Paid social
Search captures people already looking. In birth injury a large share of the addressable population is not looking, because they do not know that a claim relating to a birth years ago may still be live. Paid social is the only channel that reaches them at scale — and the only channel where doing it carelessly is genuinely harmful.
The line we do not cross
There is a version of this channel that works and is indefensible: distressing imagery, implied case values, countdown urgency, and creative engineered to make a parent believe something went wrong. We do not build it, and we will end an engagement over it. What we build instead is informational: what the limitations period for a minor’s claim generally means, what a records review involves, what questions a parent might ask their own lawyer. It converts more slowly and it holds up in front of a bar committee.
Who this channel actually reaches
| Audience | What they know | What the creative does | Expected screen-out rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Recent delivery, concerns unresolved | Something happened; no idea whether it is actionable | Explains what a records review is and routes to counsel | High |
| Parent of an older child with a diagnosis | A diagnosis; usually assumes it is far too late | Explains, generally, that limitation periods for a minor’s claim often run differently — never tells them they have a claim | Very high, but the survivors are the most valuable inquiries in the category |
| Referring professionals and adjacent counsel | Sees these families in practice; has no obvious route | Introduces the firm’s co-counsel posture | Low, and it feeds referral development |
| Rule | Reason |
|---|---|
| Signed cases are attributed on a lagged window matched to the firm’s own inquiry-to-signature interval | A 7-day window in a category where signature takes months will always make social look worthless |
| Assisted conversions are reported as a separate line and never added to last-click totals | Adding them double-counts, and a numerate partner will catch it |
| Screen-out rate is reported by audience, not blended | A blended rate hides which audience is producing the non-viable volume |
What we report
| Metric | Role | Reported as |
|---|---|---|
| Cost per signed, viable case | Primary | Headline, on a lagged attribution window appropriate to a long consideration cycle. |
| Cost per screened inquiry | Primary | Social inquiries screen out at a higher rate than search. Reported honestly. |
| Assisted signed cases | Diagnostic | Social often opens; search closes. Reported as a separate line, never merged into last-click. |
| Frequency and negative feedback rate | Guardrail | A rising negative-feedback rate in this category is an ethics signal before it is a performance signal. |
| Cost per thousand, click-through rate | Operational | Appendix only. |
| Phase | Length | What happens | What you get |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 · Diagnostic | 3 weeks | Market sizing from our data, audit of current spend against cost per signed case, screening-capacity model | A written plan and a decision. Credited in full against the first three months of any retainer. |
| 1 · Instrumentation | Weeks 1–4 | Tracking rebuilt so every inquiry carries its source through to the case management system | A funnel you can audit. Nothing is optimised before it can be measured. |
| 2 · Build | Weeks 3–10 | Channel build, creative, landing pages, intake scripts and screening rubric | Assets you own outright, in your accounts, under your name. |
| 3 · Operate | Ongoing | Weekly optimisation against cost per signed case, monthly against cost per case surviving review | A monthly report that leads with signed cases, not impressions. |
When this is the wrong service for you
If your firm is not prepared to have inquiries from people whose situations are heartbreaking and legally non-viable, do not buy this channel. It reaches people who are not searching, and a meaningful share of what it surfaces cannot be helped. That has an intake cost and a human cost, and both are real. Firms without screening capacity should not run it.
Related
Paid search & Local Services Ads
The most expensive inventory in legal, bought against a signed-case target rather than a click target.
SEO & AI search
Built to be quoted by answer engines, not only ranked by search engines. Both are measured separately.
Websites & landing pages
The conversion layer, built for a parent reading on a phone at 2am and for a partner auditing the funnel.
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Authorship & review
- Author
- Kevin Schwaner, Founder; Chief Marketing Officer. Credentials.
- Last reviewed
- Legal review
- Not yet assigned. This page describes marketing practice, not law, and gives no legal advice. Rules cited are linked to the primary source so you can read them directly. See Editorial Standards.
- Corrections
- Found an error? Tell us and it goes in the dated corrections log, whether or not it flatters us.