Search engine optimization (SEO) and pay-per-click advertising (PPC) are two popular digital marketing options for attorneys. While both marketing channels can be wildly profitable, there are some clear benefits (and challenges) that come with using SEO and PPC. Here are some pros and cons with each form of marketing to help your firm decide what option might be a good fit.
SEO Pro: Ongoing Success
When a SEO campaign is executed artfully, you’ll eventually receive new clients and online contacts without lifting a finger. Some legal websites are so large they consistently rank on the top page of Google for thousands of queries. The better your SEO efforts today, the more income you will earn in the future.
PPC Con: Constant Vigilance
You cannot "set and forget" a PPC campaign. Bids may need to be adjusted daily depending on the volume you need or the other advertisers in the network, keywords can run amuck, and constant optimization is necessary to improve your conversions and click through rate for PPC campaigns. Unlike SEO, it’s not profitable (or possible) to work hard on PPC for six months and have it run flawlessly for the next year.
SEO Con: Slow to Grow
While SEO campaigns may be able to manage themselves at some point, it’s slow going to get them off the ground. Depending on your area of law, it may take months or every years to rank well on Google or Bing. Personal injury in particular is one of the most competitive areas of law, so when you add a new page of content regarding negligence or personal injury claims in no-fault states, you can bet that there are a dozen other blog posts online that you’ll be competing against for traffic. You can expect to sink at least six months of work into your SEO campaign before you have a chance of becoming profitable.
PPC Pro: Start Immediately
PPC campaigns are a little different—in theory, you could start a new campaign and sign a client today if your bids are high enough and the quality of your campaign looks good to Google. You have a lot more control with how many clients you receive through a PPC campaign as well as how fast they come in. It’s much easier to adjust your volume needs immediately as a campaign manager as opposed to a digital marketer attempting to sign more clients through SEO.
Both: Expensive
The bad news for both SEO and PPC enthusiasts is that these marketing options are expensive. It’s common for Social Security disability benefits to pay $1 per click, and that’s not guaranteeing anyone will even contact your firm, let alone have a pursuable claim. SEO theoretically yields “free” cases, but it takes a lot of time to add valuable content to your website or gain backlinks to your site.
Lead generation is often less expensive than both SEO and PPC. When you work with a lead provider, you pay for contact information from claimants, not maintaining your own digital marketing campaigns. To learn more about our product pricing and availability in your area, give eGen a call today at 617.800.0089.