Lawyers in North America are some of the most active when it comes to Search Engine Marketing. Many lawyers prefer to target locally, and Google Ads is the preferred platform to do so through search ads – the ones that appear at the top of search results.
Using Google Ads, virtually anyone has the ability to pay for top positions on Google’s search results page.
The Legal industry is unique in that only a small percentage has adopted online marketing into their budget. This indicates there is still tremendous opportunity for a competitive advantage.
Through AdLuge, we have been able to use industry average data to help Lawyers understand what should be expected out of paid search campaigns.
Search Engine Marketing isn’t slowing down. Being Google’s largest source of revenue, it can be anticipated that more focus will be placed on this service year over year. It’s success and continued growth is attributed to demonstrated results and return on investment for millions of Google Ads campaigns each month.
The below data represents averages for nearly 50 law practices that currently use the AdLuge Marketing Intelligence tool.
Google Ads Industry Averages
The following article outlines the average Google Ads paid search metrics from September, 2013. This data has been compared to paid search account data from June, four months earlier.
Although many variables can affect each campaign, this information is valuable in helping the Cosmetic Surgery industry evaluate the performance of their Google Ads campaigns. Comparing your performance to competitors and others within your industry throughout North America can help determine whether there is need for improvement in your strategy.
Campaign Spend
The average Lawyer spent $1031 in September. This is down slightly from $1106 in June. There is no indication of an outside trend since this covers a wide variety of Law services. It’s important to note that although overall spend decreased, you’ll notice that the average conversion count remained the same. Moreover, impression share remains virtually unchanged and Cost-Per-Conversion improved.
Clicks
The average Google Ads campaign got 531 clicks in September, down from 588 in June. This is not surprising considering the average spend decreased during that same time. Although the average spend was decreased slightly, the average cost per click actually went up from $1.88 to $1.94. At first you may think this is not very good performance. However, true value is seen in your overall cost per conversion.
Conversions
The average Google Ads search campaign garnered 6 form submission or phone leads during the month of September, the same as in June. Based on budgets, this means the average Cost-Per-Lead (CPL) was around $172 per lead. In June, the average Lawyer saw a Cost-Per-Lead of $184.
In this case it’s important to consider how much a lead is actually worth. Spend was reduced this month and a better Cost-Per-Lead than previous months was achieved. Nonetheless, figuring out the long-term monetary value of a customer will help determine an acceptable CPL threshold.
Impression Share
The average impression share for all campaigns was at 49% in September. This means that campaigns were only being shown for a little under half the time they could have been. This is often (but not always) a result of budget restrictions. Strong competition is often a factor in impression share too, as they are competing for the same target audience. In this case it is likely a combination of both. Whenever possible, we recommend to do your best to maximize impression share without compromising your Cost-Per-Conversion. This may require some trial and error over a few months!
Client Consultations
According to AdLuge data, the average Lawyer received 3.6 in-person consultations in September, up very slightly from 3.1 in June. Considering the difference is so subtle over nearly 50 Law firms, performance month-over-month seems pretty consistent. Nonetheless, September was a more cost-effective month compared to June.
What Should Your Next Steps Be?
Next month I will be writing an article on average lead trends for the Lawyers across several online mediums. This will help to understand some of the latest tips that other practitioners are employing in order to achieve better conversion performance across all efforts.
Great Post!