PPC is a fantastic marketing tactic for lawyers that want to get the leads flowing immediately. When done right, it can quickly produce a fantastic return on investment.
Brent Baltzer - Founder of Baltzer Marketing
What is pay-per-click (PPC) advertising?
Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising is a form of digital marketing in which advertisers pay a fee each time one of their ads is clicked. Essentially, it's a way of buying visits to your site, rather than attempting to "earn" those visits organically.
Search engines like Google and Bing offer PPC advertising opportunities, allowing businesses to bid on relevant keywords and phrases that will cause their ad to appear in the search engine results pages (SERPs). When someone searches for one of the keywords or phrases you've bid on, your ad has the chance to appear at the top of the SERP, increasing the likelihood that they'll click through to your site.
Of course, PPC advertising can be expensive, and it's important to understand how cost per click (CPC) works before getting started. But if done correctly, PPC can be an effective way to quickly drive highly qualified web traffic and generate leads for your business.
Why Should Attorneys Run a Google Ads Campaign?
There are many reasons why attorneys should run Google Ads campaigns.
First, it is a terrific way to immediately reach potential clients who are actively searching for a lawyer who can provide the exact legal services that you provide. While other techniques like SEO are great, they take a while to produce results. PPC starts driving relevant traffic immediately.
Additionally, a well-run Google Ads campaign is customized to target specific keywords and demographics, which help you attract the right kinds of leads to your firm. It will only target people who are actively searching for a lawyer, not people who are just seeking information or looking for free help.
A well-executed Google Ads account should result in a high return on investment. Before launching, we use a spreadsheet to calculate how much ROI you will get if you hit certain measurable goals. Then, it is simply a matter of hitting or exceeding those goals.
The Nuts & Bolts of PPC for Lawyers
It is important to understand the basics of how PPC works before launching a campaign.
PPC is an online advertising model in which advertisers pay each time a user clicks on one of their ads. In other words, you only pay when someone takes an action that you want them to take, such as visiting your landing page or calling your law firm.
There are a ton of nuts & bolts when it comes managing a Google Ads account. But when we set up a PPC campaign, we have three main goals.
Only Show Ads on Highly Relevant Searches
Our first goal is to only show up on Google for search terms that signify this person is actively looking to hire a lawyer that does exactly what you offer. For example, if you are a personal injury lawyer in Miami, we want to show up for searches like:
- Best personal injury lawyer Miami
- Personal injury lawyers near me
We also want to show up for more specific searches for your practice areas. In this example that might be things like:
- Car accident lawyers near me
- Slip and fall attorneys Miami
- Big rig accident lawyers near me
- Average settlement for a slip and fall case
Someone searching "average settlement for a slip and fall case" might actively be searching for a personal injury attorney, but it's not guaranteed. This would be a great search term to target with SEO optimized content, but we do not want to spend your ad budget on anything unless we are sure they are looking for a lawyer.
Other terms we don’t want to show up for are:
- Anything containing words like “pro bono” or “legal aid.”
- Searches containing words like “cheap” or DIY (unless this is something you do).
- Competitor names (unless we are intentionally targeting competitor searches.)
- Overly broad searches like “lawyers near me” where they don’t use any qualifiers like “personal injury” or “divorce” or “criminal,” etc.
Overall, we only want to spend your ad budget on highly relevant, commercial keywords. We only want to show up when people are searching for exactly what you offer. It’s a simple concept, but it’s not easy to execute.
Maximize Your Budget
Our second goal is to get the most relevant traffic for a given budget. So, you give us a budget each month and we use our expertise to get you the most clicks possible for your budget on relevant searches.
Turn as Many Clicks into Leads as is Possible
Goal number three is to turn as many clicks into leads as possible. We use proven landing pages that are specific to your practice area and that are proven to produce high conversion rates. Everything from the keyword to the ad to the landing page is congruent and is designed to attract and convert your ideal client.
PPC for Lawyers- How Much Does It Cost?
The main factors that determine the cost of PPC are competition and "Quality Score."
PPC is an Auction, but it Doesn't Always Go to the Highest Bidder
Every PPC click is an auction, so competition is obviously one of the main factors determining the cost per click. The higher the value of a case, the more people are willing to pay for a click because the return on investment is higher. So, a click from someone looking for a lawyer is going to cost much more than someone looking for a haircut. However, the highest bid does not always show up in the highest position due to a thing called...
Quality Score
- Make sure the ads speak directly to the search query
- The ads get high click through rates
- The landing page experience is good (fast loading, congruent with the search query, etc.)
What makes Baltzer Marketing a smart choice for managing your PPC advertising?
First, we have been running successful legal PPC campaigns for law firms since 2014. We know how to set up and manage a PPC advertising campaign that works from the get-go.
Second, we are a Google Partner. Google recognizes us for maximizing campaign success for clients, driving client growth by maintaining clients' campaigns, and demonstrating Google Ads skills and expertise with certifications.
Third, we use proven landing pages that are designed specifically to help law firms generate leads. Our landing pages are highly effective and consistently generate high conversion rates.
Fourth, we are cost-effective. Our prices are reasonable, and we offer a lot of value for the price.
Finally, we offer a lot of support and guidance to our clients. We are always available to answer questions and help with any problems that you may have.
Receive a Free Google Ads PPC Evaluation
If you want to find out if Google Ads and Baltzer Marketing is right for you, contact us for a free Google Ads PPC evaluation. We can help you determine if pay-per-click is a good fit for your law firm.