Traffic Ticket Industry Secrets: The Annual Cycle

I am one of the co-founders of TacitLogic, a company that has built a software platform for lead intake, lead management and lead commerce for the broad lead generation market.  We have build this platform over the course of the last five years and have initially used it to power TixNix, a national network of traffic ticket attorneys.  Since much of our business to date has been within the "traffic ticket industry", I have learned quite a bit about this fascinating market.

One of the things that I have learned during this time is that the market tends to fluctate in a fairly predictable cycle across the year.  Recently, a large client asked me to give him a sense of how he should be adjusting the amount of money that he spends from his overall marketing budget on pay-per-click (PPC) advertising over the course of the year.  I realized that I had sense of this, based on the fluctuations of TixNix traffic and lead volume, but had never really analyzed this properly.

Accordingly, I have looked into this a bit more deeply and am presenting my findings.  First, I will outline how the traffic ticket market fluctuates across the year.  Second, I will offer my suggestions on how a traffic ticket attorney should adjust their PPC spend throughout the year.  And third, I will discuss (without giving away the best secrets) how the interest in traffic and speeding ticket attorneys and legal services is a bit different from the financial decision to hire a traffic ticket lawyer.

How the Interest in Ticket Ticket Services Fluctuates Across the Year

Across the year, here is what I have found to be true about the traffic ticket market:

• From May to September, the traffic ticket market is the strongest.
• From Thanksgiving to the 1st week of January, the market is the weakest.   
• "Travel" holidays (including 3-day weekends, but excluding Thankgiving and Christmas) are very strong. 
• The week before Thanksgiving is very strong.    

Given that TixNix has a large, national presence in the traffic ticket market, I was able to verify all of this (and more) through our analytics and marketing logs.  My initial thought was to post this data for all to see, but my better judgement eventually won the fight.  That said, I found an alternative way to back up these assertions...with Google. 

Google has a fairly new service, called Google Trends, that allows you to look at search volume by keyword, by time and by location.  By looking at how often users search for "speeding ticket" and "traffic" within the United States these trends become apparent.  Here are links to the graphs:

Keyword Seach Volume, 2009 to Date

Keyword Seach Volume, 2008

Keyword Seach Volume, 2007

Keyword Seach Volume, 2006

How a Traffic Ticket Attorney Should Adjust their PPC Marketing Spend Across the Year

The number of people searching for "speeding ticket" and "traffic ticket" across the year on Google gives you a very good sense (directionally) of how many people will be clicking on a pay-per-click ad that would drive potential clients leads to your website or to TixNix.com or to TicketClinic.com or to DMV.org, etc.

Knowing the market potential for leads and customers through PPC marketing is a critical piece of understanding how to allocate the mix of your marketing budget across channels.  Given that PPC is the easiest of all marketing channels to adjust on a month-by-month (or even hour-by-hour) basis, adopting a PPC strategy that considers market fluctuations can be quite profitable.

So, what would I suggest?

If you are typically spending $1,000 per month on PPC AND this spend is enough for your particular market.  Bear in mind that this is a big "if" - if your PPC campaigns generate leads at a cost-per-lead with which you can profitably provide service, you should be maximizing PPC at ALL TIMES. This being the case, here's my rough suggestion.

• Jan - $750
• Feb - $1000 
• Mar - $1000  
• Apr - $1000  
• May - $1500  
• Jun - $1500 
• Jul - $2000 
• Aug - $1500 
• Sep - $1500
• Oct - $1000
• Nov - $750 (spend it all before Thanksgiving) 
• Dec -  $250 (go on vacation)  

So, this actually totals a little bit more than if you simply spent $1,000 each month, but it is not meant to be an exact rule...just a rule of thumb. 

Do Traffic Ticket Interest and Attorney Conversion Rates Relate to One Another?

During the summer, you certainly want to maximize your lead potential by adjusting your PPC spend upward.  Of course, the key question is whether you are more likely to convert a lead into a paying customer during these times of high demand.  Surprisingly, there are times when the number of leads can increase but the conversion rate to paying customers actually decreases.

Across the year, you would be doing quite well to update your spending (directionally) based on my suggestions above.  However, there are some further ways to maximize your upside and minimize your downside according to conversion trends.  However, these secrets will stay safe with me.   

-Drew Massie

Comments

[nelson daggett]

Hey. I live just north of Seattle Wa. I moved here about 7 years ago. The first thing I noticed is that everyone drives very slow. Below the speed limit. I worked a shift for 5 years that got out at 2am. I have been pulled 10 times, and ticketed 3 times. The roads are winding and hilly. It is difficult to go exactly 25 or 30 mph. Some of the officers are glad that I am not under the infuence. But most seemed bummed that they could'nt use ther handcuffs and call for back up. Now I put my 23 year old car in 2nd(it coasts slower) and I understand why everyone drives under the limit. They get you on those brief times you go over the lovely limit. They are NOT here to protect. They are here to collect.....