Introduction
When it comes to advertising for your lawyer’s firm, there are lots of options available. But if you want to generate high-quality leads, Google Ads is one of the best — as long as you understand how it works and how to use it right. In this post, we’re going to explore how lawyers can use Google Ads effectively and what they should be doing in order to achieve their goals.
Use images & consumer reviews to help build trust in your firm.
- Use images to help build trust. If you're not already using images in your ads, start today. Images are one of the most powerful tools for building trust with potential clients and getting them to click through to your website. They also give you an opportunity to stand out from other law firms that might be advertising alongside yours!
- Use consumer reviews to help build trust. Consumer reviews are another way for prospective clients to learn more about you and your firm's services before reaching out—so make sure they're positive! There are lots of ways that lawyers can encourage their existing clients to leave positive feedback on their Google My Business pages or other sources like Yelp or Houzz (more on this later).
Know who you’re targeting — and what are their pain points?
You need to know who you’re targeting so that you can create advertisements that speak directly to them. The more specific your ad is, the more likely it is that the people who see it will be interested in what you have to offer. After all, if they have no need for your services or products, there would be no point in showing up at their doorstep with a sales pitch when there are other options available to them.
The most important questions to ask yourself when trying to figure out who your target audience is include:
- What are their pain points? What problems do they want solved?
- How can I help them overcome those pain points and achieve their goals?
How can I solve their biggest problems? What are their values and what do they care about? What do they want out of life, and how can my products/services help them achieve those goals?
Keep track of negative keywords and cut them when necessary.
Negative keywords are words that you don’t want your ads to show up for. For example, if you’re a lawyer who specializes in family law and divorce, you wouldn’t want your ad to show up on searches for “criminal defense attorney” or “divorce.” That would be a waste of money!
Negative keywords are one of the best ways to avoid wasting money on clicks from people who are not interested in your services. They can also help target potential clients who have very specific needs—for example, if you have several locations throughout the country (or world), using negative keywords will help keep all those ads focused on relevant information and get rid of irrelevant ones completely.
PPC, SEO, & content all play a role.
The pay-per-click (PPC) and search engine optimization (SEO) channels are your most direct options for driving traffic to your website. But how do you decide which one is right for you? The answer depends on what kind of work you do, and whether or not you have a large budget for advertising.
If your law firm offers in-person service like legal representation or consultations, then PPC ads may be the better option because they're specifically designed to drive potential clients directly to your contact page with no additional steps required from them. However, if most of your practice involves writing documents like wills and contracts that don't require face-to-face meetings but instead rely on written communication between attorney and client, SEO might be more suitable because it helps generate traffic over time through natural search results rather than immediate clicks on an ad.
Avoid generic keywords.
It’s tempting to use broad keywords that are popular and get lots of clicks. But they often don’t convert into leads. Instead, focus on keywords that are specific to your practice and target people who are looking for a lawyer like you.
To find these types of keywords, use Google’s Keyword Planner tool (https://adwords.google.com/o/K...). The tool will recommend search terms based on how many times people in your area have searched them over the last month or two—and how much money advertisers are paying for ads related to those searches so far this year (known as “average cost per click”).
Firm up your long-tail strategy.
Long-tail keywords are generally more specific than broad keywords and tend to generate higher conversion rates. They can also be used to build your brand, target specific groups of people, and create content that will connect with your ideal client.
Find the right search partner to help you implement your strategy.
Finding the right search partner is critical to your success. You need someone who:
- Has experience in your industry and understands your business
- Will work with you to develop a plan, understand what makes sense for you and where you want to go, and then help execute that plan.
- Is trustworthy—that is, someone who will do what's best for you and not just their own bottom line.
Go local, but don’t forget about regional and national campaigns as well.
The local, regional and national marketplaces are very different than the global market. This means that your ads will be shown differently depending on the type of campaign you run. For example, when a consumer searches for “lawyer” on Google, they might see an ad from a law firm in their city or state while they wouldn’t necessarily see an ad from a law firm located across the country or even overseas unless it was related to something specific (like immigration).
So here are some tips to get started:
- Go local! Your business can still generate leads if you’re not physically located in that area—and sometimes when you don't have a physical presence there is even more opportunity for success because people tend to trust businesses that they can relate with better than ones based out of another city or state entirely.
- Consider expanding into other geographic regions and countries as well if possible; but make sure you're prepared first before getting started since this may require additional resources like having bilingual staff available at all times so everyone feels confident working together smoothly without any hiccups along the way!
Include a strong call-to-action in your ads.
When it comes to generating leads, you may be tempted to skimp on your ad’s call-to-action. But the truth is a strong call-to-action is essential to any Google Ads campaign. A call-to-action button links users directly to your website, and provides them with a clear next step in their journey. You want this button to be as short and direct as possible, so that users don’t have any trouble understanding what they should do once they click on it.
A good example of an effective call-to-action would be something like: “Schedule Your Free Consultation Today!” or “Get A Free Case Review Now!” These two options are very clear about what will happen when someone clicks on the link provided by the button–and most importantly for lawyers looking for leads, they show trustworthiness by promising customers something valuable (a free consultation or case review).
Segment keywords by match type with unique ad copy.
Segmenting keywords by match type with unique ad copy will help you focus your ads on the right people. The more specific the keyword, the better chance it has of triggering a specific action.
You can use different types of segmentation to narrow down your target audience:
- Geography – Where they're located (city, state, country)
- Device – Desktop computer or laptop, smartphone or tablet
- Language – English-speaking users only? All languages?
Age and gender – Use the demographic data from Facebook to target particular age groups or genders. Interests – Use keywords related to your business, products and services to target users who are interested in those topics. Behaviors – What they're doing on Facebook (creation of an event, commenting on status updates)
When optimizing for mobile, use both expanded ad text & sitelinks.
One of the biggest challenges for lawyers is that Google Ads results are often small, and may not be visible on a mobile device. If you're trying to get more qualified leads, this can be frustrating. However, there are ways to optimize your ads so they stand out:
- Use expanded ad text. Expanded ad text allows you to show more information about the services or products you offer in an ad. For example, if you run a law firm that specializes in real estate law, instead of just showing "Real Estate Attorney," try writing something like "Our Real Estate Attorneys Help Clients With..." followed by two or three key benefits (e.g., "Offer Comprehensive Services" and "Provide Thorough Guidance").
- Use sitelinks. Sitelinks allow users who click on an ad to visit specific pages within your website without having to navigate through several different pages before reaching their destination—which is especially helpful for mobile users!
Google Ads are an easy, effective way to generate quality leads for lawyers — if handled properly
Google Ads are an easy, effective way to generate quality leads for lawyers — if handled properly.
If you're a lawyer who's been avoiding Google AdWords because you don't know how to use it or what the best practices are, here's some good news: Google Ads can be an effective way to generate leads for lawyers if handled correctly. The key is to remember that your primary objective with your ads should be to drive traffic back to your website (and not just make money). Think about it this way—if people aren't clicking through on ads and going straight back to your website, then they're probably not serious about hiring you as their lawyer. And if they're not serious about hiring you as their lawyer, there's no point in paying more money just so they'll click!
Conclusion
If you’re looking for a way to generate more leads for your law firm, Google Ads are a great option. They can help you reach potential clients who are searching specifically for your services and products. However, there are many factors that go into making an effective campaign — so it’s important that you know what they are before diving in head first. By following these 10 tips (and staying up-to-date on current trends), we hope that this post has helped give you some guidance on how best to implement your own successful strategy!