No site review brought more complaints to IMA than the “45” platinum score from a year ago. E-mails ranged from “what were you looking at” to “I tend to disagree”. There is no question that it was and is an outstanding site, but perhaps they caught IMA on an especially generous day last year. The home page and the site itself are still well organized. The interactivity remains strong. And, appropriately, the design and colors take a back seat to providing strong resources. Building a really good site and keeping it up, in a firm with multiple “big” offices is a chore. You try it.
Way, way back many centuries ago…actually it was 1997. IMA was peddling web sites to law firms (what is a web site?). Now, long removed from having anything to do with working for a vendor and thinking about commissions, I still remember a Philadelphia law firm pointing to rc.com as what they wanted to replicate. In 2004, a few generations of web sites later, the firm has maintained a high level of online business development consistency. I would like to see the “contact us” section integrate with “offices” and add an online form. Lots of good stuff—alumni section, “my rc” customization, unique set up of bios and practice pages, solid navigation and good interactivity. The browser title line says “a major New England law firm”—I’d like to see some of that identity on the home page itself, if just in a two sentence descriptor. There is a perfect open space, top right, below the navigation. It also looks like the firm has reigned in the sister sites and incorporated them into the overall web presence—but wisely, still has the URL redirected to the appropriate page. Seems like a no-brainer, but many firms screw up when it comes to moving and changing URLs.
The home page slogan says “we’re at the top of our game.” And the site shows you many reasons why. Last year, the only thing that the home page lacked was some changing news. Check. Things continue to be kept fresh. The good is still good…online subscriptions and seminar registration, interesting sister sites. Pleasant, well-organized and classy. Many firms strive to get here.
The New York power firms were busy this year getting new sites up and running. STB is no exception. This is probably the firm’s fifth iteration and the best they have done to date. One of the items I liked in the lawyer search was dividing the drop-down box into colleges AND law schools—usually it is just one big education block. The design is very clean and classy. Yet, the site is rich in content, with excellent organization. Previous versions of STB online did not have as detailed a recruiting section. This one has lots of cartoons (really). When you are in NYC, combine good content, good recruiting info, and good attorney bios—you are doing really, really good. Another great upgrade.
The new TH site is an improvement. The old splash page has hit the ocean. The content and organization have improved. Not a big fan of the home page and design. I still prefer left-side navigation, and hate having to mouse-over a category to see sub-categories (which would often be missed). Keep them visible. It is rare that I see much said in the “technology” description that would be of interest, but the “toolkits” and descriptions were well done. Liked the “media kit” (and the file size notations). Excellent depth for most sections of the site. The Contact section is also more helpful than most.
Without sounding like some kook from the Style Network, I want to say I like this site, but I want to love it! The design and set-up are so sharp, yet avoid the NYC brochureware model that so many still use. How about you do this for me? Get rid of the frames, give me strong search and search results capabilities. Loved the TV clips. Kept up to date and timely. WILL ALWAYS LOVE…the approach to “Inquiries” with the e-mail choices and cc’ing the webmaster for ROI tracking.
For some reason, the “quality of life” section grabbed my attention this year. Maybe I’m just getting old. Am I missing “events and seminars” (with online registration and the like)? I’ve always been a fan of the overall marketing efforts by DSMO, including smarter ad campaigns. I especially like the layout and categories under “seen in print” and “our firm.” As IMA has always pointed out here, the difference is being a little different. More firms could learn from that.
As is the case in many law marketing circles, labor law is one of the best marketed practices. Unless you go to the business immigration practice area, you will not know that it is practically its own site. Wise touches include a link to “Ask the Employment Law Expert” column on Entrepreneur.com (opening up a second browser from the Employment Law section). The site continues to have a nice collection of power points, brochures, event registration forms, etc. Lots of things beyond the typical web fare. The home page could be better utilized to highlight the highlights inside. A few sections did have materials that were out of date and belong locked away in an archive rather than as a page highlight.
On the HB web site, “recent” actually means “recent”, which for many firms seems to mean “six months ago.” That was a trouble-spot last year and a strength now. The new home page provides a space for changing graphics at the bottom. On this day, a cute ad highlighting IP. I’m still not sure what I think of the pop-up windows. It is still a site that provides content in a comfortable setting. As with many sites, the “contact us” and office pages could give me more. It is still in the top tier, though. A teeny bit of screw-tightening in some spots would elevate it even higher.
Even though the new MWE site was up for last year’s IMAs, I still can not get the old site out of my head. Boy, was it lame. The present-day mwe.com does everything a large law firm site is supposed to do. I found what I needed. Could search, print, navigate through—straight-forward and professional.
