Someone Just Got Arrested. They’re Asking AI Who to Call. Is It You?
Criminal defense searches happen at the worst moments — 2am arrests, DUI stops, court dates in 48 hours. Increasingly, the first place people turn isn’t Google. It’s ChatGPT, Perplexity, or Gemini. AI gives them one to three names. If your firm isn’t there, they’re calling someone else before sunrise.
$40–$100
Cost per click for criminal defense keywords on Google Ads
WordStream 2026
1–3
Firms AI recommends per query — not 10 blue links
4.4x
Higher conversion rate for AI-referred traffic vs. organic search
Semrush 2026
The Prompts That Matter
What your future clients are asking AI right now
Faneros tests your firm against the exact prompts potential clients use on all 6 AI platforms. Here’s a sample for criminal defense.
“Best criminal defense lawyer near me for DUI”
ChatGPT
“I was arrested for a felony in [city] — who should I call?”
Claude
“Top-rated DUI attorneys in [city] with good reviews”
Perplexity
“Criminal defense lawyer who handles drug charges in [state]”
Gemini
“Do I need a lawyer for a misdemeanor charge?”
Grok
“Best criminal defense attorneys [city] — reviews and ratings”
AI Overviews
What A Scan Reveals
What Faneros finds for criminal defense firms
Every scan is built from your actual data — your domain, your practice areas, your competitors, your cities.
01
Which AI platforms recommend you — and which recommend your competitors
You’ll see the exact firms each AI platform names for criminal defense queries in your cities. Many firms discover their biggest competitor in AI search isn’t who they’d expect.
02
Why AI can’t find you — or why it doesn’t trust what it finds
The 9-point AI Readiness audit checks whether AI crawlers can access your site, whether your structured data makes your practice areas machine-readable, and whether your content answers the questions potential clients actually ask.
03
9 files you can deploy today to change the result
Not a report telling you what to fix. Actual files: robots.txt, llms.txt, JSON-LD schema, FAQ schema, XML sitemap, meta tags, a citation playbook, a 30-day action plan, and a hyper-local guide.
Why Criminal Defense
Criminal defense is the most time-sensitive practice area in AI search
Nobody plans to need a criminal defense lawyer. The search happens in a moment of crisis — after an arrest, after charges are filed, after a court date is set. Speed matters more than in any other practice area. When the first place someone turns is AI, and AI gives them a name, that’s the call they make. There’s no comparison shopping. There’s no scrolling through 10 results. AI said a name, and they’re dialing it.
For criminal defense firms, the cost-per-click on Google Ads is lower than personal injury — but the urgency of the client is higher. AI-referred criminal defense leads arrive pre-qualified and ready to retain. One DUI case, one felony defense, one federal case pays for years of AI visibility optimization.
Get Your Firm's Free AI Visibility Report
We'll scan your firm across 6 AI platforms on 10–25 real prompts and show you exactly where you stand.
