The verdict in three sentences
A 9-lawyer employment firm acting for employers in London wins HR directors of SMEs and mid-sized companies with a site that proves expertise through practical guides and sells HR advice retainers, not with an online brochure. The Kolonell budget sits between 1,220 and 5,340 EUR (800,000 to 3,500,000 FCFA) depending on the Starter, Growth or Premium tier, with delivery in 6 to 8 weeks. SRA rules on transparency and publicity shape every page, so they are handled at wireframe stage rather than after launch.
What a London HR director types before calling a solicitor
The HR director of a 300-person logistics company in Park Royal or the people lead of a 120-person fintech in Shoreditch rarely searches for « employment solicitor London ». They type a precise question, often under pressure: a redundancy consultation to launch, a TUPE transfer to manage, a grievance that is turning into a tribunal claim. The firm's site has to answer those questions before it talks about the partners.
The backbone of the project is a set of 30 practical guides. Each guide covers one topic, cites the relevant legislation and ACAS codes, lays out the procedure step by step and points to the matching service. A well built guide ranks for low volume but high intent queries: 50 monthly searches from HR directors are worth more than 5,000 searches from employees looking to sue their employer.
| Practical guide | Typical HR query | Urgency | Linked service |
|---|---|---|---|
| Settlement agreements | « settlement agreement employer template » | Medium | Fixed-fee settlement |
| Collective redundancy | « 45 day consultation 100 redundancies » | High | Project fee |
| TUPE transfers | « TUPE measures letter employer obligations » | Fixed timetable | Retainer |
| Disciplinary and grievance | « ACAS code disciplinary uplift » | High | Hourly advice |
| Long-term sickness | « dismissal long term sickness fair process » | Medium | Case review |
| Tribunal defence | « defending unfair dismissal claim costs » | High | Published price band |
| Workplace investigations | « independent workplace investigation harassment » | Crisis | Dedicated mission |
This matrix changes how the brief is written: you no longer order « a law firm website », you order 30 qualified entry points and a journey that leads to three offers.
Fees, retainers and SRA rules: what the site can show
HR directors compare before they call. They want to know whether the firm works by the hour, on fixed fees or on retainer. The SRA Transparency Rules already require firms to publish price and service information for defending unfair or wrongful dismissal claims in the employment tribunal, so a pricing page is not optional for this practice. The SRA Code of Conduct also requires publicity to be accurate and not misleading, which rules out guaranteed outcomes or unverifiable success rates.
| Firm offer | 2026 London order of magnitude | What the site can show | What to avoid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hourly rates | £280 to £550 per hour by seniority | Rate band per fee earner | Misleading comparisons |
| Essential retainer | £500 per month | Call volume and response time | Outcome promises |
| Standard retainer | £1,200 per month | Document review included | « Cheapest in London » claims |
| Premium retainer | £2,500 per month | Manager training, board attendance | Client names without consent |
| Tribunal defence, simple claim | £6,000 to £12,000, estimate | Stages covered, disbursements | Win rate figures |
| Settlement agreement drafting | £750 to £1,500, estimate | Scope and turnaround | Hidden extras |
The engagement letter remains the contract. The site informs and qualifies; the enquiry form asks for headcount, sector, topic and urgency so that a partner can call back within 24 hours with a relevant proposal.
The three Kolonell tiers applied to the firm
| Tier | Kolonell budget | What is delivered | Timeline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | 1,220 to 1,830 EUR (800,000 to 1,200,000 FCFA) | 5 pages: firm, team of 9, expertise, pricing, qualified enquiry | 6 weeks |
| Growth | 1,830 to 3,050 EUR (1,200,000 to 2,000,000 FCFA) | Starter plus guides blog, retainer pages, analytics | 7 weeks |
| Premium | 3,050 to 5,340 EUR (2,000,000 to 3,500,000 FCFA) | Growth plus advanced animation, in-depth SEO, guide to offer linking | 8 weeks |
| Maintenance | 53 / 114 / 183 EUR per month (35,000 / 75,000 / 120,000 FCFA) | Updates, backups, security | Monthly |
| Monthly SEO | 100,000 / 200,000 / 350,000 FCFA per month | New guides, rank tracking | Monthly |
For comparison, a London agency specialising in professional services quotes a 2026 order of magnitude of £15,000 to £40,000 for a Growth-equivalent scope, and a freelancer £4,000 to £8,000 without the guide writing. For this firm, Growth is the right starting point: the guides are the commercial engine and need a clean blog structure from day one. Languages, if a second one is needed for overseas groups with London subsidiaries, are set in the quote.
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Priya Shah, managing partner, chooses the Growth tier at 3,050 EUR with Standard maintenance at 114 EUR a month. First-year cost: 3,050 + 114 × 12 = 4,418 EUR.
Conservative assumption: the 30 guides bring 6 qualified enquiries a month and only one converts each month into a Standard retainer at £1,200, kept for the year. Recurring revenue reaches £1,200 in month one, £3,600 cumulated after two months (£1,200 + £2,400) and £7,200 after three months. The site investment is covered within the first two to three months. Over twelve months, the theoretical total is £1,200 × (1 + 2 + ... + 12) = £93,600, before any hourly work. Even divided by three to account for churn, the return is many times the build cost.
FAQ
Must an employment firm publish prices on its website?
Yes for some services: the SRA Transparency Rules require price information for defending unfair or wrongful dismissal claims. Publishing retainer bands such as £500 to £2,500 a month is also allowed if the information is accurate.
How many guides does a firm need to reach HR directors?
Thirty well targeted guides cover the recurring questions of an SME HR team. Allow 3 to 6 months for the first ones to rank, which is why they should go live at launch.
Which Kolonell tier suits a 9-lawyer firm?
Growth, from 1,830 to 3,050 EUR, covers the guides blog and retainer pages. Premium, up to 5,340 EUR, makes sense if the firm wants in-depth SEO from day one.
Can we name clients or cases we won?
Naming a client requires their consent, and success rate claims risk breaching the requirement for accurate publicity. The site relies instead on guides, talks and partner publications.
How long does the project take?
Allow 6 to 8 weeks depending on the tier, including about 2 weeks for partner sign-off on content. Writing the 30 guides can be spread over the first 3 months.
Let's scope your project. Tell us about your practice areas, retainer offers and timeline, and we will define the scope and launch schedule. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.