There is one kind of online content that works to convince consumer clients to hire a lawyer. We all know that original content is the very best way to attract website visitors, and according to a new report by the Nielsen Company "expert content" is the most effective to get consumers to buy your services.

The report The Role of Content identifies three kinds of content that are used to land consumer clients:

1. Content written by credible experts (articles by third-party websites and blogs dedicated to the service category)
2. User-written reviews (like those on Amazon.com)
3. Branded content written by a website owner (such as a law firm's practice descriptions)

"Results of the in-lab study show that expert content—credible, third-party articles and reviews—is the most effective source of information in impacting consumers along all stages of the purchase process across product categories," Neilsen says.

Each online source was measured against the three main stages of influence in the consumer purchase process, namely: Stage 1: Familiarity with a new product, Stage 2: Affinity toward a brand or product, and Stage 3: Purchase consideration of a brand or service.

"Expert content was the only content type to exhibit a strong lift in all 3 areas of the purchase cycle. It provided the most familiarity lift for 7 out of the 9 products, the most affinity lift for 5 of the 9 products, and the most purchase intent lift for 6 of the 9 products.

"On average, expert content lifted familiarity 88 percent more than branded content and 50 percent more than user reviews; they lifted affinity 50 percent more than branded content and 20 percent more than user reviews; finally, they lifted purchase consideration 38 percent more than branded content and 83 percent more than user reviews."

Law Firm Marketing Takeaway: Find a credible expert to write for your law firm website, or to write about your firm and the results you achieve for clients. Good examples are  the articles about jury awards and settlements won by lawyers and published on The National Trial Lawyers website.