Twambley: “It’s a last man standing scenario.”
InjuryLawyers4u, the leading law firm marketing consortium, is paying Google £8m a year, it has emerged.
Andrew Twambley, director of InjuryLawyers4U and managing partner of Amelans, said the consortium was spending £3m on Google four years ago and 10 years ago “probably about £3”.
He said Google was the biggest player in digital marketing “by a long way” and in a “monopoly” position.
Mr Twambley said that for the last four years the consortium had been spending more on digital advertising than TV and the proportion spent on digital had reached 60%.
However, speaking at the Legal Futures‘ NatWest mma digital FROM CLICK TO CLIENT conference earlier this week, he said that TV advertising was still important in building the brand.
“People are more responsive to digital than they are in terms of ringing the number on TV, but TV pushes them to digital. As time moves on, digital will push itself.”
Mr Twambley said the cost of a personal injury lead for his law firm, Amelans, was around £400. “If it’s a case worth around £1,000, and the work costs around £500, that’s not enough profit to pay the bills,” he said. “It’s the more complicated cases that make the money to keep you going.
“People are dropping out of the market all the time – they can’t compete with the big boys. It’s a last man standing scenario.”
Mr Twambley said the cost of a click from a personal injury phrase on Google such as ‘no win, no fee’ was currently £28, far higher than for domestic consumer goods or PPI claims. “You have to be in the top three on a desktop, and the top two on mobile – which means paying even more,” he added.
Meanwhile Adam Shutkever, chief operating officer of Riverview Law, said Twitter was the firm’s “single biggest influencer” in developing dialogue with potential corporate clients.
“It proved to be invaluable,” Mr Shutkever said. “At no cost at all, we had in-bound enquiries coming to us from global counsel.”
Mr Shutkever said Linkedin had also been important in the development of Riverview’s business.
Mr Shutkever encouraged lawyers to be “brave” on Twitter. “Law firms are scared to say what they think, but it’s important to say something people are interested in reading. And it’s important to operate on two levels – corporate and individual.”
