Google Maps Marketing for Criminal Defense Lawyers: Why Reviews Matter

By Dustin Sanchez | Dustin Sanchez Media

Google Maps marketing for criminal defense lawyers means improving your Google Business Profile so potential clients can find your firm, evaluate it, and contact you. Google reviews matter because they help people decide whether they trust you. Google also says more reviews and positive ratings can help your local rankings.

Let’s say somebody searches for a criminal defense attorney in your city. They don’t know you. They don’t know the lawyer down the street. They’re looking at names, star ratings, and reviews, trying to figure out who to call.

What are you giving that person to work with?

You can tell them you care about your clients. You can tell them you answer questions and explain what’s going on. But when somebody else says those things about you, now that person has something besides your own marketing to consider.

That’s why I put Google reviews near the top of the list when I talk about criminal defense lawyer marketing.

Want help figuring out where your firm should focus? Book a discovery call with Dustin Sanchez and let’s talk about your criminal defense marketing.

Why Google Maps Matters for Criminal Defense Lawyers

When I started doing this, we talked about the Google Maps seven-pack. These days, you’ll often see a smaller group of local business listings in the search results. People usually call that the local pack or the Maps three-pack. The layout can vary, and paid placements can appear too.

Whatever the layout looks like, here’s the opportunity: someone can see your firm, read your reviews, and contact you right from that listing.

They might not read five pages of your website first. They might be sitting at their kitchen table with a charging document, or trying to help a family member who just got arrested.

They have a problem. They’re looking for someone who can help. Your listing needs to make the next step obvious.

I covered this topic with Bret Moleta on the Lawyer Marketing Show. You can watch that conversation in my article about Google Maps rankings for lawyers, including discussions about reviews, local citations, and your website.

Do Google Reviews Help Criminal Defense Lawyers Rank on Maps?

Yes. Google says more reviews and positive ratings can help a business’s local ranking. But reviews aren’t the whole algorithm. Google describes three main factors:

• Relevance: How well your business matches what someone is searching for.
• Distance: How far your business is from the searcher or the location used in the search.
• Prominence: How well-known your business is, including information such as links and reviews.

That means the lawyer with the most reviews doesn’t automatically win every search. Location and relevance still matter. You can read Google’s explanation of local ranking here.

But reviews are something you can build a process around. You can’t control where every potential client is standing when they search. You can control whether your office consistently asks clients for honest feedback.

How Many Google Reviews Does a Criminal Defense Lawyer Need?

There is no universal review count that guarantees a top-three Google Maps position. Your market, nearby competitors, location, and the rest of your online presence all affect the situation.

So if you ask me, “Dustin, can we just get 200 reviews and be done with it?” my answer is no.

Not because 200 is bad. Because I don’t want you treating this like a project you finish and forget about.

Your firm keeps serving clients. Your process for asking for honest feedback should keep working too.

And don’t judge your profile by the number alone. Read what people are saying. Are they describing the experience you want a potential client to understand?

“They answered my questions.”

“They kept me informed.”

“I could actually get someone on the phone.”

Those are the kinds of details a nervous person comparing lawyers may care about. You don’t write those reviews for people. You provide the service and give them an opportunity to describe it.

Why I Want You Getting New Google Reviews Consistently

Imagine comparing two firms. One has reviews from people describing their recent experience. The other has a bunch of reviews, but the newest one is several years old.

Which gives you a better feel for what it might be like to call that office today?

That’s the practical reason I want an ongoing process. Recent feedback gives potential clients more current information about your firm.

Google doesn’t publish a required review schedule. There isn’t a magic number of reviews per week that guarantees you a ranking.

My recommendation is simple: build a repeatable process instead of waiting until you notice the competition has passed you.

How to Get More Google Reviews for Your Criminal Defense Law Firm

This doesn’t need to be complicated. It does need someone responsible for making it happen.

1. Get your direct Google review link. Make it easy for someone to reach the review form instead of making them hunt for your listing.
2. Choose an appropriate point to ask. Work the request into your client-service process when it makes sense for the relationship and circumstances.
3. Ask for an honest review. Let the person describe their experience in their own words.
4. Assign responsibility. If everybody thinks somebody else is doing it, it probably isn’t happening.
5. Use automation where it helps. A simple request workflow can reduce the amount your staff has to remember. Automation sends the request. The client writes the review.

I also have a separate guide on getting more online reviews for your business, including an email-request example. The basic idea is to make asking for feedback part of your process instead of relying on somebody to remember.

A Simple Google Review Request

Thank you for working with our office. If you’d like to share your experience, here’s our Google review link: [INSERT YOUR GOOGLE REVIEW LINK]. We appreciate your honest feedback. Please leave out private details about your matter.

That’s enough. You don’t need to send somebody a five-paragraph explanation of how important reviews are to your marketing.

And keep it legitimate. Google prohibits paid or incentivized reviews, fake experiences, and selectively soliciting positive reviews. Don’t offer a gift card, write reviews for clients, or ask only people you expect to give you five stars. You can read Google’s review policies here.

Your Google Business Profile Needs to Match the Office People Will Reach

Reviews are important, but take a look at the rest of the listing too.

• Is your phone number correct?
• Are your office hours accurate?
• Does your website link work?
• Does the profile clearly describe the legal services you actually provide?
• Does the information match the firm someone will reach when they call?

These are basic checks. They’re also easy to overlook when you’re in court, answering client questions, and trying to run a business.

I’d rather you have accurate information and a process that works than spend another month chasing some clever trick while your listing sends people to the wrong phone number.

Getting the Phone to Ring Is Only Part of the Job

Let’s assume your Google Maps marketing works. Somebody finds you, reads your reviews, and calls your office.

Then what?

If that call goes unanswered, you may have just sent them to the next attorney on the list. And if someone answers but can’t explain the next step, you still have a problem.

It’s a sales call.

That doesn’t mean being pushy. It means helping a complete stranger understand whether your office can help, what happens next, and how to move forward.

Somebody needs to answer the phone. That person needs to care. And they need to know how to move the conversation toward the next appropriate step.

The goal is paying clients for your law firm. Keep that in mind when you look at rankings, profile activity, and incoming calls.

Frequently Asked Questions About Google Maps Marketing for Criminal Defense Lawyers

Are Google Maps Listings the Same as Google Local Services Ads?

No. Your Google Business Profile is your business listing on Google Search and Maps. Local Services Ads are a separate paid advertising product. Don’t confuse an ad placement with an unpaid local ranking.

Can a Criminal Defense Firm With Fewer Reviews Outrank One With More?

Yes. Reviews are one part of local ranking. A firm with fewer reviews can still appear higher because relevance, distance, and other prominence signals also matter.

Should I Stop Asking for Reviews Once I Have More Than My Competitors?

I wouldn’t. Keep asking for honest feedback as part of your normal process. The point is to give people useful information about your firm, rather than hit a number and stop.

Can Google Review Requests Be Automated?

Yes. You can use a workflow to send review requests consistently. The reviews themselves must come from real people describing their actual experience. Don’t use software to manufacture reviews.

Do Google Reviews Replace the Need for a Law Firm Website?

No. Your listing helps people find and evaluate your firm, while your website gives you room to explain your services, answer questions, and help visitors take the next step. I want those pieces working together.

Want Help With Your Criminal Defense Law Firm’s Marketing?

You don’t need another marketing report that leaves you wondering what to do next.

You need to know where the opportunity is. Is it your Google Business Profile? Your review process? Your website? Or are people already calling and the breakdown is happening after the phone rings?

At Dustin Sanchez Media, I work with lawyers on SEO, Google Business Profile marketing, review-request workflows, and video content.

If you want help figuring out what makes sense for your firm, let’s have that conversation.

Book your discovery call with Dustin Sanchez.

Tell me where you practice, what you’re doing now, and where you’re getting stuck. We’ll talk about your marketing and whether working together makes sense.