Theft, shoplifting and property offenses
Pages for someone whose chief fear is a line on a job application, explaining in general terms how these charges are graded and what questions to put to a lawyer.
Visibility for the defense bar
Criminal Defense Marketing for the Call That Comes After Dark
Picture the person who finds your number. A mother with a booking page open in one tab. A husband holding a summons he has read nine times. A college junior typing a charge into a search box with the screen tilted away from the room. None of them is shopping. All of them are scared, and many are searching on behalf of someone who cannot reach a phone. We help a criminal defense practice show up for those readers across search, maps, paid ads, AI answers and the website, and we build every piece so it feels private, steady and unhurried. Our criminal defense plans begin at $495 monthly, with no setup fee and no contract.
Each state bar writes its own rules for lawyer advertising. This site is not legal advice, and every page of copy we draft for your criminal defense firm is yours to hold against those rules before it appears.
- From $495A single monthly fee, with nothing due to begin
- Month to monthWalk away whenever the work stops paying for itself
- Privacy by defaultShort forms, careful tracking and neutral confirmations
- One point of contactA person who learns your courts and your intake before changing a setting
One call, closely observed
Follow a Single Call to a Criminal Defense Lawyer From First Tap to Retainer Talk
It is 11:40 on a Thursday night. A woman learns her brother has been picked up and is being held. She has no lawyer, no idea which facility has him and no wish for the neighbors to know. She searches on her phone, finds three firms on a map and taps the one whose profile shows a plausible address, believable hours and a reply that does not read like a brochure. The phone rings through to voicemail. She hangs up and taps the next.
Nothing about that story involves a clever keyword strategy. It turns on whether the listing told the truth about hours, whether the greeting sounded steady, whether someone could say, in a sentence, whether it is safe to leave a message. Marketing for a criminal defense firm is largely the work of lining up those small facts so that the first contact goes well.
Notice, too, who made the call. It was not the person facing the charge. Criminal defense phones are full of relatives, partners, employers and friends who call before the accused has any way to. When a firm records only the signer of the retainer, it undercounts the channels that reach families. We set up tracking that notes the caller's relationship to the person, so you can see what is really working.
A case in time
Five Moments When Someone Looks Up a Criminal Defense Lawyer, and What Each Needs
| Moment | Who is searching | What they need from a page | What we build for it |
|---|---|---|---|
| The night of the arrest | A relative, usually on a phone | A human voice, a note on how to use official custody lookups, and no pressure | A calm landing page, a tracked number and a call-back request that works at any hour you can honor. |
| The first court morning | The accused or a family member in a hallway | A plain explanation of what a first appearance is and what to ask | Process pages written in short sections, reviewed by your attorney. |
| The first week | The accused, once released | The charge explained without drama, and a way to book a private consultation | Charge pages for the matters you handle, with county pages where there is real local information. |
| Between hearings | Anyone weighing whether to stay with current counsel or change | Honest information about choices, including appointed counsel | A fair public-defender comparison and a clear account of fees. |
| After the matter ends | The same person, months or years later | An eligibility-first page for clearing a record, by state and offense | Record-clearing pages for each state you serve, with Spanish versions where it fits. |
Your region and charge mix will change the weights. Sorting your last quarter of calls into these five moments is a quick way to see where your pages fall short.
Matters we write for
Eight Families of Charges, Each With a Different Reader
Assault and domestic violence charges
Neutral writing about court stages and no-contact orders, with a plain reminder that messages to the other party can create new problems.
Drug possession and distribution
Pages that separate possession from intent to distribute and describe diversion and treatment-court ideas where they exist locally.
Weapons charges
Pages explaining why permit, transport and past-record questions lead to charges against people who believed they were following the rules.
White-collar and fraud inquiries
Content for a professional holding a subpoena or an agency letter who wants to know what a first meeting looks like.
Juvenile matters
Pages for parents on how juvenile court differs in general terms, what confidentiality means and what happens at a first meeting.
Warrants, violations and bail
Pages on how a warrant check works, what a violation hearing is and how a surrender can be arranged through counsel.
Expungement and record sealing
Eligibility explainers by offense and state, with a simple way to describe your situation without sharing details until you are ready.
A new criminal defense practice does not need all eight at launch. We start with the criminal defense matters that fill your calendar and add the rest over time, treating DUI as a single supporting topic unless it is central to your practice, since dedicated DUI firms compete on their own pages. The search guide shows how the site is organized around these families and the places you serve.
What most agencies skip
Discretion Is a Design Decision, Made Dozens of Times
People who contact a criminal defense lawyer are, nearly by definition, asking about something they would rather keep quiet. Treat that as a requirement and small choices change. A form with a large box asking for the whole story invites someone to type what belongs in a confidential conversation. A thank-you screen announcing that a criminal attorney will call can be read over a shoulder. A text with the firm's name in the preview can land on the wrong lock screen. A voicemail greeting that sounds like a call center reads as a brush-off to someone whose hands are shaking.
So we ask early: may the firm leave a message at this number, may it text, what appears on caller ID and in a notification, and when is it safe to ring back? Forms gather a name, a number, a county and a preferred way to be reached, and leave the details for the call. Tracking is set so that what a visitor read, and what they typed, never becomes an audience list at an ad platform. None of it is glamorous. All of it decides whether a criminal defense site feels safe to contact.
Where we start
Your First Ninety Days, in Plain Order
Listen first
We learn which charges you want, where you appear, who answers and when. Then we examine the site, the profile, the directories and any ad accounts already running.
Repair the risky parts
Wrong addresses, duplicate listings, long forms, thin charge pages and claims nobody has reviewed come first. Anything touching advertising rules is sent to you for approval.
Publish what matters
Criminal defense charge pages for your core matters go live, then county pages only where we can offer courthouse, jail and first-appearance details a family would use.
Start small with ads, if they fit
One tracked Google Ads campaign for a charge family or two, in counties you cover well, with a long negative list and a phone that rings through.
Sit down with the numbers
At the first monthly review we go over calls, who answered, who called and how many became consultations, and decide together what to widen and what to drop.
How it fits together
Six Routes the Same Anxious Reader Might Take to Your Door
Organic search
Charge pages, county pages with substance and attorney bios. See how criminal defense firms are found in organic search.
Google Maps
An honest profile, review replies that never confirm a client and a phone that is answered. See the Google Business Profile guide.
Google Ads
Campaigns organized by charge family with the long negative list this field needs. See Google Ads for criminal defense firms.
Meta Ads (Facebook and Instagram)
Used with care for platform policy and household privacy. See Meta Ads for criminal defense practices.
The website
Design, forms and tracking for a nervous visitor. See website design for criminal defense lawyers.
AI search
Consistent facts about your firm so assistants describe it accurately. See AI search for criminal defense firms.
Around these six sit explainers for families and defendants, directories and local links, an overview of paid channels, the guide to intake and inquiries and the complete playbook.
Where the lines are
What We Will Not Write, Whatever the Competition Does
Bars regulate what a criminal defense lawyer may say about expertise, past outcomes, reviews, fees and contact with people who were recently arrested, and they do not agree with one another. Criminal defense work adds confidentiality and an audience in crisis. We work conservatively. You will not see "best" or "top" from us, nor a specialist label you do not hold. We will not promise an acquittal, a dismissal, a lesser charge or a position in search results. We do not sell leads, buy leads or arrange referrals, and we never mine arrest records for outreach.
Copy that touches reviews, results, comparisons with other firms, a former-prosecutor background or retargeting goes to you first. We are marketers, not regulators, and whatever carries your firm's name remains your responsibility.
What it costs
Pricing You Can Read in One Sitting
Begin with the page engine alone, move to a full Organic Growth plan or add managed advertising. Money for ads is separate and goes straight to the platform.
Before you decide
What Partners and Solo Practitioners in Criminal Defense Ask Us First
What will this cost me each month?
RankGuarantee™ pages run $495. Organic Growth is $1,495 for Silver, $2,495 for Gold (adds a managed website) and $3,495 for Platinum. Managed advertising is $895 for one platform, $1,595 for two and $2,295 for three, plus your own ad spend. There is no setup fee, and you can leave any month.
Will you promise a number of new clients?
No. Nobody can fairly promise clients, rankings or outcomes, and a bar may view such a promise as misleading. What we offer is a written plan, visible work, monthly numbers that include calls and consultations when you share them, and the right to stop.
Do you buy or sell leads, or contact people from arrest logs?
We do neither. We do not trade in leads or referrals and we do not build outreach from arrest records. Many bars limit contact with recently arrested people and payment for recommendations, so run any such proposal past your ethics counsel.
Who decides what the ads and pages say?
You do. We draft, you approve. Anything about results, reviews, expertise or comparisons gets extra scrutiny, and a public reply to a review should never confirm that someone was a client.
How do you handle visitor privacy?
Forms stay short and skip free-text story boxes, confirmations are neutral, and tracking is configured so form content and sensitive page visits do not feed ad audiences. Have your counsel read the disclaimer wording as well.
Can you help us reach Spanish-speaking families?
Yes, with native-quality Spanish pages, but only if someone who speaks Spanish can actually take the call. A page in Spanish that ends in an English voicemail loses the caller.
Our website is old. Must we replace it?
Often not. We review it first. A firm may need sharper charge pages, better bios and a private contact path more than a redesign. Gold and Platinum include a managed custom website, and a standalone build is priced after a short conversation.
The full library
More Reading for Defense Firms That Value Discretion
Start Here
- Criminal Defense SEOHow defense firms are found in organic search: charge pages, county hubs that avoid doorway traps, attorney bios and the trust signals a frightened reader looks for.
- Criminal Defense MarketingA full playbook for defense firm marketing: caller types, channels, order of operations, costs, a seasonal calendar, measurement and the first ninety days.
- Criminal Defense Lawyer Marketing (you are here)Marketing for defense practices, built around frightened callers, relatives searching for someone in custody and the discretion every one of them expects.
Get Found in Search
- Criminal Defense Google MapsSetting up and caring for a Google Business Profile for a defense firm: categories, hours, photos, reviews that protect confidentiality and call tracking.
- Criminal Defense AI SearchHow people ask AI assistants about arrests, charges and defense lawyers, and how a firm publishes clear, consistent facts without turning its site into legal advice.
- Criminal Defense LinksLegal directories, bar and defense-lawyer associations, court-adjacent organizations and local press, and the link shortcuts a defense firm should skip.
Paid Advertising
- Criminal Defense Paid AdsA map of paid channels for defense firms: Google search ads, Local Services Ads where they exist, Bing, Meta Ads and a small ChatGPT ads test, and what to try first.
- Criminal Defense Google AdsCampaign structure for defense firms: charge-family ad groups, the negative keywords this field needs, hours, call handling and tracking that respects privacy.
- Criminal Defense Meta AdsWhat Meta Ads (Facebook and Instagram) can and cannot do for a defense practice: education, record clearing and reputation, with policy and household privacy limits.
Website and Content
- Criminal Defense Web DesignWebsite design for defense firms: first-screen priorities for frightened visitors, charge pages, bios, private contact options and tracking that respects confidentiality.
- Criminal Defense ContentWhat defense firms should write: stage explainers, bail and custody guides for families, public defender comparisons, record-clearing pages, and how attorneys review them.
Get in Touch
Want to Hear How Your Criminal Defense Firm Sounds to a Stranger at Eleven at Night?
Send us the criminal defense charges you want, the courthouses where you appear, who picks up after dark and which advertising rules your bar enforces. In return you get a flat monthly proposal shaped around that practice alone. Reach us at 610-825-4363 or hello@getphound.com, and our CEO will find a time to talk. Leave client and case details out of your first note. What follows on this site is marketing information, not legal advice, and your own bar's rules come first.