Lots of attorneys create webpages through multiple sources. Far too often, they then resort to the use of generic stock photos throughout the webpage. The stock photos are often of courthouses, the city where the law firm practices, fake families or fake attorneys and clients in a law office or going in and out of court.

If you ever have somebody view and rate our webpage objectively, if you use stock photos, the rating is not going to be good. You are also going to struggle to get business if you use these stock photographs on your webpage. Why use stock photos in the first place? Why not use your own camera and create some custom photos or pay a professional photographer to come into the law office?

With the easiness of taking and editing photographs these days, there really isn’t much of an excuse. Maybe they think they are not photogenic for a variety of reasons? Maybe they think they are too young, too old or have some other hang-up? Maybe they feel as if they don’t have the time to pose for photographs?

Regardless of the reasons, if you want to have success online, you have to ditch the stock photos. The stock photos tell the client nothing about your law firm. It doesn’t show them how the law firm looks.  It doesn’t show them how the attorneys present themselves. This will cause potential clients hesitancy to hire your law firm because it looks like you are putting up a front for what you want your law firm to be versus what it actually is.

Even if you wish your law firm looked different, you must give clients reasonable expectations of what to expect. It just isn’t informative to see photos of fake families and fake attorneys or generic photos of the city in which the law firm is located.

So, if you are using stock photos on your webpage, it’s time to get some real photographs done. Go buy yourself a camera and take some photographs or pay to have somebody come in and do it professionally.

If the look of your law firm, or your own appearance causes you pause, consider re-decorating or re-locating your law office. If your own fashion gives you second thoughts, get hooked up with somebody who can help you feel more comfortable about your appearance. If you feel you don’t have the time, make the time and carve out a couple of hours (even if on the weekend) and just do it.

But at the end of the day, if you want success online, potential clients need to see your law firm for what it is. They need to see authenticity. They need to see you and your law firm (the good, the bad and the ugly). To accomplish this, a good first step is to ditch the stock photographs.

If you have any thoughts, feel free to share them below.