The transition from the traditional method of measuring cost-per-lead to the more modern method of measuring cost-per-signed-retainer has drastically shifted the manner in how law firms work with personal injury lead generation companies to acquire their cases.
Growth-oriented business partners that purchase personal injury cases now expect closed-loop CRM delivery, one-to-one consent records, as well as exclusive terms and conditions rather than simply purchasing cheap form fills.
The following helps outline the eight major vendors in the marketplace and how they differ in terms of screening ability, contract structure, and track record of delivering signed cases.
Understanding the Cost of Getting New Injury Cases
In the present day, the expense of purchasing online attention has risen significantly. The latest available market research illustrates the stark difference between personal injury firms that are buying inexpensive data vs. those who are investing in exclusive higher intent lead generation systems.
For example, to generate a lead from a social media post could cost as low as $20-$75; however, the conversion rates achieved by these leads could be as low as 1-3%. In comparison, the cost to generate a lead through Google Ads will range between $150-$400; however, top-tier personal injury firms close between 15-30% of these cases.
The new key metric driving growth for personal injury law firms today is cost-per-signed-retainer. For general injury leads, the average cost to acquire a signed retainer is between $1,500-$8,000 depending on what part of the country you'll be operating in. For mass torts, this cost typically ranges from $1,800-$15,000.
To consistently beat these averages, two key components will be necessary: (1) an exclusive data source, and (2) an internal intake team that can call a new prospect within five minutes or less after receiving the lead. If you have a slow intake desk, no matter how exceptional the performance of the vendor, you'll see a negative return on your investment.
How to Evaluate the Best Personal Injury Lead Generation Companies
The marketplace currently has an oversaturation of agencies offering the same basic digital strategies. An examination of the data reveals that these are not only true partners in growth but also the main players driving your growth.
Below is a breakdown of how the leading players in this industry operate:
1. Mass Tort Agency
Ranked #1 because they are shifting the dialogue from just quantity to actual signed retainer results, and they have become one of the few partners to publicly disclose the actual cost of acquiring a signed mass tort case.
All of their campaigns are in full compliance with the Telephone Consumer Protection Act and utilize a comprehensive audit trail to establish a one-to-one consent relationship with the client. To law firms seeking high-value defective drug or device cases, their open reporting builds trust immediately.
2. Injury Lead Gen
This company has a unique approach to the legal lead generation business, based on their partnership with over 340 different law firms. Unlike other personal injury lead generation companies who only publish average prices, Injury Lead Gen is one of the few companies that also publishes actual price data broken down by case type and by premium state.
Injury Lead Gen employs a strict exclusive model. This means the data is never sold to a second law firm. Their proprietary software interfaces directly with all major legal software companies to enable you to have access to data in real-time.
3. Kurios
Kurios is extremely focused on motor vehicle accident lead generation as well as speed of operation. They market themselves as having the fastest data delivery time in the industry; average delivery time is less than 10 seconds between when a lead is generated and when the lead is delivered to you.
Additionally, Kurios maintains an extremely tight screening process. Law firms verify that an accident occurred within a year, at least one physical injury occurred, and that the caller did not cause the accident prior to contacting a firm. This screening process eliminates numerous wasted hours for law firms and their legal teams.
4. Quintessa Marketing
Quintessa provides law firms with a premium option for rapidly growing without requiring a large internal marketing team. Quintessa provides legal firms with signed retainer contracts and general marketing leads rather than just raw lead information or contact details.
This new approach to marketing gives a great deal of freedom for law firms who have grown tired of reaching out to people who do not return their calls. Although Quintessa's cost per client acquisition is relatively higher than traditional marketing agencies, law firms are often able to recover this cost with the time and resources saved.
5. Great Marketing AI
Great Marketing AI has taken the approach of addressing a major void in legal marketing services, that of the Spanish-speaking motor vehicle accident market.
The Great Marketing AI approach is a marketing service that has developed native campaigns that target Hispanic communities in major cities, such as Los Angeles and Houston, that are highly competitive within the automotive accident legal space.
With so few law firms having the ability to service and communicate with these clients through bilingual support staff, the return on investment generated from this marketing effort is usually substantially greater than when compared to the majority of traditional law firm marketing.
6. 12AM Agency
The 12AM Agency is a legal marketing company that offers live transfer models of leads. Rather than submitting an online form to call the injured person back, the lead is maintained on the phone until the firm takes the call.
The cost of a lead can range from $200 to $700, and in the case of a serious injury, the cost can be as much as $1,200 for a single call.
The quality of leads generated through a legal lead generation company is typically high quality; however, law firms must ensure that they have a full-time 24-hour intake desk available. If an intake desk misses either the call or transfer of an incoming call, the firm is likely to lose money.
7. 4LegalLeads
As one of the largest and oldest networks for legal leads, 4LegalLeads is one of the most recognized networks within the industry and is listed within almost every major industry directory. 4LegalLeads has a vast volume of legal cases, covering all 50 US states.
Given the volume of cases available from 4LegalLeads, law firms utilising the 4LegalLeads network must be diligent when reviewing their contracts, especially the section related to their return policy. Firms must also be proactive in returning any inaccurate data within the specified return timeframe to minimise their acquisition costs.
8. LeadingResponse
Like 4LegalLeads, LeadingResponse has a large volume of leads. Law firms running mass tort campaigns on a national level also rely heavily on LeadingResponse to source leads.
Since LeadingResponse sources leads from commercial television advertisements, direct mail marketing, and digital advertising, there may be wide variations in the quality of leads generated by LeadingResponse.
Law firms who are able to successfully utilise LeadingResponse typically maintain large internal call centres, which process hundreds of potential customers a day in order to transition into further conversations with the most qualified leads.
What to Look for in Personal Injury Lead Generation Companies
As more law firms begin to evaluate personal injury lead generation companies, the long-standing practice of signing long-term, locked contracts with companies which have hidden traffic sources is no longer acceptable.
Law firms should ensure that they have a predefined checklist before handing over a credit card to an external partner. If a lead generation company does not meet the minimum requirements established by the law firm during their preliminary questionnaire, it is an operational risk for that law firm.
Integrating intake software: Whenever a law firm partners with an external lead generation company, the company must be able to provide data from that company directly into the law firm's existing software systems (i.e., Filevine, Litify, Lawmatics). Delivering emails manually is slow and leads to missed opportunities.
Exclusivity in the contractual process: Clearly state the law firm’s contact information will not be transferred to second or third party vendors. When multiple firms share contact information, it creates a competitive environment, which leads to lower quality leads.
Reasonable replacement policy: Genuine partners understand that bad information occurs. Vendors must provide a straightforward and uncomplicated policy for refunding the acquisition of bad phone numbers and out-of-state contacts.
Continuity of consent: Each contact made has a record documenting the user's consent to receive communication. This protects the firm from costly regulatory infringements.
Final Thoughts on Choosing the Right Partner
Law firms treating their front desk the same way as an emergency room will outperform firms treating it as a simple mailbox. Partnering with top personal injury lead generation companies for exclusive traffic is just the beginning. The best law firms are adding a high standard of software infrastructure to the premium vendor information.
By aligning a reliable external partner with an internal guideline of contacting within 5 minutes or less from receipt of a lead, the expense per signed case can be greatly reduced. Partner with vendors allowing for month-to-month trial periods, that give you a direct link to your case management software, and have accountability to the final signed agreement, not the initial click.
Common Questions About Lead Generation for Law Firms
How does the speed of contact affect the cost of gaining a client?
Time ruins every legal transaction. Data show that calling a lead after five minutes increases the chances of signing them by 400%. Waiting only 30 minutes to contact a lead will likely result in them calling two other law firms before you call.
Therefore, slow contact times create a costly environment where a law firm's promotional expenses for generating clients exceed its competition by providing leads directly to its competition.
What is the hidden risk of live transfer leads?
The hidden risk of live transfer leads is that although these leads provide the greatest intent to contact your law firm, live transfers also include a significant hidden cost known as the missed transfer rate.
For example, if a marketing vendor charges your firm $700 for each live transfer to your law firm, and your front desk places the person on hold or transfers them to voicemail, the person will hang up, and your firm still pays the marketing vendor $700. Consequently, the law firm must provide dedicated staff to ensure that live transfers are processed immediately for this medium to be profitable to the firm.
How do law firms verify vendor compliance with consent requirements?
It would be best never to accept a verbal assurance from a vendor that leads are obtained legally and comply with the law. Instead, law firms should demand proof of the vendor's one-to-one consent infrastructure.
To prove compliance, a law firm must demand to see a sample audit trail of the vendor. This sample should identify who, when, and where a person provided their consent for their information to be submitted to your law firm. If an audit trail is not established, any law firm utilizing that vendor is exposed to significant legal liability.
Why is there high demand for bilingual motor vehicle accident campaigns?
The market for car accidents targeting English-speaking clients in those cities is very expensive because of intense competition. Typically, the Spanish-speaking community is underserved by most law firms because they do not have Spanish-speaking lawyers on staff.
Law firms that have developed Spanish-language advertising will experience a significantly lower cost-per-click and have a much stronger loyalty and closing rate among the Spanish-speaking community.