How We Cut Cost Per Lead by 25% and Tripled Conversions for a Regional Road Traffic Law Firm
The Challenge
- SituationA regional law firm specialising in road traffic offences had been running Google Ads for nearly three years with disappointing results. Despite spending over £20,000, the account was generating leads at £71.44 each, with conversion value barely reaching a third of ad spend.
- ProblemThe account structure was outdated and inefficient. Legacy broad match modifier and phrase match campaigns were bleeding budget on irrelevant searches, while a low-performing Display campaign consumed spend without meaningful returns. The firm was visible, but not to the right people at the right time.
- StakesFor a law firm in a competitive regional market, every wasted pound on ads meant a potential client going to a competitor. The firm needed a cost-effective way to capture high-intent traffic from people actively searching for road traffic legal help.
The Results
| Metric | Before | After | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conversions | 280 | 698 | +149% |
| Cost Per Acquisition | £71.44 | £53.88 | -25% |
| Conversion Value | £7,232 | £35,744 | +394% |
| Ad Spend | £20,002 | £37,607 | +88% |
| Cost Per Click | £1.29 | £6.94 | +438% |
| Conversion Rate | 1.81% | 12.88% | +612% |
The Approach
We conducted a complete account restructure, consolidating budget into high-performing search campaigns while eliminating waste. The focus shifted to precision targeting through exact match and AI-enhanced broad match strategies, backed by dynamic search ads to capture emerging query patterns.
Paused all underperforming legacy campaigns including Display and inefficient phrase/BMM variants that were driving high-cost, low-quality leads
Rebuilt the core search strategy around three pillars: AI-optimised broad match with single theme ad groups, exact match SKAGs for proven converters, and dynamic search ads for query discovery
Launched a targeted competitor campaign to capture high-intent users already searching for alternative firms
Implemented brand protection campaigns to defend owned search terms and reduce CPCs on branded traffic
Optimised bid strategies and budget allocation toward campaigns showing the strongest conversion efficiency and lead quality
Lead volume increased by 149% while cost per acquisition dropped by 25%, transforming Google Ads into the firm's primary new client channel
The restructured account delivered 698 conversions over 34 months — more than doubling the total leads generated in the previous three-year period, while simultaneously reducing cost per lead by 25%. The AI-enhanced broad match campaign alone saw conversion volume increase by 268%, proving that modern match types, when properly managed, can dramatically outperform legacy structures. Total conversion value grew nearly fivefold, demonstrating not just more leads, but better quality enquiries.
Legacy campaign structures with broad match modifiers and unfocused phrase match can waste significant budget — a complete rebuild often outperforms incremental optimisation
AI-driven broad match campaigns, when structured with single theme ad groups and proper negative keyword hygiene, can be the highest-performing element of a legal services account
Dynamic Search Ads are underutilised in professional services — they captured 167 conversions and identified valuable long-tail queries the firm hadn't targeted
Higher CPCs don't always signal poor performance — the post-restructure account paid 438% more per click but converted at 7x the rate, proving traffic quality matters more than volume