PPC for Lawyers: The Ultimate PPC for Law Firms Guide (+10 Top Tips)

According to various reports, 96% of consumers revert to search engines to compare law firms and find legal representation. But with so much competition from local and national firms, you must ensure your legal business is found.

Online visibility demands more than a basic website and a few social media accounts. Forward-thinking law firms are harnessing the power of PPC advertising (also known as ‘Pay-Per-Click advertising’) to boost online visibility, fuel lead generation, and attract new clients. However, the world of paid search is constantly evolving, so it can be tricky to keep up.

The following guide examines the importance of PPC for law firms, how much PPC costs, and the latest digital advertising best practices. Read on as we give you everything you need to maximise your ROI from paid search advertising.

PPC stands for ‘pay-per-click’. A type of digital marketing, PPC sees law firms pay a set amount each time someone clicks on their ads.

Here’s how PPC for law firms works:
 

1. Choose relevant keywords 

   When setting up a PPC campaign, you identify the keywords and phrases potential clients might use to search for the legal services your law firm offers. For example, “personal injury lawyer” or “settlement agreement lawyer.”

2. Set your bidding parametres

   With PPC, you compete for ad placement in the search engine’s sponsored links. The higher the competition for a keyword, the more you must pay to serve on prime advertising positions.

   However, to ensure you don’t spend more than you can afford in the auction process, you have the ability to set: 

   • A maximum daily budget 
   • The maximum CPC (cost-per-click) you are willing to pay for each click.

   For example, you might decide on a maximum bid of £10 per click and a maximum daily spend of £500.

   Most PPC platforms offer optional automated tools to help you get the most conversions at the desired cost, such as maximise conversions and tCPA.

3. Audience targeting 

   With the rising cost of legal digital advertising, it’s prudent to set specific audience parameters that align with both your target audience and marketing objectives.

   You can streamline your PPC ads to appear in specific locations and/or target precise demographics.

   For example, if your law firm is physically based in Manchester and most of your customers typically reside within a 30 mile radius of your office, you can use this radius targeting feature across all platforms where you run PPC ads.

   The underlying objective is to ensure your goal is to show your ads to those most likely to need your legal services to maximise budget efficiency and ROI.

4. Ad ranking 

   When it comes to search advertising, Google and Bing’s algorithms will rank your ad alongside other law firms competing for the same keywords.

   Google looks at quality, relevance, and bid to determine which ads should be promoted in the top spot. The more relevant your ad copy and landing page is to the keywords you’re bidding on, the higher your ‘Quality Score‘ will be.

   And PPC ads with higher quality scores rank better on the search results page and typically benefit from low CPC’s in the auction.

   This process ensures ad placement isn’t solely based on the highest bid but also considers the quality and relevance of the ads, promoting a better user experience.

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Pay-per-click (PPC) differs from search engine optimisation (SEO). While good SEO ensures your website appears organically in search results without paying for ads, PPC gives you immediate visibility by placing your ads in prime placements.

Due to the highly competitive nature of the legal industry, PPC can be quite expensive for law firms.

With more and more law firms participating in the Google search auction, the cost per click for certain keywords has soared, sometimes exceeding £70.

This level of expense underscores the need for smart PPC management to ensure the budget is controlled, invested in the right areas, and ultimately delivers a good return on investment.

Given the escalating costs of PPC advertising, many law firms are adopting an omni-channel marketing strategy.

Law firms can diversify their client acquisition efforts by generating leads across multiple platforms, such as social media, content marketing, and email campaigns.

This approach not only helps mitigate the high costs of PPC but also ensures a more sustainable and balanced lead generation strategy.

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PPC & CPC: What’s the difference? PPC is a type of digital marketing that sees advertisers pay each time someone clicks on their ads. CPC (aka Cost-Per-Click) is the amount of money spent on a single ad click.

While Google dominates the search engine market, combining PPC platforms can enhance your law firm’s digital results and keep lead costs down. For example, by leveraging both Google Ads and Bing Ads.

Expanding beyond search engines, PPC advertising on platforms like YouTube, Facebook, and LinkedIn can further maximise your campaign’s reach, effectiveness and new client acquisition.

In early 2024, Google had an 81.94% share of the global search engine market. While impressive, this has fallen from 89.95% in the past three years. During the same timeframe, Bing’s market share has risen from 6.43% to 10.51%.

Statista

By incorporating the following channels into their PPC strategy, law firms can create a comprehensive and robust lead generation approach:

Google Ads (formerly Google AdWords) is the most powerful PPC platform.

Offering extensive reach and targeting capabilities, law firms can benefit significantly from using the platform. Not least because 63% of people say they will willingly click on Google ads.

Benefits of Google Ads for law firms

• Massive audience reach.

  Google is the world’s most widely used search engine, with billions of searches conducted daily

• Sophisticated targeted advertising.

  Google Ads provides advanced targeting options, including keywords, location, demographics, interests, and device types. Law firms can use these tools to ensure their messages reach those most likely to need their specific legal services

• Handy ad extensions.

  Google Ads allows ad extensions, such as call outs, location information and sitelinks. These features provide users with more ways to interact with the law firm, increasing the chances of conversion

• Measurable results.

  Google Ads offers robust analytics and reporting tools that make it easy for law firms to measure the effectiveness of their campaigns and make insightful adjustments

• Pinpoint local targeting.

  Google uses geographic targeting to help lawyers attract clients from their local region who are actively seeking legal assistance. Google stats claim that if a business targets its audience geographically through PPC, it can increase footfall visits by 107%.

Google processes over 99,000 search queries every second. This translates to 8.5 billion daily searches and approximately two trillion global searches annually.

(SEO AI)

Advertising on the world’s second-largest search engine can pack a surprising punch for law firms.

Not least because reduced competition levels mean cheaper traffic and conversions.

But more to this, Bing search is generally used by the older demographic who have greater disposable income. And what does this mean for your law firm? The acquisition costs and ROAS are likely to be more favorable for your PPC marketing campaigns.

Benefits of Bing Ads for law firms

• Lower competition.

  Bing Ads generally has less competition than Google Ads, resulting in a lower CPC. This can make Bing a cost-effective option for law firms looking to maximise their PPC budget

• Favourable audience demographics.

  Bing users are older, more educated, and have higher incomes. So, while Google might have a larger audience, Bing users have substantial buying power. For law firms, this can be advantageous if their target clientele falls within these demographics

• Straightforward integration.

  Bing is the default search engine for Microsoft Edge, and it is integrated with various Microsoft services. This integration can lead to higher visibility among users of Windows PCs, tablets, and other Microsoft devices

• Easy import from Google Ads.

  Bing Ads allows easy import of Google Ads campaigns, making it simple for law firms to extend their PPC strategy to another platform without significant additional setup time

• Advanced targeting options.

  Bing Ads offers comprehensive targeting options similar to Google Ads.

Visually rich, highly targeted, and surprisingly affordable, if you want to boost your ROI while spending less, YouTube video advertising should be a key component in your law firm’s marketing strategy.

With over 2 billion monthly active users, YouTube ads can get your message in front of a vast audience of potential clients. 

Benefits of YouTube Ads for law firms

• Massive viewership.

  YouTube has over two billion logged-in monthly users. This vast audience allows law firms to reach potential clients who prefer video content

• Highly engaging format.

  YouTube video ads can be extremely engaging and informative. Law firms can create videos explaining legal services, share client testimonials, or provide educational content, building trust and credibility

• Robust targeting options.

  YouTube Ads, managed through Google Ads, offers detailed targeting options

• A wide choice of ad formats.

  YouTube offers various ad formats, such as skippable in-stream ads, non-skippable ads, bumper ads, and video discovery ads. Law firms can choose the format that best suits their marketing goals and budget

• Easy integration with Google Ads.

  YouTube Ads are integrated with Google Ads, providing a cohesive advertising strategy.

In 2024, people spend an average of 145 minutes on social media every day, and despite the challengers, Facebook (owned by Meta) is still the world’s most popular social network.

The platform, which turned 20 this year, boasted over three billion monthly active users (MAU) in January 2024.

With such massive reach, whether promoting your firm’s services, sharing informative content, or driving traffic to your website, Facebook ads are a great way for law firms to engage and attract more clients.

Benefits of Facebook Ads for law firms

• Extensive audience reach.

  As discussed, Facebook provides access to a vast audience. Around 45% of the UK’s online population uses the platform more than once a day, and only 21% of UK adults who go online don’t use Facebook at all (Statista)

• Detailed targeting.

  Law firms can tailor their ads to specific profiles, such as people experiencing life changes that might require legal assistance (e.g. divorce) 

• Access to custom audiences.

  Law firms can create ‘custom audiences’ to reach people who have previously interacted with their website, Facebook page, or other online content. This re-targeting capability helps nurture leads and convert them into clients

• Engaging ad formats.

  Facebook PPC offers law firms a variety of engaging ad formats, including image ads, video ads, carousel ads, and more

• Wide platform reach.

  Facebook Ads can reach audiences on all of the meta platforms, including Instagram.

LinkedIn Ads are particularly beneficial for law firms focusing on B2B legal services such as employment law, commercial disputes and intellectual property.

Helping lawyers connect with professionals, decision-makers, and influencers, stats show that 70% of global marketers are confident LinkedIn will deliver a positive ROI.

Benefits of LinkedIn Ads for law firms

• Professional audience.

  LinkedIn is the largest professional networking platform, making it ideal for law firms targeting business professionals, corporate clients, and other legal practitioners.

• Precise targeting.

  With targeting options based on job title, industry, company size, seniority, and more, firms can precisely target decision-makers and professionals likely to need legal services.

• Flexible ad formats.

  LinkedIn offers various ad layouts, including Sponsored Content, Sponsored InMail, Text Ads, and Dynamic Ads. These allow law firms to create personalised and interactive advertisements that resonate with their target audience.

• Thought leadership.

  Law firms can share articles, case studies, and whitepapers on LinkedIn to demonstrate their expertise and engage with a professional audience.

If you want to use PPC to grow your law firm (and you should!), you have to know what you are doing. Because, as with all digital marketing, PPC for law firms will only be worth the investment if you get it right.

Here are our ten essential tips on PPC advertising for law firms.

1. Understand who you are targeting

   PPC targeting will only work if you know who you want to talk to. Establishing your target audience allows you to tailor your PPC campaigns to their specific interests, demographics, and behaviours.

   By targeting the right online audience, you ensure that your ads are relevant to the people most likely to be interested in your legal services.

2. Choose the right keywords

   Thorough keyword research is essential to identify the high-converting terms and phrases potential clients are using to find legal assistance.

   Choose keywords that are relevant to your law firm and the services it provides and align these with your target audience’s search intent.

   Things you can do to make the most of your keywords include:

   • Using your keyword in both the headline and ad content
   • Focusing on long-tail keywords with lower competition and higher intent to attract qualified leads (this is especially useful for firms in competitive areas) 
   • Using Dynamic Keyword Insertion (DKI) to automatically update your ad text to include the exact keywords that potential customers are searching for. This helps make your ads more relevant to users’ search queries, increasing the likelihood of clicks and conversions.

3. Understand the Quality Score Index

   When it comes to getting a high Quality Score – and therefore being ranked more favourably by Google – the keywords used in your ads matter.

   According to Google, the Quality Score is calculated based on the combined performance of three components:

   • Expected clickthrough rate (CTR). The likelihood that your ad will be clicked when shown
   • Ad relevance. How closely your ad matches the intent behind a user’s search
   • Landing page experience. How relevant and useful your landing page is to people who click your ad.

4. Write strong ad copy

   Ensure your ad copy is compelling and clearly explains your expertise and benefits to potential clients. In short, make sure it conveys why someone should choose your law firm.

   Use persuasive language and clear calls-to-action (e.g. ‘call now’ or ‘sign up’) to encourage clicks and conversions. You might have to experiment with different versions to get the best results.

5. Establish a realistic PPC budget

   Setting a PPC budget is critical when launching a pay-per-click advertising campaign. To do this, you will need to:

   • Set clear, measurable goals, such as a specific number of leads per month or a desired return on investment (ROI)
   • Use tools like Google Ads Keyword Planner to find out the average cost-per-click (CPC) for the keywords you want to target
   • Understand the search volume for your chosen keywords to gauge the potential traffic you can drive
   • Establish the number of clicks you can afford based on your budget.

   If you’re using an agency or a PPC management service, you must also include their fees in your budget. At Magnify Lab, we offer fully managed paid search management from £650 per month.

6. Optimise your landing pages

   Create landing pages and ensure these are optimised for conversion. Design them with a clear, persuasive layout, relevant content, and prominent contact forms or call-to-action buttons.

   Ensure the landing pages align with the ad copy and keywords to provide a seamless user experience.

7. Optimise your ads for mobile

   Optimising PPC ads for mobile is crucial since the majority of users access the internet through their smartphones. This includes:

   • Using mobile-specific ad formats 
   • Using short and clear copy for screens that have limited space 
   • Ensuring your headlines and descriptions are concise and to the point
   • Making your CTA buttons large, prominent, and easy to tap
   • Ensuring your landing pages are mobile-friendly 
   • Using bid adjustments to increase your bids for mobile devices if you see better performance from mobile traffic
   • Testing different ad copies, headlines, and CTAs to see which versions perform best on mobile devices.

8. Use location targeting

   If you practice in a specific area, you should use location targeting to focus your ads on those places where your potential clients live and work.

   There is no point wasting money advertising to people in London if you are a local firm with local clients based in Edinburgh.

   Location targeting ensures that your ads are seen by people in your target market, increasing the likelihood of relevant clicks and conversions.

9. Conduct A/B tests of your ads

   Test different variations of your ads to identify which elements drive the best results.

   Experiment with headlines, ad copy, keywords, calls-to-action, and visuals to determine what resonates most, optimise performance, and maximise ROI.

10. Track your conversions

    Implement conversion tracking to measure the effectiveness of your PPC campaigns.

    Track actions such as form submissions, phone calls, and email inquiries to understand which ads and keywords drive valuable leads and clients.

    With access to detailed conversion data, firms can make informed decisions about their advertising budgets, bidding strategies, and targeting options.

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A/B testing, also known as split testing, is a method of comparing two versions of a marketing asset (e.g. a PPC ad) to determine which one performs better. A/B testing helps you make data-driven decisions to achieve better results.

When law firms need online visibility, PPC advertising provides a powerful and targeted way to reach potential clients actively searching for legal services.

By bidding on relevant keywords and strategically placing ads on search engines and social media platforms, law firms can ensure they are prominently visible to their target audience.

Here are just some of the benefits PPC advertising brings to law firms:

1. PPC delivers fast results

   Unlike SEO, which can take time to deliver, paid search advertising offers immediate visibility. Law firms can launch targeted PPC ad campaigns and instantly start appearing in relevant search results.

   Just as compelling, PPC advertising helps you quickly rank for the keywords your audience is searching for, even if your firm’s website has a low domain rating.

   QUICK JARGON BUSTER
   Search Engine Marketing (SEM) refers to any digital marketing (paid or unpaid) done on a search engine. SEM encompasses both PPC and SEO.

2. Flexible targeting options

   With advanced precision targeting, law firms can ensure their PPC ads are seen by those most likely to be interested in their services.

   Law firms can use various powerful PPC tools to target their ideal clients.

   • Keyword Targeting. PPC lets law firms bid on specific keywords relevant to their legal services. For example, by targeting "divorce lawyer," a firm can ensure its ads are displayed to users actively searching for this specific service
   • Audience Targeting. Law firms can define their target audience by age, gender, location, income level, interests, and previous online behaviour
   • Geographic Targeting. Law firms can target their PPC ads to a specific region, city, town, etc., ensuring they reach potential clients in their target market area
   • Remarketing. PPC platforms offer remarketing capabilities that can help a law firm get in front of people who previously visited their website but have yet to convert
   • Custom Audiences. Some PPC platforms let advertisers create custom audiences based on their own customer data, such as email lists or website visitors
   • Lookalike Audiences. Using lookalike audience targeting, firms can reach new users who share similar characteristics and behaviours with their existing clients.

3. PPC contributes towards business goals

   PPC advertising helps law firms achieve their business goals by driving targeted traffic, generating leads, and increasing brand awareness.

   In competitive legal markets, it can also give law firms a competitive edge by helping them stand out from the crowd.

4. PPC targets your ideal clients

   As mentioned above, law firms can use various targeting tools to set up their PPC ads. In addition, law firms can: 

   • Set their ads to show during specific times of the day or days of the week when their target audience is most likely to be searching for legal services.
   • Display ads on websites and platforms that are relevant to their target clients. For example, if you specialise in family law, your ads might appear on parenting websites or forums.

   In addition to these targeting methods, firms can maximise the effectiveness of their ads by crafting ad copy that speaks directly to the needs and concerns of their ideal clients and using language and offers that resonate with them.

   By leveraging these PPC targeting strategies, law firms can connect with their ideal clients more effectively, ensuring their advertising budget is used efficiently to attract high-quality leads.

5. PPC is immune from frequent algorithm updates

   PPC advertising gives law firms a reliable and resilient marketing channel that is less susceptible to the impact of frequent algorithm updates compared to organic SEO.

   As long as law firms bid on relevant keywords and adhere to PPC advertising policies, their ads will continue appearing in the designated ad placements.

While many law firms recognise the importance of digital marketing, navigating the complex world of PPC can be daunting. Not least because so many factors are involved in ensuring a successful digital ad campaign.

On hand to help you identify the right keywords, find the right people, and use the right platforms, at Magnify Lab we use all our skills and expertise to ensure your PPC campaigns get the best results.

There are a range of benefits associated with hiring a legal PPC agency vs managing the PPC campaigns in-house. The benefits typically range from cost savings, gaining access to high level expertise, and having dedicated support.

Get access to the very best expertise

With expertise in all things PPC, a digital marketing agency will undertake extensive market and competitor research before initiating your new paid search strategy.

They will help you develop and execute customised strategies tailored to your law firm’s goals and ensure that your marketing efforts are effective, efficient, and aligned with the latest and best practices.

Maximise your success

Because the wrong campaign setup can have disastrous consequences on your ROI, a reputable PPC agency will structure your campaigns correctly and effectively with the right keywords, engaging ads, a defined audience, daily optimisations, and high-converting landing pages. 

Benefit from an omni-channel strategy

Digital marketing is about the entire user journey. It’s about how different platforms, such as Google Ads, Bing Ads, Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube, come together to maximise your paid search efforts.

A good PPC management agency will understand this and have a strategy for success.

Save time, money and resources

By outsourcing your digital marketing efforts to a reputable agency, you can free up valuable time and resources.

Depending on your annual media budget, there are also huge cost savings to be had. For instance, the typical wage for a good PPC manager in the UK starts from £50,000. And don’t forget the monthly subscription costs for high level software which can easily total £1,000 per month.

When you factor this against PPC agency retainers ranging from £1,000 – £3,000 per month, you can quickly start to gauge the cost savings vs hiring an in-house marketing team.

What’s more, a PPC marketing agency offers scalability and flexibility to accommodate your firm’s changing needs and goals.

Get measurable results

Digital marketing agencies leverage advanced analytics and reporting tools to track the performance of their campaigns.

So, by partnering with a legal PPC agency, you can stay ahead of the curve and outshine your competitors with targeted, effective marketing strategies that drive results.

To sum up, PPC marketing presents a valuable opportunity for law firms to increase their online visibility and attract new clients. By leveraging advertising platforms like Google Ads and Bing Ads, law firms can connect directly with potential clients who are actively searching for legal services.

Whether you are a solo practitioner or part of a large firm, a well-crafted PPC campaign can help you stand out in a crowded marketplace and generate meaningful results.

However, creating a successful PPC campaign requires an understanding of search intent, audience targeting, and ad copywriting skills. Therefore, if you are a law firm looking to increase your online presence, consider partnering with a PPC marketing agency with solid experience within the legal sector.

Ready to unlock your business growth through the power of PPC? Get in touch for your free digital marketing review today by calling 020 7205 2755 or simply complete the enquiry form on this page.