What Family Lawyers Need To Know About The Internet’s Top Two PPC Advertising Platforms

Many people start looking for a family lawyer with a search on their phone or computer. Pay-per-click advertising lets your firm appear at the top of those results, and you only pay when someone clicks through to your website.

Two platforms dominate search advertising: Google Ads and Microsoft Advertising. This article compares them, so you can decide where your firm’s budget should go first.

For a wider view of how Perth law firms attract clients through SEO, advertising and content, see our guide to law firm marketing in Perth.

How pay-per-click advertising works

Both platforms run an auction each time someone searches. You choose the search terms you want to appear for and set a budget, along with a bid or bidding strategy.

The highest bid does not automatically win. Each platform also weighs how relevant your ad is and how useful your landing page is likely to be. A well-written ad pointing to a focused page can appear above a competitor paying more.

You pay when someone clicks. If nobody clicks, the ad costs nothing, although it still puts your firm’s name in front of people.

Google Ads

Google is by far the most used search engine in Australia, so Google Ads reaches the largest share of people searching for a family lawyer. For most firms, that makes it the first platform to consider.

Google offers several campaign types:

• Search: Text ads shown on Google’s search results when people type in your chosen terms. This is usually the core of a law firm campaign.
• Performance Max: A largely automated campaign that runs across Search, YouTube, Display, Maps and Gmail. It can work, but it gives you less control over where your money goes, so it needs careful setup and watching.
• Display and Demand Gen: Image and video ads shown on websites, apps, YouTube and other Google placements. These suit awareness more than urgent enquiries.
• Video: Ads on YouTube, useful if your firm has explainer videos about the process.

Shopping and app campaigns also exist, but they rarely apply to a law practice.

One caution for family law. Google’s personalised advertising policies restrict targeting people based on sensitive personal circumstances, and relationship difficulties can fall into that area. Check the current policy before you build remarketing lists or audience targeting around family law topics.

Microsoft Advertising

Microsoft Advertising, formerly Bing Ads, shows ads on the Bing search engine and on partner sites that use Bing’s results. Bing is the default search engine in Microsoft Edge and on many Windows computers, so it reaches people who never change those settings.

The audience is smaller than Google’s. Many advertisers find that competition, and therefore cost per click, is often lower as a result. It can also reach people searching from work computers during office hours.

Microsoft has a tool that imports campaigns directly from Google Ads. That makes it fairly quick to test once your Google campaign is in good shape. Imported campaigns still need checking, as some settings and ad formats do not carry over exactly.

Microsoft is also placing ads in its Copilot assistant and other products. These options change often, so check what is currently available in Australia before you plan around them.

Google Ads and Microsoft Advertising side by side

• Reach: Google reaches far more searchers. Microsoft reaches a smaller group that Google may miss.
• Cost: Clicks on Microsoft are often cheaper, but there are fewer of them. Your total spend there is likely to be lower.
• Control and tools: Both offer search campaigns, keyword match types, location targeting, ad scheduling and automated bidding. Google has more campaign types and features.
• Setup effort: Google takes the most work to build well. Microsoft can largely be copied from Google, then adjusted.

Which should a family law firm start with

For most practices, the sensible order is Google first, then Microsoft.

Start with a focused Google Search campaign covering the services you most want, such as divorce, property settlement and parenting arrangements. Run it until you can see which search terms and ads produce real enquiries.

Once that campaign is working, import it into Microsoft Advertising with a modest budget. Compare the cost per enquiry on each platform over a few months, then move money to whichever performs better.

If your budget is very tight, keep it all on Google until the campaign is profitable. Splitting a small budget across two platforms usually slows down learning on both.

For practical ways to keep Google Ads costs under control, read our article on running Google Ads for your family law practice without spending a fortune.

Rules that apply to legal advertising

Ads for law firms carry extra obligations beyond the platforms’ own policies.

• Ads must not be misleading under Australian Consumer Law. Claims about outcomes, fees or speed need to be accurate.
• The professional conduct rules restrict how lawyers describe themselves, including use of the word “specialist”. Check the current requirements with the Legal Practice Board of Western Australia or your law society before using it.
• Both platforms may ask advertisers to complete identity or business verification. Allow time for this before launch.

Track enquiries on both platforms

Whichever platform you use, set up conversion tracking for phone calls and contact form submissions before you spend. Without it, you can see clicks but not which of them became clients.

Good tracking also lets each platform’s automated bidding work properly, because it learns from the enquiries you record.

Get help with your firm’s advertising

SLINKY is a Perth digital agency founded in 1998, offering Google Ads management alongside SEO and web design. You deal directly with senior people, and there are no lock-in contracts. If you would like to talk through the right mix of platforms for your practice, get in touch.