The Complete Guide to Google Ads for Lawyers

    Everything UK law firms need to know about running profitable Google Ads campaigns — from keyword selection and budget planning to ad copy, landing pages, and SRA compliance.

    Why Google Ads Matters for Law Firms

    While organic SEO delivers the best long-term return on investment, Google Ads provides immediate visibility for your law firm in search results. For competitive practice areas where organic rankings take time to build, or for new firms establishing their online presence, Google Ads can deliver qualified enquiries from day one. However, the legal sector has some of the highest cost-per-click rates of any industry, making it essential to manage campaigns efficiently to avoid wasting budget.

    Legal keywords in the UK routinely cost between £5 and £50 per click, with some high-value terms like "personal injury solicitor" exceeding £80. At these prices, every element of your campaign must be optimised — from keyword selection and negative keyword management to ad copy, landing page design, and conversion tracking. A poorly managed legal Google Ads campaign can burn through thousands of pounds with little to show for it.

    This guide walks you through every aspect of setting up and managing profitable Google Ads campaigns for your law firm. Whether you're considering running ads for the first time or looking to improve the performance of existing campaigns, you'll find practical, actionable advice based on our experience managing legal PPC campaigns across the UK.

    Keyword Strategy for Legal Ads

    The foundation of any successful Google Ads campaign is keyword selection. For law firms, this means identifying the specific search terms that potential clients use when they're ready to instruct a solicitor — not just researching their options. The distinction matters enormously when you're paying £20 or more per click.

    Focus your budget on high-intent keywords that signal someone is actively looking for legal help: "solicitor near me," "[practice area] solicitor [location]," "hire a lawyer for [issue]." Avoid broad informational terms like "what is medical negligence" — these are better served by organic content. Use phrase match and exact match keyword types rather than broad match to maintain control over which searches trigger your ads.

    Negative keywords are equally important. Build a comprehensive negative keyword list that excludes irrelevant searches — "free," "jobs," "salary," "training," "definition," and similar terms that indicate someone is not looking for legal services. Review your search terms report weekly and add new negative keywords to prevent budget waste.

    Campaign Structure Best Practices

    Separate campaigns by practice area

    Create individual campaigns for each practice area (family law, personal injury, conveyancing, etc.) so you can set different budgets, bids, and ad copy for each. This also makes performance analysis much clearer.

    Use location targeting precisely

    Target the specific geographic areas you serve rather than broad regions. Use radius targeting around your office location and adjust bids for areas where you're most competitive. Exclude areas you cannot serve.

    Create tightly themed ad groups

    Each ad group should contain closely related keywords (5-15 keywords maximum) with ad copy that directly matches those keywords. This improves Quality Score and reduces cost per click.

    Write compelling, compliant ad copy

    Include your practice area, location, and a clear value proposition. Use ad extensions (sitelinks, callouts, structured snippets) to maximise ad real estate. Ensure all claims comply with SRA advertising rules.

    Build dedicated landing pages

    Never send ad traffic to your homepage. Create specific landing pages for each practice area that match the ad's message, include clear CTAs, trust signals, and make it effortless for visitors to enquire.

    Implement conversion tracking

    Track form submissions, phone calls, and other conversion actions. Without proper conversion tracking, you cannot measure ROI or optimise effectively. Set up Google Ads conversion tracking and import goals from GA4.

    Budget Management & Bidding

    Setting the right budget for legal Google Ads requires balancing your client acquisition cost against the lifetime value of a new instruction. Calculate your target cost per enquiry by working backwards from your average case value, conversion rate from enquiry to instruction, and your profit margin. This gives you a clear maximum you can afford to pay per click while remaining profitable.

    Start with manual CPC bidding until you have sufficient conversion data (at least 30 conversions per month), then consider switching to automated bidding strategies like Target CPA or Maximise Conversions. Automated bidding can improve efficiency significantly, but it needs data to work effectively — don't switch too early or you'll get poor results.

    Schedule your ads to run during hours when potential clients are most likely to convert. For most law firms, this means business hours when someone is available to respond to enquiries quickly. Running ads 24/7 when your office is closed can waste budget on clicks that don't convert because no one follows up promptly.

    SRA Compliance for Google Ads

    All Google Ads for UK solicitors must comply with the SRA's advertising and publicity requirements. This means ads must not be misleading, must not make unsupported claims about success rates or outcomes, and must be clearly identifiable as advertising. Claims like "guaranteed results" or "100% success rate" are not only likely to breach SRA rules but could also violate Google's advertising policies.

    For detailed guidance on advertising compliance, see our SRA Compliance & Advertising Rules Guide. Our content marketing services can also help build the organic visibility that reduces your reliance on paid advertising over time.

    Google Ads vs Organic SEO

    Google Ads and organic SEO are not competing strategies — they're complementary. Ads provide immediate visibility while you build organic rankings, and organic content creates the landing pages and authority that improve your ad Quality Scores and reduce costs. The most successful law firms invest in both channels, using ads strategically while building a sustainable organic presence.

    As your organic rankings improve through our SEO services, you can gradually reduce ad spend on keywords where you rank organically, redirecting budget to new practice areas or more competitive terms. This creates a virtuous cycle where your cost per acquisition decreases over time while your total enquiry volume grows.