Multi-Site Strategy to Dominate Multiple Practice Areas
The Challenge
Chaffe & Chaffe handles family law, criminal defense, DUI, and traffic violations. Four distinct practice areas, each with its own competitive landscape. That's the problem with being a firm that does multiple things well: you're competing against firms that only do one thing. They were referred to us by another Richmond law firm client who had seen results from the same approach.
A single website trying to rank for all four practice areas would struggle against specialized firms that focus on just one. Google rewards topical authority, and a generalist site dilutes that authority across too many topics. When someone searches for "DUI attorney near me," the sites that rank highest tend to be the ones entirely dedicated to DUI defense. A firm with a general website covering family law, criminal defense, DUI, and traffic tickets all on one domain is at a disadvantage.
The firm's existing single website wasn't generating the volume of leads they needed, and they were losing visibility to more focused competitors in each of their practice areas. They needed a strategy that would let them compete as a specialist in every area they serve.
Our Solution
Instead of one website trying to do everything, we designed and built four specialized websites, each dedicated to a single practice area. It's a multi-site strategy that lets the firm show up as a focused specialist everywhere that matters.
Four Dedicated Practice Area Sites
We built four separate, specialized websites for the firm:
- Virginia Family Lawyers - covering divorce, child custody, child support, and uncontested divorce
- Henrico Criminal Attorney - dedicated to criminal defense
- Richmond DUI Attorney - focused exclusively on DUI cases
- Richmond Traffic Attorney - handling traffic law matters
Each website focuses entirely on one legal niche. This allows for deep, specialized content that establishes each site as an authority on its specific topic, which is exactly what Google's algorithm rewards. We built each site on WordPress with custom themes tailored to the practice area. The design, messaging, and content all reinforce that this is a firm that specializes in this one thing.
Targeted Keyword Strategy
Each site has its own keyword strategy focused solely on its practice area. The DUI site targets DUI terms. The traffic site targets traffic terms. No dilution, no competition between your own properties.
We applied local SEO best practices across every site, optimizing Google Business Profiles, building local citations, and creating location-specific content for the areas the firm serves. Each site has its own GBP listing, which means the firm can show up multiple times in the Map Pack for different search queries. Someone searching for a DUI lawyer sees one listing. Someone searching for a traffic attorney sees another. Same firm, different entry points.
Compete Against Specialists
Now, instead of one generalist site competing against multiple specialist firms, each of the firm's four sites competes as a specialist in its own right. The DUI site goes head-to-head with other DUI-focused firms. The criminal defense site competes directly with other criminal defense practices. The family law site takes on divorce and custody specialists.
This approach also gives us more real estate in search results. When a firm has four well-optimized sites instead of one, they have four chances to show up on page one for related queries. It's a competitive advantage that most law firms don't think about.
The Results
The multi-site strategy produced results that a single website approach simply couldn't have matched.
The Virginia Family Lawyers site ranked on page 1 within just 3 weeks. The Henrico Criminal Attorney, Richmond DUI Attorney, and Richmond Traffic Attorney sites all reached page 1 within 30 days.
Significantly higher volume of qualified leads compared to when the firm relied on a single consolidated website. Four entry points means four times the opportunities for potential clients to find the firm.
The firm now shows up as an authority across four distinct legal markets simultaneously, with dedicated search presence in family law, criminal defense, DUI, and traffic law.
Thomas Chaffe saw the ROI immediately. All four sites hit page 1 within 30 days or less. The multi-site approach costs more upfront than building one website, but the return in lead volume and search visibility more than justifies it. This strategy works especially well for professional service firms that serve distinct client segments.
"We contracted with Michael to develop a series of websites concentrating on attorney marketing and the results have far exceeded expectations. Their results-oriented approach delivers a strong return on investment."
— Thomas Chaffe
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