In July, members of the 9Sail team, including Robyn Addis, Chief Revenue Officer; one of 9Sail’s digital strategists, Taylor Tobey; Joe Giovannoli, 9Sail’s CEO; and 9Sail’s Client Success Manager, Jordanna Kalkhof explored the results that they found in their annual analysis of this year’s Am Law 200 report, known as the 2025 Digital Visibility Index.  Read on to hear some of their discussion, which highlights the critical importance of technical website performance, diversified backlink strategies, and non-branded keyword optimization to maintain and improve competitive rankings.

Key Takeaways:

1. Digital Infrastructure and Technical Performance Are Critical: The report found that over half of Am Law 200 firms dropped in ranking, largely due to failures in digital infrastructure. Technical performance—especially mobile page speed and core web vitals—has become essential, with Google raising its standards and many firms failing to keep up. Firms must prioritize technical optimization to remain competitive. 
2. Diversification of Backlink Sources Is Needed: There is a widespread loss of referring domains and backlinks across the Am Law 200, with many firms becoming overly dependent on a few sources. Diversifying backlink profiles and monitoring for spammy links are crucial for maintaining and improving domain authority and visibility.
3. Non-Branded Keyword Visibility Is a Major Opportunity: Most firms rely heavily on branded search traffic, but the real growth opportunity lies in ranking for non-branded keywords—terms that potential clients use when searching for services, not firm names. Only 3% of firms achieve the “gold standard” of 80%+ non-branded traffic, indicating significant room for improvement. 
4. Actionable Steps to Prevent Lead Loss: To avoid losing leads due to ranking and authority drops, firms should streamline their intake processes, ensure clear calls-to-action on their websites, and make it easy for potential clients to engage. These steps, combined with technical and SEO improvements, help convert visibility into actual business opportunities.