“I’m a new immigration attorney, and I’ve allocated $500 for paid advertisements. What are your thoughts on paid Google AdWords v. Facebook Ads?”
Good question to which is there is no right answer (but that won’t stop me).
First off, $500 isn’t much money in the world of online advertising. It’s not uncommon for small firms to spend thousands of dollars per month. That seems like a lot of money, but it’s comparable to what many small firms spent back in the day on phone book ads. It’s not extraordinary, and they do it because it’s sustainable. They spend, they get new clients, they repeat.
With that kind of money, I’d start very small and have very small expectations. I’m tempted to tell you to not even try if that’s what you’ve got, but I also have a friend who is crushing it with a spend of even less than $500 per month, so what do I know? If you have the energy, then go for it.
Now, where should you spend it? Google or Facebook?
Again, there’s no right answer (and, again, here I go…).
Google vs. Facebook
Both Facebook and Google advertising work for lawyers. Generally, Google works best when prospects have a need to purchase and are hunting for a lawyer. Facebook works best for helping people gain awareness of your existence in a more general way. Each has its place.
Generally, I’ve found that Google is the place for quick and measurable results. Unfortunately, Google has, in many markets, a very high cost per click. You can spend a small fortune on Google in the blink of an eye. Sometimes that high cost is justified. In some instances, however, the high cost is the result of uninformed lawyers bidding up the price of ads without carefully measuring their return.
On the other hand, Facebook tends to require more creativity and subtlety. Results from Facebook tend to take longer. You can advertise on Facebook without spending much money, depending on your approach. Sometimes it’s actually hard to spend money on Facebook because your audience may be small or your click-through rate might be weak. Of course, Facebook has all sorts of ideas to help you accelerate your spending.
Facebook keeps introducing new and clever ways to help you promote your practice. Some of its approaches, while technically advertising, are more subtle and look more like posts in the feed than what we think of as advertising. Facebook is offering a multitude of novel approaches. I know some immigration and adoption attorneys using Facebook with remarkable success. (I suspect it’s because these practice areas present more opportunities for “sharing.”)
The Bottom Line
You’ve got to experiment and figure out what works. I’d encourage you to tackle one idea at a time and learn everything you can before you commit your money. Move slowly and cautiously, and carefully track your investment, calls, consults, retainers, and revenues. Track every penny you spend and determine your return on investment.
Before you spend the money on advertising, ask yourself whether you’d be better off investing the funds in taking some possible referral sources to lunch. Lunch might not be your thing. Each of us has to find the marketing approach that suits our practice and our personality. Give that question some thought before you commit to the spend.
Online advertising works. It’s putting real money in the real pockets of lots of attorneys. The key is to find the sweet spot and exploit it while it lasts. You want to find the right ad and put it in front of the right audience at the right time. You’ve got to do it at the lowest possible cost and have the highest possible impact. It’s tricky, but it can be done.
