Publisher Guide: SEO and Sites

SEO for MVA and legal lead sites

This guide covers search engine optimization for sites about car, truck, motorcycle and rideshare accidents that send readers to Summit MVA offers. By the end you will be able to plan pages that meet the higher bar Google sets for topics that affect money and safety, show who wrote and reviewed each page, avoid the content patterns Google treats as spam, and keep the site clear of legal advice and law firm claims.

Published 5 October 2026. How we write and check guides: editorial standards.

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Why accident sites are held to a higher bar

Google's guide to creating helpful, reliable, people-first content describes topics that could significantly affect a person's health, financial stability or safety as "Your Money or Your Life" topics, or YMYL. A reader recovering from a crash, dealing with an insurer and deciding whether to call a lawyer is in exactly that situation. Google says its systems give more weight to content that shows experience, expertise, authoritativeness and trustworthiness on topics like these.

In practice, an accident site ranks on trust. Thin pages, unclear authorship and pushy calls to action work against you. The SEO and rank-and-rent sites overview explains how site traffic fits with Summit in general.

Step 1: Decide what the site is and is not

Write down the site's role before you write any page. A safe role is: "An information site that explains what happens after a motor vehicle accident and helps readers who want to connect with an attorney." Then hold every page to it.

The site does not present itself as a law firm or use attorney names, firm names or bar membership claims.
Pages explain general information, not legal advice for the reader's situation, and say so.
No promises about settlements, case values or outcomes anywhere on the site.
Calls to action describe the next step honestly and link through your tracking link to the Summit lander.
The About page explains who runs the site and that it may be paid when a reader is connected with help.

Attorney advertising rules are set state by state and can apply to content that promotes legal services. Read attorney advertising rules for MVA traffic for a general overview, and check the rules in your target states. This guide is not legal advice.

Step 2: Plan pages around reader questions

Group pages by the stage the reader is at. Each stage has its own questions and its own fit with an offer.

Page plan for an accident information site
Reader stage	Example page topics	Call to action fit
Right after the crash	What to do at the scene, getting a police report, seeing a doctor	Light: a short note at the end
Dealing with insurance	How claims work, talking to an adjuster, what a recorded statement is	Medium: after the section on when people seek legal help
Considering a lawyer	When people hire an accident attorney, how contingency arrangements generally work, questions to ask	Strong: clear in-content call to action
Specific accident types	Truck, motorcycle and rideshare accidents and what differs about each	Strong, linked to the matching offer

Match accident type pages to the right offer: car, truck, motorcycle or rideshare. Buyers in the market generally look at things like when the accident happened, whether someone was injured and whether they already have an attorney. The exact qualifying criteria are confirmed with each publisher during onboarding.

Link the stages together in the order a reader moves through them. A page about what to do at the scene should link to the page on dealing with insurance, which should link to the page on when people consult an attorney. Readers who follow that path arrive at the strongest call to action with context, and Google can see how the pages relate. Use descriptive link text such as "how insurance claims work after a crash", not "click here".

Step 3: Show who wrote and reviewed each page

Google suggests asking "Who, How, and Why" about your content. For "Who", it asks whether it is clear who authored the content, whether pages carry a byline where one would be expected, and whether bylines lead to more about the author.

Add a byline to every article with the real name of the writer.
Create an author page for each writer with their background and the topics they cover.
Where a page explains legal or insurance processes, have it reviewed by someone qualified to check it, and name the reviewer with their permission.
Show a "last reviewed" date and actually review pages on a schedule.
Link to official sources for facts: state statutes, state DMV or insurance department pages, and federal sources where relevant.

Step 4: Avoid the patterns Google treats as spam

Google's spam policies list practices that can cause pages or sites to rank lower or be removed. Accident sites tend to run into three of them.

Doorway abuse: one page per city with the same text and a new town name, such as "car accident lawyer in" for every town in a state.
Scaled content abuse: many pages created mainly to manipulate rankings, with little value, however they are produced. Google's guidance on generative AI content says the same standard applies to content made with automation, and stresses checking accuracy before publishing.
Link spam: buying or selling links for ranking purposes.

State pages can be useful when they cover what is actually different in that state, such as fault rules or filing deadlines, with links to the state's own sources. If a state page would read the same with another state name swapped in, it is not ready to publish.

Run an accident information site with search traffic? Apply as a publisher and tell us your topics and states.

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Step 5: Connect pages to Summit landers

Use the tracking link for the offer that matches the page topic.
Give each page and placement its own sub ID value so you can see which pages produce sold leads. See tracking links and sub IDs explained.
Mark tracking links with rel="sponsored", as Google's guidance on qualifying outbound links asks for paid or advertising links.
Do not add your own intake form and do not copy or recreate Summit consent language on your site. Consent is captured on the Summit lander.
Keep call to action wording calm and factual: "If you were hurt, you can answer a few questions to see if an attorney can help."

Leads are reported by tracking link. Ask during onboarding which other tracking options apply to your account.

Step 6: Measure and maintain

You are paid rev share on sold leads, so compare pages by sold leads and returns in your Summit reports. Use Search Console for search visibility and your Summit reports for lead outcomes. Reading your publisher reports explains how to match sub IDs to pages.

Update pages when laws, deadlines or official sources change.
Improve pages that rank but send leads that are returned. The copy may be setting the wrong expectations. See why leads get returned.
Merge thin pages into stronger ones instead of adding more thin pages.
Check which search queries bring readers to each page in Search Console. If a page ranks for searches it does not answer, add a section that answers them or point the reader to the page that does.

Common mistakes

Looking like a law firm. Firm-style names, attorney photos and "our lawyers" language misrepresent the site.
Settlement calculators and case value promises. These imply outcomes no site can promise.
Anonymous content. YMYL topics need clear authorship and review.
City page templates. These match the doorway pattern in Google spam policies.
Intake forms on the site. Consent must be captured on the Summit lander.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need an attorney to write the content?

Not necessarily, but pages that explain legal or insurance processes benefit from review by someone qualified to check them. Name the reviewer with permission and keep pages to general information.

Can I publish state-by-state pages?

Yes, when each page covers what is actually different in that state and links to official state sources. Pages that differ only by the state name match the doorway pattern.

Can my site mention specific law firms?

Avoid it. Naming firms can suggest a relationship that does not exist, and Summit does not name buyers. Describe the type of help instead.

Should I use a settlement calculator to attract links?

No. A calculator implies a case value no site can know, and it conflicts with our traffic guidelines on outcome claims. Earn links with accurate guides and clear explanations of state rules instead.