Let’s Get to the Updates!

SEO

• Google AI Mode shows 91% URL change across repeat searches. The high volatility means there are new challenges as well as new opportunities for search. Unlike traditional search, AI Mode tends to refresh its citations frequently. This means law firms with relevant, high-quality content have a better chance of appearing in AI mode answers, even if they are not in the organic top 10.
• Google’s latest update: It seems that this change has been more subtle than past updates. Although the update was sizable, it has not been as disruptive as previously predicted. The biggest change being that Google is able to better surface relevant content. This means law firms should focus on niche topics with an authoritative voice, including creating content that relates to the original topic.
• New evidence suggests ChatGPT sometimes pulls Google Search snippets when Bing results are unavailable or outdated. This reinforces the idea that traditional SEO still matters—AI tools like ChatGPT may rely on it more than expected.

Paid Advertising               

• Google Ads launch built-in video analytics. This change will help legal industry advertisers to better identify top performing videos faster, making it easier for them to optimize your campaigns based on audience engagement.
• Phrase match is losing ground to broad match in Google Ads. The most important phrase in this article is – “But for lead gen, relevancy is a much bigger concern. Even with pricing advantages, many find broad match – and tools like AI Max for Search or PMax – produce too many low-relevance queries.” This is extremely important for PPC clients to understand because it is often a point of contention.
• Google Analytics has rolled out two big updates: a new Reddit Ads integration and lead generation tools. Advertisers can now import Reddit cost data directly into GA for unified reporting and comparison across platforms. This will allow advertisers and attorneys to see a fuller picture when it comes to ROI on ad spend.

Social Media

• Meta follows suit with YouTube’s crackdown on unoriginal content. Repetitious and mass-produced content will no longer be tolerated on Meta. Spammy or fake behavior will face reduced visibility. One of their main focuses will be “AI-generated slop” and content farms. We encourage attorneys to create authentic, original videos and limit their AI content to a minimum when it comes to vertical videos.
• In July, many reputable sources reported that TikTok was developing a separate US app ahead of the impending ban. They released a brief statement stating, “The recently posted Reuters story, which is based on anonymous, uninformed sources, is factually inaccurate.” They have not clarified if they are not building a separate app or if the details of the report are false.

AI

• Your law firm may receive AI calls from prospective clients. Google is introducing an AI that can make phone calls for users to retrieve additional information from Google Business Profiles. It’s important not to discount these calls as robo-calls, as it is a feature many introverts will likely take advantage of.
• Your website still matters in the age of AI! “AI is the latest obsession, but strategy still wins. Refocus on your website – the original digital tool – to thrive in the AI era.” This article gives a non-biased opinion on how websites fit into the AI puzzle along with suggestions on how to adapt.
• President Trump has issued a range of directives related to AI development. Below is the TL;DR – New AI Orders at a Glance
  • Loosens Copyright Rules: Federal regulations restricting the use of copyrighted content to train AI models have been relaxed, reducing legal risks for developers
  • Bans “Woke AI” in Government: Federal departments are restricted from using AI models that show ideological or DEI-related bias, such as altering historical figures’ identities.
  • Pushes U.S. AI Global Dominance: The orders aim to position America as the world leader in AI by scaling back Biden-era energy rules and promoting U.S.-made AI tech abroad.
  • These moves could benefit firms like Elon Musk’s xAI while raising concerns about bias, misinformation, and who controls the narrative in AI tools.

Stay LAWsome–We’ll See You Again Next Month!

Thanks for checking out this month’s roundup! See you next time with more tips, trends, and insights to help your law firm grow.

The post August Legal Digital Marketing Industry Updates appeared first on Consultwebs.

History shows Google will always prioritize its own interests, often at the expense of businesses that rely on it. But this shift also opens new opportunities for firms willing to diversify across platforms. 

Now is the prime time to broaden your reach beyond only Google search. 

The Risk of Overreliance on Only One Source of Search

You’ve heard the old adage – Don’t put all of your eggs in one basket.  Financial advisors don’t only invest in one asset. They strategically place their faith in multiple sources, ensuring that if one yields a negative outcome, there are others in place as a cushion.

The current state of Google search is that we are seeing more and more AI Overviews showing up, more users interacting with Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT, and overall, many businesses are receiving less traffic. 

This isn’t the first time we’ve experienced a big shift with search. But it is the first sizable one that requires re-inventing strategies and modifying best practices to stay relevant. For example, when the Panda algorithm update rolled out and it hit content quality heavily, some sites rose and others vanished overnight.

This led to major shifts in how content was handled for Google Search. Then there was Penguin, which focused on quality for backlinks. These updates made major waves similar to what we are seeing with AI evolution over the past year. These changes open up great opportunities for early adoption.

While there is overlap with traditional search practices, Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) search requires a specific set of best practices as well.

Zero Click Content’s Impact On Search

So, what exactly is zero-click content? 

By utilizing new AI technologies, Google can answer search queries instantaneously without users needing to click through websites. Instead, they have the answers at their fingertips without so much as a click in places like AI Overviews.

Questions like “What should I do if I am in a car accident?” and “What are the statute of limitations for an accident in my state?” are questions that are easily answered concisely without users needing to search an attorney’s website.

Is there still value to creating content even though zero-click answers are more prevalent?

Yes! Just because some users are searching specific questions and receiving answers on the first page does not negate users who will search your website for specific topics and practice areas. It’s also worth noting that relevant content creation will help your law firm show up in these zero-click answers.

In addition, these AI models examine not only your main practice area pages but also any articles you create surrounding the topic. The more robust your posts are for a specific topic, the likelier Google and AI will consider you an authoritative voice on the subject. 

Where Should Law Firms Invest Their Time and Budget Besides Google?

Search Statistics: How Many Searches Happen On Non-Google Platforms?

SparkToro’s data breaks down the cross-platform share of search as well as the largest traffic referrers. This data helps marketers determine where time and energy are best spent. Google is still the giant, while AI is a trending topic that makes up a small fraction of non-Google referral traffic.

Key platforms that will benefit your law firm best depend on a variety of factors. Some of those include location, brand voice, and target audience demographics. 

Some popular examples include:

• Bing
• Youtube
• Reddit
• PR Releases
• Legal Directories
• Social Media

Choosing the right placements will take research, testing, and optimization. There is no one-size-fits-all approach. Nor should there be. Your law firm is unique in its brand voice and values. Are you looking for search engine optimization for law firms? Check us out here.

Implementing Search Diversification 

How should law firms start to diversify?

Law firms that want to begin diversifying should consider taking the following steps:

1. Auditing the current search and AI presence
2. Start with 1-2 priority platforms outside of Google
3. Develop consistent content
4. Track performance
5. Monitor & optimize as needed

Your Next Client May Not Come From Google

As AI technologies advance, law firms that thrive will be the ones that adapt in real-time with the changes. Diversifying search presence not only safeguards your traditional search strategies but also increases visibility across the internet. 

Start small, stay consistent, and commit to regular testing and optimization to win at search in 2025, and you’ll be signing cases from sources outside of Google before you know it. The experts at Consultwebs are happy to provide guidance for diversifying your law firm’s search presence. Book a one-on-one consultation with us today.

The post Diversifying Search appeared first on Consultwebs.

Let’s break down what this means, what you need to know, and most importantly—how it can drive more qualified cases to your firm.

Ads in AI Overviews: What’s Changing?

You’ve likely seen Google’s AI Overviews already—those automatically generated summaries that appear at the top of the search results. They provide quick, detailed answers to user queries. Now, Google is integrating paid ads directly within those AI Overviews.

Here’s the catch (and the opportunity): you don’t need a new campaign type to participate. Ads in this space come from existing, eligible Search or Performance Max campaigns.

If you’re already running those with us, your ads may already be eligible to show up here—with no extra setup required.

When Will Your Ads Show in an AI Overview?

Not every search query will trigger this feature. Here are the key requirements:

• Commercial Intent: The search must clearly signal a desire to take action, like hiring a lawyer or finding legal help.
• High-Quality Ad Inventory: Google must determine that your ad is relevant and likely to perform well.
• Content Alignment: Your ad must match the content in the AI Overview and align with the user’s question.

If those boxes are checked, Google can automatically insert your ad into the AI Overview. While advertisers can’t yet track performance specifically from this placement, the value is clear: front-row exposure in one of the most visible spots on the internet.

Why This Matters for Law Firms

Most people turn to Google in a moment of legal urgency—after a car crash, before a custody dispute, or when they’re suddenly facing criminal charges. These searches are deeply intent-driven, and AI Overviews are now part of how those questions get answered.

Here’s how this shift translates into tangible value for law firms:

Instant Connection to Urgent Needs

AI Overviews address critical, question-based searches like “what to do after a car accident?” If your ad appears there, it’s being seen exactly when someone is looking for help.

Unbeatable Prime Visibility

AI Overviews often appear above traditional ads and organic results. Inclusion means your firm becomes part of the answer, not just one of the options.

Enhanced Trust & Authority

When your ad is displayed within authoritative AI content, you benefit from its credibility. Even better, if your site content is strong, Google might cite it directly in the AI Overview, amplifying your authority.

Smarter Targeting = Better Cases

Google’s AI understands the nuance of legal intent like never before. This means the people seeing your ad through AI Overviews are more qualified—and more likely to convert into high-value cases.

Enter: AI Max

Google is also rolling out AI Max, a new feature (not a new campaign type) that boosts your chances of showing up in AI Overviews. It uses the latest AI to automatically pair your ads with high-intent searches that are most likely to generate leads.

For our clients, that means:

• Better placements without more complexity.
• Automatic optimization toward the highest-value visibility.
• More qualified leads without increasing ad spend inefficiently.

While AI Max is currently in beta (as of late May 2025), we expect it to be fully rolled out in early Q3. If it’s not available in your account yet, hang tight—it’s coming.

Final Thoughts

We’re entering a new era of search—one where answers come before results, and relevance is more powerful than ever. For law firms, this is an opportunity to not just be found, but to be trusted and be first when potential clients need help most.

Our team at Consultwebs is already optimizing campaigns with these changes in mind. If you’re not yet working with us, now’s the time to make sure your firm doesn’t fall behind in this AI-driven future.

Let’s talk about how we can use these advancements to get your firm more visibility, more trust—and most importantly—more cases.

The post What Google’s New AI Overview Ads Mean for Law Firm Marketing appeared first on Consultwebs.

Marketing Updates

SEO

• Google coughs up $1.4 billion to Texas in a privacy lawsuit. The lawsuit alleged that Google collected users’ biometrics without express consent and tracked their locations even if the feature was disabled. 
  • “In Texas, Big Tech is not above the law. For years, Google secretly tracked people’s movements, private searches, and even their voiceprints and facial geometry through their products and services. I fought back and won,” Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton says in a statement.
• Video matters now more than ever in SEO. Many foundational SEO tactics remain relevant when it comes to social media video optimization. Social media influences discoverability. SEO works hand in hand with social media to boost visibility, drive engagement, and turn videos into powerful marketing.

Paid Advertising               

• Meta unveils new ad updates at NewFronts 2025. The two that affect legal industry campaigns most are as follows:
  • Reels trending ads
    • This new placement allows advertisers to put ads in the most trending creator Reels.
  • Video Ads on Threads
    • A new placement for video advertisements, reaching a new audience
• YouTube shares its new ad options and usage stats at BrandCast 2025. They also note that YouTube Shorts viewing is up 20% year-over-year. YouTube says that 70% of its channels now post them.      
• Threads advertisements are now available to all Meta advertisers globally. This opens up a new audience for testing.       

Social Media

• The average engagement rate for Facebook is a whopping….0.15%, with smaller accounts (>5k followers) seeing an average rate of 0.30%. Consultwebs has consistently monitored engagement rates for our clients’ social media, setting our target goal at 4%–more than ten times higher than the industry standard.
• Threads will soon begin prioritizing links in posts, unlike X. This is a surprising move, as most social media platforms want users to remain on their platform for as long as possible instead of external sites. 
• After two years, X is still not close to their “Everything App” vision. Unless attorneys have a sizable and highly engaged following, we recommend prioritizing other social media apps that offer higher value results. 
• Google recently removed 15k YouTube channels for China-originated influence activity. China is not the only country that targets USA social media platforms to influence public opinions, but is the top source. An interesting opinion offered in this article is that the threat is less about data privacy and more about the capacity in which social channels have to influence public opinions. 

Antitrust Cases

• Epic Games and Spotify test Apple’s new App Store rules. The updated App Store policies were rolled out last week after Apple lost a major legal battle in the antitrust case filed by Epic Games, when a federal judge ruled that Apple had not followed the court’s orders around in-app purchases. The Kindle app has also released a new version of its app. https://techcrunch.com/2025/05/09/epic-games-and-spotify-test-apples-new-app-store-rules/

AI

• It’s here! Google tests ads in AI overview and AI mode. We knew Google would monetize AI spaces eventually. This means that ad strategies for top-of-page results will likely shift in the near future. Our PPC team will keep you up to date with optimal places to spend ad dollars online as processes evolve. 
• AI mode–the future of SEO? What matters going forward? Clicks, tracking those clicks, branding, and agents (Google recommending “buy now” or “contact” type links for products and services). There is a 10-minute video that explains this well, embedded in this link. It is essential that brands of all sizes adapt to these changes early and optimally, or risk irrelevance online. 

Stay LAWsome–We’ll See You Again Next Month!

Thank you for reading our monthly roundup! We’ll see you again next month for another newsletter packed with insights, trends, and expert guidance for helping your law firm thrive. 

The post May Digital Marketing Industry Updates appeared first on Consultwebs.

This scenario is no longer hypothetical. It’s Google’s AI Overviews. And it’s here.

In this article, we discuss this new digital marketing platform as well as strategies that attorneys can use to optimize their online presence for AI Overviews, including providing content and using other methods that align with E-E-A-T — Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness — the core framework Google uses to evaluate content quality.

The Changing Legal Search Landscape

By this point, we should all be familiar with AI-generated answers to searches. We cannot downplay the importance of organic search or paid search. However, these AI-generated results are changing how people search for legal help online.

On the one hand, the shift in how potential law firm clients seek information presents a threat. But it also presents an opportunity. The threat lies in the possibility of law firms seeing lower click-through rates and traffic from informational AI results. The opportunity lies in the potential for law firms to increase their online visibility.

At Consultwebs, we have observed higher conversion rates from AI sources. We believe the higher rate is due to the higher level of intent behind the user’s query. So, while the quantity of site traffic may decrease, we believe the quality of that traffic will likely increase and lead to a higher number of leads for law firms.

What Are AI Overviews?

AI Overviews are Google’s AI-generated answers that appear above traditional organic results. They directly answer user questions by combining content from multiple sources from across the web.

For legal searches, AI Overviews appear when people ask questions like “How long do I have to file a personal injury claim in Texas?” or “What happens at a first DUI court appearance?” Instead of requiring users to click on links and search for answers on those websites, the overview provides direct answers.

Google marks the summaries with an “ AI Overview” label. They occupy the coveted “position zero” spot, which is the first thing users see before they see any other search results.

The overview typically includes the following elements:

• Direct answer to the query
• Key contextual information relevant to the legal question
• Occasionally, related questions that help visitors expand their search
• List of sources for the summary, which can include law firm websites.

So, if a potential client searches for a response to a legal question and sees your law firm as a source in AI Overviews, it will help to establish your law firm’s credibility and authority.

How AI-Enhanced Search Affects Client Research Behavior

Potential law firm clients can now get answers to their legal questions without having to visit law firm websites. For instance, when someone searches “statute of limitations car accident Florida,” they will see the answer is “four years” in AI Overviews. (Note: This result is also a great example of how AI can get things wrong, as Florida changed the statute of limitations to two years from the injury date in March 2023.) This shift in search results could move a potential client’s initial research away from websites and into Google’s environment.

Why AI Overviews Matter for Your Law Practice

To get a better understanding of how Google’s AI Overviews could affect your law firm’s marketing campaign, let’s consider the following three areas:

• Competitive Advantage

Online visibility leads to citations and strengthens your position in AI-generated results. Lawyers can gain an edge when they optimize for AI Overviews, unlike competitors who focus only on traditional SEO. Firms that adapt can establish themselves as authoritative sources before market saturation.

Google’s AI does not necessarily feature websites based on historical domain authority or ranking position. Instead, it prioritizes content that answers certain legal questions, regardless of the firm’s size or history.

So, in this environment, even well-established law firms with strong traditional search rankings could be vulnerable. Larger firms that delay adapting their content strategy risk being overshadowed by smaller, more agile competitors who know how to quickly restructure their online presence to match how AI systems evaluate information.

• Practice Area-Related Benefits

In several different practice areas, the ability to optimize for AI Overviews will give a law firm a competitive edge. Consider the following:

• • Personal Injury: Capturing potential clients at the moment of need — You can reach prospective clients during a critical decision-making moment, or right after an accident occurs. At that moment, by addressing urgent questions such as, “Should I accept the insurance settlement offer?” you can establish credibility when people are most receptive to hiring legal representation.
  • Criminal Defense: Providing value during crisis moments — Again, with AI Overviews, you can reach potential clients in this practice area when they face high-stress, time-sensitive situations. With AI Overviews, you can demonstrate your knowledge and experience on topics like “What happens at arraignment?” or “What are the penalties for a first DUI offense?” By taking advantage of AI Overviews, you will position your criminal defense firm as a trusted guide and establish authority at a time when potential clients need reassurance.
  • Estate Planning: Demonstrating knowledge of complex topics — In AI Overviews, you can simplify legal concepts that potential clients may find overwhelming and showcase your ability to make complex matters accessible. You can provide clarity and show your approachability, which are key qualities in this practice area, by providing answers to questions such as “What are the differences between a will and a living trust?” or “How can you avoid probate?”

• Local Market Domination

AI Overviews have transformed how Google handles location-based legal searches, including in the following areas:

• • Geographic targeting — When people search with local intent (for example, “child custody laws in Phoenix” or “slip and fall statute of limitations California”), Google will prioritize region-specific content in its AI summaries. So, if a law firm thoroughly addresses jurisdiction-specific questions, it can result in a visibility advantage.
  • Building local authority through content — Your firm’s prominence in local AI Overviews depends on your geographic content. By creating resources that address your state’s laws, local court procedures, and other regulations, you can position your firm as a local authority.
  • Near-me search optimization — This approach is particularly powerful for capturing “near me” searches and location-based legal questions that potential clients use in urgent situations. Firms that develop content covering all of their service areas will consistently outperform competitors in local AI Overview citations.

So, your local SEO takeaways should be:

• Create jurisdiction-specific content addressing local laws and procedures.
• Optimize for location-specific legal questions that are common in your practice areas.
• Incorporate local citations and references to regional legal resources.
• Develop content for all geographic areas your firm serves.

By implementing these strategies, you should be able to effectively drive higher-quality leads from potential clients seeking legal help.

E-E-A-T and AI Overviews: The Critical Connection

E-E-A-T stands for Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness. Google uses this core framework to evaluate content quality. For legal websites, Google applies heightened scrutiny because legal advice falls under “Your Money or Your Life” (YMYL) topics — information that could affect a person’s well-being or financial security. Google’s quality raters assess whether legal content demonstrates genuine expertise, comes from authoritative sources, and presents trustworthy information that won’t harm users if followed.

E-E-A-T matters more than ever with AI-generated results. When generating summaries, Google’s AI systems prioritize content from sources with strong E-E-A-T signals to minimize the risk of spreading inaccurate legal information.

E-E-A-T Signals You Can Send With Your Website

Unlike traditional search rankings, where hundreds of factors determine position, AI Overviews appear to give heavy weight to E-E-A-T signals when selecting which law firms’ content to feature. That means demonstrating clear expertise and authority is no longer just about ranking. Instead, it is about whether your content gets featured in the prominent AI summaries at all.

The following are E-E-A-T signals that your law firm can send with your site:

Expertise Signals

✓ Accurate and precise legal terminology

✓ Jurisdiction-specific information and laws

✓ Clear explanations that simplify complex concepts without oversimplification

✓ Content addressing potential exceptions and edge cases

✓ Practice area focus and depth

✓ Contextual examples that demonstrate applied knowledge

Authoritativeness Markers

✓ Firm history and established reputation

✓ Attorney credentials and bar admissions  —  displayed clearly

✓ Speaking engagements and published works

✓ Recognition from legal peers and organizations

✓ Attorney bio pages with verifiable credentials

✓ Transparent firm information and history

✓ Proper legal schema markup implementation

✓ Consistent NAP (Name, Address, Phone) information across the web

Trust Indicators

✓ Clear presentation of attorney credentials near relevant content

✓ Regular content updates reflecting current laws

✓ Appropriate disclaimers addressing limitations of general information

✓ Secure website protocols (HTTPS)

✓ Clear privacy policies and terms of service

✓ Transparent client communication channels

✓ Absence of misleading claims or guarantees

✓ Specific, detailed client reviews, not just generic praise

Citation and Reference Quality

✓ Citations to relevant statutes and case law

✓ References to official legal resources

✓ Internal links to deeper explanations

✓ External links to court websites and government resources

✓ Bar association and legal directory citations

✓ Properly attributed quotes from authoritative sources

✓ Consistent citation formatting

Practical E-E-A-T Enhancements for Law Firms

In general, your law firm’s E-E-A-T Priority Checklist should be:

• Associate appropriate attorneys with specific content pieces.
• Include credentials directly alongside legal information.
• Regularly update content to reflect current laws.
• Cite authoritative legal sources.
• Build comprehensive internal linking between related topics.

Specifically, your law firm can take the following steps to align with E-E-A-T:

1. Strategic Credential Placement

   • Display attorney credentials throughout your website, not just on bio pages.
   • Include credentials with content (for example, “Written by Sarah Johnson, Board-Certified Family Law Specialist.”).
   • Link attorney names to detailed profiles containing full credentials and experience.
   • Highlight specializations adjacent to relevant practice area content.

2. Authority-Building Case Results & Testimonials

   • Create practice area-specific case result pages with coordinated challenges and outcomes.
   • Organize testimonials to highlight key legal expertise rather than general praise.
   • Include verification elements, such as client initials or case types, when possible.
   • Feature testimonials that mention particular attorney skills (for example, “Attorney Miller’s deep knowledge of estate tax law saved our family thousands.”).

3. Comprehensive Content Development

   • Organize information with clear hierarchical headings.
   • Include FAQ sections anticipating related questions.
   • Develop topic clusters with main pages linking to detailed subtopic pages.
   • Address jurisdictional variations relevant to your practice areas.

Practical Strategies: Optimizing Your Digital Presence for AI Overviews

To get a better understanding of what it means to optimize your law firm’s digital presence for Google’s AI Overviews, let’s examine three specific areas:

Content Structure and Format

The structure and format of your law firm’s online content can affect your ability to take advantage of the marketing opportunities that AI Overviews provides. Your content should feature the following:

• Question-focused headings that mirror natural client queries — Google’s AI Overviews prioritize content that directly addresses the questions potential clients ask. Consider using question-based formats that match real search inquiries instead of traditional practice area headings. Content with natural language questions that mimic what clients would type into a search will increase the likelihood of being selected as a source for AI Overviews. A couple of examples are:
  • Instead of “Car Accident Representation,” use “What Should I Do Immediately After a Car Accident in [State]?”
  • Instead of “Child Custody Services,” use “How Is Child Custody Determined in [State] Divorce Cases?”
• Clear, concise paragraphs with definitive answers — Position definitive answers at the beginning of your content, followed by supporting information. Google’s AI looks for content that provides clear answers without unnecessary preamble. For instance, in the example below, notice how the content provides a direct answer in the first sentence, followed by context and nuance.
  • Query — How long do I have to file a personal injury claim in Texas?
  • Content — In Texas, you generally have two years from the date of injury to file a personal injury lawsuit. This time limit, known as the statute of limitations, is established by Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 16.003. Missing this deadline typically means losing your right to seek compensation through the court system.
• Bulleted lists and organized information for easy AI parsing — Organize key information in formats that are easy for AI systems to identify and extract. Bulleted lists and clear organizational patterns help Google’s AI understand your content’s structure. In the example below, the content has a structured format, which makes it easier for Google’s AI to identify and extract information when generating overviews.
  • Topic — Types of Compensatory Damages Available in Personal Injury Cases
  • Content — The following are types of compensatory damages available in personal injury cases:
    • Medical expenses (past and future)
    • Lost wages and diminished earning capacity
    • Property damage and repair costs
    • Pain and suffering
    • Emotional distress
    • Loss of enjoyment of life
    • Loss of consortium.
• FAQ sections that directly address common legal questions —  Include dedicated FAQ sections that address related questions potential clients might have. By using FAQs, you provide Google’s AI with clear, pre-formatted answers to common follow-up questions. The following are examples of FAQ sections in the area of personal injury law that create valuable, self-contained content units that Google’s AI can easily identify when generating overviews for related searches:
  • Should I talk to the other driver’s insurance company? 

No, you should avoid giving statements to the other driver’s insurance company without legal representation. Insurance adjusters may use your statements to minimize your claim’s value.

• • What if the accident was partially my fault? 

[State] follows a comparative negligence rule, which means you may still recover damages even if you were partially at fault, though your compensation may be reduced by your percentage of fault.

• • How much is my car accident claim worth? 

The value depends on several factors, including the severity of injuries, medical expenses, lost income, property damage, and impact on quality of life. An experienced attorney can provide a more accurate assessment based on your circumstances.”

Technical Optimization

From a technical standpoint, optimizing your law firm’s digital presence for AI Overviews involves the following:

• Schema markup for attorneys and legal content — Schema markup provides explicit signals to search engines about your content’s meaning and helps Google’s AI to better understand and categorize your legal knowledge for inclusion in AI Overviews. You should focus on:
  • Attorney Schema — Tells Google who you are, your credentials, education, certifications, and practice areas.
  • Legal Service Schema — Identifies your firm’s services, practice areas, and service locations.
  • FAQ Schema — Structures your frequently asked questions so Google can easily extract them for AI Overviews.
  • How-To Schema — Useful for procedural content like “How to file for divorce” or “Steps after a car accident.”
  • Local Business Schema — Enhances your local visibility with accurate name, address, and phone information

While the technical implementation might require developer assistance, understanding the schema types helps you prioritize information on your website. Feel free to reach out if you need developer assistance.

• Page speed and mobile optimization importance — Google’s AI prioritizes content from sites that deliver excellent user experiences, with page speed and mobile optimization being important factors. Sites that load quickly and function well on mobile devices are more likely to retain users and encourage them to stay on the site. Key optimization areas include the following:
  • Image Optimization — Compress images, use modern formats like WebP, and specify dimensions.
  • Mobile Responsiveness — Ensure all content is easily readable on mobile devices without horizontal scrolling.
  • Page Speed — Minimize unnecessary scripts, optimize CSS delivery, and leverage browser caching.
  • Core Web Vitals — Focus on improving Largest Contentful Paint, First Input Delay, and Cumulative Layout Shift metrics. These technical factors create a foundation for authority that complements your content quality.
• Site structure and internal linking strategies — A logical site structure with strategic internal linking helps Google’s AI understand the relationships between your content pieces, establishing topical authority that increases your chances of being featured in AI Overviews. The following are effective approaches that your law firm can take:
  • Topic Cluster Structure — Organize content around central practice area pages with supporting subtopic pages.
  • Contextual Internal Linking — Link related content naturally within text to establish content relationships.
  • Breadcrumb Navigation — Help users and search engines understand your site’s hierarchical structure.
  • Consistent URL Structure — Create logical URLs that reflect your content organization.

Content Development Strategy

To optimize your content for AI-generated search results, you should focus on these items:

• Identify high-opportunity legal queries in your practice area — Strategic content development starts with identifying the specific questions that potential clients ask and which trigger AI Overviews. Focus on queries with high search volume and look for existing content that may lack depth or authority. Research methods for identifying high-value queries include the following:
  • • Use Google’s “People Also Ask” sections to identify related questions.
    • Analyze competitor content that currently appears in AI Overviews.
    • Review your consultation notes for frequently asked initial questions.
    • Use keyword research tools to find question-based searches with significant volume.

Examples of high-opportunity query types, by practice area, include:

• Personal Injury
  • • “How much is my [specific injury] claim worth?”
    • “Who pays medical bills after a car accident in [State]?”
    • “What if the accident was partially my fault in [State]?”
• Family Law
  • • “How is child support calculated in [State]?”
    • “How long does divorce take in [State]?”
    • “Can I modify a custody agreement without going to court?”

• Create comprehensive content clusters around primary topics  — Develop interconnected content ecosystems that establish authoritative coverage of key legal topics. The depth will signal to Google’s AI that your firm has expertise worthy of citation in AI Overviews. Here is an example of an optimized car accident content cluster structure:

• • Primary Topic Page: “Car Accidents in [State]”
    • Overview of state laws governing auto accidents
    • Statistics on accident frequency and common causes
    • General process for pursuing compensation
  • Supporting Subtopic Pages:
    • “[State] Car Accident Statute of Limitations”
      • Detailed explanation of time limits
      • Exceptions that may extend or toll the statute
      • Case examples illustrating deadline applications
  • “Determining Fault in [State] Car Accidents”
    • • Evidence types used to prove liability
      • How comparative negligence affects recovery
      • Third-party liability scenarios
  • Specialized Pages for Specific Scenarios:
    • • Uber/Lyft accident claims
      • Uninsured motorist scenarios
      • Multi-vehicle accidents
      • Commercial vehicle collisions
• Update frequency and freshness factors – Google’s AI prioritizes current, accurate legal information. Establish a review process to ensure your content reflects the latest laws, precedents, and procedures. Examples of content update triggers are:
  • Legislative changes affecting the practice area
  • New case law
  • Procedural changes in local courts
  • Updated statistics or data
  • New industry best practices

To be proactive in addressing these triggers, you should follow a content audit schedule that incorporates:

• • Quarterly Reviews — Check all high-traffic pages for accuracy.
  • Semi-Annual Deep Audits — Review practice area content.
  • Annual Overhauls — Make major updates to primary practice area pages with case studies, statistics, and procedural information.

Measuring Success: Tracking Your AI Overview Performance

To determine if your optimization efforts are working, focus on these performance indicators, or key metrics to monitor:

• Visibility — Track which queries feature your content in AI Overviews by monitoring position improvements and using specialized tools like ZipTie.dev or SEMrush.
• Traffic Patterns — Compare organic traffic before and after optimization.
• Conversion Rates — Focus on what matters most — consultation requests and client inquiries.

Your measurement approach should cover the following:

• Use Google Search Console to analyze impression and CTR changes for key queries.
• Implement monthly content audits, identifying “winners” (content frequently appearing in AI Overviews) and “underperformers.”
• Apply successful patterns from high-performing content to other areas of practice.

How Consultwebs Helps Attorneys Succeed with AI Overviews

For more than 25 years, Consultwebs has stayed at the leading edge of digital legal marketing by adapting our practices to changes in the industry.

We can help law firms succeed by using our AI-focused approach, which includes:

• Legal SEO Services Tailored for AI
  • We analyze content that Google’s AI consistently selects from authoritative legal sources.
  • We can restructure your information layout to enhance topical authority signals.
  • Our team continuously monitors AI Overview behavior to refine optimization strategies.
• Legal-Specific Content Development
  • Our team includes licensed attorneys and legal editors who understand both legal nuances and AI optimization.
  • We identify jurisdiction-specific queries that trigger AI Overviews in your practice areas.
  • We create content that demonstrates clear expertise while answering potential clients’ exact questions.
• Technical Implementation
  • We implement advanced schema markup for attorneys and legal content.
  • Our team optimizes site structure for topical expertise recognition.
  • We optimize for mobile performance to enhance trust signals.

What Sets Consultwebs Apart

When you work with Consultwebs to develop and execute your law firm’s digital marketing strategy, we can help you address the shifting landscape of legal marketing, such as adjusting your digital presence to optimize for AI Overviews.

You can count on our team to provide you with:

• Specialized Legal Experience — We understand the technical aspects of AI visibility and the unique ethical and practical needs of law firms.
• Comprehensive Strategy — From content creation to technical implementation to reputation management, we provide an integrated approach that builds your firm’s visibility in AI Overviews.
• Measurable Results — Our clients see improved visibility in AI Overviews, increased qualified traffic, and higher conversion rates.

Case Study: Increase in Leads

Our client’s leads during the past 90 days from the following tools totaled six, with conversion rates ranging from 2.04% to 9.09%, depending on the platform. The previous 90 days also saw six leads. Before that, over the course of the year chart below, there were only three leads in the previous six months. So, the law firm is currently seeing a steady number of leads, with the increase remaining steady and increasing over the past 12 months.

Annual Growth

Past 90 days compared to previous 90 days growth:

Act Now

It is still early. Law firms face a time-sensitive opportunity in this new, emerging area of digital legal marketing. Early adopters can gain a significant competitive advantage in their markets. However, as more firms begin to adapt, this window of opportunity will soon narrow.

A law firm’s core strategies for immediate implementation should include:

• Content Restructuring — Answer legal questions directly and clearly.
• Technical Signals — Implement schema markup that signals your knowledge, experience, and authority to AI systems.
• Authority Building — Enhance E-E-A-T through strategic credential placement and citations.
• Local Relevance — Develop jurisdiction-specific content for your practice areas.
• Topic Organization — Create content clusters that demonstrate your law firm’s depth of experience.

Your law firm should also have a long-term success plan in place that includes:

• Regular Updates — Keep content current with changing laws and procedures.
• Performance Analysis — Monitor which content appears in AI Overviews and why.
• Metric Tracking — Identify which topics drive visibility and conversions.
• Content Expansion — Address emerging legal questions in your practice areas.
• Continuous Learning — Stay informed about developments in AI.

Your Next Steps

To keep pace with the impact of AI-generated search results, your law firm should consider taking these three steps:

• Quick Self-Assessment (15-Minute Evaluation)
  • List 10-15 legal questions your potential clients commonly ask.
  • Search these questions to see if they trigger AI Overviews.
  • Check if your firm appears as a source in these summaries.
• Identify which competitors consistently appear in the results.
• Note what distinguishes their featured content from yours.

Quick Wins (Begin Implementing Within 30 Days)

• Add direct, concise answers for pages that aim to address a specific question, aligning with the page’s intent.
• Add FAQ schema markup to high-priority content.
• Update attorney profiles with credentials relevant to their practice areas.
• Ensure consistent NAP (Name, Address, Phone) information everywhere.
• Review and update any outdated legal information.

Expert Implementation Support

While some optimizations can be handled internally, comprehensive AI visibility typically requires specialized expertise. Our team can help with:

• Comprehensive assessment of your current AI Overview visibility
• Practice area-specific implementation plan
• Technical optimization by legal-focused developers and SEO’s
• Strategic content creation addressing high-value client questions
• Ongoing monitoring and adaptation as AI systems evolve.

We Can Help Your Law Firm Take Advantage of AI Overviews

Firms that adapt quickly will capture a significant market share, while others’ visibility will fade. Your opportunity to shine in AI Overviews for your practice areas is now! Let’s discuss how Consultwebs can help your law firm capitalize on this opportunity before your competitors do. Contact us today to arrange a consultation.

The post AI Overviews for Attorneys: Winning the New Search Game appeared first on Consultwebs.

Their full report delves into key findings, including the rise of social media advertising, the dominance of specific industries, and the role of OTT platforms in shaping the future of digital marketing. Below we summarize the must know digital marketing information for attorneys.

US Ad Spend on Social Channels Climbs 15% YoY

Social media continues to be a dominant force in digital advertising. Social ad channels, including Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok, accounted for the vast majority of digital ad spend in the US. 

These platforms outpaced OTT and desktop/mobile display advertising, growing by 15% year-over-year (YoY). This trend further illustrates how brands have leaned more on social media to engage their audiences and reinforces the importance for attorneys to make authentic connections with clients and potential clients in these online spaces.

TLDR; Social media is an ever-growing part of digital marketing plans. Don’t count paid social media out of your law firm’s marketing strategies!

Social Media Trends: Facebook Dominates, but Other Platforms Gain Ground

Facebook remains the top social ad channel, accounting for 36% of US social ad spend in the first half of 2024. Other platforms, such as Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube, gained market share as well.

Notably, Instagram led all US social ad channels with 27% YoY growth. TikTok followed with 19% growth, while X (formerly Twitter) was the only platform to experience a decline in ad spend. The fall of Twitter/X has been an unsurprising one for many marketers, while TikTok’s growth may surprise many due to questions surrounding its possible ban.

TLDR; Attorneys should be prioritizing Meta platforms for paid campaigns. Don’t count out LinkedIn either, especially for organic social media and cultivating a network of peers.

Audience Insights: Understanding Demographics on Social Platforms

Brands tailor their ad spend to reach specific audience demographics across social media platforms:

• Pinterest: Dominated by female users.
• X and LinkedIn: Skew more toward male users.
• Instagram and YouTube: Have balanced gender and age distributions.

Data Source for graphs: Sensor Tower

The demographic data is a helpful tool that allows advertisers to best optimize attorney ads.

OTT Advertising Surpasses $10 Billion in 2024

OTT (Over-the-Top) advertising has become a game-changer for marketers looking to extend their reach beyond traditional channels. Unlike cable TV ads, OTT allows advertisers to target specific audiences on streaming platforms like Hulu, YouTube, and Roku, reaching users on smart TVs, mobile devices, and gaming consoles. Another major selling point for OTT advertisements is its price point–it is much more affordable than traditional TV advertising.

OTT ad spend in the US surpassed $10 billion in the first eight months of 2024, marking a 13% YoY increase. Growth in OTT ad spend has outpaced desktop and mobile display ads (+11% YoY) but remains slightly behind social media advertising (+15% YoY).

TLDR; OTT could be a great addition to attorneys’ digital marketing campaigns who are looking to expand their audience and reach past traditional tv commercials.

Streaming Services: Peacock’s Olympic Boost and Hulu’s Continued Dominance

Major sporting events continue to drive OTT engagement. The Paris Olympics provided a significant boost for Peacock, increasing its US OTT ad market share from 6.8% in 2023 to 8.2% in 2024. During the Olympics, Peacock averaged nearly 3 million daily active users, marking a 130% increase from its 2024 pre-Olympic average.

Hulu remains the leader in OTT advertising, surpassing 10 billion monthly impressions in 2024. Pluto TV and Tubi are closely competing for the #2 and #3 spots. Since launching its ad-supported tier in 2022, Netflix has seen substantial growth, though its ad-supported audience remains a small fraction of its overall user base. Its targeting options are also currently national only, so is slightly less appealing to small businesses.

Ad Category Trends on Streaming Services

Each streaming service attracts different advertising categories:

• Peacock & Tubi: Financial Services dominated ad spend.
• Pluto TV: Automotive brands, including Nissan, Chevrolet, Toyota, and Hyundai, were the top advertisers.
• Netflix: Travel & Tourism accounted for 18% of its US ad spend, driven by brands like Airbnb and Expedia.

Methodology: How Digital Advertising Data Is Collected

The data presented in this report was compiled by Sensor Tower’s Insights team using Pathmatics by Sensor Tower Digital Advertising Insights. The estimates cover ad spending through August 31, 2024, based on a sample of digital ads collected from select channels in each market.

Pathmatics employs two leading data sourcing technologies: panels and data aggregators. By utilizing statistical sampling methods, the platform estimates impressions, cost per thousand impressions (CPMs), and total ad spend for each creative. Notably, OTT data is derived from real OTT & CTV viewers, representing popular streaming services such as Hulu, Netflix, Pluto TV, Tubi, Peacock, and Paramount+.

What’s Next for Law Firm Advertising? Let’s Map Out Your Future Together.

Digital advertising is more dynamic than ever. With social media and OTT leading the way, it’s important to consider how the shape of advertising influences your law firm’s strategy. 

Attorneys need a trusted partner who is informed on paid advertising strategy refinement to maximize their ad spend efficiency and to reach the right audiences in the right places. Speak with us one-on-one today to discuss your paid advertising options.

The post The State of Digital Advertising in 2024: Trends, Growth, and Market Insights Attorneys NEED To Know appeared first on Consultwebs.

SearchGPT is a search engine created by OpenAI. It differs from search engines like Google and Bing because, at the foundational level, they are looking for specific words that match the search terms. Instead, SearchGPT uses AI to understand the intent behind a user’s query and delivers direct answers, not just a list of relevant websites with possible answers to the query that require the user to visit and search each listed site for the answer.

SearchGPT also cites its sources of information, allowing you to fact-check the data. SearchGPT is a conversational tool, which means you can have a conversation with it, allowing you to ask follow-up questions or refine what you’re looking for instead of starting over with a new search attempt. It also has the ability to have voice conversations, enabling a more natural and hands-free way of searching.

How SearchGPT Works

While OpenAI has not made public the exact way SearchGPT works, its process does appear to blend various AI techniques with real-time search capabilities via web search. Here’s a simplified breakdown:

1. Understanding Your Query
   SearchGPT interprets your query, allowing it to understand its meaning, context, and intent. This lets it provide relevant answers whether your question is broad (“What are pain and suffering damages?”) or specific (“What is the statute of limitations for personal injury cases in Texas?”).
2. Finding Relevant
   InformationSearchGPT uses real-time web data, some of which is sourced from trusted sources through partnerships like the ones mentioned below. This helps it ensure the information it provides is up-to-date and reliable.
3. Delivering Contextual Answers
   Google and Bing provide just a list of links, whereas SearchGPT analyzes the most relevant information sources on the topic and presents a concise, conversational answer. It also provides links to its sources, allowing you to check them and look further into the subject if you want to.

Why It Matters for Personal Injury Lawyers

Saves Time: SearchGPT can help you find sources quickly without having to search through multiple websites for an authoritative source or data.
Transparency and Trust: With sources linked, you can quickly verify facts or reference original sources for your research. This also applies to potential clients who may see your website in the source links of a question they are trying to answer.
Interactive: You can ask follow-up questions to further research specific legal concepts or scenarios.

Partnerships

OpenAI has partnered with several media companies to provide data that allows up-to-date information on topics like weather, stocks, sports, news, and maps. Below are some examples of those partnerships:

• Associated Press
• Axel Springer
• Conde Nast
• Dotdash Meredith
• Financial Times
• GEDI
• Hearst
• Le Monde
• News Corp
• Price (El Pais)
• Reuters
• The Atlantic
• Time
• Vox Media

Observations From Leveraging SearchGPT

As digital marketing in the legal field changes, it is key for us to understand how tools like SearchGPT interpret and present results. SearchGPT introduces new dynamics in search that law firms can capitalize on to connect with potential clients.

1. Beyond Traditional Rankings: We have often seen that the responses from SearchGPT do not rank in the top 100 search results in Google. This tells us it is not just looking at well-ranked content but also well-indexed, high-quality content. Personal injury lawyers can benefit by creating comprehensive content that covers client pain points and get potential results because of the quality, context, and authority of the firm and content, even if it’s not on page 1. Rankings are not a key driver of a successful campaign these days but an indicator of direction.
2. Expertise Wins: For specialized queries, SearchGPT often outperforms the results in Google and Bing, making it a great tool for personal injury firms targeting unique case types, such as specific types of accidents or injury claims. This further shows us the need to craft highly focused, authoritative content to answer nuanced client questions.
3. Local Search Feature Is Weak: SearchGPT’s local search experience lacks reliability. For personal injury law firms, this underscores the importance of optimizing for local SEO and ensuring accurate and consistent information across the web and on your website.
4. Brand Consistency: Consistent messaging across all online presence seems to help with showing up in SearchGPT. Your firm’s content should align with client expectations while addressing common variations in search phrasing.
5. Content Opportunities: SearchGPT understands time-sensitive questions. Personal injury law firms can take advantage of this by publishing timely updates on legal changes, case trends, or high-visibility local events related to their practice areas.

One thing to note is that anything related to AI evolves quickly, which means lots of change in little time. Often, you can ask a question and then ask it again and end up with different answers and sources of information. While it is likely that the answer is still just as accurate, it can mean you may show up as a cited source in one search but not another. The best you can do is create well-structured, comprehensive content and get brand mentions in hopes of showing up more often until more ways to gain visibility come to light.
Here is an example of searching for “I was in a car accident and suffered a broken leg. Should I talk to an attorney?” We asked this three times and got three very different answers.

First Attempt:

Second Attempt:

This attempt did not show icons for sources, but when we clicked Sources, it opened them up, and we did see an overlap here. The same source icon from the above and below was also here, showing that that firm was doing a good job covering this topic because it was cited in all three attempts, but other sources did vary.

Third Attempt:

SearchGPT vs. Google vs. Bing

Now, let’s look at how SearchGPT compares to Google and Bing and how to use this information in your digital marketing strategies. Here’s how these platforms differ and why these differences matter to your online presence.

Natural Language vs. Traditional Search

SearchGPT is a conversational AI that allows users to speak naturally to it and refine their request through follow-up questions or directions to SearchGPT. This is closer to how potential clients might ask about your legal services, such as, “How do I file a personal injury claim after a car accident?”

Google and Bing rely heavily on keyword-based searches. While it has improved, it still does not provide a good direct answer in the results and requires you to search through the content it thinks answers your keyword or phrase search.

Key Takeaway: Creating conversational, client-focused content that is well structured can help your visibility on SearchGPT and is often more in line with what users are looking for.

Immediate Answers vs. Resource Collections

SearchGPT provides a direct answer by aggregating data from various sources and then citing those sources. This offers potential clients better clarity. For example, “What is the statute of limitations for personal injury cases in [your state]?”
Google and Bing provide a list of links that require users to sort through multiple sites to find the information they need. This traditional approach is more involved and takes more time.

Key Takeaway: Position your firm as a trusted source by offering concise, authoritative content that can be used as a source in AI’s responses.

Remembers Your Questions vs. Forgets Each Time

One of SearchGPT’s features is its ability to maintain context across requests from users. For example, a client might ask, “How much is my car accident case worth?” and then follow up with, “What if the other driver is uninsured?” SearchGPT takes into account the previous interactions when answering this follow-up question just like if you were talking to another person.

Traditional search engines treat each search as an isolated request. This requires users to repeatedly rephrase or refine their search requests until they find what they are looking for.

Key Takeaway: Offer comprehensive content that covers various client pain points in a structured manner. Cover various follow-up questions a potential client might ask.

SearchGPT vs. Google AI Overviews

Similarities Between SearchGPT and Google AI Overviews

Both platforms work to streamline searching for something:

1. AI Summarization: Both use AI to condense information from multiple sources, making it easier for users to find answers quickly.
2. Direct Answers: Instead of listing links, both tools provide concise responses to user requests.
3. Natural Language Processing: Both understand conversational queries rather than requiring specific keywords or search operators
4. Source Integration: Both pull information from various sources and combine it into a coherent answer

Key Differences Between SearchGPT and Google AI Overviews

1. Source Attribution
   • SearchGPT: It gives you citations with clickable links to sources used to provide the answer. This helps with trust and credibility, which are key for legal topics.
   • Google AI Overviews: It does not have as much direct attribution, which makes it harder for users to fact-check the source of information. However, this is constantly changing. Some days, we see good attribution, and at other times, it’s gone. This will stabilize and improve over time. Its still experimental.
2. Conversational Experience
   • SearchGPT: It lets you have a conversation to get your answer. You can ask follow-up questions and refine your request. This is similar to how a client might talk to you during a consultation. For example, a user might ask, “What should I do after a slip-and-fall accident?” and follow up with, “What evidence should I gather?”
   • Google AI Overviews: Offers single, static responses, and if you do another search, it does not consider what you asked previously, so it is like starting an entirely new conversation.
3. Scope and Depth
   • SearchGPT: Draws from a wide variety of sources and provides easy-to-understand answers. It can also respond with multimedia elements at times.
   • Google AI Overviews: Focuses on brief overviews, emphasizing key points and offering links for deeper exploration.
4. Customization Capabilities
   • SearchGPT: Can be given more context on your firm’s specific content, allowing for personalized responses that reflect your practice areas and expertise as you continue the conversation.
   • Google AI Overviews: Uses general web content without customization for individual businesses or practices.
5. Accuracy & Reliability
   • SearchGPT: Provides detailed answers with citations, aiding fact-checking. In some cases it can even be more accurate on niche queries than traditional search engines (searchenginejournal.com)​. However, as a generative model it may still hallucinate or misattribute information – studies found AI search engines (including OpenAI’s) answered over 60% of queries incorrectly in tests​ (seroundtable.com).
   • Google AI Overviews: Leverages Google’s vast index and tends to cite authoritative sources, but it is not infallible. There have been notable errors – e.g. early on it gave incorrect and even dangerous advice (touting the “health benefits” of unsafe actions)​. Google adds a disclaimer (“Generative AI is experimental”) and often sticks to basic factual queries (where it achieved high accuracy in evaluations​), avoiding answers when reliability is in doubt.
6. Update Frequency & Recency
   • SearchGPT: Offers real-time information by querying live web content on the fly​. This means SearchGPT can include very recent updates or news that weren’t part of its original training data. Users have observed it has a strong grasp of time-sensitive queries, sometimes responding with up-to-the-minute info better than Google’s snapshot did​ (searchenginejournal.com). (Its base model has a training cutoff, but the web search integration mitigates that.)
   • Google AI Overviews: Built on Google’s continuously crawled index of the web, which is updated frequently. In practice it can handle current events well (Google indexes news sites within minutes), but the AI summary might not always incorporate breaking info unless it’s in the index and corroborated by multiple sources. In fact, SearchGPT showed a better understanding of some very recent queries than Google’s AI did​ (searchenginejournal.com), possibly because Google sometimes opts not to generate an overview if the info is too new or not yet verified. Google’s approach is cautious: if confidence in a fresh answer is low, it will just show regular results instead of an AI summary.

As AI tools become more popular by the day, it is vital for law firms to continue to improve their content and how they connect with potential clients. Well-structured content, good context, and user-focused topics answering their questions and potential follow-up questions are necessary. Well-structured markup for helping AIs to understand the content is also critical now. Make your content informative and engaging. If you need help with this, contact Consultwebs and let us assist in ensuring your content and website are set up for future success in what is becoming an AI-driven world.

The post Everything You Need To Know About SearchGPT appeared first on Consultwebs.

Spoiler alert! There are pros and cons to AI tech in regards to legal content.

The Appeal of AI-Generated Legal Content

Time-saving

24/7 Availability

Cost Effective

At first glance, AI writing may appear to be very good. It can be difficult to distinguish from a typical human writer to the untrained eye. It is undoubtedly a time-saving tool that assists in outlining drafting pages and blogs. The level of output and AI can push out and comparison to a human is quite hefty.

Not to mention it is available 24/7 so when something comes up after working hours, you can consult a robot very easily. It is time-saving and cost-effective. However, these benefits do not come without concerns.

Drawbacks of AI-Generated Legal Content

Inauthentic

Repetitive

Factual Accuracy

When we talk about AI and authenticity, we can’t forget the Gemini ad that recently sparked controversy among viewers during the Olympic Games. The now-pulled advertisement showed a father teaching his daughter how to write a letter to an Olympian telling them how inspiring they are.

Many called it tone-deaf, commenting that it misses the mark of fostering meaningful connections between humans. Recipients of fan mail don’t want a perfect letter. They want the charm of a child’s letter. Similarly, when website visitors come to your page they want to see an authentic insight into your firm.

Repetition is another drawback to using AI for content. It is known to paraphrase itself frequently and can say a lot without really saying anything at all. The American Bar Association has also recently released a formal onion on AI usage.

Possibly the most concerning red flag to watch for with AI usage is factual accuracy. At the beginning of the AI craze, outdated information was a common output. However, AI making up stats and inaccurate facts is another huge issue. A human reviewer is required to avoid these pitfalls.

How do I know if my vendors are using AI?

These methods are not 100% accurate, however, these tools and tells are a few ways to know if your content teams are using AI.

• Ask them!
• AI Content Detectors like Copyleaks.com
• Placeholder Text – [insert name here] type text
• Lack of proper sources cited for facts or statistics
• Repetitive phrases and excessive use of buzzwords

Find buzzwords commonly used in AI-generated content below. It’s important to note that these phrases and words alone are not cause for alarm, however, multiple uses in instances where they might not make sense paired with other red flags may mean you want to take a closer look at your content.

AI Myths

Myth number one – AI can replace employees.

Humans fear change – it’s natural. And with these technological advances many fear for their jobs. AI is not a solution for every problem, but it can be a great support tool.

Here are a few reasons why AI cannot fully replace an employee:

• AI lacks emotional intelligence.
• Facts must be thoroughly checked.
• Ideation does not equal creativity.
• AI needs someone to pilot it.
• It is limited to a specific source of data.

Instead of asking, how can I replace someone with AI? Ask how can I learn skills with AI or train my employees to more effectively do their job and free up their time to focus on tasks that require a higher level of expertise?

Myth number two – All AI usage is bad.

There are extreme opinions on both sides of the AI usage fence, and while it should be used with caution, there are several helpful uses for AI in legal content.

Some practical uses include:

• Ideation
• Grammar checks
• Rephrasing sentences
• Structure
• Consistent tone
• Summaries

Myth number three – I can use AI to create content for my entire website.

In a survey that Forbes conducted asking if people can tell whether content has been written by AI–more than 50% said yes. Many people feel that if someone did not take the time to personally create the content why should they the reader take the time to read it?

Clients assume website content is written by your law firm and the attorneys. By relying too heavily on AI it can undermine authenticity and the trust being placed in you.

Some other risks to publishing unedited AI content include that it is easily identifiable, it has the potential to rank poorly in search, it can be littered with offputting buzz words, and any factual mistakes could put your reputation at stake.

The Future of Legal Content: Balancing AI and Human Expertise

A statistic we urge attorneys to consider – “I trust companies that use AI to protect my personal data” Only 32% of Americans do.

Using AI as a support tool for your business has its benefits, but it’s important to remember you are marketing to humans who want connections with other humans. A robot will never know your business as well as you do.

Contact Consultwebs to speak about your legal content needs today!

The post Human Insight vs. Artificial Intelligence in Legal Content appeared first on Consultwebs.

However, this seemingly helpful technology can backfire. A potential client contacts the online chat, expecting a quick and useful response. But instead of receiving accurate information, the AI chatbot mistakenly sends them down the wrong legal path, causing significant delays and potentially jeopardizing their case.

While AI chatbots hold promise for the legal industry, the potential for such mishaps raises serious concerns. This article will examine the current limitations of AI chatbots and explore the legal risks associated with their use in the legal field. We’ll also discuss how law firms can navigate these challenges and ensure responsible technology implementation.

An Overview of AI Chatbots in Law

Nearly everyone is familiar with online chat support. Most law firm websites have a vendor they use to handle online chat leads. Real people manage most with scripts for different situations they follow. They can also connect someone with an attorney.

AI chatbots differ because there is no human quality control over the chats. An AI chatbot can be given directions, but similar to a human, there is a chance it will not follow them. Even worse, it can decide what to respond with, resulting in made-up or inaccurate information.

Now, let me clarify some things. The terminology is easy to mix up because we can say chatbot and refer to a tool like ChatGPT, or we can say chatbot and refer to something like your live chat on your website. For this article, we are covering your website and using AI-powered chat. We will reference some articles on tools like ChatGPT, but the main focus is the website chat option.

In one example of AI misbehavior, it tells people to break the law, which you can read more about in the article on Reuters. Now imagine if your law firm used an AI chatbot and it gave out inaccurate legal advice that caused harm to a potential client or a current client. What would the potential repercussions be? Would the state bar take action against your firm? Could it cause damage to your brand or business? Is the risk worth it? We think not at this stage.

AI chatbots are just as capable of making things up or giving inaccurate information as various AI tools like ChatGPT, Llama, Claude, Gemini, etc. This is not a risk a law firm should take. There is a place for testing and primetime use, but we are not at that point yet. For more on the privacy and concerns of using AI chatbots in-house, you can check out this Law.com article.

Common and Uncommon Challenges in AI Chatbot Integration

Privacy is the first concern for an AI-powered chat on your website that communicates with potential clients. If the chatbot is not isolated from the company behind it, then the information being put into it could be used to train specific models. If you use the retail version of ChatGPT, it can use anything you input to train the model, which means if a person’s private information was entered, it could show up in the wild later.

This is where personal identifiable information (PII) becomes critical. You do not want users to input certain confidential information. Since there is attorney-client privilege, you need to make sure whatever AI chatbot you are playing with is not sending the client’s information outside your law firm.

Data Privacy and Security

AI chatbots that collect user data without proper isolation or user consent can lead to privacy breaches and misuse of PII. This could include sensitive data accidentally being exposed or used to train the chatbot, potentially leaking confidential information.

An example would be a law firm using a generic AI chatbot that might inadvertently collect client data that gets integrated into the training model, leading to potential breaches of attorney-client privilege.

To prevent this, a law firm should implement data security measures, clearly outline data collection practices in a privacy policy, and only collect the minimum information necessary for the chatbot’s function. Additionally, consider using legal-specific AI chatbots designed with privacy in mind.

Compliance Issues

AI chatbots may not be programmed to comply with relevant regulations, such as:

• GDPR (data protection)
• HIPAA (healthcare data)
• California’s Bot Disclosure Law (California Business and Professions Code § 17940)

Non-compliance can result in hefty fines and reputational damage.

An example is a law firm in California that uses an AI chatbot that doesn’t disclose its AI nature, violating the state’s transparency law.

You must ensure the AI chatbot adheres to all relevant legal and ethical guidelines to prevent violations. Conduct regular compliance audits and update the chatbot as regulations evolve.

Risks Of AI Inaccuracy and Misinformation

Due to limitations in their training data or programming, AI chatbots can provide inaccurate or misleading legal information, which can have severe consequences for clients who rely on it. We mentioned the NYC example earlier, where it told people to do something that was a crime.

To avoid this, you need a high-quality chatbot with accurate legal data and integrated fact-checking mechanisms to verify information before responding. Human oversight and review are also critical. If you want to be on the cutting edge of technology, test it in-house. Have your staff use it to ask clients’ questions and see what sort of responses you get. See if they can break it and get it to return inaccurate information or something that could cause your potential clients or business harm.

Cross-Jurisdictional Complexity

AI chatbots may not be able to handle legal nuances across different jurisdictions. The chatbot may provide incorrect information or advice if it isn’t programmed for specific regions.

For example, a law firm with clients in different states uses a generic AI chatbot that provides legal advice based on a single state’s laws, potentially misleading clients in other states with different legal frameworks.

Ensure the chatbot is tailored to specific legal jurisdictions and disclose geographical limitations in chatbot functionality. Consider offering language translation options for clients.

Emotional Distress Management

AI has no emotions, which is a sticking point. Imagine your clients who reach out via an AI chatbot with emotionally charged inquiries and do not get the ideal customer service experience, which can lead to further frustration and distress for the client. AI may just respond without acknowledging the emotional aspects of the conversation. That is not ideal customer service for a law firm that deals with clients who are often under emotional pressure and need a gentle touch in how they are communicated to. This could lead that person to go elsewhere.

Always have an option to connect with a human representative for complex and emotionally sensitive matters.

While AI chatbots hold great potential for streamlining legal services and improving client access, their limitations require a cautious approach in the legal industry. By prioritizing data security, ensuring compliance, and focusing on accurate legal information, law firms can explore responsible implementation of AI chatbots to enhance the client experience without compromising the quality of legal services. If you have questions or need help vetting an AI chatbot vendor, you can contact us at (800) 278-5677 or contact@consultwebs.com.

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• Be Specific: Precision in your requests enhances the accuracy of AI responses.
• Be Clear: Direct language helps the AI understand and respond more effectively.
• Be Concise: Too much information can confuse the AI. Clarity is essential.
• Fact-Check: Given training data can be outdated and AIs can make errors, verify everything against current legal databases.
• Edit and Review: Use AI as a tool to create drafts and refine those drafts for accuracy.
• Give Context: Background information and/or specific circumstances can improve the output.
• Avoid Overly Broad or Vague Questions
• Don’t Use Legal Jargon Without Explanation
• Avoid Leading or Biased Questions
• Don’t Ignore the Importance of Context

How to Effectively Communicate with AI

AI is moving at a breakneck pace. The improvements to various AI capabilities and their integration into business practices are becoming easier by the week. This year will be key for law firms to learn and integrate AI into their practices. This will be a year of wider adoption as these tools become more stable in their use.

Communication is one key consideration for working with AI. Most AI systems require some input to guide the AI in helping you accomplish what you are trying to achieve. This has been termed prompt engineering. A prompt is an input message guiding an AI to help you achieve your target goal.

These can be very simple prompts like “Can you provide an outline of Illinois HB 2389?” to much more complex prompts like a chain of thought where you run a series of intermediate reasoning steps to get better results on more complex tasks that require reasoning before responding.

An example of a chain of thought is here:

Image Source: Wei et al. (2022)

Understanding Prompt engineering for Lawyers

Prompt engineering for Lawyers is a newer discipline, having really emerged upon the release of ChatGPT in late November 2022. Before we dive into the dos and don’ts, let’s clarify some terminology and just what we are dealing with when we reference AI today.

AI Today

We are not dealing with AI as we see in the movies such as Terminator, iRobot, and The Creator. Today, we are getting easy access to a piece of that puzzle. The AI in the movies is actually made up of many systems, such as:

• Deep Learning
• Generative AI
• Natural Language Processing (NLP)
• Computer Vision
• Robotics
• And more…

What we are seeing all the buzz around today is Generative AI. This is a subset of Deep Learning wherein a system can produce unique and realistic content from what it’s learned in a very large dataset. The most common of these today are Large Language Models (LLMs), which focus on language-based tasks. Their goal is to mimic human intelligence in tasks such as image recognition, natural language processing, and translation. LLMs reuse their training data to solve the problems you give them.

Large Language Models (LLMs)

You can think of LLMs as a huge library that stretches as far as the eye can see, filled with every book, article, and letter ever written. It’s unique because it can read and understand everything stored inside its vast collection. This allows you to ask it a question, and the virtual librarian runs through the library’s endless aisles to gather all the information needed to provide you with a response. Like any human, though, it is possible on occasion that the librarian misunderstands you and returns mixed-up information – but they are always learning and aiming to provide better answers every time you ask.

Machine Learning

You can think of machine learning like a child in the library. This child has a never-ending desire to understand patterns and stories from the books and other materials in the library. Each time they are shown a picture or told a story, they try to figure out the underlying pattern or lesson to it. They will get things wrong, but through every mistake and correction, they get a little better at predicting and understanding the next thing you show them.

Neural Network

This can be thought of as a group of children working together. Each child specializes in a different genre or subject in the library. When asked complex questions, they work together, passing notes among themselves and combining their specialized knowledge to come up with a comprehensive answer. Like a single child, the group can make mistakes but learn from these, too, which allows them to refine their cooperation and improve their collective understanding over time. This is how, piece by piece, question by question, they become better at helping you find exactly what you are looking for.

Now, when you communicate with the librarian, you need to be very specific about what you are looking for, almost like you’re talking to a child who is going to learn as they work with you. If you ask to be told a story, you could get anything from them, but if you ask to be told a “funny story about a dog that loves pant legs,” you are giving it specific details to work with, and you’ll get a much more specific and interesting story.

The Dos of Prompt Engineering for Lawyers

Be Specific About What You Ask

Specify the type of information or insights you are looking for. This can influence the accuracy and relevance of the response. Going back to the story example, instead of asking, “Tell me a story,” ask, “Tell me a funny story about a dog that loves pant legs.”

Example Prompt: “Identify key differences in copyright infringement laws between the United States and the European Union post-2018.”

Be Clear About What You Ask

Avoid ambiguous language, and be direct in your request. Clarity helps the AI understand the query better and reduces the chances of getting irrelevant information.

Example Prompt: “Explain the standard procedure for filing a patent application in Japan, including necessary documents and timelines.”

Be Concise

While it is good to be detailed, using too many words can confuse the AI. Try to be clear and specific without adding extra information that is unnecessary. This helps keep your question on point.

Example Prompt: “List the steps for initiating a small claims case in Texas, including any required forms.”

Fact-Check the Output

Always, let me repeat that ALWAYS verify AI-generated information with current legal databases and resources. LLMs are not up to date. They are trained on data up to a certain point and, therefore, can produce outdated or incorrect information. Even worse, in some cases, it will just make something up.

Example Outcome of Not Fact-Checking: A lawyer in New York used ChatGPT to pull case law and did not fact-check it against the legal databases available. The judge was not familiar with the cited case law, so he went to check the cases but could not find them anywhere. The judge confronted the lawyer, and the lawyer said he used ChatGPT but did not check the case law it returned. It turns out ChatGPTjust made up a bunch of case law.

Edit and Review the Output

Use the initial response as a draft product. Edit and refine it to your liking and understanding. This way, you can tailor it more closely to your needs and catch and correct any inaccuracies.

Practical Tip: After generating your draft document, review and adjust the language to ensure it meets legal standards and is appropriate for your intended audience.

Give Context

Providing background information or the specific circumstances surrounding your request can significantly improve the relevance and precision of the response. There is a fine line here, though, when keeping to the other tip of being concise. There is nothing wrong with testing longer requests. In some cases, the added detail is necessary.

Example Prompt: “Considering the recent amendments to the commercial leasing laws in New York, how might these changes impact tenant obligations?”

Note: It is often better in situations like this to provide the recent amendments or information in a .docx format and attach it to your request. A revised prompt when doing that would be “Considering the recent amendments in the attached document for the commercial leasing laws in New York, how might these changes impact tenant obligations?”

Note: You can take an added step in this and first upload the document and ask the AI to “Please review the attached document and summarize what is in it so I know you understand it all.” Then, go back and use the previous prompt. This way, you make sure it reads and analyzes the full document.

The Don’ts of Prompt Engineering for Lawyers

Avoid Overly Broad or Vague Questions

Providing prompts that are overly broad or vague can lead to answers that don’t help. In law, it’s very important to be specific because even small details can change how laws are understood or applied. An example of the impact is a broad question that can lead to an overwhelming amount of output information, most of which will not apply to your issue or question.

Example of a Poor Prompt: “Tell me about property law.”

This is broad and does not specify the jurisdiction, type of property law (commercial, residential), or the issue you’re trying to resolve.

Example of a Good Prompt: “Explain the process of transferring residential property titles in Florida, focusing on any mandatory disclosure requirements.”

Don’t Use Legal Jargon Without Explanation

Using dense legal jargon or overly technical terms without context can confuse AI models, especially if it has multiple meanings or is used differently in different jurisdictions.

The impact can lead the AI models to misinterpret various terminology. This then leads to incorrect or irrelevant information.

Example of a Poor Prompt: “Discuss the application of the doctrine of laches in recovery actions.”

Without specifying jurisdiction or context, the AI may provide incorrect information.

Example of a Good Prompt: “Explain how the doctrine of laches is applied in California copyright infringement cases.”

Avoid Leading or Biased Questions

The LLMs are not biased, but the information they are trained on can be, so bias can come out in responses to your requests. To help prevent additional bias, make sure to avoid questions that imply a certain answer or are skewed to a certain response. If this is not done, it can lead to a confirmation of the bias rather than an objective analysis.

This can result in a lack of comprehensive insight or overlook critical aspects of a case, reducing the effectiveness of your legal research or argument preparation.

Example of a Poor Prompt: “Why is the opposing party’s argument in this case unfounded?”

This assumes that the argument has no foundation, which may not be an objective starting point for analysis.

Example of a Good Prompt: “What are the strengths and weaknesses of the opposing party’s argument in this case?”

Don’t Ignore the Importance of Context

If you do not provide enough context or background information, it can lead the AI to make assumptions or ignore critical factors relevant to the request.

This can have a drastic impact on the accuracy and usefulness of the response.

Example of a Poor Prompt: “How to draft a will”

Example of a Good Prompt: “What are the legal requirements for drafting a valid will in New York, considering a scenario involving overseas assets?”

Limitations and Ethical Considerations

These tools have limitations, and they start with the LLMs and the data they are trained on.

• AI was trained on 13 trillion tokens. The term “token” refers to a chunk of text that the model reads or generates. A token is typically not a word. It could be a smaller unit, like a character or a part of a word, or a larger one, like a whole phrase.
• AI does not understand legal principles or ethics in the human sense but processes patterns in data. It does not have the understanding and judgment that come naturally to experienced legal professionals. Think of it as a smart word sorter. It can put words together in ways it has learned, but it doesn’t really understand laws or right and wrong like a lawyer does.
• The use of outdated information, misinterpretation of complex legal questions, or overlooking nuances in a case are all possible and why human oversight is still required. You should use AI to augment your practice, not to replace an expert’s judgment and expertise. Always double-check the AI’s work as you would a junior lawyer’s draft.

Personal Identifiable Information (PII)

PII is another thing to watch out for. From a privacy standpoint, you should not be putting anything into a retail tool like ChatGPT that can identify someone, and if your settings are not correct, it can use that information in its training.

Public data is an exception here since it’s already available online, so business phone numbers and employee names are not as much of a concern, but Social Security numbers and individual cellphone numbers are.

Also, be careful about how you match this information up. While a name might be public, the unique case situation may not be, so putting them together could potentially put information out there that should remain private. You can always look at anonymizing the information.

You can adjust this in the settings by turning off Chat History & Training in the Data Controls section. This will then make it so any chat sessions are not saved on your browser or used for training on OpenAI’s side in the case of ChatGPT. You should know they still store all data for 30 days for safety reasons.

We highly recommend you embrace this technology and begin using it, even if just to get experience with the tools and a better understanding of how to use them. Prompt engineering is a way to leverage AI technology effectively and ethically, so get some hands-on experience. This technology is not going anywhere and will be a part of businesses regardless of industry. We are already seeing heavy use of it in many fields. Now is the time for adoption.

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