The Challenge
Doogue + George Defence Lawyers are one of Melbourne's most established criminal law firms with over 30 years of experience, 20 lawyers, 7 accredited specialists, and 5 offices across Melbourne. They're recognised as preeminent by Doyles Guide year after year and carry nearly 1,000 Trustpilot reviews.
Despite their reputation, their paid advertising was not delivering measurable results.
When we first audited their Google Ads account, we identified several critical issues holding them back:
Broken Conversion Tracking
The account was reporting a cost per lead of over $3,000. But that figure was not accurate. It was inflated because most conversions simply were not being tracked. Phone calls from the website, form submissions across multiple pages, and other key actions were going unrecorded. Without accurate data, it was impossible to know what was actually working, and the campaign was being optimised blind.
Overcomplicated Campaign Structure
The account had been built with excessive segmentation. Dozens of ad groups with highly overlapping keywords were cannibalising each other. The same search terms were triggering ads across multiple ad groups, creating confusion for Google's bidding algorithm and making it impossible to optimise effectively. Over 900 duplicate search terms were identified firing across competing ad groups.
Poor Keyword Targeting
Ad groups contained 40+ keywords each, many on broad match, which meant Google had too much control over where the budget was being spent. Irrelevant searches, including queries from other countries and unrelated topics, were draining spend. The account's average quality score sat at just 4.6 out of 10, well below the 6 to 8 range needed for efficient performance.
Content-Heavy Pages That Did Not Convert
The firm's website had exceptional depth of content, great for organic rankings, but from a paid ads perspective, the pages suffered from what we call "copy overwhelm." Prospects had to scroll through walls of text before seeing any trust signals, testimonials, or clear calls to action. The pages read more like legal articles than conversion-focused landing pages.
The Solution
1. Conversion Tracking Overhaul
We implemented full-funnel conversion tracking covering calls from ads, calls from the website, and form submissions across every page. This gave us an accurate picture of true cost per lead for the first time and allowed us to make data-driven optimisation decisions.
2. Simplified Campaign Architecture
We collapsed the bloated account structure into a clean, logical framework aligned with the firm's practice areas. Each campaign mapped to a core service (criminal defence, traffic law, intervention orders, etc.) with tightly themed ad groups underneath. This eliminated keyword cannibalisation and gave Google's bidding algorithms clean data to work with.
3. Custom Landing Pages
We built purpose-designed landing pages that dramatically outperformed the existing website for paid traffic. These pages led with trust signals, including the firm's 30+ years of experience, Doyles Guide recognition, Trustpilot rating, and accredited specialist status, right at the top where prospects could see them immediately.
4. Microsites for Deep Trust-Building
Beyond traditional landing pages, we developed microsites that included dedicated reviews pages and "meet the team" sections. This gave prospects the opportunity to build genuine trust with the firm before picking up the phone. Something a standard single-page landing page simply cannot achieve. The microsites acted as an extension of the landing pages, bridging the gap between initial interest and consultation booking.
5. Trust Signals and Social Proof
We strategically placed badges, awards (including Best Lawyers and Doyles Guide recognition), association memberships, and the firm's Trustpilot rating throughout the conversion journey. Combined with professional imagery and clear calls to action, these elements significantly lifted conversion rates.
The Results
The numbers speak for themselves:
- •867 qualified legal leads generated
- •$203,000+ in managed ad spend
- •$234 average CPL, down from $3,000+
- •$118 lowest CPL achieved
- •$200 to $250 stabilised CPL band maintained at scale
Why This Matters
The most impressive aspect of this result is not any single metric. It is that performance stabilised despite scaling.
Most agencies face a trade-off: they can either scale volume (but CPL spikes) or keep CPL low (but volume stalls). With Doogue + George, we achieved both. Consistent lead volume within a tight, predictable cost band. That is the difference between a campaign that looks good in a report and one that actually drives sustainable growth for the business.
The combination of accurate tracking, clean campaign structure, and high-converting landing pages created a system where every dollar of ad spend was working efficiently, and the firm could forecast their marketing investment with confidence.