Law Firm Meta Lead Gen Scaling Strategy

=== BIDDING STRATEGY RECOMMENDATION ===

Recommended Strategy: COST CAP
Confidence: High

WHY THIS STRATEGY:
✓ Sufficient conversion volume (55 leads/month exceeds 50/month minimum)
✓ Already profitable at $150 Cost Cap
✓ Meta lead generation campaign - Cost Cap is ideal
✓ Ready to scale budget while maintaining efficiency
✓ Cost Cap provides control while allowing optimization
✓ Strong existing performance indicates good creative/offer fit

CURRENT PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS:

• Daily Budget: $180/day
• Monthly Budget: ~$5,400/month
• Conversions: 55 leads/month
• Current CPA: ~$98 ($5,400 / 55 = $98.18)
• Cost Cap Setting: $150
• Efficiency: Excellent (spending $98, cap at $150 = 35% headroom)

SITUATION ASSESSMENT:
You’re in an ideal position. Your actual CPA ($98) is significantly below your Cost Cap ($150), meaning Meta’s algorithm is finding leads efficiently while you maintain cost protection. This headroom is exactly what you want when scaling.

CONFIGURATION FOR SCALING:

Current Strategy: KEEP Cost Cap at $150
Why Keep It:

• Proven to work at current volume
• $150 cap is reasonable for law firm lead value
• Provides safety net as you scale budget
• Algorithm has room to explore new audiences

Scaling Plan:

Week 1-2: Test Budget Increase

• Increase daily budget to $250/day (+39%)
• Keep Cost Cap at $150
• Monitor closely for CPA creep
• Expected: 75-80 leads/month

Week 3-4: Evaluate and Continue
If CPA stays below $120:

• Increase to $350/day
• Expected: 105-110 leads/month

If CPA rises to $130-140:

• Hold at $250/day for 2 more weeks
• Let algorithm optimize
• May need creative refresh

Week 5-6: Push to Target Scale
If performance stable:

• Increase to $450-500/day
• Expected: 140-150 leads/month
• CPA target: Stay under $140

MONITORING PLAN:

Daily (First 2 Weeks):

• Cost per lead (should stay $98-$120 range)
• Lead volume (should increase proportionally with budget)
• Frequency (watch for audience saturation - keep under 2.0)
• % of budget spent (should be 95%+)

Weekly:

• Total leads delivered
• Average CPA trend
• Lead quality (consultation show-rate if tracked)
• Audience saturation metrics
• CPM trends (rising CPM = potential saturation)

DON’T PANIC IF:

• CPA increases 10-15% during first week of budget increase (learning period)
• Daily lead volume fluctuates (optimize for weekly averages)
• CPM increases slightly (expected with scale)

EXPECTED PERFORMANCE AT SCALE:

Conservative Scenario ($350/day):

• Monthly spend: $10,500
• Leads: 85-90/month
• CPA: $115-125

Target Scenario ($500/day):

• Monthly spend: $15,000
• Leads: 115-125/month
• CPA: $120-130

WHAT TO AVOID:

• Don’t lower Cost Cap while scaling (keeps algorithm restricted)
• Don’t switch to Lowest Cost (you’ll lose control as you scale)
• Don’t increase budget more than 50% per week (triggers learning)
• Don’t change creative during budget scaling weeks
• Don’t add new audiences while scaling (too many variables)
• Don’t use Bid Cap (less efficient than Cost Cap for this volume)

CREATIVE & AUDIENCE STRATEGY FOR SCALING:

To Scale Successfully:

1. Expand lookalike audiences from 1% to 2-3%
2. Test new geographic markets (neighboring states)
3. Refresh creative every 4-6 weeks (prevent fatigue)
4. Add testimonial-based ads (work well for law firms)
5. Test different practice area messaging

Audience Expansion Priority:

• Week 1-2: Expand existing lookalike from 1% to 2%
• Week 3-4: Test interest-based audiences (legal services, accident victims)
• Week 5-6: Geographic expansion to adjacent markets

RED FLAGS (Stop Scaling):

• CPA exceeds $140 for 7+ consecutive days
• Lead quality drops significantly (fewer consultations)
• Frequency exceeds 2.5 (audience fatigue)
• CPM increases >40% (market saturation)
• Spending <80% of daily budget (audience too narrow)

TRANSITION PATH:

If Performance Degrades at Higher Spend:
Consider switching to: BID CAP
When: If CPA consistently hits $145-150 (near your cap)
Why: Gives tighter control, but may reduce volume
Starting Bid: $125 per lead

If You Want to Scale Beyond $500/day:
Consider: Running multiple campaign variations

• Campaign A: Cost Cap $150, existing audiences
• Campaign B: Cost Cap $175, new geographic markets
• Campaign C: Cost Cap $150, different practice areas
  This spreads risk and tests new segments

REALISTIC 90-DAY SCALE TRAJECTORY:

Month 1 (Current):

• Budget: $180/day
• Leads: 55/month
• CPA: $98

Month 2 (Scale Phase 1):

• Budget: $300/day
• Leads: 90-95/month
• CPA: $110-115

Month 3 (Scale Phase 2):

• Budget: $450/day
• Leads: 130-140/month
• CPA: $120-130

ACTION CHECKLIST:

Week 1:
[ ] Increase daily budget to $250
[ ] Expand lookalike audience to 2%
[ ] Document current creative performance (baseline)
[ ] Set up daily CPA monitoring alert

Week 2:
[ ] Review Week 1 CPA (should be under $120)
[ ] Check lead quality metrics
[ ] Identify top-performing ad creative

Week 3-4:
[ ] If CPA good, increase to $350/day
[ ] Launch 2 new ad variations
[ ] Test geographic expansion
[ ] Pause underperforming creatives

Week 5-6:
[ ] Evaluate if ready for $450-500/day
[ ] Assess overall lead quality trend
[ ] Plan creative refresh for Month 2
[ ] Calculate actual ROI on scaled spend

PROFITABILITY CHECK:

For this to be profitable, calculate your lead value:

• If average case value = $X
• Client close rate from lead = Y%
• Lead value = $X × Y%

Example:

• Average case value: $5,000
• Close rate: 10%
• Lead value: $500

At $120 CPA on 130 leads/month:

• Ad spend: $15,600
• Gross revenue: 130 × $500 × 10% = $6,500 in cases
• Net: $6,500 - $15,600 = Need higher close rate or case value

Make sure your unit economics support the CPA range before aggressive scaling.