The legal industry is one of the toughest and most expensive battlegrounds in online marketing. With over a million lawyers practicing in the U.S., it’s incredibly difficult—and costly—to make your firm stand out. So, where exactly should your marketing focus be in 2025?
This rewrite of the iLawyer Marketing study reveals the key platforms prospective clients rely on to find and research attorneys, and how you can optimize your strategy for each one.
The Dominant Platforms: Where Clients Look for Legal Help It’s clear that consumers no longer stick to a single source; they cross-reference multiple online channels during their search process.
Online Platform Usage Percentage (2025) Key Implication Google 86.7% Still the undisputed leader for starting the research process. ChatGPT 28.1% A massive surge makes it the new #2 platform, primarily for initial research. Facebook 24.7% Remains vital for social proof and reaching key demographics. Yelp 24.3% The deciding factor for many, driven by star ratings and reviews. YouTube 20.4% The ultimate tool for building trust and credibility through video.
Export to Sheets Key Digital Marketing Takeaways for Your Law Firm If you want to capture and convert clients in 2025, you must adopt a multi-channel, trust-focused strategy.
- Google Still Controls the Map Despite the buzz around new AI tools, Google’s relevance hasn’t faded. Almost 87% of people still use it to help them choose a law firm.
Strategy: You need to claim as much digital “surface area” as possible on the Google results page (SERP). This means investing in all areas:
Local SEO (appearing in the map pack).
Organic Search Results (ranking naturally).
Local Service Ads (LSAs) (paid placements).
AI Overviews (AIO) optimization.
- ChatGPT is a Rising Assistant, Not a Replacement While ChatGPT’s usage has tripled since 2023, 94% of its users still verify the results on Google. Consumers use AI to start their research but rely on traditional search to validate their choices.
Strategy: AI tools tend to favor firms that project clear expertise, strong authority, and credible reputations. Ensure your firm’s website is packed with detailed attorney bios, FAQs, awards, specialties, and, critically, recent client reviews—the fuel for AI answers.
- Multi-Channel Visibility is Non-Negotiable A significant 70% of consumers use more than one platform to research firms. You need to meet clients wherever they are searching.
Brand Consistency: When users cross-reference your profiles (from Google to Yelp to Facebook), your brand identity, messaging, and professionalism must be consistent across the board.
- Video is the New Trust-Builder With one in five consumers using YouTube to research a lawyer, video content is one of the most powerful tools for building trust and converting leads.
Strategy: Prioritize professional, engaging videos. This could include attorney introductions, client testimonials, short FAQ explainers, or even YouTube Shorts. Video can also appear directly in Google search results, giving you a double advantage.
- Reviews and Social Proof Remain Critical Yelp, Facebook, and even Reddit (which Google now heavily favors through its “Discussions and Forums” section) serve as essential social proof platforms.
Yelp: The data shows that most people won’t even contact a firm with fewer than four stars. Monitor and actively manage your star rating and profile details.
Reddit & TikTok: These channels appeal to specific demographics. While TikTok allows for an approachable brand through entertaining legal tips, Reddit thrives on genuine, organic word-of-mouth recommendations, which can hold immense weight with skeptical users.