Law firms can easily anywhere from $10,000 to $100,000 on Google attorney ads. The problem that many of these firms face is getting a great return on their investment.
The perfect Google Ads scenario happens when someone clicks on one of your ads and gives your firm a call. If your ads aren’t generating calls or website visits, then it’s time for a change. We recently spent more than $1.5 million on Google ads for attorneys and made some interesting observations.
In this article, you’ll learn the conclusions we made to revive your own attorney marketing strategies.
Legal Keywords are Very Expensive
The legal industry is one of the most popular in the country. Millions of law firms are scattered throughout the United States. Understandably, it makes sense that there is an intense bidding war for legal keywords like “criminal defense attorney” and “DUI lawyer”.
With that said, you can easily spend as much as $100,000 a month on Google Ads for your law firm. After spending more than $1 million on Google Ads, the same conclusion is true. Legal keywords are expensive but currently, the return for practices can be between 3X-1,000X, yes, this is not a typo. The return depends on practice areas within practice types. Still, at the end of the day, LTV for cases and referrals is very high. Firms can benefit immensely by getting good lead volumes and favorable returns for major practice areas, with right content marketing strategies.
Therefore, if you’re looking for a way out of spending at least $10,000 a month on Google Ads, don’t hold your breath. Legal keywords won’t necessarily cost you an arm or a leg, but you’re going to spend a great deal of money when you bid. Note: At the end of the day you will drive calls, that out of which a certain percentage will convert to consults and cases. We see on average you will convert 1 out of three consults taken as a new case or client. Every year it gets even more competitive to land cases and clients, so the quicker to start the more experience and advantage you will have. Google ads and SEO are here to stay for growth.
The Competition is Very Fierce
As you can expect, the competition for legal keywords is very high. With the average CPC for attorney Google Ads being almost $60-130, you better be ready to fight for paid positioning for the keywords you’re aiming to bid on.
Since there is no getting around the massive competition for legal keywords, having a strong PPC strategy is paramount.
Hiring an experienced attorney marketing company will help to devise an effective Google Ads strategy for your firm.
Sifting Through Qualified Leads Can Be Tough
One of the caveats of investing in Google Ads is that you never know what a valuable conversion looks like. Let’s say that you spend $130 when someone clicks on one of your ads. And you have to take a certain number of calls to book a case, as this depends on the geography, city and demographics being targeted. 1/8 is a good average ratio to use. These new clients call your firm and convert. Next, these 2/10 cases settle for a an average total combined case values of $10,000. This can yield a ROI of 8x. Next, after fine tuning your campaigns you now have a marketing machine which takes in $1 and spits out $8. You are now off to the races, while your competition is still taking a nap.
While you will grow profits from your online advertisement, the gain is substantial enough to continue running other profitable campaign, including local seo, map pack ads and social campaigns. So now, one successful channel powers the other marketing channels and you have created a lead generation machine which powers itself. This isn’t to say that all leads will turn out average ROI this way. Some leads may net a $50,000 return, and others will generate more revenue for your firm.
When running a Google Ads campaigns, sifting through qualified leads can be a challenge if you’re counting every dollar spent. Having a good intake staff to QC and validate these leads with low or no wait cycles, this will increase lead conversion frequency. The top law firms are using this ads channel as an essential tactic in their portfolio and you should too. Note: Ads generally captures 20-30% of the customer pie.
It’s Important to Create a Unique Value Proposition (UVP)
The fastest way to waste your money on Google Ads is to create a campaign that mirrors one of your competitors. The competition for legal keywords is high. Also, Google likes variety, so don’t get dinged here. Therefore, if you’re going to make any noise in front of your target audience, you’ll need to create a unique campaign they haven’t seen on combination before, with multiple sets, then have data show you messaging that is working to drive results and ROI.
To do so, here are some important tips to follow:
- Create unique headlines that gauge human interest.
- Avoid keyword stuffing your headlines and descriptions.
- Remember: your ads are going to be seen mostly by people and not search engines.
- Use social proof, like short testimonials, in your descriptions to convince prospects to call your firm.
The more unique your ads are, the better you can convert qualified leads into paying clients for your firm.
Proximity Geotargeting Plays a Huge Role in Your Campaign’s Success
Law firms are usually local businesses by nature. Even the most massive firms operate in a select few regions. This makes geotargeting all the more important for the success of your campaign. After spending so much money on Google Ads for attorneys, we realized a newfound appreciation for geotargeting.
Many law firms target regions they don’t even operate in. On top of that, these regions don’t house prospects that are interested in their services. As a result, these campaigns bleed money by the day.
It’s never been easier to target specific locations in Google Ads.
Here are the steps to get started:
- Click on the “Settings” tab in the Google Ads dashboard.
- Click “Locations”.
- Finally, select the city, zip code, or region you want to target.
The CPC for attorney keywords is pretty expensive. Follow these steps to make sure you’re spending good money on each click.
Search Intent Will Make or Break Your Ads
Search intent is just as important in paid search as it is in search engine optimization (SEO). In order for your ads to perform well, you’ll need to create content that internet users want to see. For example, what are internet users looking for when they search bankruptcy attorney Google Ads?
Are they looking for an ad that leads to an informational blog about whether or not they should file for bankruptcy? On the other hand, do they just want to call an attorney and schedule a free consultation? Knowing the difference will make or break your campaign.
The good news is that it’s simple to observe search intent for lawyer keywords. Simply search the keyword you’re targeting and see what type of results come up. Do these ads lead to landing pages or informational pages?
What you find is what internet users expect to see when they search for that keyword. If you want your ads to convert, you’ll need to follow the same format.
Calls are True Conversions
When you’re new to Google Ads, seeing more website visits can feel like an enormous pat on the back. When these website visitors go nowhere, you figure out that you just wasted your valuable marketing dollars and wonder what to do next. The only consolidation prize in attorney marketing is receiving phone calls from your ads.
This way, you can speak to prospects, butter them up, and convince them to schedule a consultation if you believe they have a case.
Ready to Improve Your Google Attorney Ads?
Google attorney ads are certainly not cheap. If you want to improve your campaign’s profitability, now’s the perfect chance to contact our world-class lawyer marketing experts. Contact us today to speak to a member of our team.
