One of the most common limitations I find in most lawyers thinking about PPC advertising is their Cyclops-like focus on whether their ads and website(s) are showing up on Google, in the search results, for the keywords they want to target.
The giant hole in this thinking is that they are missing an entire universe of people who are online, but not looking at search results. These potential clients can only be found using what’s known as the Display Network.
What is the Display Network
Where your AdWords ads are placed is based on either searches or content, therefore AdWords has two separate networks – the Search Network and the Display Network.
The Search Network is the Google search results we all know about. You can only place text ads on the Search Network, and these ads are targeted based on a user’s search terms.
The Display Network includes all the webpages that participate in the AdSense program, such as article sites, news sites, email programs and blogs.
Contextual targeting means that your ads will display along side similar content, so if a user is researching the answer to a question that relates to your practice area or reading about the latest news related to your practice area, your ads could appear here. Or perhaps they are talking about their issue in their email account and your ad appears here. This allows you to target potential customers at different points in their “buying” cycle.
Where your ads appear on the Display Network is decided through contextual targeting. Contextual targeting uses your keywords to match your ads to sites with similar display or themes.
All of the keywords in your ad group are taken into consideration during contextual targeting, and an overall theme of your ad group is determined, so it’s important to have similar keywords in your ad groups.
On the Display Network you also have the option of choosing exactly what website your ads will appear on and which sites you do not want your ads to appear on.
Why Use the Display Network
The Display Network can increase your total conversions and increase your law firm’s reach, but it is tricky to navigate and it’s an entirely different animal than the Search Network. However, if you do capture a user’s attention with the right messages, contextual targeting has the potential to bring you many more leads and clients.
You should test a separate display campaign in your PPC account and determine if the Display Network works for your practice area. In some cases the competition for these lesser known and lesser used campaigns is much less and therefore, the costs can be much lower per conversion.
To your PPC Success!
