Calculating CTV ROI for Personal Injury Law Firms
$150K investment → 192 cases → $4.8M revenue = 32x ROAS. Give campaigns 90+ days. ROAS improves 24% as awareness compounds.
CTV ROI isn’t calculated like digital advertising ROI. There are no clicks. Response is delayed. Attribution is probabilistic. But ROI is absolutely measurable. You just need the right framework.
The ROI Equation
Basic ROI formula: ROI = (Revenue from CTV - CTV Cost) / CTV Cost × 100
For law firms, this becomes: ROI = (Cases Signed × Average Case Value - Total CTV Investment) / Total CTV Investment × 100
The challenge is connecting “cases signed” back to “CTV exposure.”
Building the Attribution Chain
Impressions → Verified Visits
CTV platforms track which households saw your ads, then match to website visits. Benchmark: 0.5-1.2% verified visit rate.
Verified Visits → Leads
Track form submissions and calls from CTV-attributed visitors. Benchmark: 3-6% conversion for PI landing pages.
Leads → Cases
Your intake process converts leads to signed cases. Benchmark: 15-25% for qualified PI leads.
Cases → Revenue
Multiply cases by average case value to calculate attributed revenue.
The Complete ROI Calculation
Full example:
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| CTV investment | $150,000 (3 months) |
| Impressions | 3,000,000 |
| Verified visits | 24,000 |
| Leads | 960 |
| Signed cases | 192 |
| Average case value | $25,000 |
| Attributed revenue | $4,800,000 |
ROI = ($4,800,000 - $150,000) / $150,000 × 100 = 3,100%
Or expressed as ROAS (Return on Ad Spend): 32x
The Time Factor
CTV ROI improves over time as awareness compounds:
Short-term measurement underestimates true ROI. Give campaigns 90+ days before judging performance. A campaign you’d kill at day 30 might be your best performer at day 90.
Cost Per Acquisition Metrics
Sometimes ROI is easier to understand as cost metrics:
Cost Per Verified Visit
Calculation: CTV Spend / Verified Visits
Example: $50,000 / 8,000 = $6.25 per verified visit
Benchmark: $5-15 is typical
Cost Per Lead
Calculation: CTV Spend / Attributed Leads
Example: $50,000 / 320 = $156 per lead
Benchmark: $150-500 depending on market
Cost Per Case
Calculation: CTV Spend / Signed Cases
Example: $50,000 / 64 = $781 per case
Benchmark: $1,500-4,000 depending on market and case type
Comparing to Case Value
The ultimate question: Is your cost per case sustainable given your case economics?
| Case Type | Avg Value | Target CPC | Max CPC |
|---|---|---|---|
| Auto PI | $15-40K | $1,500-3,000 | $4,000 |
| Catastrophic | $100K+ | $3,000-7,000 | $10,000 |
| Soft tissue | $5-10K | $500-1,000 | $1,500 |
If your cost per case is 10-15% of average case value, you have healthy margins. At $2,000 CPC on $25K cases, you’re spending 8%. Room to scale aggressively.
Attribution Model Impact
Different attribution models change how credit, and therefore ROI, is calculated:
| Model | CTV Credit | Calculated CTV ROI |
|---|---|---|
| Last-click | 0-10% | Appears negative |
| First-click | 80-100% | Overstates CTV |
| Linear | 40-60% | Moderate |
| Position-based | 40-60% | Balanced |
| Data-driven | Varies | Most accurate |
CTV accounted for 38% of impressions but 63% of attributable conversions when proper multi-touch attribution was applied. Last-click dramatically understates CTV’s contribution.
Incremental ROI Measurement
The gold standard: proving CTV causes conversions, not just correlates with them.
Geo-Holdout Test
Run CTV in some markets, not others. Compare conversion rates.
Example:
| Market Type | Conversion Rate | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| CTV markets | 2.4% | - |
| Control markets | 1.8% | - |
| Incremental lift | +33% | CTV-caused |
Only the incremental conversions should attribute to CTV for true ROI calculation.
Before/After Analysis
Compare performance before and after CTV launch, controlling for seasonality.
Example:
- Pre-CTV monthly cases: 40
- During CTV monthly cases: 56
- Incremental cases: 16
- Monthly CTV cost: $40,000
- Incremental CPC: $2,500
Common ROI Calculation Mistakes
✅ How to Fix
- + Use 90-day measurement windows minimum
- + Implement multi-touch attribution that credits awareness
- + Measure branded search lift (0.81 correlation with CTV)
- + Compare system-level metrics (CTV + search combined)
- + CRM integration to track impression to signed case
❌ Common Mistakes
- − Too short a window. 30 days misses delayed conversions
- − Last-click attribution. CTV gets zero credit
- − Ignoring halo effects: branded search lift, improved conversion rates
- − Wrong benchmarks: comparing CTV CPL to search CPL
- − Stopping at leads. Missing case quality differences
Reporting ROI to Stakeholders
For partners and leadership, translate metrics to business terms:
Don’t say: “We achieved 0.8% verified visit rate and 156 CPL”
Say: “CTV generated 64 cases at $781 per case. Given our average case value of $25,000, that’s a 32x return on ad spend.”
Focus on:
- Cases generated
- Cost per case
- ROI multiple
- Comparison to other channels
References
- MNTN Research. (2023). Increased investment in CTV leads to better performance. https://research.mountain.com/trends/data-reveals-increased-investment-in-ctv-leads-to-better-performance/
- Decentriq. (2025). CTV advertising: The complete guide. https://www.decentriq.com/article/ctv-advertising