Your Rankings Didn’t Drop. So Why Did Your Calls?

If your Google rankings look fine but your phone stopped ringing, this isn’t a coincidence.

Google changed where the call button appears in local search results. And the data proves it’s costing law firms leads.

The pattern law firms kept seeing

Your rankings are stable. Visibility fine. But calls for new case inquires have been declining month after month.

Nothing looked broken from your reports. But that’s what made it so frustrating.

Sterling Sky recently released a video where they pulled data on 179 Google Business Profiles across 34 law firms in the United States over the last 2 years. They tracked one metric: clicks to call.

The trend was consistent. When rankings didn’t change, calls declined anyway.

What actually changed

Phase 1: Remove the call button’s prominence in the local pack for free listings.

Google has quietly removed the call button from traditional local pack listings on mobile search results. In its place in the local pack you will now likely find images.

Meanwhile, the call button on the paid ad slot got massive, which is impossible to miss.

So now when someone searches “car accident lawyer near me” on their phone, the most prominent action (placing a call) is locked behind an image.

Phase 2: They’re testing AI Local Packs that eliminate the call button entirely

The new AI Local Pack format is already appearing on roughly 8% of keywords according to Places Scout data. And that percentage is rising.

Here’s what makes AI Local Packs devastating:

• Fewer spots: They show only 1 or 2 businesses instead of the usual 3
• No call buttons: Many versions remove the click-to-call button entirely
• Shrunken visibility: AI packs surface 32% fewer unique businesses than traditional packs
• Rank blindness: Most tracking software can’t see AI Local Packs yet, so you look “fine” on paper while your traffic vanishes

Consumers didn’t stop calling law firms. Google just moved the button. Then they started removing it completely.

Why this is invisible to most rank trackers

Here’s the frustrating part: your rank tracking software probably isn’t catching this.

Most tracking tools can’t detect AI Local Packs yet. So your reports show you’re ranking in position #1 or #2, everything looks fine, but your actual visibility (and calls) are plummeting.

You’re getting a false positive. The data says you’re winning while your phone stops ringing.

This is why firms are so confused right now. The metrics they’ve relied on for years aren’t showing the problem.

Why Google did this

In my opinion its because Google has to report to shareholders. Increasing profits is always in the cards.

This isn’t the first time either. You’ve probably noticed that they made ads blend in with organic results.

They’ve constantly taken monetization actions. The forcing of ad spend is deliberate, and they’ll see how much they can get away with.

But here’s the thing: we’re in an era of actual potential competition for the first time in a long time (ChatGPT, Perplexity, others). Maybe things will change. Maybe they won’t.

Either way, Google never really had your best interest. They have their shareholders.

What this means for your law firm

The internet as a whole is increasingly becoming pay-to-play. Just like in 2014 when Facebook started limiting the organic visibility of posts to your own audience. Google is just catching up.

Organic visibility still matters but if you’re not paying for at least Local Services Ads it’s time to reconsider.

Here’s what we’re seeing work in 2026:

The pay-to-play pivot is happening now

Here’s what Juris Digital is seeing across our client base: significantly higher ROI on Google Ads.

Why? Because ads still have the call buttons and prominent placement that organic listings are losing.

This isn’t a recommendation to abandon organic SEO. It’s a wake-up call that relying on organic alone may not be your best stand alone strategy in 2026.

What we’re still seeing work (even in 2026)

Here’s what people get wrong: they think organic SEO for attorneys is dead.

It’s not.

We’re seeing significant gains through organic SEO efforts even in 2026, even with AI Overviews showing up everywhere, even with AI Local Packs reducing visibility.

Google keeps shrinking the local pack’s value, and yes, ads help fill the gap. But here’s what we’re seeing: clients who never abandoned organic are now outperforming competitors who put all their eggs in the paid basket years ago.

Casey Meraz

Founder, Juris Digital

You just need a strategy that matches your firm’s growth goals and proper forecasting to build the model.

The problem we see most often?

Firms that went all-in on one channel. Even within Google, firms that ignored organic and only focused on local pack strategy are hurting the most right now.

The intake problem nobody talks about

Many law firms don’t have a lead problem. They have an intake problem.

If you’re getting calls but not signing cases, the issue may not be Google.

It could be happening right after the phone rings. Here’s a quick sanity check to see if that might be your biggest constraint:

Questions to ask yourself:

• Are you responding to leads in under 2 minutes?
• Can intake staff sign cases on the spot? Time kills deals. Systems win.
• Are you staying on top of your leads with multiple contacts & nurturing?
• Is your CRM tracking every lead source accurately?
• Do you know your conversion rate by channel?
• Are leads going to voicemail during business hours?
• Is your intake team trained to handle different practice areas?

Firms are shopping. If you don’t answer fast, someone else will.

What about other platforms?

Yes, diversifying matters. But most firms can’t do everything well.

You don’t want to roll out to every platform with a poor strategy and hope something sticks.

Figure out another platform that works with your audience. Maybe that’s Meta and using webinar funnels to build trust for B2B attorneys. Maybe it’s podcasts if you have the time to share your expertise. It depends on your practice area.

Most important: you need to track it. If you can’t figure out an ROI after some time, you’re in trouble. Model your expected results and see where you end up.

Brands will never go away. People do business with who they know, like, and trust.

This isn’t the end of SEO

Twenty years ago, people found law firms in phone books. The method might change, but people’s need to find the information never will.

Show up where people look.

This isn’t the end of the world, but you need to act accordingly if you want to see results. You will have to pay more than you used to.

The question isn’t whether organic SEO still works. It does. The question is whether you’re building a complete strategy or hoping one channel will carry everything.

What to do this week

1. Check your calls trend. Pull your Google Business Profile data for the last 12 months. Are calls declining while rankings hold steady?
   
2. Audit your ad presence. Search for your target keywords on mobile. Where do your ads appear? Are you in LSAs? Are you running 3-pack ads?
   
3. Review your intake process. What’s your average response time? What’s your lead-to-client conversion rate?
   
4. Get a growth strategy built. A generic SEO package isn’t your best bet. Work with someone who will model a plan based on your goals and execute to reach them.
   
5. Track everything. You can’t optimize what you don’t measure. Know your cost per lead and cost per signed case by channel.

My take: Marketing is testing. Consumer behavior changes. Ad fatigue is real. Things change constantly, but you need a partner who can stay on top of it and work with you, not roll you into a one-size-fits-all approach. Always determine your goals and work backwards.

Source: Sterling Sky analysis of 179 Google Business Profiles across 34 law firms. Watch the full breakdown.

At Juris Digital, we build custom growth strategies for law firms based on your specific goals and market conditions. Get in touch if you want a partner who tracks results and adapts as the market changes.

Casey Meraz Casey Meraz is an entrepreneur, SEO expert, investor, creator, husband, father, friend, and CEO of Juris Digital. Casey is a frequent speaker at industry events and the author of two books on digital marketing, including "Local Marketing for Personal Injury Lawyers" and “How to Perform the Ultimate Local SEO Audit”