In two recent posts here, I explored which online lawyer directories get the most traffic. (Popular Legal Directories, Ranked by Traffic and Legal Directory Rankings: An Alternate View.) Using two different ranking sources, Alexa.com and Compete.com, I concluded that the top four sites are FindLaw.com, Avvo.com, Justia.com and Lawyers.com, although their order of ranking differed depending on the source.

Perhaps those numbers will now change. Today, Lawyers.com — which is owned by LexisNexis and is the consumer-targeted companion to legal directory Martindale.com — kicks off a major TV ad campaign designed to drive up its traffic. The ad will run on major networks such as ESPN, Comedy Central, The History Channel and CNN. The ad features actress S. Epatha Merkerson, best known for her role as NYPD Lt. Anita Van Buren on the long-running TV crime drama Law & Order.

Below is the ad.

Photo of Bob Ambrogi Bob Ambrogi

Bob is a lawyer, veteran legal journalist, and award-winning blogger and podcaster. In 2011, he was named to the inaugural Fastcase 50, honoring “the law’s smartest, most courageous innovators, techies, visionaries and leaders.” Earlier in his career, he was editor-in-chief of several legal publications, including The National Law Journal, and editorial director of ALM’s Litigation Services Division.