In 2020, Google rolled out Local Service Ads for several attorney types, including Workers’ Compensation Attorneys. Local Service Ads, also called LSA, are ads which display at the top of Google’s search results in a box called “Google Screened” or “lawyers nearby”.
Attorneys who focus on Workers’ Compensation have a few options when initially configuring their LSAs.
There is no main category for Workers’ Compensation attorneys:
I have brought to Google’s LSA team an issue – there is no main category for Workers’ Compensation attorneys. WC attorneys must select a “main category” to get the Workers’ Compensation option.
Basically, this means, when initially creating the LSA account, WC attorneys must select either “Personal Injury Lawyer” or “Labor Lawyer”.
The problem with this is the attorney’s advertisement will display for searches related to personal injury or labor lawyer.
Here’s how I choose:
- If the law firm practices Personal Injury AND Workers’ Compensation AND intends on running LSAs for Personal Injury, I select “Personal Injury Lawyer”
- If the law firm practices Workers’ Compensation exclusively, I select “Labor Lawyer”.
Once the main area of practice is selected, advertisers are brought to a screen where they may select search terms which cause their ad to display. However, you may NOT opt out of the top level category, such as Personal Injury or Labor Lawyer. Selecting “Labor Lawyer” is the best option as this is not a search term that many people use.
This is what the main screen looks like when initially creating your Local Service Ads account. As seen below, there is no Workers Compensation category:
After Personal Injury Lawyer OR Labor Lawyer is selected, you may then select Workers’ Compensation Lawyer.
Configuring your Local Service Ads Account:
We have set up LSAs for about a dozen of the law firms we work with, and it is simple to set up yourself as well. Setting up your LSAs is straightforward assuming you have all of your information prepared ahead of time. You will need advertiser information for Google and personal information for a Pinkerton background check.
To set up Local Service Ads as a Workers’ Compensation Lawyer you will need:
- Business information
- Personal information
- Payment information
- A good headshot which includes your head and shoulders
Here’s a detailed list of the information you will need:
- Business name
- Business address
- Owner’s name (The majority shareholder or partner you’d like the account name under. There is only room for one name on the form.)
- Total # of “professionals” (The total number of State licensed attorneys at the firm)
- Year founded
- Languages spoken
- Headshot for owner (and all lawyers who want their faces in ads)
- License information (Bar #)
- Budget
- Attorney info (Names and Bar # for all attorneys)
- Misc info: your hours of operation, service area, etc.
- Hours you want the ad running
- Company EIN
- Owner’s DOB
- Owner’s Home Address along with move in date (And previous address if you’ve moved in the last 7 years)
- Owner’s Cell #
- Owner’s SSN
How Much do Local Service Ads cost Workers’ Compensation Attorneys?
As of early 2021, in major cities, leads are running around $150. That’s for a call to your law firm which lasts over 30 seconds.
There is a minimum budget of $450 per week, however, after disputed charges, if you use the minimum budget of $450/wk you will likely spend under $1000/month.
Personally, I log in once each month, check on the ads, listen to the calls (they are recorded), and dispute any calls which are not good leads. Google will refund you for disputed phone calls, however, credits for disputes may take up to two months.
Local Service Ads VS SEO:
The majority of users to scroll past ads, however, due to the attorney’s picture and review being displayed, LSAs do indeed capture quite a few leads. Currently, we estimate that about 20% of users use LSAs to contact you.
Ranking organically and in the local pack is still king, however, LSAs are a nice addition for those who can afford it, and often cost effective. It does depend though – in some cities, you may get 3 or 4 “leads” before one of those calls becomes a paying client. In those cases you’re looking at $450 – $600 per client. At that rate, it may not be worth it.
Need help setting up Local Service Ads?
We help attorneys with Local Service Ads every day. If you are a Workers’ Compensation Attorney seeking assistance with your account please feel free to contact us today.
