Law Firm Paid Advertising

Yes, you have probably heard about how expensive clicks can be using Google Ads for law firm keywords. Maybe your read that Wordstream ranked Legal keywords as the 4th most expensive keyword with the average cost per click coming in at a whopping $42.50!

Having taken over many online ad accounts for clients over the last 10 years, we have seen crazy bidding on poorly segmented keywords resulting in some clicks in the $50-$100 per click range. That is not the media cost per lead or per client, that is PER CLICK.

Fortunately, we have shown our clients that through smart keyword research, well-segmented bidding, and including other platforms in addition to Google Ads such as Bing, Facebook, Instagram, or sometimes even on legal directory sites such as Findlaw or Lawyers.com you can drive quality leads to your firm that results in a positive ROI on your ad spending.

The ability that online advertising platforms give you to segment ads based on location, keyword, time of day, and more really helps to generate quality targeted traffic to your law firm’s website.

Because you also have full control of the message, as opposed to organic search engine listings, your law firm will often see higher conversion rates and better quality leads from online ads.

Once you add in advanced tactics like retargeting (also called re-marketing) conversion rates and ROI from paid advertising can grow even more.

The core of online advertising is still Search Engine Marketing (SEM) which is mostly your traditional Google Ads or Bing Ads.

GNGF, as a Google Partner, has years of experience optimizing these ads to drive a positive ROI on ad spend for our law firm clients.

It is a great way to quickly increase visibility and grow traffic from search engines. Whether you are using paid advertising to appear on the first page while waiting for your search engine optimization to move you up organically, or to enhance your already successful organically ranking website, we have a lot of data that shows why SEM is a great strategy and should likely be in your Law Firm’s marketing mix.

At GNGF we feel that SEO should always be a part of the yearly marketing investments a law firm that wants to continue growing makes. If you aren’t sold on why SEO is important for law firms, check out our take and answers to frequently asked questions about Law Firm SEO.

Yet, we often recommend Law Firms consider utilizing Paid Advertising too.  Let’s talk about why we feel that paid advertising could be an important strategy for your law firm.

Paid Advertising or Pay Per Click?

First of all, most law firms that we talk to are using the term Paid Advertising to mean Pay-Per-Click (PPC) from a service like Google Ads or Bing Ads. It is important to understand that over the past ten years, “Online Paid Advertising” for law firms can include much more than just pay-per-click.

Online Paid Advertising could include items like:

• Display ads
• Legal Directory ads
• Social media ads
• Video Ads on YouTube
• Streaming Ads on services like Hulu and Sling via OTT/Connected TV ads
• and more….

To keep the answer to this FAQ straightforward we will focus on pay-per-click ads and discuss those other options in other FAQs.

Why PPC can be a very important strategy for your law firm

First, while we highly recommend Search Engine Optimization (SEO), we also know that SEO takes time to get a positive ROI.  It is not unusual for a law firm that already has a basic website and web presence to take 9-12 months to see an ROI. It can take even longer if you are starting from scratch or are in an extremely dense and competitive area.

PPC Offers a Faster Time to Get Leads For Your Law Firm

One benefit of law firms using PPC is that it can get you ranked faster because you are bidding on the ad placement. Therefore, you can start pulling in leads from your online presence much sooner while waiting for your SEO to gain traction.

We often refer to it as:

• SEO is the slow and steady Tortoise
• PPC is the speedy Hare

One quick caveat, we do want to make it very clear that Paid Advertising can be fast but it is not Instant. While we have had a few law firms sign up great clients in the first week a campaign is turned on, it still usually takes about 3 months to optimize a Google Ads campaign to get consistent paid click traffic that consistently converts to prospective new clients (leads) and then ultimately clients to your firm.

The reason is that if you focus on quickly setting up a campaign and bidding for only “quantity” you will be paying for a lot of the wrong traffic to visit and then abandon your site. Or you will be paying for the wrong traffic that reaches out to your firm and now your team must waste their time handling calls from prospects that might be looking for an entirely different practice area need.

Therefore, we recommend you continually optimize your campaign to work for quality prospects over quantity.

An important distinction between SEO and PPC comes in some of the vanity traffic metrics some providers show law firms.

• In SEO, vanity metrics may not really help get you more clients but the downside isn’t horrible in the short term.
• In pay-per-click ads, vanity traffic metrics result in useless paid-for clicks that can quickly rack up a bill with Google with no new business to pay for it.

Google wants Paid Advertisting to Work for Law Firms and other advertisers.

From all the public financial filings, we know that Google makes almost all of it’s money from Paid Ads.  Over 80% of its nearly 40 Billion dollars PER QUARTER – comes from Advertising revenue.

Google has to keep growing its ad revenue so we have watched them continue to create more and more opportunities for users to see and click ads. This is not going to slow down.

In fact, go do a quick google search on mobile for your practice area, you will often have to swipe up on your phone for nearly two full pages these days before you get past the ads to any organic results

You may have also noticed that over the years Google Ads have gone from being very easy to spot with the different color background and big callouts that this is an Ad to these days when the Ads are actually hard to differentiate from the regular organic listing. While, over time, Search Engine Optimization will provide the most traffic to your website, Google is making it hard to ignore paid advertising as a strategy.

Not All Searches Are Equal

Research from WordStream showed that keyword phrases that show a high intent to purchase keyword led to ads being clicked on more than organic listings – nearly two-thirds of the clicks go to ads.

High commercial intent keyword phrases show someone is really looking for an answer that could lead to a purchase.  An example of a high commercial intent keyword phrase for a law firm would be: “Best divorce Lawyer Near Me”

We know that PPC type of paid advertising works and we have many clients that have used paid advertising to grow their law firms. Some of them even started with just a few lawyers and the consistent ROI has enabled them to add associates and other staff as they have grown.

Now that we have confirmed the value of Paid Ads, let’s get back to the original question: Which Investment should I make? SEO or Paid Ads

As recently as about 5 years ago this answer would have been very different, we would have emphatically said to focus the majority of your budget and efforts on organic SEO, and after a few years, once you are dominating in SEO, supplement that with paid advertising.

Now, because of how much Google (this applies to Bing as well) has made Ads nearly imperceptible to the organic listings and they are taking up a lot more of the search results we often recommend Paid Advertising much earlier, and even as a great strategy when first starting out building your web presence.

To be fair, few marketing answers have cut and dry answers. Because we take a strategic approach with our clients and every law firm has different goals, budgets, and competition, paid advertising may be something we recommend from the beginning and for others, it is not.

1 + 1 = 3

The answer we give most law firms to this frequently asked question is that you need to invest in both paid advertising and search engine optimization. We were surprised that over the last few years, our data was consistently showing that incorporating both tactics into your marketing strategy is better than just doing one or the other.

If that surprises you too, after digging into the data, we believe that this is why we are seeing this:

• when you run pay-per-click advertising, you get to see the exact keyword phrases that people typed in before they clicked on your ad. The “EXACT” keywords.
• This keyword data is harder and harder to get when just using organic search tactics and Google Analytics / Google Search Console.
• We are able to use this keyword data from your paid advertising to influence and update your organic SEO tactics. We can adjust your content strategy, conversion elements, the title tags you use, and even the meta descriptions on your website pages
• A study by Google showed that when an Ad to a company’s website was on the same page as a page 1 organic listing to the company website, 89% of the clicks on the AD were incremental clicks to what the organic listing would normally get. (this is data from Google so it’s ok to be a little suspect)
• Therefore, having an organic listing and an AD showing up for your law firm would send more potential prospects to your law firm’s websites than having just one or the other.
• Also, Google showed that if your organic listing was number 1 – it was only a 50% lift in clicks to your website, but if your website is ranking 5 or lower it was a 96% improvement – or almost a doubling of traffic.
• That is another reason that, early on, paid advertising can make a big difference as you work to build your organic website rankings with search engine optimization
• Further – there have been some older studies that have shown that seeing your firm’s brand in paid advertising increases the likelihood of a searcher clicking on an organic listing to your firm days later.

Because of all of this, over the past few years, we have been integrating Paid Ad campaigns for many law firms just starting out with their digital marketing.

REAL RESULTS:

One of our clients who had been successfully investing in SEO with GNGF for many years added a paid advertising campaign.  After 4 months, they almost doubled their website visitors (at a similar conversion rate). But only 20% of those new visitors were from the paid advertising strategy.  1 + 1 = 3

Before you say it, yes, to be fair, it’s not like we just stopped the SEO work, but it was a bigger lift in traffic than the entire previous year and it resulted in more clients for the firm followed by more investment in paid advertising!

It’s well documented just how impactful Local 3-Pack listings can be for law firms’ organic search visibility. But did you know you can also optimize your Google Ads for placement in the Local 3-Pack in Google Maps?

Of course, Google is continuously testing ad placements. And just like your other PPC ads, you are still participating in an auction for clicks. So no placement or location can be guaranteed, but you can optimize your ads for map placements.

First, you’ll need to ensure that you have Location Extensions active for your campaign citing your physical location. Make sure your Google Business Profile (GBP) is active, accurate, and verified. You may also want to optimize bids by location. If you’re in an area with a particularly high population density or stiff competition, it will likely be worth paying a small premium for those closest to your physical location.

With location extensions active, a verified GBP for your law firm, and geo-optimized bidding in place, your ads will be eligible for map placements, including the Local-3 Pack.

Local Service Ads (LSAs) have become a foundational form of advertising via Google for law firms of all types and sizes. While they are a paid placement from Google, they are distinct from PPC ads in significant ways.

To set up your Local Service Ads, you’ll first need to register as a service provider with Google. In setting up your account, you will set your budget and select the location(s) and practice area(s) for which you want your ads to appear. You will also connect your Google Business Profile (GBP). Note: You must have at least one review to be eligible for LSAs.

Finally, you will need to input your Bar License number for verification by Google. That verification may take up to 48 hours. But once you’ve been verified, your ads can begin delivering. If you have more than one practitioner (that shares the same practice area) associated with this physical location, you can add them with a unique headshot image and verify them with their Bar number as well, allowing multiple practitioners to be featured across your ads.

Unlike PPC where you, of course, pay per click, for LSAs you will pay per lead. Google tracks (and where permissible, records) phone calls and charges for connected leads. You can “dispute” a lead in your dashboard if, say, a lead is out of your service area or practice area. But a word of warning that Google has made their review process more restrictive and disputes are less likely to be “Approved” based on criteria like case quality.

The CPL (Cost Per Lead) for your law firm will vary dramatically depending on your practice area, location and competitive landscape. There are far fewer variables to adjust for optimization in LSAs versus PPC ads – but Google does provide limited guidance on CPL once you set up your account. Contact our team today if you are seeking assistance creating and managing Local Service Ads accounts for your law firm.

If you have tried using Google Ads or other PPC advertising for your law firm and seen poor results, you are not alone.

It’s a complex platform that is adding and testing features and variations rapidly. Myriad factors beyond your budget and bids can impact the success of your campaigns. Frankly, it can be very difficult to effectively manage PPC advertising if you are not doing so full time.

At GNGF, we take a holistic approach to advertising, leveraging an end-to-end understanding of your potential new clients’ search habits, experiences, and expectations. If Google Ads or other Pay-Per-Click advertising has not worked for you in the past, you’ve likely already considered the following:

• Is my ad copy addressing the needs and expectations of my prospective clients?
• Am I bidding on enough keywords? Are they the right keywords?
• Was my budget (in total) or bids (per keyword) high enough?

But, you also need to consider:

• Does my site give a great User Experience compared to my PPC competitors?
• Do my landing pages directly and clearly answer the questions that my ads promise?
• Am I accepting contacts from leads via phone, email, and chat? 24/7?

And much, much more…

A thorough PPC audit will go further than bids and budgets in evaluating your PPC efforts.

An advertising audit from GNGF will provide you with insights into search intent, landing page experience, conversion rate optimization, and more.

Before you write off paid ads for your law firm as not for you, contact us for a thorough advertising audit and recommendations.

Let’s be clear: 81% of all adults in the US use YouTube each month.  It is, in effect, the second largest search engine behind Google Search itself.

There’s simply no longer any doubt that your prospective new clients are using YouTube.

However, reaching those new clients via video and streaming can feel daunting. Let’s discuss how to begin advertising your law firm on YouTube.

There are several different types of YouTube Ads, including in-stream videos, non-skippable pre-roll ads, and video bumper ads. While in-stream videos are the most commonly used ad type, the best YouTube ad format(s) for your firm will be determined by the assets you have available and the needs and expectations of your audience.

There are also many ways you can target your law firm’s audience via YouTube. These include but are not limited to:

• Search: Placements based on a user’s YouTube searches.
• Customer Match: Upload your existing prospect emails to target existing leads.
• Demographics: Placements based on gender, age, parental status, household income, and location.
• Affinities: Choose among 100+ affinity audiences (interests or habits that a group of people share)
• Interests: Target users with specific attitudes, lifestyles, values, and interests.

You will also choose among YouTube Ad formats to place ads designed to drive Awareness (Brand Recognition), Consideration (Educational Campaigns), or Action (Direct Response).

The newest offering from Google, Performance Max Campaigns, can also be effectively used to market your law firm. Performance Max Campaigns allow you to upload various “assets” for your firm, including images, video, and ad copy as well as using PPC extensions like Location and Callouts. Google then uses your various assets to deliver and optimize ads across their platforms (Search, Display, YouTube, Google Discover, and Google Maps) to users matching your target audience in a single campaign.

YouTube can be a powerful addition to your existing law firm advertising efforts. To learn more about YouTube ads and other Google advertising solutions, contact us today.

You’ve likely heard of the increased popularity of OTT (Over-the-Top) advertising for law firms. Also called Connected TV or CTV, OTT ads are video ads that are placed in-program across most of the popular streaming platforms like Sling, Hulu, Tubi, and more. Because these ads are frequently seen on television and within popular programs, OTT ads may look and feel much like broadcast TV ads to the audience.

However, unlike broadcast, OTT content and ads can be viewed across devices like smart TVs, laptops, tablets, and phones. As such, the underlying ad operations technology is actually more similar to programmatic display advertising than it is to traditional broadcast.

This means that you can target your OTT ads in a similar way as well. Ads can be targeted based on demographics, interests, and affinities. Also, you can select specific platforms, channels, and programs.

This makes OTT advertising an excellent option for law firms dedicated to generating quality video content but who don’t want to throw $100,000+ per month for the traditional broadcast TV budget.

The pricing for OTT ads is most typically a CPM or Cost Per Thousand model, like display advertising, versus broadcast’s CPP or Cost Per Point model. This may offer comparative efficiency since CPMs can be directly measured.

But to the question, “Can most law firms afford OTT advertising?”.

CPMs will vary greatly depending on your market, the platform, and the audience you intend to target. And Hulu, specifically, demands a premium CPM compared to other platforms.

Due to the complex demands of optimizing video delivery across platforms, OTT campaigns, including those managed by GNGF, will have a minimum media spend. OTT advertising campaigns we manage for law firms have a minimum media spend of $2500 per campaign, per month (plus agency management fees).