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Ad Layout Shifts Are Reshaping Legal Marketing

Big changes in ad placements are rolling out and they’re already impacting how law firms show up online.

Google Search & Maps:

  • Ads are no longer just at the top or bottom of Google’s search result pages. Now, we’re seeing ads appear mid-page in search results, this is due to increased testing with SERP configurations as Google really ramps up Ai features throughout Google. With these changes come dips to ad serving, making different campaign types and options really important during this transitional time. SEO is also continuing to see declines in this shift as Google moves more toward zero click search. This makes ads especially important right now. 
  • A new Google Maps layout is being tested with ads now showing beneath the map pack instead of above it. This is again another consequence of increased ad placement testing during one of the biggest shifts to ever occur on Google. As Google pushes more Ai features onto the main search page, this changes how users interact with results and where they scroll to next. So we believe this change is also due to the larger changes invovling Ai.

YouTube Ads:

  • YouTube’s 30-second non-skippable ads are now in beta and no longer restricted to reservation-only buys. These CTV/Smart TV placements are boosting branded searches and conversions in early tests. 
  • YouTube is also pushing a 15 second non-skippable & 6 second bumper combo, giving advertisers a total of 21 seconds to get creative. We are seeing a lot of these recently when watching YouTube so it appears that advertisers are adopting this format.

What It Means for Law Firms:
AI testing and platform experimentation are ramping up and rolling out fast. We expect these ad placements changes to become more common as we get further into the Ai era. Now is a good time to test newer YouTube formats or keep an eye on shifts in Google ad positioning. These changes offer more opportunities to reach potential clients across platforms whether they’re searching locally or watching on their TV.

If your firm isn’t checking out these newer ad formats or optimizing for new ad placement layouts, now’s the time to start. 

https://youtube.com/shorts/2cH5DGqvC6Q

 

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