Speaker 1: 0:05

How to leverage contextual advertising. Welcome to Legal Marketing 101. I'm Toby Rosen, and up top, before we get into it, I have a little bit of an announcement. You may or may not have noticed that some of the episodes from the past, some of the series that we've done in the past, have become paid episodes, and that's what this announcement is really about. So we are transitioning some of the show to a paid subscription model. Now, not all of it is going to paid. The way we're going to do it for the foreseeable future is that the first episode of the month will be for subscribers only and then the rest of the episodes throughout the month are going to be free, as usual. So you'll still get all of those episodes. And I believe September we have five Mondays, so we're going to have four free episodes and one paid episode up at the top of the month. So just a little announcement about that coming up. Make sure to subscribe. The subscription is just $10 a month and you're really just subscribing for that one episode a month. So we wanted to make it relatively reasonable. But you're also getting access to all of the previous series that we've done, all of that content that is now under that subscriber required option. We are looking at some other things, like doing video and releasing more things on YouTube for subscribers, but definitely take a look at that and check out the options for subscribing to the paid content.

Speaker 1: 1:27

Okay, let's get on to the episode and how we can actually leverage contextual advertising in our legal marketing. So let's start by breaking down how contextual advertising works and why it's so powerful for law firms. I've talked about this a little bit before, but let's just run through it again. The key idea with contextual advertising is to reach potential clients based on their intent, what they're actively looking for, rather than casting a really wide net, like we've talked about, and hoping that just something sticks or gets caught in the net. So let's imagine that someone is browsing online, reading an article about the steps involved in a divorce or maybe something like the latest changes to an immigration law. I suspect we will be seeing more soon. They're not really just casually surfing the web. They're already in some kind of mindset where they're considering options. Let's say, and this is where contextual advertising steps in. So by placing our ad next to that type of content that's directly relevant to our legal services, we're positioning ourselves right in front of a potential client at the exact moment they're thinking about their needs, before they've even started thinking about how to solve those issues, instead of interrupting an experience with an unrelated ad, like some kind of pop-up on social media while they're looking at vacation photos or stalking their ex on Instagram.

Speaker 1: 2:45

Instead, our ad appears in a much more organic and relevant way. We're meeting them where they already are and we're actually getting ahead of the thought process. They're immersed in the content that's aligned with the thing that we're selling. So, as an example, if our firm specializes in family law, we could have ads placed along articles about all kinds of child custody, child support, divorce, spousal support. There's tons of topics here where there is news about these topics. Same thing for immigration. If that's your area of focus, your ad could be next to an article discussing new visa requirements or green card application openings.

Speaker 1: 3:23

This type of advertising captures a very highly targeted audience, because the people that are reading that content are often likely to need your services, and especially so compared to someone who's just seeing your ad while scrolling through Facebook. And what's really effective about this? We're going to come back to this again, but what's really effective about this is the precision. So with contextual advertising, you're not relying on these broad-based targeting criteria that we deal with in display, or on social things like age or geographic location or even just the way Facebook decides to select interests. Instead, we're focusing on the content that potential clients are actually engaging with very high up in the funnel. It is a direct line to the people who are actively researching their legal issues, usually before they've considered hiring an attorney. I mean, that's how high up in the funnel we're talking about is. People may just be discovering their issue, and this intent-driven advertising allows us to connect with people at a really critical point in the decision-making process and embed that thought that we're the person to trust very early. In a way, it's like having a seat in the table during their research phase. You're not just another ad that's competing for attention. Once they're already in the market, you're positioned as part of the learning experience and by being visible in these relevant spaces, you're not only increasing the chance that they're going to actually click your ad, but you're also positioning your firm as a trusted resource automatically, and this can make all the difference when they're ready to take the next step and look.

Speaker 1: 4:57

This is one of the biggest advantages of contextual advertising. It's that your ads appear in environments where potential clients already feel a sense of trust. Think about the difference between seeing an ad on a legal news site or on Bloomberg or on another news site basically versus just encountering some banner ad or some pop-up or, you know, an interstitial ad on a video on Facebook. The context in which an ad appears really does have a pretty significant impact on how that ad is perceived. When your ad is placed along this high quality, highly relevant content again, an article in a respected publication discussing a legal issue that's relevant to what you sell it's automatically lending its credibility to your law firm. The psychological effect is really subtle here, but it is very powerful in the end game. Because your ad is appearing in this trusted environment, potential clients are more likely to perceive your firm as credible and knowledgeable. So compare this to social media or search ads.

Speaker 1: 5:58

Look, these are still valuable and I do a ton of search, I do a ton of social media and the thing about them is that they can kind of feel like more of an interruption than a helpful suggestion. We've all experienced those ads, that sort of follow us around the internet or they pop up in our email when we least expect them, like when you're browsing for new shoes and it's like, okay, I looked at the Nikes, I'm going to look at Adidas now, but it's just Nike, nike, nike, nike. These ads can feel kind of disconnected from what the user's actually interested in and what their immediate interests are, and this usually results in them being ignored at least the ads being ignored or being dismissed as just irrelevant to what's going on. Contextual ads, on the other hand, are woven into the user's natural reading or browsing experience, and when someone is deeply engaged in an article about the legalities of estate planning, for example, an ad for your estate planning services fits really seamlessly into that thought process. It's not an intrusion, it's part of the journey. This creates a significantly more positive experience for the potential client and increases the likelihood that they'll engage with your ad. It's like the website is telling them if you have this problem too, here's the guys to call this.

Speaker 1: 7:16

Association with reputable content has a really long-term impact, too when it comes to your brand. Over time, the repeated exposure in these trusted environments helps to reinforce the perception that your firm is the go-to resource for reliable legal advice, and it's not just about being seen here either. It's about being seen in the right places. That sense of authority by association can help build lasting trust with potential clients and with clients who become clients before they've even clicked on your ad. But here's the thing Contextual advertising isn't just about reaching the broad masses. It's a strategic tool for law firms to connect with highly specific niche audiences.

Speaker 1: 7:58

One of the greatest strengths of the platforms that we're talking about with contextual are the abilities to target these particular categories and specific publications that cater to either localized or specialized interests. This is really advantageous for law firms that focus on specific practice areas or are within tight geographic regions, or even for single project or single focus practices. So let's take a totally random example. Let's say your firm specializes in environmental law and your goal is to attract clients in industries like renewable energy or real estate development. This is actually not something I have any experience in, so what we could do, though, is, rather than placing generic ads on the big platforms, contextual advertising could target publications and websites that audiences frequently visit. So if I'm working for an environmental law company or firm, we're going to have a pretty big budget, and usually we'd want to go to the big guys so we could get our brand out there.

Speaker 1: 8:57

But if we actually want to generate clients, we could put our ads on these niche industry blogs, find professional association websites, trade journals or really just anywhere that people are discussing things like regulatory updates or environmental impact things or whatever's going on in that universe. So we place our ads within that context and that would position the firm in front of an audience that actually needs our services but also really appreciates the expertise in the specific area of concern. We could certainly hit the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg and even CNN and NBC and MSN there's a ton of networks. We could hit and run a really wide campaign. That would get the brand massive exposure. But if we really just wanted to target people who are going to pay us money, drilling down on these people who are already browsing, already exist on the web, that's where we really want to be and this approach really works kind of wonders when it comes to localized markets.

Speaker 1: 9:57

So if your firm serves a particular region or city, like a lot of you guys, contextual ads can help you reach that community more effectively than the traditional broad-based advertising you get with those local news outlets. So first we target those local news outlets, the regional blogs or even local business directories. And, of course, we can use the geographic targeting tools to make sure that we're targeting people who are looking at these publications and in our area. But the other thing we can do on top of this is use the tools provided by these contextual advertising platforms to specifically target the content within these websites that works really well for our audience. The strategic advantage of this should be pretty clear by now. In communities or industries where traditional advertising can struggle to gain traction or is particularly competitive, contextual advertising can help you cut through the noise and put your brand in front of the right people at the right time. Rather than getting lost in this big sea of general digital ads, your firm is standing out in smaller, more engaging environments where potential clients are already focused on the issues that you can help them solve. This laser-focused approach not only boosts your brand's visibility and does all of that fun stuff, but it also elevates the perception of your firm as a specialized, trusted authority. In all of those areas, it's about being seen where it actually matters by the people who are most likely to need your expertise.

Speaker 1: 11:23

Now, before we move on, I'm not going to forget the thing everybody cares about the most, and that's the price. Because one of the major draws of contextual advertising for us in the legal universe is the ability to achieve a lot more with a lot less. And this is especially when compared to paid search or to social media. And in many competitive legal sectors like PI, family law, immigration, insurance stuff, paid search can be pretty, pretty expensive, and this drives up our CPCs. We get that up to a pretty eye-watering level, and this is because we're bidding against all these other firms for all these same high value keywords. There's just no way around it. That's how auctions work.

Speaker 1: 12:04

So contextual advertising, though. On the other hand, this typically offers a lower cost per click, so it can make it a lot more cost effective when it comes to reaching our audience. And the reason for this, at least for now, is usually still down to competition. Paid search is a much more competitive auction environment. Law firms are bidding on the same keywords and it's really easy for things to just get driven up to a ridiculous level.

Speaker 1: 12:31

But, on the other hand, contextual ads are tied to the content being consumed and, since the focus is on the relevance of the content, not just the bidding wars over the popular search terms, the overall cost of placing these ads tends to be lower. This is not all the time, but it does tend to be pretty, pretty cheap compared to most search markets, and for law firms with tighter marketing budgets, this can be a pretty big advantage. Or even if you're already doing search and you want to add a little bit of boost to it, you're not only stretching your dollars further, but you're getting your ads in front of more targeted audience. So by getting in front of more people with better targeting, we're saving money on our CPC for our pay-per-click ads, and we can afford to run more ads, experiment with different placements or just invest it in different marketing channels. This is a way to get way more mileage out of your budget without sacrificing the quality of your marketing outreach. But look, it's not just about lowering costs. That's obviously not what we're trying to do with marketing. In marketing, we're always trying to raise costs. We're also trying to raise the revenue, but raising costs is pretty much what we do.

Speaker 1: 13:36

Contextual advertising, though it's really good at helping law firms attract qualified leads. These are people who are already researching the types of services that you actually offer, and when your ad appears alongside content that's relevant to your practice area. The person clicking on that ad is more likely to be someone who needs legal help, not just a casual browser. This means that not only is your cost lower, but your cost per acquisition becomes lower as well. You're getting more qualified leads without that big price tag and without those bidding awards, and in a world where efficiency is just as important as effectiveness, contextual advertising allows law firms to cut costs without cutting corners, and, as the legal landscape, we know this, it is always getting more competitive. We are always finding smarter, more cost-effective ways to acquire clients, and this isn't just a marketing tactic, it's a strategic necessity. That's it for Legal Marketing 101. Check out RosenAdvertisingcom for more Thanks.