If done right, PPC Marketing can help your firm grow 2X in a short time.
As per the data, every $1 spent on advertising gives an average return of $2.
That means, you can double the revenue of your law firm if you use PPC marketing wisely.
Btw, What Is PPC Marketing For Lawyers
PPC (Pay-per-click) marketing is a form of digital advertising in which advertisers pay each time a user clicks on their ad.
These ads typically appear on search engine results pages, social media platforms, and other websites that offer advertising space.
Different Lawyers can bid on keywords and phrases relevant to the target audience, and the highest bidder’s ad is displayed to the audience.
The goal of PPC marketing is to drive targeted traffic to your website and generate prospect leads for your law firm.
In this Blog, we will discuss how much you should spend on your law firm advertising and how you can calculate a practical estimate for your PPC marketing budget based on our experience and website marketing survey of ABA 2020.
Signs You May Be Paying Too Much On Your PPC Advertising
It’s very important to regularly evaluate the effectiveness of your PPC campaigns to ensure that you are not overspending and burning your money on your advertising efforts with no fruitful outcomes.
Here are six signs that you may be paying too much for your Law firm’s PPC marketing.
1. High costs per click (CPC): One of the clearest signs that you are paying above then market benchmarks for your PPC marketing is, high costs per click.
If you’re consistently paying more than the industry benchmark CPCs for your law firm’s target keywords, it could be an indication that you’re overspending.
In such cases, it may be worth revisiting your keyword strategy and refining your law firm targeting to improve your ad relevance.
2. Low click-through rates (CTR): Your click-through rate (CTR) is a measure of how many people click on your ads after seeing them.
A low CTR is an indication that your ads are not resonating with your target audience, and you may be spending your budget on ineffective ads.
In such instances, you may need to rework your ad creatives, refine your law firm targeting, or try different ad formats to increase your CTR.
3. Poor conversion rates: Your conversion rate is a measure of how many visitors to your website take the desired action, such as filling out a form or calling your intake team over the phone.
If your conversion rate is lower than industry benchmarks of 3%-5% at least (we at TechiFox consider 8% – 12% as a normal), despite driving targeted traffic to your website, it could be a sign that your PPC campaigns are not well-optimized.
In such cases, you may need to adjust your law firm landing pages and increase your ad copy relevancy to landing page to improve your conversion rates.
4. Low Quality Score: Quality Score is an important factor to determines if your ad can show in a search result. If your ad does show, then QS determines your ad position and the cost per click you would pay. By increasing your Quality Score, you can have your ads show more often, increase your position, and decrease your CPC.
Here is how Quality Score affects the CPC you need to pay to Google.
Source: WordStream
5. Ineffective targeting: Effective targeting is critical for the success of any PPC campaign.
If your ads are not reaching to the right audience, you may be paying for clicks that are not relevant to your law firm and may not convert well.
To address this issue, review your law firm targeting options, including geographic, demographic, and behavioral targeting, and make adjustments as necessary.
6. Overdependence on branded keywords: While branded keywords can be an essential component of your PPC campaigns, over-reliance on them may result in higher budget spends and lower ROI.
The user searching you by the Brand Name already know you and would find you by anyway. You don’t need to run paid ads and spend too much budget on these keywords.
In such cases, consider expanding your law firm keyword strategy to include long-tail keywords and targeting a broader audience to maximize your ROI.
How Much Do Law Firms Typically Spend On PPC Advertising?
Let’s take a closer look at the stats.
According to a study by the legal marketing agency JurisPage, the average cost-per-click (CPC) for legal keywords is $6.75.
However, the CPC can vary greatly depending on the specific keyword and location.
For example, a law firm targeting the keyword “personal injury lawyers” in New York City can expect to pay a CPC of around $47 at least, while a law firm targeting the same keyword in a smaller city may only pay around $20 or less.
In terms of overall PPC advertising budgets, law firms tend to spend between $5,000 and $20,000 per month on PPC advertising.
Again, this can vary depending on factors such as the size of the law firm, the competition in their market, and their specific goals and strategies.
Another factor to consider is the platform used for PPC advertising.
Google Ads is the most popular platform for lawyers, with 93% of law firms using it to reach to their potential clients.
Other platforms include Bing Ads and social media advertising on platforms such as Facebook and LinkedIn.
One important thing to keep in mind when it comes to PPC advertising for law firms is that it is not a one-size-fits-all solution.
A law firm’s PPC advertising strategy should be tailored to their specific goals and target audience, and should be continuously optimized and adjusted based on performance data.
How Do Lawyers Calculate Minimum Marketing Budget?
When it comes to determining the minimum PPC marketing budget for you, the number #1 key factor to consider is the cost-per-click (CPC) of the targeted keywords.
To calculate the appropriate budget, you can use the following formula:
Your Monthly Ad Budget = (number of clicks desired per month) x (estimated CPC)
For example, if you want to receive 100 clicks per month on your PPC ads and the estimated CPC of your targeted keywords is $50, your minimum monthly PPC advertising budget should be $5000.
On the other hand, if you are targeting keywords like “car accident lawyer”, where the CPC could be the highest, at around $300, your budget would need to be $30,000.
Note: However, it’s important to keep in mind that the CPC can vary greatly depending on factors such as your services category, location, and competition, so it’s recommended to conduct thorough keyword research and adjust the budget as needed based on the data.
Ultimately, the PPC advertising budget should be tailored to your law firm’s specific goals and target audience, and continually optimized for maximum ROI.
Average CPC For Different Law Practices
The cost-per-click (CPC) in the legal industry can vary greatly depending on the specific legal practice you are targeting.
Let’s take a closer look at the average CPC for different law practices with some examples.
1. Personal Injury Lawyer: The CPC bids for personal injury law keywords are typically at the higher side due to the high competition in this area.
According to the data, the CPC for keywords like “personal injury lawyer” and “accident lawyer” can average anywhere between $50 to $300.
2. Criminal Defense Lawyer: The CPC for criminal defense law keywords can also be high due to the competitive nature of this practice area.
According to the data, keyword like “LA DUI lawyer” can have an average CPC of $30 to $60 in Los Angeles.
Other examples of criminal defense law keywords with high CPC include “drug defense lawyer” and “federal criminal defense lawyer”, etc and can have average CPCs between $10 to $30 easily.
3. Family Lawyer: The CPC for family law keywords is generally lower than personal injury and criminal defense law, but still can be significant.
According to the data, the keyword “divorce lawyer” has an average CPC of $11 in Chicago and $7 in Houston.
Other examples of family law keywords with moderate CPCs include “child custody lawyer” and “adoption lawyer”, etc and can have average CPCs between $5 to $20.
Note: It’s important to keep in mind that these CPCs are averages and can vary greatly depending on factors such as location, competition, and the specific keywords being targeted.
Law firms should conduct thorough keyword research and adjust their PPC advertising budgets accordingly to ensure they are having a good market impression share, reaching to enough potential prospects that would convert into clients and will finally help maximizing your ROI.
How Much Does Your PPC Agency Charge?
When it comes to hiring a PPC agency to handle your law firm’s digital marketing efforts, one of the most important point is the cost of their management services.
The amount a PPC agency charges for your law firm marketing management can vary widely depending on factors such as the size of the marketing agency (big marketing agencies usually charges at the higher side), the scope of services offered, and the level of expertise of their team. The company location also plays a major role.
For example, a company located in New York City would cost at the higher side while a company located somewhere in suburb area can cost significantly lower than them. On the same note, a company located in USA would cost at the higher side while a company located in countries like India, Philippines etc may comparatively cost lower due to the currency valuation difference while having the same expertise.
On average, PPC agencies charge between $1,000 and $10,000 per month for their services, with some larger agencies charging even more.
Many companies charges based on the monthly budget you spend on Ads. These charges can be around 12% to 20% of your advertising budgets.
This cost includes the management of your PPC campaigns, including keyword research, ad creation, bidding, and ongoing optimization to improve performance.
In addition to the monthly management fee, many agencies also charge a one-time setup fee, which can range from a few hundred dollars to several thousand dollars, depending on the complexity of the campaign.
It’s important to note that while cost is certainly a factor to consider when choosing a PPC agency, it should not be the only consideration.
It’s important to choose an agency with a proven track record of success in your industry (see results we delivered to clients), as well as one that has a transparent and collaborative approach to working with clients.
Ultimately, the cost of hiring a law firm PPC marketing agency will depend on a variety of factors.
It’s important to research different agencies and compare their services, results delivered, and pricing to determine which one is the best fit for your business growth and marketing budget.
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