Generating Leads For Lawyers That Convert To Clients

January 7 , 2022 | BY Matthew Stark

leads for lawyers

One of the most crucial components of lawyer marketing is having a continual flow of quality leads that convert to new clients. For many law firms, this is one of the most difficult areas of their law firm marketing strategies. Most law firms rely on online advertising such as Google Ads and Google Local Services Ads to generate a flow of leads for their firms. The problem is that unless one has extensive experience with PPC management not only is it likely that your lead generation is suffering but is also costing more than it should. This is why law firms should contract their lead generation to experts that specialize in leads for lawyers.

One such agency that has been generating law firm leads for many years is FORWARD Lawyer Marketing. The agency recently launched a division dedicated to quality lead generation for lawyers called Legal Locators. Unlike some generic lead providers, Legal Locators is focused entirely on generating leads for lawyers in a variety of practice areas such as criminal defense, family law, and personal injury.

Matt Stark, the president of Legal Locator has been working in attorney marketing for over 10 years.  In 2011, while at Martindale, he worked with hundreds of law firms consulting them on how to better their digital marketing practices to drive more leads.  After leaving his role there, he founded Forward Lawyer Marketing in 2013, where he continued his work with small and mid-sized law firms, helping grow their practices through strategic digital marketing.  To date, Matt and his team have worked with over 200 small and mid-sized law firms nationwide helping them generate consistent inbound leads to help with new client acquisition.  You can check out what some of their clients are saying here.

Below are some of the issues that are expected to impact law firm lead generation in 2022 and beyond:

  • Further Increased Civil Case Volume
  • More Emphasis on ADR
  • More Competition, Especially for Smaller and Specialized Firms
  • High Prices for Law Keywords on PPC Advertising Platforms

Increased Civil Cases

The expectation is that the volume of civil cases should increase in 2022, largely due to delays since the onset of COVID. This should result in a greater number of potential clients your law firm can retain.

With trial schedules in civil courts backed up for months longer than normal, it’s no surprise that civil case volume is at least remaining stable. Most would-be litigants don’t usually feel the need to settle quickly without an imminent court date.

The other aspect of this higher volume is on the supply side — most notably in family law with increased domestic strife over 2020 and 2021. These issues are coming to action now that people feel safe trying to leave an untenably conflict-filled situation at home.

Alternative Dispute Resolution

Due to the delays and the higher case volume, there has been an enormous push across the United States to offer more opportunities for alternative dispute resolution or ADR from the courts. In some areas, this has been a mainstay for years but it is becoming more prominent across all practice areas.

It could be a good idea to underline the basics of ADR when consulting with your potential clients. Pre-qualified lead services do a lot of the work for you, but setting client expectations is still an important part of the intake process. With many seeking alternative dispute resolution, it is a good practice to allocate a percentage of budget generating leads that are seeking law firms that offer ADR services.

Increased Competiton Across All Practice Areas

Law firm marketing has always been competitive but since the pandemic, it has increased tremendously. Many people still fear going out in public because of the possibility of contracting COVID and lots of people now want virtual meetings. It is important to market effectively to these people as well.

Quite a few attorneys have left larger practices to start single-attorney offices or form small firms. Working from home, some have been able to take on cases independently. Some of these new practices have been successful enough to compete with existing businesses.

What that means is that there’s more competition for the average small firm. The clients are out there, but there are also more lawyers with the time and inclination to respond to leads quickly. This is crucial, it is pointless to invest in leads if no one is going to follow up with them in a timely manner. With few exceptions, most people seeking legal services are needing help now, not months from now.

High Prices For Law Keywords On PPC Advertising Platforms

Prices for PPC advertising are not going to get any cheaper anytime soon. Some PPC keywords have cost-per-click prices of $90 or more. Your customer acquisition costs can be exorbitant when you aren’t experienced in PPC management.

Leads that convert cost money, whether you’re generating them yourself or you’re purchasing them from a service like Legal Locator. If you want a predictable cost-to-lead ratio and predictable quality, buying leads makes more sense. If you want to generate traffic for a website as well as create potential leads, PPC is more appropriate.

Contact A Reliable Law Firm Lead Provider

One of the things we expect for 2022 is an increase in the number of businesses that specifically provide lead generation for attorneys. We also expect to see more automation. You might be surprised at the type of lawyer marketing and lead generation for your law firm you can now afford. Please contact us at (888) 312-2953 to get started today.