we answer with no.

Some agencies say yes to all of these. We would rather lose the call than make a promise nobody controls.

  • Do you guarantee rankings?

    No.

    No, and no honest agency can. Nobody controls Google’s results. We commit to the work, the tracking and the reporting, and you see every month what moved and what did not.

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  • Do you buy links?

    No.

    No. We do not buy links from networks, which is against Google rules and puts your site at risk. No PBNs, no link farms, no spam.

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  • Do you write or buy reviews?

    No.

    No. Every review on this page was written by a client on Trustpilot or Google, and published here in full, with the name attached. Buying reviews is against the terms of both platforms and against most bar advertising rules, which is one more reason we do not do it for ourselves or for the firms we work with.

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  • Can you guarantee a cost per lead?

    No.

    No. Auction prices move, competitors change their budgets and no agency controls what a click costs on a given day. What we commit to is the structure, the tracking and the management that push the number down.

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  • Can you guarantee my firm will be cited by ChatGPT?

    No.

    No, and anyone who guarantees it is selling something. No agency controls what a model says, and the answers change from week to week. What we control is whether your firm is readable, verifiable and worth citing, which is what moves the odds.

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Terms you will hear from us.

Four words that come up on almost every call, explained the way we would explain them on it.

Keyphrase

A keyphrase is a search someone types or says, like "car accident lawyer in Wilmington". Each one needs a page written for it, internal links pointing at it and, in a competitive market, authority behind it. More keyphrases means more of that work every month, which is what separates the three plans.

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NAP consistency

NAP stands for name, address and phone. Google cross checks the details it finds about your firm across directories, legal listings and your own site. When an old suite number or a former phone number is still published somewhere, that conflict weakens the listing. NAP consistency is the work of making every one of those records identical.

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Local Services Ads

They are the pay per lead listings that appear above the regular ads, with the Google Screened badge. Google requires a background and license check before a firm can run them. We walk your firm through that process, though the approval is Google’s decision, not ours.

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Toxic backlink

A link from a site that exists to sell links or to host spam, or from a site with nothing to do with law or your city. One or two do nothing. A pattern of them, usually left behind by a previous agency, is what puts a firm at risk, and cleaning those up is part of the SEO work in every plan.

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Your question is not here?

Ask it on a free strategy call, or send it by email. We review your firm first, so the answer is about your market, not a script. Office hours are Monday to Friday, 8 AM to 6 PM Eastern.

Answers reviewed by Roger Aguiar, founder of The Expert SEO, on September 25, 2026.