YouTube has evolved far beyond a platform for viral videos and entertainment, becoming the second-largest search engine in the world. For personal injury law firms looking to expand their digital presence and connect with potential clients, YouTube offers an opportunity distinct from traditional search engine marketing. But how exactly should PI firms approach this platform to maximize results?
To explore this question, we sat down with Seth Sparks, Senior Digital Content Writer at cj Advertising and a frequent contributor to the PI Playbook Podcast. In this Q&A, Seth breaks down the key differences between YouTube and Google search strategies, explains why timing and intent matter differently on each platform, and shares practical insights on how law firms can leverage cross-platform content.
Whether you’re just starting to consider creating content for YouTube or looking to refine your existing strategy, Seth’s expertise offers a roadmap for making this powerful platform work for your firm.
YouTube Marketing Insights for PI Firms
1. YouTube as the Second-Largest Search Engine
YouTube is now technically the second-largest search engine after Google. From an SEO perspective, how should personal injury law firms think about keyword strategy differently for YouTube versus traditional Google search? Are there specific search behaviors or query types that PI firms should prioritize on YouTube?
Yes, it’s best to treat YouTube like a problem-solver-plus-recommendation engine, not a “near me” directory. Google Search rewards “high-intent” keywords, while YouTube rewards viewer satisfaction. That should change how you title your videos, what you target, and how you measure success.
On Google, most people searching for a personal injury lawyer are already looking to hire someone. They search for phrases like “car accident lawyer near me” or “New Orleans injury attorney,” and the goal is to show up in those local, high-intent results.
YouTube is different. People usually are not ready to hire yet. They are trying to understand what to do after an accident and what their rights are. So, the keyword focus should shift to the questions people would ask right after the incident, such as “Should I call my insurance first?” or “How long does a car accident case take?”
For example, instead of naming a YouTube video “Car Accident Lawyer in New Orleans,” a better performing title would be something like “What to Do After a Car Accident in Louisiana.” That topic meets people where they are in the moment, gives helpful steps, and builds trust. Then, when they are ready to talk to a lawyer, your firm is already the expert who helped them understand the situation.
2. Cross-Platform Content
How does a well-developed YouTube presence impact a PI firm’s overall SEO performance, including their website rankings, Google Business Profile, and featured snippets? Can you suggest any specific integration strategies between YouTube and a PI firm’s other digital properties, without creating competing content?
This is one of the greatest aspects of starting a YouTube channel and taking it seriously. As mentioned earlier, YouTube is increasingly being cited in AI Overviews and LLMs. It’s also common to see YouTube videos rank on Google outside of AI Overviews, giving your brand another valuable touchpoint on search engines’ results pages. That alone is encouraging when it comes to the ability of a YouTube channel to increase a brand’s presence on Google.
But even beyond that, by committing to YouTube, you are creating valuable, helpful content that can be leveraged on other platforms. You can link to your videos on your Google Business Profile and social media platforms. You can repurpose content from your videos and turn them into other assets, like blogs and newsletters. This way, you’re creating a robust content pipeline where assets help rather than compete with each other.
3. Growth vs. Support Channels
You’ve previously spoken of two distinct approaches on YouTube: a “growth channel” designed to build subscribers and audience, versus a “support channel” that serves as a content library for existing prospects. For PI firms, when do you think each approach makes sense, and why?
Support Channels: Some firms simply don’t have the budget or willingness to commit to a consistent publishing schedule (which is typically key for success on YouTube). However, they can still use YouTube as a repository to place their videos (explainers, testimonials, etc.). They can then use those videos on their website, social media, and correspondence with new clients.
Most platforms (WordPress sites, social media platforms, etc.) play nicely with YouTube, so it’s a logical place to store these videos. Plus, there’s the added benefit of visibility. It’s unlikely that occasionally uploading these videos to YouTube would grow the channel on the platform, but it doesn’t hurt.
Growth Channels: For firms that do have the budget and/or willingness to commit to consistently publishing videos that would be useful to their audience, sustaining a growth-focused YouTube channel is one of the most forward-thinking, worthwhile endeavors a business can undertake.
Marketing is evolving. We’re seeing AI Overviews on Google, the rising popularity of LLMs in general, and the growing consumer demand for video content. Because of these factors, it’s no longer the case that all roads lead back to firms’ websites (though websites are still super important). Rather, PI firms need to future-proof their growth by being as present as possible on the platforms where people already spend time, and YouTube is an immensely popular platform.
4. Localization Strategy
You’ve also mentioned that locally focused content drastically reduces both the size and reach of the channel, while acknowledging PI firms need to convert locally. How would you advise a personal injury law firm to balance creating broad, audience-building content (like “What to do after a car accident”) with location-specific content that drives conversions in their service area?
The first thing to consider is whether a given topic has a genuine local angle. If it does, make sure you’re speaking to that. If it doesn’t, don’t force it. For example, statute of limitations-related questions are best answered at the state level. Dog bite-related topics might require discussing a city’s ordinances. By contrast, general questions about dealing with insurance adjusters might not make sense if a local angle is forced into the content.
So, by all means, look for opportunities to address local issues or infuse local angles into your video content, but if it’s weird or unnatural to make a topic local, don’t shoehorn it in.
While relying heavily on local content does limit your reach, the people you do reach are far more likely to be potential clients, so the tradeoff is worth it.
5. Video Content vs. Written Content
You’ve noted that AI has made writing content far easier than it used to be, leading to search engines being flooded. Given the increasing noise in written content, do you see video content becoming more critical for PI firms to maintain search visibility and authority? How should firms be reallocating resources between written and video content?
There’s value in offering written content on your website; organic traffic to websites hasn’t bottomed out yet. That said, it’s clear that AI platforms are increasingly showing a preference for citing YouTube videos. Users are also looking to video for answers and information more than they used to. So, absolutely, video is becoming more critical for PI firms to maintain visibility and authority, both on and beyond Google.
This presents an opportunity for firms to make videos (and particularly YouTube) a key part of their content marketing strategy, and leverage the videos they create to use as source material for website content, social media posts, emails, and even correspondence with new and existing clients.
I think it’s best to think of this question less as an “either/or” and more of a “yes, and” when thinking about written and video content.
6. YouTube Shorts vs. Long-Form Content
You’ve recommended videos between 8-15 minutes for optimal engagement but also mentioned shorts as part of the equation. From an SEO and discoverability standpoint, what’s your recommendation for PI firms on the mix between YouTube Shorts and longer-form content?
If a firm could only commit to one form of video (shorts vs. long-form), I would recommend long-form content. It has far more staying power than shorts, which are more likely to see initial spikes in traffic that taper off quickly. It also offers the opportunity to go a bit more in-depth in content and establish more trust with users.
However, shorts can help with growth, and they appeal to different types of users than long-form videos. It’s often true that people who watch long-form videos are less likely to watch shorts and vice versa. So, if a firm had the bandwidth and/or budget, taking the most interesting soundbites or snippets from videos and turning them into shorts is a wise strategy.
There’s no precise formula for the ratio between long-form videos and shorts. But a good starting point would be pulling one to two shorts from your long-form clips and gauging over time how much growth (subscribers, views, watch time) you get from each to adjust your ratio accordingly.
7. The Long-Term ROI Reality
You’ve been clear before that ROI is essentially nonexistent in the beginning and that YouTube is a marathon, not a sprint. From your experience, what realistic timeline should personal injury law firms expect before seeing measurable SEO and lead generation benefits from YouTube? What early metrics should they track if not immediate leads?
If the goal is to grow a YouTube channel specifically (and not just using it as a support channel for other marketing efforts), then you want to shift how you think about performance. The first few months of the channel’s existence should include experimenting with different formats, approaches, and types of topics you address. Meanwhile, monitor views, subscribers, and watch time to determine which formats, approaches, and topics are contributing the most to your channel’s growth.
After six months, those metrics should be telling you a story about what is working and what isn’t. After a year, that story should be even clearer. You can then start doubling down on what helps you grow and scaling back on what isn’t moving the needle.
While growing the channel on YouTube is the primary goal, it’s important to remember that your video content doesn’t exist in a vacuum. Keep an ongoing dialogue with your other marketing teams to look at how frequently your video content appears on Google (in the AI Overviews or in the traditional search result listings).
Add UTMs to the links you place in your video descriptions to your website. You might find that even when views/subscribers/watch time aren’t meeting expectations, they are raising brand awareness, helping your presence on search engine results pages, or driving traffic to your website.
8. Emotional Connection vs. Technical Quality
You’ve stated before that 97% of viewers prioritize emotional connection over technical quality. From a conversion and reputational perspective, how important is production quality for personal injury law firms? Does the authenticity of a lower-production, more genuine video actually perform better for trust signals? How should firms think about investing in equipment?
Production quality is a major plus. It shows professionalism and reduces distractions like bad lighting, unflattering camera angles, or cluttered backgrounds. However, it’s not a prerequisite. The quality of the content itself (the words you’re saying, the story you’re telling, the personal connection you’re making with viewers) far outweighs the importance of production value.
That’s why I’d encourage any law firms that want to start a YouTube channel not to wait until they have the right camera, lighting, or setup to get started. One caveat is ensuring your audio quality is good. Even in a visual medium like YouTube, having quality audio is more important than having great image quality. But good microphones are affordable, and you can even record high-quality audio using only a smartphone.
Ultimately, creators on YouTube should steadily move toward better production values as their budgets and bandwidth allow. Over time, they can invest in better cameras, lighting, and microphones, but it’s more important to get started than to make sure you have the highest production quality.
Ready to Dominate YouTube?
With more than 25 years of experience helping PI firms build powerful brands and capture high-value cases, cj Advertising knows to create data-driven YouTube strategies that actually convert. Whether you’re looking to launch your first campaign or optimize your existing presence, our team of legal marketing experts is ready to help you meet potential clients where they are.
Contact cj Advertising today to learn how we can help your firm stand out on the second-largest search engine in the world.
