We love a good corporate and social responsibility initiative — and the Google Ad Grant is a perfect example. For those who qualify, organizations receive up to $10,000 in grant money to spend on ads that will appear on Google’s search engine results pages (SERPs).
When implemented correctly, the Google Ad Grant can:
- Increase website traffic and engagement
- Spread awareness about your mission, programs, and services
- Reach new supporters and engage current ones
- Drive ticket sales for upcoming events
- Boost volunteer recruitment
- Share educational resources about your mission
- Encourage people to sign petitions or learn more about your advocacy efforts
- And much more!
Sounds amazing, right? So what’s the catch?
In the simplest of terms, the Google Ad Grant is not a set it and forget it tactic — at least not if you want to keep those free ad credits flowing. You need to set aside time for the qualification process, for the creation of ads and landing pages, and for their ongoing maintenance and optimization to absorb as much free money as possible. And that means dedicated staff time. But if you have the resources internally — or the ability to outsource to an agency — the Google Ad Grant could be a huge value-add to your marketing strategy.
How do Google Ads work?
Have you ever noticed when conducting a Google search that some search results include the phrase “Ad” next to it? That’s an example of an ad someone has paid to appear at the top of your search results. They can appear above or below search results on Google’s SERPs as well as Google Maps, Google Play, and in the search engine’s shopping tab.
Appearing at the top of an SERP is super important because it makes it more likely that someone will see and click on your ad. The key is to identify the search terms that lead people to your content and using ads to respond to those search queries. You can then direct the searcher to where you want them to go, based on those search terms.
Now, let’s apply the Google Ad Grant to this. With up to $10,000 in free ad money, you can decide how much an ad is “worth” per click, your maximum budget for that ad per day, and tell Google not to spend any more than that amount.
For example, let’s say you’re an animal shelter looking for volunteers. You set your search phrase as “animal shelter volunteer near Baltimore,” and set your max bid price at $5 per click and your budget at $250/day. This tells Google the most you’re willing to pay is $5 per click, and $250 per day. Now here’s a cool detail: some days your click is worth $5, and some days your click is valued at less. You will never spend more than $250/day on that particular ad, but the number of clicks will vary based on the value Google places on your ad.
The best part? You only pay when someone clicks. So even at a maximum bid price of $5/click, you’re still eligible for up to 50 clicks per day on a given ad. A little bit of money can go a real long way with the Google Ad Grant.
Who is eligible for Google Ad Grants?
Are you a 501(c)3 in the United States? If so, that’s an excellent place to start! There are some restrictions to that status — for example, if you’re a hospital, school or college, or a governmental institution, you won’t qualify. There are some additional eligibility requirements — such as whether you have a functional website, own your own domain, and some other factors. If you meet the eligibility criteria, let’s keep going!
What do I need to know about Google Ads before applying for the Google Ad grant?
While there are entire courses and videos dedicated to Google Ads, the main things to know are they work best when you’re open to experimentation, review your data regularly, and have clear calls-to-action to drive users from the ad to your website.
Here’s some of the basic lingo you’ll need to know in maximizing your Google ads:
Keywords: when a user looks up information, they are typing in phrases or words — your key words — that direct them to your page. You will use these keywords to identify when ads should appear.
Search intent: what the user is hoping to find by typing a particular query into a search engine. It could be an answer to a question, a specific website, a product, or exploring a topic. If your ad’s keywords match the user’s search intent, ding ding! Your ad may appear.
Ads: what appears at the top of an SERP if an organization has invested the funds into promoting their site. These can appear as text, video, or image at the top of your results. Each ad contains a “sell” — whether that’s to purchase a ticket to an event, learn about services, explore educational content, etc.
Bid: The maximum amount you’re willing to pay when someone clicks on your ad.
Landing page: when a user clicks on your ad, they are taken to a page on your website that fulfills the “sell” of the ad. As a result, the content on the landing page must match the content of the ad/search intent, as Google checks the relevance of your page to ensure it provides the searcher with legit and quality information.
Campaign: A collection of ads based around a single theme. For example, you may have several different ads focused on driving donations. Your ad campaign is then focused on fundraising.
Conversion: when someone who has clicked on your ad responds to another call to action on the designated landing page. These can be monetary (donations, ticket purchases, etc.) or non-monetary (signing up for an email, watching a video, etc.) These are key since this is how Google ensures you’re making effective use of their in-kind donation.
Why apply for the Google Ad Grant
Have we mentioned that it’s essentially free marketing money? Also, Google owns most of the search engine market — so that’s a factor too.
Again, if you have the resources to dedicate staff time (or hire someone to do it for you), it can be a major value-add to your marketing and communications efforts. In addition to dedicating time to maximizing your Google Ad performance, we also encourage you to:
- Make sure your website is up-to-date and regularly publishes new content. Active blogs and FAQs are great for this purpose.
- Make sure your website is mobile-responsive — since viewers may look at your site using a phone, tablet, or desktop computer, the content should be easily accessible on any device.
- Make sure your call-to-actions are clear! Are “Donate” or “Volunteer” in the main navigation menu so they appear on every page? Is it easy for a reader to know what action you want to take on each page? (Hint: keep it simple. Too many calls-to-action can be confusing.)
As long as you comply with the program’s rules, the grant will automatically reactivate each month. And it’s okay if you don’t spend the full $10,000 each month! You’ll still get to start all over again the following month — provided that you have at least one conversion per month to validate your enrollment in the program and their investment in you.
Get Started With Google Ad Grants
To get started with Google Ad Grants, here’s a short action plan:
- Review eligibility criteria and confirm that you meet all eligibility requirements.
- Request a Google for Nonprofits account — if you are not currently registered with TechSoup, this will be a requirement to obtain your validation token.
- Enroll in Google for Nonprofits.
- Apply for the Ad Grant (this is less of an application and more of a multi-step enrollment.)
- Set up your Google Ads Grant account!
Good luck! And if you have any questions or need help, we’re happy to talk further, including sharing our internal and external resources for making this your nonprofit’s best marketing tool!
