Google Ads can be one of the smartest investments, yielding the highest ROI for law firms. They are not a set-it-and-forget-it strategy though, as they require thorough research, careful analysis, and proper execution in every step. What is the top make it or break it tips for law firm Google Ads in 2021?

Whether you are new to Google Ads or have been investing for a long time now, you need to keep in mind that showing ads for your law firm on the search network is an ongoing process. If you think you can set up your campaigns once and then keep them running, you will probably waste a big part of your budget and end up disappointed in Google Ads. What you need to do to maximize your opportunities for success is to find a balance between the automation that Google offers and the manual control you need to have on them. The highly competitive environment, especially for specific practice areas such as Personal Injury, the volatility due to the current situation, and the ever-changing needs of prospective clients are a few of the things you need to keep in mind. Today, we’ll guide you through some of the most crucial tips for your law firm’s Google Ads in 2021.

1. Aim for Intent

If you are familiar with your agency and our blog, you should be familiar with the meaning of intent in Google Ads. In any case, let us explain the concept. We’re not talking about custom audiences at this point as it refers more to display or YouTube ads. Our primary focus here is on people who are past the research phase and are ready to become your law firm’s next client. Therefore, we have the following tips for you:

  • Focus on US Hispanics as the demographic with the most prominent untapped potential. Latinx are generally more likely to click on paid ads compared to searchers who perform their query in English and thus represent one of your brightest opportunities.
  • Focus on mobile devices. Mobile search means higher intent, and this is what we care about. Let’s put it this way. How would someone involved in an accident search and then get in touch with a law firm? Using their mobile phone.
  • Focus on the right keywords and the proper match types. Don’t go for too general or too strict; find the right balance and target high-intent keywords. For example, don’t go for “Abogado” but target “abogado de lesiones personales” if you are a law firm handling PI cases.

2. Minimize room for error

What’s the ultimate goal of every law firm? To optimize its strategy and sign as many new cases as possible with the minimum budget. Trial and error can, of course, be part of the strategy but cutting the waste is the goal, so let’s find out how you can achieve it in a few actionable steps.

  • Use the auction insights tool to get some of the most valuable data for your Google Ads. Using this tool, gives you insights for your impression share, overlap rate, position above rate, top of the page, the absolute top of the page, and outranking share. All these will help you benchmark against your competitors and understand your pain points so you can improve them or discard what’s underperforming.
  • Work on your Quality Score as it can help you rank higher while getting the optimum CPCs. You can use the report to check where you stand and identify areas of improvement.
  • Use the search query report to identify your top keywords and single out keywords that unnecessarily consume your budget. This is a great way to start building your negative keywords list.

3. Make the most of your top-performing keywords

If you are in the position where you are satisfied with the ROI you are getting from Google Ads and want to strengthen your campaigns, you are probably at a crossroads. Some people would immediately assume that they need to look into more keywords or expand to an additional practice area they can handle. That can be a great strategy and yield results, but there’s something else you need to review first. Have you reached the optimum results for your best-performing keywords? If not, it’s still too early to expand in other areas. Your best opportunity lies with your “stars.” You can use the tools we’ve mentioned above to single out what’s working for you and, considering some of the data, understand if there’s room for further investment. Dominating your market is the way to go, especially if a specific campaign is already working for you.

4. Invest smarter, not necessarily heavier

That point goes hand in hand with what we’ve already explained in our previous law firm Google Ads tips in 2021. You don’t need to splash the cash to see results as long as you make smart decisions. Depending on your practice area and location, you can look at your untapped potential and brightest opportunities. We always suggest reviewing your local demographics and opportunities with US Hispanics. Going back to what we previously mentioned, Google Ads in Spanish can potentially mean higher intent and, in some cases, lower CPCs. For example, we’ve seen markets where the competition for Google Ads in English was extremely high, with CPCs over $250, while the respective keywords in Spanish had a significantly lower competition and CPC.

5. Protect your brand, invest in branded ads

In the past months, we dedicated a full article on how to protect your Law Firm’s brand with branded ads, and we see this as one of the most crucial tips for 2021. Building brand awareness and creating recognition is a hard-earned badge for your law firm. It usually takes years, excellent results in litigation, community outreach, and several marketing approaches, including digital marketing for your law firm.

Here are our key takeaways:

  • Automation is an excellent tool that can serve for better experience, but you need to find a balance between that and the manual processes. Your keyword selection, for example, and your bidding strategy is something that you might want to review regularly.
  • Investing more doesn’t necessarily mean getting better results and an optimized ROI. On the other hand, investing smarter is what will help you increase your caseload. Our best tip is to review your demographics and start showing ads in Spanish, targeting your local US Hispanic community.
  • Aiming for intent and not just blind volumes. This will help you get more relevant calls from prospective clients, while your budget will be going to keywords that are relevant to your law firm’s practice and searchers that share some meaningful common characteristics.